INNISFAIL - The Innisfail Eaglettes are spreading their wings this season.
The four-year-old soon-to-be hockey players are developing skills and learning the sport.
“The program here in Innisfail starts at four years old and then they move up to dynamites at five years old,” said Bernie Vanderham, head coach.
The season began in mid-October and will wrap up in mid-March. The Eaglettes have about 20 players this year, including both boys and girls.
They practise once a week for one hour at the Innisfail Arena.
“First we have to get our balance and get our wheels underneath us so that we can stay up,” said Vanderham, noting puck and skating skills, such as stopping. “We’re also working on forward motion and two foot slides right now, graduating into a stride.”
Vanderham noted the kids' slow progression at that young age and what the main focus for the Eaglettes is.
“We’re just trying to teach them the fun of the game and just trying to develop a love for the game,” he said. “It’s all about confidence. One step leads to two and two leads to three.
“At the start of the year we’re upside down so my job is to get them right side up,” he added. “We’re just progressing each week.”
He noted their skill development through using things such as a soccer ball.
“They’re just wanting to go get (the ball) and they’re not thinking about skating. They’re just wanting to go get it,” explained Vanderham. “That’s a trick I find for coaching. You got to take their mind off of what they actually want to do, so by incorporating fun into it like using a soccer ball (it helps).”
They also do group activities on the ice.
“We get into four teams of five and we do four sets of drills, about eight minutes each,” he said. “Then we do something fun at the end (of practice).
The Eaglettes will again be joining the Innisfail Eagles during a home game on Jan. 27 at intermission and will also be on the ice at an upcoming game for the Red Deer Rebels in February.
“It’s the purest grassroots hockey you can find,” Vanderham concluded.
