The newly-created bantam elite female Grizzlys team started play in the Alberta Female Hockey League last weekend with a large group of local kids on its roster.
Head coach Cassidy Delainey has 17 girls on the team, eight from Olds and nearby communities.
Under Hockey Alberta's revised female development model, the Grizzlys draw players from the South Central zone, which includes 18 communities. With such a large field to choose from, even Delainey was surprised that so many local players made the cut.
"It speaks a lot for how well the Olds Minor Hockey system is doing and how strong their girls are coming along. That's awesome," Delainey says.
Delainey coached Olds' peewee girls to a provincial championship last year. But as someone who played four seasons at Elmira College in New York, an NCAA Div III team, she wanted to use her experience to help girls who seek the high-performance route.
Player development will be the main focus so she won't measure the success of this season by the win-loss column. However, Delainey believes the team will still perform well by that metric – based on its undefeated record in pre-season action.
"I think if every girl comes in and leaves a better player than they went in, then that's what my job is," she says.
This Grizzlys team is a gateway to the midget elite level, or any of the six midget AAA teams in the province.
Defenceman Jo Bischke, 14 years old, hopes to take the latter path, all the way to U.S. university hockey someday.
Bischke, a Grade 10 student at Didsbury High School, recalls being nervous for tryouts and the relief of seeing her name on the final roster list.
"It's stressful because there are a lot of good players and you don't know what you're up against. And there are evaluators present so there's pressure to be good," she says. "It feels good. We have a really good team. Everybody gets along."
She is also happy about playing hockey close to home after spending last season with the bantam AAA team in Red Deer.
Delainey says there are a number of players who project to play midget AAA in the future.
"I think most can make it as first-years next year, definitely. And then the others will hopefully make the team in the next few years."
"I think if every girl comes in and leaves a better player than they went in, then that's what my job is." CASSIDY DELAINEY, head coach of Olds Grizzlys bantam elite female team
