In this Newsletter:
- Shark Attack Tournament Recap
- Jr. House League Year End Event
- Jr. House League/CDP Parent Info Sessions
- 2023-24 GTHL & Select Coaches Announced
- 2023-24 AA, A & Select Tryouts
- House League Registration Update
- 2023-24 Strategic Initiative
- NTC Hockey Exercise of the Month
Hello Humber Valley families,
I hope everyone is enjoying their March Break! We have a jam packed update this month with lots of important information for parents of all ages so please take a read (whether on a beach or in a rink!) and as always please don’t hesitate to reach out directly if you have any feedback or commentary you’d like to share!
Let’s go!
SHARK ATTACK TOURNAMENT RECAP
Our annual Shark Attack Select Tournament, held February 24th to 26th, welcomed over 700 players aged 5 through 8 and was a huge success on and off the ice! We saw some great competition, team spirit, smiles and friendships throughout the weekend.
47 teams from all over Ontario including 8 Humber Valley Sharks squads from U7 through U9 participated in a total of 237 games over the 3 day event.
Seeing all the Sharks on the ice working hard and enjoying time with their teammates off the ice is what this event is all about. A very big thank you goes out to Caitlin Evans, Grant Henderson, all of our volunteers, coaches and supporters who helped make sure this event went off without a hitch!
JUNIOR HOUSE LEAGUE YEAR END EVENT
We have a fun filled Year End Event planned for our Junior House League players on Sunday April 2nd at Lambton Arena where players will participate in a skills competition! This will be a super fun event to hang out with your teammates and coaches one last time before the season ends.
Our sponsor, Central Hockey Academy (CHA), will be leading the on-ice competitions, with our coaches helping out as well. The players will compete in stick handling and shooting challenges, races, and 3 on 3 games. Specific details for your team have now been added to your TeamSnap schedule. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to Matt Choi mchoi@humbervalleyhockey.com if you have any questions.
REFRESHMENT/GIVEAWAYS AND MORE!
- Light snacks and drinks will be provided for all players
- Team/Player Photos will be handed out
- Gifts for players and coaches
50/50 DRAWS:
- 50/50 draw with all Humber Valley proceeds going to a Ukrainian Children’s Charity
- There will be other exciting 50/50 draw prizes as well
- Tickets will be available for $2 each or $5 for a forearm length – Cash only please!
- Draw will take place after the final skills competition and the winning tickets posted to the HV Facebook Page on Sunday evening (follow us at www.facebook.com/humbervalleyhockey)
SPECTATORS:
- The more the merrier! Bring your friends! Bring your family!
- This is a rare opportunity to watch all players from U5 to U9 – show up early, stick around all day to cheer on the teams and hangout with friends and family!
UPCOMING JR. HOUSE LEAGUE & CDP INFO SESSIONS
New this year we will be hosting a number of virtual parent calls for all our U9 and below parents to help inform and educate on what the programs will look like for 2023/24 as well as answer any questions you may have about what the hockey system/stream looks like as you move up into U10. We have completed our U8 CDP call and will send a notification out the week of March 20th to the following three groups with call details, U7 CDP, U5 to U8 house league and U9 house league.
2023-24 GTHL & SELECT COACHES ANNOUNCED
Sharks Select & GTHL coaches information for the 2023-24 season is now available on our website. If you have questions please reach out directly to the staff members listed.
Please note that we continue to look for a U10 Select Coach. If you are interested in this position, or would like to hear more, please reach out to Grant Henderson, ghenderson@humbervalleyhockey.com.
2023-24 AA, A & SELECT TRYOUTS
Tryouts for AA, A & Select Sharks teams in all age groups will kick off May 1st. GTHL tryout dates and times are now available and Select dates and times will be available in the coming days.
Please note that CDP teams will conduct their evaluations in September. Additional information will be made available in late summer.
2023-24 HOUSE LEAGUE REGISTRATION UPDATE
House League and CDP registration for the 2023-24 hockey season will open in the Spring. We are in the process of finalizing program updates and fees for next season and will provide all members with a notification once the date is set.
STRATEGIC INITIATIVE 2023-24
Following our Strategic Roadmap released in 2022, the Humber Valley Board is focusing this spring on how we will be revamping our U5 to U9 House League program to continue improving on the core principles of Fun and Development. We plan to share updates on the proposed changes over the coming months and welcome any feedback our U5 to U9 HL parents would like to share at info@humbervalleyhockey.com.
NTC HOCKEY EXERCISE OF THE MONTH:
CROSSOVERS WITH MENTAL AGILITY
Unbelievably we already find ourselves in March and closing in on the end of the season. We wish you all an enjoyable end to the season. And to our competitive teams completing their seasons, entering playoffs and attending year end tournaments, we wish you the very best of luck!
Thank you,
Ross Bitove
President, Humber Valley Hockey Association
rbitove@humbervalleyhockey.com