The Stettler Bantam A hockey team will defend its back-to-back first place finishes at the past two provincials here at home, and now organizers are looking for volunteers to make the event go seamlessly.
Stettler last hosted the Bantam A provincials two years ago, where the Stettler team won gold. Last year, the provincials were played in Grande Prairie, where the Bantam team defended their gold successfully.
This year looks to be another promising year because the team is made up of not only some of last year’s Bantam winners, but is built of Peewee provincial winners as well, according to one of the organizers, Jolene Heck.
For the past two years, the Peewee A team has also won provincial gold, and this year’s Bantam team is almost identical to the one that won gold at provincials in Peewee two years ago.
“They certainly work well together,” Heck said.
Without volunteers who will work well together, though, hosting provincials could be difficult, Heck noted. Right now, the committee is looking for people who are willing to give up a little bit of their time to work as scorekeepers, penalty box wardens, 50/50 ticket sellers and in other capacities as needed. There’s no set amount of time required of volunteers, so whether it’s an hour or a day, Heck said all volunteers are welcome.
Provincials are more than just a hockey tournament; they are little celebrations of the level of sport, so include ceremonies and a banquet.
All of the teams playing at provincials will be paying an entry fee to cover the costs of the provincial tournament, meaning that spectators can come and support the kids for free.
There’s no entrance fee for viewers, and Heck said she hoped that would bring people to fill the stands.
Provincials run March 12-15 here in Stettler. Anyone who wants to donate prizes for the raffle table, make donations, or volunteer can contact tournament chairperson Andrea DeYoung at pinkeddie21@gmail.co by March 1.