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Players aim
for penalty-free hockey As part of the annual YWCA’s Week Without Violence, hockey players in the Peterborough Community Church Hockey League (PCCHL) are being encouraged to play penalty-free games. Those teams which go an entire game without having players sent to the box receive a certificate of recognition. The initiative runs from Oct. 18 to 25. “It speeds the game up and helps develop kids’ fundamental skills,” says Al Walsh, special projects officer with the City of Peterborough and president of the Peterborough Community Church Hockey League. Al is also involved with Peaceful Communities steering group, which is comprised of about 14 community representatives from a variety of organizations, including the YWCA, Peterborough Social Planning Council, Women’s Health Care Centre, Peterborough Lakefield Community Police, New Canadians Centre and others. Five years ago, the City’s recreation manager approached Al about whether the PCCHL could get involved in some way, which was when the penalty-free concept was born. Since then, each October, scores of local players have committed to playing a cleaner game. Division chairpersons keep an eye on the game sheets and report back to Al with the results. He expects to know how many teams played penalty-free games by November. The penalty-free week of hockey has ultimately led to the banning of body checking in the church league’s midget division all season. “We have taken the body checking out of our midget division as a result,” says Al. “Our non-body contact division is working well.” When the violence is separated from the game, players can focus on skating, passing and shooting, says Al. “You’re never going to take all of the penalties out of the game, but at least it’s something,” says Al. “If you take that out of hockey, (the players) leave with a positive reflection. I think that carries over to community and hopefully they (develop) peace-builder skills.” Al’s goal for next year is to get the four other minor hockey leagues in the city on board. |
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