Cape Breton Blizzard Hockey

NOT TOO LATE TO JOIN HOCKEY!!! We have 5 spaces on our current U9 teams for girls born 2012-2013. On the ice: - Thursday evening 5:45pm at Centre 200 - Sobeys Skills... - Saturday mornings at 10:00 am at Membertou - Sunday mornings at 9:30 am at Membertou We have 3 spaces in U11 for girls born 2010-2011 - Sobeys Skills Powerskating Tuesdays at 5:00 pm Pier - Team practice on Wednesday evening - Games on weekends Free Bauer/CCM gear is available for new players. Half season rate $225. Planned start would be week of Jan 11 going through to March Break. Approx 24 ice times. Message or email: [email protected] + If your player has no past experience with skating or hockey, we recommend the First Shift program starting on January 19. 6 sessions, once a week. $200 - gear is provided. https://www.firstshift.ca/locations/ns/ To be eligible to participate in First Shift, children must be born between January 1, 2010 and May 1, 2015

Plans for hockey during the Dec 21 to Jan 11 phase are outlined here by Hockey Nova Scotia. We will post a schedule in the coming days that will take us through this time. Hockey Nova Scotia and the provincial government are playing strong defence against Covid-19.

Lots of action ahead this weekend. Most games are updated in your teamsnap app and viewable here: https://www.capebretonblizzard.ca/schedule/ Remember: 1. Please sign in with the safety rep for each session you attend.... 2. No food and drink in the rinks = mask on at all times. 3. Don't attend if you are sick. See more

Today is Giving Tuesday and one of our great partners - Sobeys - is matching donations today with Feed Nova Scotia! The link to donate: https://www.feednovascot...ia.ca/donate/giving-tuesday Sobeys supports Blizzard Hockey's development program by providing 200 girls a weekly session that focuses on skating and skills development. Thank you to local stores in Sydney, Sydney River, New Waterford, Glace Bay and North Sydney as well as Sydney Mines Foodland. Sobeys and Foodland are Nova Scotia and locally-based companies. Shop local.

Congratulations Ryan Yhard of Sydney. The winner of our biggest jackpot yet!! $40,361 in the Cape Breton Minor Hockey Partners Even Split Draw. Get your ticke...ts from a player on any of our 8 associations and teams or at these locations around Cape Breton! LOCATIONS: All Sobeys stores at smoke shop counters, all Sydney locations of Pharmasave - Charlotte St, Membertou, HealthPark, and Pier. All Star Auto at 155 Queen St, North Sydney Foodland Sydney Mines Esso in Sydney Mines Irving in North Sydney Bob & Clayton's Auto and Car Quest North Sydney Platinum Fitness North Sydney Guardian Drugs Glace Bay Tamarind Optical at the mall in Glace Bay BP's MAIN STOP in Reserve Fatboys in Dominion Mercers Fuel Sydney Sydney Mitsubishi Mr. Paint, 367 George Street The Best of Cape Breton Gift Shop D'Addario's Pizza on Grand Lake Road Big Bens in Sydney M&M Meats Kenny’s Pizza in Sydney River Rudderham's Source for Sports Kaiser's Locksmith Kenny’s Pizza in Whitney Pier Post Office in Whitney Pier MACS Convenience on George Street Skate Shop at Membertou Tony’s Bakery & Mira Road Needs Tamarind Optical in Sydney River Refresh Body & Skin Care Clinic, 926 George Street Jeds Auto Repair. 1318 Keltic Dr. Just in Thyme - Sydney River PJ’s Convenience in the Pier Island Tire Borden’s Barber Shop New Waterford Convenience Ultramar Grand Lake Road Robin Donuts on Welton street Terrace Convenience Discount Dollar Store Whitney pier Both Dollar Store locations in New Waterford Post office in New Waterford New Waterford Convenience Landry’s Vacuum Service in Dutch Brook Needs in Howie Centre, Les Day Insurance in Bras d'Or Jane's restaurant and Bras d'Or corner store Wreck Cove General Store Ingonish Irving Ingonish Scotiabank Ceilidh’s Variety, Ingonish, Cabot Trail Food Market, Cape North Eskasoni Petro Joggers Lounge Glace Bay Sullivan Fuels on Keltic Drive Westmount Rite Stop Noelle’s Country Market

Big weekend ahead for Blizzard teams! Many home openers and everyone on the ice. SATURDAY: U13/15 Red vs. Orange 11:00am at Membertou... U11 A Green vs. Orange 12:00pm and 2:00pm at Eskasoni U13AAA Cape Breton Blizzard vs Valley Wild 4:00pm Membertou Sport & Wellness Centre U15AAA Cape Breton Blizzard vs Metro East Inferno 5:30pm Membertou Sport & Wellness Centre U18A Cape Breton Blizzard vs. Metro East Inferno 7:00pm Membertou Sport & Wellness Centre U13 AA are visiting Quad Counties Pirates for a double header at Port Hawkesbury Civic Center SUNDAY: U15AAA Cape Breton Blizzard vs. Metro East Inferno 10:00am Membertou Sport & Wellness Centre U18A Cape Breton Blizzard vs. Metro East Inferno 10:30am Membertou Sport & Wellness Centre U13AAA Cape Breton Blizzard vs Valley Wild 11:30am Membertou Sport & Wellness Centre U13/15 Orange are visiting Strait Pirates 12:30pm at Richmond Arena, Louisdale U11A Orange vs. Red 1:30pm at Centre200 U11A Green vs Red 3:00pm at Centre200

Good Morning Blizzard Family! See below for our 2020/2021 Novice Teams! TEAM GOLD: NEICO RYAN... ELIZABETH SHIMON NIA NEVILLE ADA MACAULAY MIA PENNEY KRISTINA SPENCER MACIE RENDELL ADDISON PETERS PENNEY DICKSON ZOE SAUNDERS TEAM BLUE MACEY MACPHERSON BRIELLE BUCKLAND LAURIE MCCARRON GRACE WILSON LOGAN FRANCIS PRIYA QUIRK ELEANOR SEHL MACKENIZE CARTER SOPHIA FOSTER SAWYER MATTHEWS TEAM PURPLE CAELEY MACKENZIE FREEDOM AUGUSTINE NAOMI SYLLIBOY OLIVIA DAHL ISLA MCDIARMID LEXI ANDREWS JANAE MARSHALL ELEANOR FRANCIS MARY LEWIS ANISLEY TONEY TEAM GREEN MYAH GALLANT KARIS GOULD EMMA-JEAN POWER EVELYN POWER EMILY RUDDERHAM ELIZABETH STEVENS CARLEY YOUNG ATHENA JULIAN LAYA FRANCIS SHIAH FRANCIS

Hey everyone the novice teams will be posted tommorow morning!

Great job everyone!!

We are looking for a few more players to join our growing league of over 160 girls playing hockey in CBRM! Space is open now for beginners born 2009-2013. New ...equipment is available! First skates on the weekend of October 16-17 and October 24-25. Register here as a new player: https://www.capebretonblizzard.ca New players worried about their skating skills can participate in our "catch up" program of four sessions dedicated to skating skills. We are also looking for interest for a program for girls born 2014-16. Fill out the survey here to let us know: https://forms.gle/vEG7vZGqdY34bneJ7

Updated schedule for week ahead.

Great job all! Everyone needing tickets for next draw can get them at Monday night’s skates. 6 pm-8 pm pick up at Membertou! If you haven started selling yet, now it the time!

ORANGE SHIRT DAY - Every Child Matters Blizzard Hockey is proud to have welcomed and supported dozens of Indigenous girls in our programs.

SURVEY! Girls hockey for players born 2014-15 Blizzard Hockey is planning to apply to Hockey Nova Scotia to be permitted to expand our beginner program for girls. Halifax FHA offers a program for players at this age. We are working to ensure the same opportunities are available for female players here in CBRM. It will be led by mostly female coaches who are former high-level players. We observed the youngest players responded very positively to this environment at our fall... camp. Please provide some feedback about your interest. https://www.capebretonblizzard.ca//beginner-players-surve/

The tryout schedule at a glance. Make sure to sign in for tryouts through here: https://www.capebretonblizzard.ca/registration/ More info on tryouts available ...here: https://www.capebretonblizzard.ca/tryout-guide/ Also reminding: in person registration and ticket pick up available tonight at Membertou 5pm-8pm.

These counter boxes are available for pick up tonight at Membertou! Drop by before 9pm to get yours.

Good afternoon blizzard family! We have some exciting news that as of oct 1st there will be changes to the rink rules see info below.... Hi all, As you are all probably well aware the Department of Health gave hockey families and facilities some much needed good news. So effect October 1st the following update rules will be in place at the MSWC: 1) Max on the ice without social distancing is now 50. Masks must be worn by all players and coaches until they head on to the ice.... 2) Players in U13 and above will no longer need to wear their gear to the rink. Players U11 and below will still be required to wear their gear to the rink (goalies are the exception). Players are not to arrive until 20 before ice time and leave 15 minutes after ice time. They must check in with the team safety office and complete the Covid 19 forms. 3) For practices and tryouts one parent/guardian will be permitted to watch in assigned seating area where social distancing and mask policy must be followed. Parents must wear mask while in the facility and that includes the stands. The home team is required to track all players and parents in the facility for contact tracing purposes. 4) For games (exhibition and regular season) the capacity of the Emera Rink is 200 and the BMO Rink is 125. Again parents must follow social distancing and mask policy at all times in the facility. We would ask that parents not go into the rink until 5 minutes before ice time and leave as soon as the game concludes. They can wait for their players outside or in their vehicles, they cannot wait in the lobby as we need to control our numbers and maintain social distancing. 5) The player drop off zone in the front of our building is for drop off only, not pickup. Our staff has noticed a lot of cars parked in this area waiting for players after their ice time or simply parking there. I would ask that you please refrain from doing this moving forward. The change in rules and the increase in numbers is welcome news, now it is our responsibility to ensure everyone follows them. If the rules are not being followed, teams/renter may lose there ice time and violators will ask to leave the facility. I am happy to announce this positive news and look forward to everyone following the rules and enjoying our great game. Stay Safe and thank you for your support Paul Paul Carroll- General Manger Membertou Sport and Wellness Centre 902-574-2353

Hockey groups join forces to carry the burden during difficult time New even split draw merges fundraising efforts of most minor hockey players in CBRM SYDNEY, ...NS - Eight youth hockey organizations based in Cape Breton Regional Municipality have come together for a new even-split draw. The partnership represents approximately 1,000 players who play in Cape Breton Regional Municipality and the First Nations of Eskasoni and Membertou. "Local small businesses are a key supporter of minor hockey and they are facing a difficult year because of COVID-19," said David Jamael of Sydney Minor Hockey. "When the shutdowns happened, we started to talk about the tough time many sponsors are facing. We felt that we could better contribute and relieve the burden by joining together for an even-split to raise money for the kid's hockey." The partners include Cape Breton County Minor Hockey Association, Sydney Minor Hockey Association, Cape Breton Blizzard Female Hockey Association, the Joneljim Cougars U-15 Major, the Cape Breton Jets U-16 AAA, the Mitsubishi Rush U-18 Major, Kameron Jr. Miners and the Cape Breton Lynx Female U-18 Major (formerly known as the MacIntyre Chevy Panthers). All players within those associations will now sell the same even-split ticket. Tickets are available from hockey players in those associations and can be found at store counters around the region over the coming weeks. "Anyone wanting to connect for tickets online can follow the new Facebook page at 'Cape Breton Minor Hockey Partners Even Split Draw'. We have volunteers who will assist to get you connected with a seller for tickets," added Jamael. The first draw for the new even split will be Sunday, October 4th.

Our Blizzard U-18 program has an exciting year ahead and they are getting players on the ice now. Kelsey Gilmet, Victoria MacIntyre, Abby MacDonald-Penney and L...eah Byrne are new coaches leading the team and aiming for a third consecutive provincial title. They are reaching out to all midget players and will be on the ice on Wednesdays at 8 at Membertou. Get in touch now if you haven't already: [email protected] Welcome as well to our head coaches for U-11 Glenn Paruch, U-13 Donald Kennedy and U-15 Eddie Turner You can help and support your coaches on all teams by volunteering as a team manger, team safety rep, team fundraising lead or dressing room supervisors. Almost every parent/guardian on a team should have a small role or responsibility. We are a team ON and OFF the ice.

TONIGHTMake sure to finalize your registration and payment tonight (or send a note about arrangements if you haven't already). We start finalizing the details for camp this weekend.

LAST CALL for registration for hockey Sept 9 - Oct 5. Register online by end of day on Friday, September 4. https://capebretonblizzardhockey.teamsnapsites.com/

GIRLS HOCKEY in CBRM starts SEPTEMBER 9. NEW PLAYERS WANTED. Ages: born 2003-2013 Find out more! https://capebretonblizzardhockey.teamsnapsites.com/

SUMMER / PRE-SEASON UPDATE Registration is open! Thank you for all the feedback in the surveys. We heard from over 100 of you and it helped a lot in planning. And thank you to all the coaches who dedicated a lot of time this summer running the summer skates sessions....Continue reading

REBOUND PLAN: We're very pleased to release our return-to-play plan today. The Rebound Plan aligns with public health guidelines and provides a comprehensive fr...amework for getting our game back up and running safely. DETAILS https://bit.ly/2ZlSjZL #ReboundPlan | #nsproud

Blizzard Hockey has some HOCKEY NEWS. WE HAVE A NOVICE PROGRAM THIS YEAR! Girls living in CBRM and born in 2012 and 2013 are eligible to join Blizzard Hockey.... Whatever capacity we are allowed to be on the ice this fall, we will be. We hope you will be there too as coaches. Make sure we have your info. There will be opportunities sooner than later. Send your daughter’s name, birth year and contact info to: [email protected] We will have a Zoom call in the coming days for families new to Blizzard Hockey. Age categories for this year: U-9 (formerly Novice) Birth years: 2012-13 U-11 (formerly Atom) Birth years 2010-2011 U-13 (formerly Peewee) Birth years 2008-2009 U-15 (formerly Bantam) Birth years 2006-2007 U-18 (formerly Midget) Birth years 2003, 2004 and 2005

Awards night zoom - 20 minutes - Video of the event! Thank you to special guests and presenters: Sonya Lynk of Cape Breton Lynx Julia Carroll - emcee - of Nichols College Bison Maddy Corbett of Kingston Jr. Ice Wolves... Nicole MacNeil of Carleton Ravens Kaitlynn Hayes of CBU Capers Erin Denny, Captain of MacIntyre Chevy Panthers Midget AAA and Aimee O'Neill of Saint Mary's University. Thank you for the support and investment from: - Dairy Queen (Grand Lake Road and Sydney River) - Sobeys (Sydney, Sydney River, New Waterford, Glace Bay and North Sydney) - Scotiabank