PITTSTON, Pa. – When you step out onto the ice as an 8-year-old, the rink looks big. For older players, 200 by 85 feet is not a whole lot of space to move the puck around. But for our youngest group, skating back and forth across the full length is extra exhilarating.
This past weekend, 10 teams from across the Atlantic Affiliate made the trip to Revolution Ice Centre for their first full-ice tournament. All players were eight years old and had just made the transition from half-ice to full-ice two weeks ago. The teams got to play in a series of round robin games with a championship and consolation game for each division.
When players entered the building on Friday afternoon, they were filled with energy and bouncing off the walls. By Sunday morning, following three games and plenty of chaos in the hotel hallways, these young players were tired. Nevertheless, they powered through the final group of games and left the building looking forward to a few more weeks of full-ice play before moving up to 10U hockey.
The affiliate’s 8-Only Full-Ice Transition Challenge was offered the second time this year, following a waiver from USA Hockey that allows teams composed of older players to spend part of the season playing on the big ice. Growth leaders within the Atlantic Affiliate are continuing to enhance the tournament experience and offer events focused on fun and building camaraderie for 8U families.