UNITY — Countless volunteer hours go into setting up a hockey season, but after two years of pandemic restrictions, this season almost seems easy.
No one could predict what hockey would look like in 2022-23 entering the pandemic two years ago now, but the proof is in the numbers. Hockey is a sport of resilience and Unity is a town that soldiers through. The numbers have actually inched up this hockey season from pre-pandemic seasons. Unity Minor Hockey has more than 170 registered players and a full slate of teams including a female U13 team.
The primary mission of the executive has long been to keep hockey as affordable as possible for members and with strong fundraisers and support from the business community we continue to make UMH one of the most affordable programs in the province. It is a source of pride for the 16-member executive.
There are 31 players and three teams in U7 and they always lead the association in smiles. They recently got into playing games and they have gone swimmingly well.
Thirty-one players means a lot of people need to be involved to make things go.
U7 Unity Lazers Black
Head coach- Aaron Agar
Assistant coaches- Nathan Kuhn, Chris Halter, Dion Fowler
Manager - Kari Stabbler
U7 Unity Lazers White
Head coach - Mathieu Kiefer
Assistant coaches- Cory Weber, Colin Alexander
Manager - Katherine McCrea
U7 Unity Lazers Red
Head coach- Tyler Kondratowicz
Assistant coach- Brandan Briggs
Manager- Nicole Lewis
U7 also has three power-skating coaches who skate with the group once a week. Hudson Bretzer. Layne Parker and Dax L’Heureux have seen a lot of improvement already this season.
“We are having a lot of fun getting out on the ice and are looking forward to our tournament coming up in Unity. Come out Feb. 11 and support a great group of kids,” co-ordinator Katie Kondrotowicz exclaimed.
Our U9 group has 28 players split into two teams and they are tops in the Highway 14 League. U9 plays half ice hockey games and it is something to experience.
Unity Black is coached by Dion Fowler and his assistants Graeme Gieni and Trevor Senger. Shyla Senger is the team manager.
Unity White is coached by Kevin Tyler and his assistants Jody Sperle, Mathieu Kiefer and Brody Heiland. Jill Pernitsky is the team manager.
The 25 players in U11 have been split into two teams that are competitive in the Highway 14 League. The two teams have head coaches Curtis Sieben and Karsten McCrea, Chris Halter and Brett Rewerts along with assistance from Chad Walz, Derrick Pitura, Cory Hoffman and Chris Neufeld. The teams are being managed by Scott Anderson and Temera Rewerts.
The U13 boys have 15 players and have been a power in the Highway 14 League. They are entering provincials with some reinforcements from Wilkie. Ash Cooper is serving as the head coach with assistants from Cory Hoffman, Jake Senger and Aaron Agar. Crystal O’Brien is the manager. The boys practise one day a week in Wilkie.
UMH is thrilled to have been chosen as the host community for the girls’ team under the Western Prairie banner. The team, coached by Amber Sperle, Wade Dean, Jody Sperle and Chris Barr, and managed by Sabrina Winterhalt is rolling in the girls’ league with an 11-0-1 record and is hoping to make some noise in provincials. The team is mostly Unity girls but also has players from Macklin, Wilkie and Luseland. The girls practise one day a week in Luseland.
It has been more than a decade since Unity has had an all-girls U13A team.
U13 A Western Prairie Unity Coach Sperle adds, “As a coaching staff, we are very happy with the girls’ season so far. We are undefeated with an 11-0 record so far. We have attended one tournament in North Battleford and lost in the A final, with seconds left in the game. A real heartbreaker.
“The girls are improving every week and their individual skill level has grown immensely over the last few weeks. We look forward to some tough road trips ahead to Moose Jaw and Swift Current. Our goal is to maintain our record with hard work and continued passion.”
In the U15 division, Unity has 18 players under the guidance of Pat Risling and his assistants Garan Rewerts, Bob Davey and Kent Headrick and they sit in the middle of the pack in the H14. The roster has been bolstered by a handful of players who had a delayed start to the season. Managed by Regan L’Heureux, the Lazers have entered provincials.
U18 hockey, the oldest group in our association, allegedly has 17 skaters and two goalies but injuries and suspensions have forced them to play shorthanded much of the season. While not getting the results in the win column, the competitive Lazers are looking for better results now that the calendar has rolled over. While not going to provincials with the Lazers jersey, several players will be skating for area teams. The Lazers are coached by Shaun Kratchmer, Kevin Bretzer and Jere Berger and are being managed by Kim Berger.
Once again referee in chief Scott Gilbert has a stable of officials that is the envy of the province. Under Gilbert’s direction he keeps adding and coaching quality young officials. While starting the season a little light on adult officials UMH welcomed grizzled veteran Todd Graham and Linden Wells back to the team and added Curtis Sieben after a decades’ long hiatus.
Reporter, Sherri Solomko, says, “Unity has benefitted from a strong minor hockey executive for decades and one of the keys to the success of the Unity Minor Hockey program is the strength of their executive year after year. Some of these volunteers have spent many years helping set up various aspects of the season and manage the organization throughout each hockey year to continue to build the UMH program.”
The 2022-23 Unity Minor Hockey executive includes: president - Dan Feser; vice president- Curtis McLean; treasurer- Katherine McCrea; secretary – Michelle Brown McLean; referee-in-chief – Scott Gilbert; equipment – Pat Risling; coach co-ordinator – Dave Weber; AA rep – Shaun O’Brien; female hockey rep – Kent Headrick; ombudsman – Chad Walz; U7 co-ordinator – Katie Kondrotowicz; U9 co-ordinator – Blaire Fowler; U11 co-ordinator – Jocelyn Clark; U13 co-ordinator – Graeme Gieni; U15 co-ordinator – Aaron Rewerts and U18 co-ordinator – Kim Berger.
Unity-Wilkie Press-Herald Jan. 13 print edition includes photos of each team as well as other minor hockey stories.
