Is complete domination good for girls' hockey?

Members of the Bluewater Hawks bantam AA girls' hockey team are accustomed to handing their opponents a severe thrashing.

The club, which is based in Strathroy, Ont., currently sports a record of 28 wins and one loss, with that one black mark coming during an exhibition game against the Willowdale Red Wings earlier in the year.

Wherever the team goes, its reputation precedes it and sometimes that reputation leads to unwanted criticism.

At a recent tournament in Windsor, Ont., the Hawks beat the Wisconsin Wild/Madison Capitals 16-0 and the Cambridge Roadrunners 8-0. Scores like this are typical, and with the victories come accusations that the Hawks are running up scores against inferior opponents. Coach Phil Alyea denies that it is intentional.

"We don't like big scores," says Alyea, "but at the same time if we are teaching them different systems and things, it's pretty hard to say, 'Well we have to change things up so we don't make it hard on the other team.'

"So basically what we do is we say skate away and say, 'Let's not be over aggressive, don't get in their faces, show good sportsmanship and don't be jumping up and down on your seventh goal or anything like that.'"

Preparing for scholarships

Alyea says the club's objectives are to prepare the girls for junior hockey and ultimately to draw the attention of US college coaches. To that end he has taken his team to New York City and to Connecticut for tournaments.

Not only is he the coach, but he's also a committed hockey dad. His oldest daughter is playing varsity hockey at Union College in New York. His youngest girl plays on this bantam AA team.

The success of the Bluewater Hawks program is applauded in some circles but others point to them as an example of the shortcomings that exist in girls' hockey.

Whereas most boys' hockey associations restrict the number of players brought in from outside their hometown, there are no such restrictions in girls' hockey. Alyea admits he has players from London, St. Thomas, and even Blyth, Ont., a small town an hour and fifteen minutes away. In fact, the association will take players from anywhere in southwestern Ontario if the parents are willing to make the drive.

Administrators of boys' hockey leagues shake their heads over the lack of restrictions on player movement.

Tony Puim is the President of the Cambridge Minor Hockey Association and the father of two boys who played hockey in Cambridge. He believes his organization is typical in that they allow a maximum of two imports, players from outside their residential zone, in the minor midget and midget age categories. He says that's only because there is often a drop off in participation at that age.

"I would never be supportive of allowing imports below those two age groups because we want to promote as many Cambridge kids as we can," he says, "and kids in Cambridge should be playing hockey in Cambridge."

Minimal import restrictions

Girls' hockey in Ontario is governed by the Mississauga-based Ontario Women's Hockey Association, which boasts 37,266 registered players and is growing. The President is Fran Rider. She points out that any female resident of the province of Ontario can sign up to play for any Ontario club providing they meet the specific criteria of that club. If they wish to switch clubs they must get a release.

"It's a system we feel works very well," she says. "There are challenges and there are regulations in there to address some of the challenges. It's a situation that we hope doesn't get over-regulated. You put in regulations to stop somebody from doing something and often times there's another way around it and you get into one regulation after another regulation.

"We try to encourage families to make the best decisions in the interests of themselves and their daughters. We have seen cases where they have the opportunity, if they travel a fair distance to attend practices or games, to share valuable time together. That's something we have heard from a lot of families."

Rider points out that one of their regulations provides disciplinary penalties against coaches who recruit players from other associations without first asking for permission.

Many clubs take advantage of this flexibility because parents are willing to drive their daughters down the highway so they can be part of a championship team or so they may be exposed to what they think is better coaching. While this may be beneficial to their daughters, others may suffer consequences.

Players go wherever they like

For the past two years the Kitchener Minor Hockey Association has been unable to field a bantam AA team after seven girls went outside the association to play for a club in Guelph. Kitchener initially refused to release the players and hearings were held at the OWHA level. Kitchener lost on every count.

Bob Hicks is vice president of the KMHA and admits the experience has left his organization feeling hopeless. He says it's clear the players can go wherever they like and there is nothing his organization can do about it

"If the city doesn't provide the level of hockey they want to play at, then I personally feel, let the player go and play at a higher level somewhere else," says Hicks. "I wouldn't question that. But if an association offers an AA level then why wouldn't the player play in their own association?"

He also is happy to point out that none of those seven players stuck with the association that was so attractive when they left Kitchener

There are other casualties in the scenario. When a club allows girls to come in from outside their hometown it reduces the number of places available to local girls. For a program that is partially subsidized by the city council, it can raise concerns about who is actually benefiting from the city budget.

Hicks says informal discussions with other association chiefs have concluded the same thing. They say there must be some sort of restriction on player movement and the OWHA should take measures to increase parity in girls' hockey. There has even been some discussion on banishing players for two years if they desert their local association then wish to return at a later date. He acknowledges it would be difficult to enforce. Meanwhile Bluewater continues to overawe its opponents. Cambridge Roadrunners bantam AA coach Kevin Reeves says his team is set to face the Hawks once more later this season.

"Before they even go out on the ice our girls know they are not going to win the game," says Reeves. "It's very difficult."