Blog
‘Jr. Sun Devils’ on the horizon at Oceanside
March 3rd, 2015Plenty today think it happened some 18 years ago, when the NHL shipped the Winnipeg Jets to the Valley to become the Phoenix Coyotes. And there’s no doubt that, a couple decades from now, the lot will cite the year 2015 – notably due to Arizona State University’s jump to NCAA Division I status. But,…
Lady Coyotes’ 19U AA team wins title
February 25th, 2015One of the AZ Lady Coyotes mantras is that if you love the game and play hard, the wins will eventually come. With the former locked down, the latter is starting to take place. The Lady Coyotes’ 19U AA club earned the organization’s first tournament championship at this year’s MLK Girls and Women’s Invitational, which was contested last month and hosted by…
Dorozhenko quietly leads ‘Next Generation’
February 5th, 2015Boris Dorozhenko is the first to admit: His methods aren’t for everyone. Part skating coach, part skills instructor – yet 100 percent optimist – Dorozhenko is plenty confident that once people see his way of thinking, players (and their parents) will be willing to give his unique methods of his aptly-named “Next Generation” hockey a…
Lady Coyotes opening doors for local girls
February 1st, 2015Kaley Gibson skated out of goal, a dejected owner of a freshly stinging 5-0 loss, but with her sweat-drenched head held high. In the stands, the St. Norbert College coach scouting Gibson had seen enough. Despite the loss, she wanted Gibson between the pipes when the fledgling Green Knights’ women’s NCAA Division III hockey program…
AAHA extends reach through social media, Web
February 1st, 2015A little excitement. A bit of energy. A whole lot of fun. That’s what youth hockey is supposed to be about in the first place, right? That also happens to be the backbone of the Arizona Amateur Hockey Association’s (AAHA) new communication strategy, headed up by its social media and Web site director Sharon Enck. “Hockey…
DYHA enter new chapter as ‘Jr. Sun Devils’
January 28th, 2015Those associated with the Desert Youth Hockey Association (DYHA) might want to hang onto their Phoenix Firebirds jerseys and gear; it’ll all soon be considered “retro.” DYHA is moving into the future with a new look and new identity as the “Jr. Sun Devils.” Starting this spring, DYHA will begin the transformation from Firebirds to…
Mission brings Canadian flare to Arizona
January 26th, 2015When the idea of “culture” ventures into the sports lexicon, it’s most often associated with the way players inside a locker room are able – or possibly not – to play together as a united front. But what about the “culture” a coach brings from the outside to his or her team? For two Mission…
Meese Alumni Games celebrate hockey family
January 23rd, 2015The holidays are generally a time to celebrate family, and the New Mexico Amateur Hockey Association’s (NMAHA) Joe Meese Alumni Games celebrate the organization’s hockey family. The tournament takes place every year on Dec. 26-27 and is named in honor of a former NMAHA player who passed away nearly 10 years ago. This year’s tournament…
Sunny Disposition
January 22nd, 2015Nov. 18, 2014 – a date that will undoubtedly be etched in the annals of Arizona State University athletics history. That is, of course, the day the nation’s largest public university announced that men’s ice hockey would be its athletic department’s 23rd varsity sport – and the NCAA’s 60th Division I hockey program – when…
Meneakis back behind bench in own backyard
November 17th, 2014By Matt Mackinder Marina Meneakis somehow finds time to attend graduate school, work at the Los Alamos National Lab and coach the New Mexico Mustangs’ 19U team. It’s a life she wouldn’t trade for anything, though, as the Mustangs alum previously coached the Gunnison (Colo.) Blades 14U girls while finishing her undergraduate degree at Western…