ATHABASCA – It was a fun day of school spirit at the Athabasca Regional Multiplex March 6 as Edwin Parr Composite School hosted a hockey game with staff and Grade 12 students on one team and Grade 10 and 11 students comprising the other team.
More than 600 people crowded into the arena to watch the game unfold, with fans cheering for both sides.
David Head, the team manager for the Athabasca Hawks Midget hockey team, said it was great to see stands so full.
“That’s one of the advantages of having the school so close to both the pool and the Multiplex,” Head continued. “I was primarily watching the Grade 10s and 11s, as many of the players play for the Athabasca Minor Hockey Association. In fact, some of the guys who aren’t with the association this year to get back on the ice, play with their friends and have a fun afternoon.”
Grade 9 student Aline Tuzubaze said it was really cool to see the teachers and the students play.
“This is only the second time I got to watch hockey live since I moved here from the Congo,” Tuzubaze said. “I was actually cheering for both teams, because my teachers were on one team while I also had friends playing on both teams.”
Grade 10 student Emma O’Driscoll said the game was very entertaining.
“I loved watching the teachers and seeing how aggressive they were with the students on the ice,” O’Driscall explained. “I was cheering on the teachers throughout the game because I don’t really don’t know the students who were playing that well.”
The game remained really close throughout all three periods, where it ended at a nine-all tie. This forced a shootout, where after an inconclusive first round which saw the game tied at 11-all, Grade 11 student Matthew Marches managed to get one in the net in sudden death and gave the Grade 10s and 11s the win by a score of 12-11.
During the final minute of regulation, both teams sent every single player onto the ice to take part in a free-for-all.
“I was going to start calling too many men penalties, but I had no idea which team to call it on,” principal/referee Desmond Nolan joked. “It was just too confusing. I just couldn’t count that many in a short time.”
Overall, Nolan said things went really well on the ice.
“The kids gave it 110 per cent; gave it their all,” he continued. “We had an awesome turnout, which goes to show that when we do things at EPC, we do them right.”
He added the idea first game last year from student Josh Funk, who told one of his teachers about it and then forwarded it to administration.
“After lots of organizing and planning, we finally got what we saw today,” Nolan said.
Funk, who’s now in Grade 12, said he first got the idea because he wanted to play against his brother for his final year.
“He of course couldn’t make it because he had to play hockey somewhere else,” he stated. “But it was still fun playing with my friends, or against them. Getting the teachers involved was awesome. I played forward for this game, but I usually play defense for the Midget Hawks.”
Marches, who plays in goal for the Hawks, enjoyed getting back to being a player again for one game.
“It allowed me to have a different perspective,” he said. “It also gave me a few tips I could use for my next game as a goalie. I hope we can do this again next year.”
Aspen View School Division’s wellness coordinator, Glenda Gray, was there watching her husband Scott play with the other staff.
“It was awesome for the kids and the teachers on the same ice. It goes a long way for school spirit,” Gray said. “I think the kids enjoyed getting on the ice and seeing a teacher outside of the classroom and seeing them in a different environment.”
Bryan Taylor, TownandCountryToday.com
Follow me on Twitter @BryanTaylorNews
