Senior ‘AA’ hockey is returning to Westlock this fall.
The final decision to grant a Westlock franchise entry into the North Central Hockey League was made at a league meeting this past weekend. The new club will go under the name Warriors — the same one used for all the teams in the Westlock Minor Hockey Association —dropping the past Wolfpack moniker.
“We made our proposal to the league and they’ve accepted,” said Joe Kuhar, who has been working tirelessly to bring the team to fruition.
However, Kuhar said getting league approval seemed like a rubber-stamping process. The league had been encouraging him and the Westlock community to put together a team in time for the 2012-2013 season, but that had not been possible.
This time, with more time to work out the details, it was a virtual tap-in.
“It was just a matter of making sure we had a commitment from our core group,” Kuhar said. “Our core has just been excited. They wish they were suiting up right now.”
Although league approval has been granted, he explained there are still a few financial hurdles to overcome. By June 15, Kuhar said the team needs to pay the league a $2,000 team bond. Other fees totalling $4,500 to cover a one-time team fee, annual league fees, Hockey Alberta registration and insurance are also due soon, but he said it’s only the bond that is mandatory by the deadline; the other fees can be paid later.
“It would be really important to have the other stuff in place as well, otherwise we can’t start signing players officially and stuff like that,” he said.
Kuhar said he’s confident the team will be able to pay its league dues on time, even if the players have to ante up the cash themselves.
Being a new team in the league means there will likely be growing pains, but given the skill level of the team’s core group of players, Kuhar said he’s confident the team will be competitive.
But, he’s being realistic with his expectations.
“We’re not going to put hopes too high and expect to come into the league for the first year and win like Devon did,” he said.
Instead, the goal is to compete for a playoff spot and build fan support for the team. One way to build fan support is to have in place a core group of players from the local community — something he’s already lined up.
“The primary focus is to be a local team, and that’s really where we hope to gather our players,” he said. “In any community, the success of the team is local content on the team.”
There are already 12-14 players from the immediate area who have committed to lace up their skates, he said. The remaining players necessary to round out the roster of 22-25 will come from communities further away, like Legal and Barrhead.
