AIHA Take Part in Global Initiative to Grow Women’s Hockey
Auckland Ice Hockey Association took part in the World Girls Ice Hockey Weekend on Sunday 29th October.
The event, run in conjunction with the New Zealand Ice Hockey Federation (NZIHF) and the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) has a global presence and aims to bring girls and women together on the ice so they can:
Be introduced to basic skills in hockey in a positive, fun and safe environment.
Learn about opportunities in ice hockey in their community.
Learn about fair play, sportsmanship, and teamwork.
Meet new friends and have a chance to fall in love with a new sport.
Close to fifty participants of all ages and skill level took part on the ice in what was a fun day for all involved and a great introduction to the world of ice hockey for newcomers to the sport.
Auckland Ice Hockey Association wishes to thank all of its volunteers who assisted on the day, as well as the New Zealand Ice Hockey Federation for their assistance and funding for the event.
The Auckland Ice Hockey Association took part in the 2017 National Skills Competition, run by the New Zealand Ice Hockey Federation.
Players from around New Zealand took part in qualification rounds in the weeks prior to the competition final.
On Sunday 1st October, the player who qualified competed against each other to find the national champion throughout the various competition categories.
The Junior League 2 Finals took place on Monday 18th September at Avondale with the Pythons and Hornets to face each other for bronze and the Seawolves and Panthers for gold.
Game One:
Game one began with the Pythons and Hornets playing off for bronze. The game started off well for the Pythons, scoring in the first 25 seconds and later adding to this to finish period one 1-0 in their favour.
In the second period, both teams fought hard with a number of close attempts at scoring, however it wasn’t until almost half way through the period when the buzzer sounded again for the Pythons, scoring and bringing the score to 3-0. Moments later, the Hornets scored their first goal, however this was quickly equalised by the Pythons. With 5 minutes to go in the period, the Hornets managed to sneak in a goal, the period ending 4-2 in favour of the Pythons.
Now competing in their final period of hockey for the 2017 Junior season, the remaining 20 minutes of play would be crucial for both teams. The Hornets began period 3 with a great start, scoring in the first 90 seconds to bring it to a one goal game – 4-3 – still in favour of the Pythons.
Both teams continued their hard work for the remaining 18 minutes, however it was the Pythons who managed to score with just 29 seconds to go in the final period and later finishing the game victorious 5-3.
Game Two:
Game two would see the Seawolves and Panthers facing off against each other to claim first place, a game which promised to be a close one.
The first period would see just one goal scored by the Panthers, despite both teams having a number of scoring opportunities, which were inevitably shut down by the goaltenders on each team.
Period two began with a quick goal by the Seawolves just 20 seconds in, bringing the game to a 1-1 tie. However once again, a hard fought period by both teams meant only one further goal would be scored, with the Panthers striking at the 11 minute mark, finishing the period with a 2-1 lead.
Unfortunately for the Seawolves, the Panthers managed to strike early in the third period, extending their lead to 3-1 and with no further goals scored in the rest of the period, the Panthers were crowned the 2017 League 2 Champions.
Congratulations to all players who took part in the 2017 Junior League 2 season, enjoy the break and we look forward to seeing you again when the 2018 season kicks off!
The 2017 AIHA Annual Junior Prizegiving Lunch will take place on the 15th of October.
Come along and celebrate the end of the season in style!
What: AIHA Annual Junior Prizegiving Lunch Location: Alexandra Park in the Top of the Park room, located in Main Grandstands, Greenlane West Road. Date: 15 October 2017
Doors open at 10:30am with drinks and prizes starting at 11:00am.
The Auckland U14 Representative team hosted Queenstown on Saturday 12th and Sunday 13th August 2017 at Paradice Botany in their second round of the U14 league.
Saturday’s game one promised to be a tough one, with Queenstown having beaten Canterbury 9-0 and 13-1 the week earlier.
In what would be a stark contrast to the rest of game one, period one featured only a single goal ending 1-0 in favour of Auckland.
Auckland further extended their lead in the second period, scoring another 4 unanswered goals to bring the score 5-0 in their favour.
Queenstown would need a strong third and final period to come back from a 5 goal deficit, and they started with a single goal in the first 30 seconds. However, a strong defensive and offensive effort allowed Auckland to score another 4 goals in the third and final period, while only giving up one more to Queenstown, eventually finishing the game 9-2.
Game two on Sunday started off perfectly for Auckland, scoring their first goal just 56 seconds in and adding another 2 goals to this a few minutes later. The rest of the period was quiet by comparison, until Auckland managed to sneak in a goal with just one second remaining in the period.
Period two began well for Auckland, scoring just 41 seconds in bringing the score 5-0 in their favour. Queenstown began to respond, scoring two unanswered goals leaving the game 5-2 in Auckland’s favour as the team hit the locker rooms for period 3.
Period three marked somewhat of a comeback for Queenstown, scoring 2 goals early in the period, bringing it back to a one goal game 5-4. Just over half way through the period, Auckland responded with a single goal and then added to this with just 40 seconds to go, finishing the game with a 7-4 victory.
