New St. John Valley Hockey League fundraiser to lower the cost barrier of the sport

MADAWASKA, Maine – For the first time in decades, a youth hockey league hits the ice in St. John Valley this winter, and the team is raising money to buy equipment for potential players who can’t afford it.

Registration the league – the newly named St. John Valley Muskies – will open on Monday for children aged 7-18. The group will play on the trough of the Madawaska Multi Purpose Center as soon as the ice freezes and is safe to use, probably in early January.

The rising costs hockey – from equipment to ice age – make it easily the most expensive and least versatile Of the four major sports in the United States. But the Musketeers hope to form a different kind of league – one that is more financially accessible to aspiring players.

“In basketball you only need shoes, while in hockey you need skates, a racket, a helmet, shoulders, knee pads, elbow pads, gloves and the list goes on,” Kyle Vachon, president of the St. John Valley Youth Hockey Association, said. . “It’s about cost-effectiveness because we want every child to have the opportunity to play.”

The St. John Valley Youth Hockey Association was founded this year as a result of COVID-19, which provided a unique opportunity to revitalize the sport in the Crown of Maine.

There are already young hockey players in St. John Valley, but most of the children involved in the sport move to New Brunswick to play. Due to the pandemic and the ongoing international travel restrictions, it was the perfect time to start the league on the US side of the border.

“Many kids have been at the mercy of the border to be open to playing hockey,” Vachon said. “We found this was probably the best time to take advantage and really try to get the kids back into the valley to play.”

The league is aimed at two types of players: those who played in New Brunswick and are now looking for a more reliable trough time in the state, and children who are new to the sport and may be looking for a low-stakes way to join.

With the Muskies just starting out, the organizers have already begun fundraising in earnest to buy equipment for new players. The team hopes to get $ 10,000 for this season – all the money goes to buy affordable equipment that it can borrow or sell to players and their families at a discounted price.

The GoFundMe is just beginning – and there is still a journey left, but Vachon said St. John Valley Youth Hockey has already received independent donations from local businesses and individuals.

The league also gently accepts used equipment to add to its library in addition to what the organizers can buy.

In addition to equipment, Vachon hopes the Muskies can be more accessible in other ways as well.

Between 2021 and 2022, as St. John Valley Youth Hockey awaits U.S. hockey approval to form a travel team, the Muskies will consist of two programs: the Intramural 3-on-3 League and the Learn to Skate program. for players who go on the ice for the first time. Registration is open to all children in the valley, regardless of gender or place of residence.

In the future, the league also wants to make deals with Frenchville or Fort Kent, tour exercises between different cities and make it easier for practices to access the entire valley from Van Buren to Allagashi.

Vachon, who will become one of the league’s coaches, has been playing hockey since he was able to walk and compete year-round at the age of 3-19. Now that Vachon has a son, he wants to help bring his passion into the community and be that the next generation gets the same opportunity to fall in love with hockey.

“I understand this is usually a basketball-oriented community, but there’s still a lot of excitement in hockey,” Vachon said. “For me, it was lifelong memories. You became such close friends with the boys you played with – including the girls – that you will remember them forever. ”

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