The Saint Thomas Academy Junior Gold hockey team has advanced to the State tournament.
Representing District 8, the sixth-ranked Junior Gold Cadets bring a 22-7-3 record to the tournament, which will be held March 19-21 at Cook Memorial Arena in Coon Rapids. Under the leadership of coaches Charlie Hammel (class of 2004) and Phil Angell (class of 2001), the team of 11 juniors and nine sophomores reached the state finals in just their second season and face second-ranked Burnsville in the quarterfinals at 1:45 p.m. on Friday, March 19.
Saint Thomas Academy 2009-10 Junior Gold Hockey
After two very successful seasons, a group of Saint Thomas Academy parents will once again organize a Junior Gold hockey team for interested players for the upcoming 2009-10 season. Under new rules adopted by Minnesota Hockey over the summer, this season we have the opportunity to participate as members of the Sibley Area Hockey Association. Waivers from a skater’s home association will not be necessary.
The Junior Gold team will be formed after the completion of JV/Varsity tryouts, which are being held November 16-20. The Junior Gold team will be registered through Sibley Area Hockey. The team will be called St. Thomas Academy Junior Gold. The Junior Gold team will be open to interested players who attend other schools but are eligible to register through Sibley Area Hockey.
The team is a good option for eligible sophomores, juniors and seniors who are not on varsity or JV, but are still interested in playing competitive, organized hockey. The team will play a District 8 Junior Gold B League schedule. The District 8 game draw and season scheduling session will be completed on November 30 – we will have a complete game schedule after that date. The regular season runs from December 6-February 26. Practices and home games will be at the Saint Thomas Ice Arena.
The first practices times for the Junior Gold team are (all at the Saint Thomas Ice Arena):
• Sunday, November 22, 4:10-5:10 p.m.
• Monday, November 23, 8:20-9:20 p.m.
• Friday, November 27, 3:50-5:00 p.m.
• Sunday, November 29, 7:40-9:10 p.m.
Depending on how many players are interested in skating with the team, these initial practices will serve as evaluation sessions. If your son is interested in playing on the Junior Gold team, he should be at the Saint Thomas Ice Arena ready to go on the ice at 4:10 p.m. on Sunday, November 22.
We are pleased that Phil Angell and Charlie Hammel have agreed to return to coach the team again this year, after two successful years coaching the bantam and junior gold teams.
We will have in the neighborhood of 25 practices sessions, with about 15 scheduled for after school or weekends and about 10 scheduled for before school (6:20-7:20 a.m.). In addition to practices and games, the team will play in 3-5 tournaments. We are currently scheduled to play Jan. 15-17 in the 33rd Reimann tournament in Edina. Additional tournament dates are being arranged.
To participate in the initial practice sessions and have a place on the final roster, players will need to complete the USA Hockey online registration. You may do so at the following site: http://www.usahockeyregistration.com. The cost is $40 ($30 for USA hockey, and $10 for Minnesota Hockey) and is payable by credit card. You will receive an email confirmation back from USA hockey with a number/barcode. Please then forward the USA hockey email receipt to Moose Dougherty at the either of the email addresses listed below. We anticipate that the cost for participation on the team will be around $900-$1,000 depending on the number of players.
If your son is interested in playing with the Junior Gold team or if you would like additional information, please contact either of the following individuals:
Mike “Moose” Dougherty
Class of ’78, sons Jackson – grade 11 and Drew – grade 7
C: (612)670-4089
W: (612)851-7802
H: (651)698-4368
Home email: akamoose@aol.com
Work email: mdougherty@valspar.com
Tom Halsall
Son Jack, 11th grade
C: (651)788-2977
W: (651)698-3222
H: (651)698-0258
email: tmhalsall@msn.com
