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Rick Woelfel and North Penn coach Kevin Vaitis discuss the Athletes Helping Athletes hockey showcase .
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Also, catch our conversation with former Hatboro-Horsham High and Princeton standout and current NWHL all-star Kelsey Koelzer at the same link.
The Athletes Helping Athletes Showcase has become a fixture in local hockey circles. For the eight teams involved, (Central Bucks South, Central Bucks East, Father Judge, North Penn, Souderton, William Tennent, Hatboro-Horsham, Archbishop Wood) it is an opportunity to tune up for the season to come.
But it also an opportunity to promote the Athletes Helping Athletes effort as AHA founder Rick Leonetti explains.
“When the (AHA) kids come in here, I know they’re excited to be here,” Leonetti said Monday night. “I know the teams are excited to have them all which is even more beneficial. The parents get to sit back and watch the kids (participate in a ceremonial puck drop) and be a part of the team.
“Some of the teams let the let kids go into the locker room before the game. It’s an exciting thing because the kids get to do something typical.
“We have some high-school kids coming tonight that will host them and sit with them and talk to them. Whether they’re into the hockey games or not, the girls that are here tonight will sit with them and talk to them about everything under the sun.”
The showcase is now in its fifth season. North Penn coach Kevin Vaitis has brought his team to the showcase since Year Two.
“There are a few of my players that have been here since we started,” he said. “It just something that shows them that there’s more to ice hockey. Having some of these athletes here and cheering us on up against the glass, it’s really a thrill for them and it’s a great experience for us to kind of give back to them.”
The tournament will continue at Revolution Ice Gardens through October 26.
The scholastic hockey season kicks off Wednesday with the Athletes Helping Athletes tournament’s opening-night doubleheader.
Revolution Ice Gardens will serve as the venue as North Penn faces Souderton in the 7:20 opener, followed by a 9:05 matchup between Central Bucks East and 2018 Flyers Cup finalist Central Bucks South.
The Wednesday’s games and the tournament itself figure to be competitive, tournament organizer Eric Tye says results are secondary to a greater cause.
“Hockey is the last thing the coaches and myself worry about,” he said. “It’s taking care of special-needs athletes. We have honorary captains for every game. The teams take the kids into the locker room, it’s just an awesome sight.”
Tye, who has only one hand, has had a decades-long stint in hockey as a player, coach, and administrator. He conceived the idea of the tournament, which, with the support of AHA founder Rick Leonetti, is now in its fifth year.
“We started in Year One with four teams,” Tye said. “In Year Two we went to six teams and now we’re at eight teams. I think last year we raised almost $17,000.
The tournament will feature 16 games between Wednesday and October 26. All will be played at Revolution Ice Gardens.
On Friday, October 12, the Flyers Alumni will take the ice against Team AHA which will feature local coaches.
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