League may be stepping stone to southern teams

It might only be a scrimmage, but as long as there's a referee wearing stripes, hockey players will complain about the calls.

"That was [friggin'] offside man," mutters one player as he returns to the bench after a shift.

That this Saturday night hockey game at Arnaitok Arena is only a scrimmage doesn't discourage the young, fast hockey players (they're aged 15 to 21) from throwing the odd thunderous body check.

After one of the players has the wind knocked out of him, eliciting hoots and hollers from both benches and forcing a brief stop in play, John Thomas, the referee wearing stripes, just says: "Keep your head up at all times."

It's the final pre-season scrimmage for these players who will form the three teams of the Iqaluit Junior Hockey League, a new elite circuit that plays its first game Oct. 4.

According to Thomas, also the league organizer, the league is meant as a stepping stone for the best players to try to make the jump to southern Junior ‘A' and major junior teams. For most though, he says it's a competitive bridge between minor hockey and the more relaxed senior men's game they'll go on to play.

"We don't have the demographics and we don't have the ability with the geography to just hop in a car and go town to town to play games," Thomas said. "Basically what kids have up here is once a year, twice a year maybe."

It's not a lack of skill that's holding back hockey players from playing elite-level hockey, but a lack of competition, he said.

"There are kids up here who've got loads of talent and who can play at that level."

The players will train hard and get coaching from a corps of volunteers, some of whom have played junior hockey.

League organizers are emphasizing strength and conditioning training: if you're not in the absolute top shape, you simply can't compete in elite junior hockey, Thomas said.

"You've got to be an athlete first and a hockey player ­second."

David Akoak, 17, wanted to keep playing after midget level and hopes one day to get picked up by a major junior Canadian Hockey League squad. The level play is a challenge, he said.

"It's a lot faster paced and harder hitting," he said.

To raise the level of play, Thomas and a group of volunteers concocted the idea of a three-team competitive league that will play every Saturday night at the Arnaitok Arena in Iqaluit.

There will be one game every week, open to the public for $2 admission to help cover costs. After the game, the odd team out will get a full practice.

Thomas hopes the intensity will carry over into the games and blossom into rivalries.

That's already starting to happen, said Nick Dunphy, 21, who decked a couple of opponents with hard shoulder checks during the scrimmage. The body checks are usually followed with smiles and friendly banter at the next whistle though.

"I think it's friendly but a couple of them [players] are forming rivalries," he said.

Frank Tootoo, one of the volunteers, who's out this Saturday night running the clock and keeping score for the scrimmage, said the league is a chance for older players to stay in the game at a high level.

And it gives the kids, ages 15 to 21, an age group fraught with risks, something positive to do.

"There's a lot of things they could be doing on a Saturday night," Tootoo said.