January Newsletter
Greetings Lightning Families and Happy January!
Collingwood Thundersnow Classic
As you know, COLGHA is hosting our first Hometown Tourney this weekend. The Collingwood Thundersnow Classic takes place January 19-21st at 5 different locations. 46 teams and over 700 female hockey players will descend on our little town. This is a BIG DEAL! We wish to thank the tournament committee for their planning and the hundreds of hours they have devoted to creating this opportunity, not only for our Lightning players but all visiting teams. Thank you to all volunteers for stepping up this weekend and offering your time to our club. It’s pretty AMAZING!
PLEASE check your emails and check in with your manager. Multiple emails have been sent out with all sorts of details about our tourney; concessions are open, swag is available to purchase, game schedule is available, volunteer opportunities still exist, on-site photographer, vendors and more! The more you know, the more you can help our visiting teams and become an ambassador for our region and our club.
Hockey Day in Collingwood
Good Luck to all Lightning Players taking part in the return of 'Hockey Day in Collingwood' on Wednesday, January 17th! This event will host 12 local elementary schools playing a fun, co-ed tournament between 7am and 6pm at Central Park and Eddie Bush arenas.
And in the evening, come on out to watch crosstown rivals Collingwood Collegiate Institute and Our Lady of the Bay battle it out for area supremacy with the Varsity Girls Game at 6pm and Varsity Boys Game at 7pm, both at Eddie Bush Arena. Our U7 Little Lightning will hit the ice during the Girls game, first intermission. You do not want to miss these fierce Little Ladies.
Entry is FREE, but they are accepting donations at the door for the Collingwood General and Marine Hospital. See you there!
Skills Development
We are pleased to announce that we are resuming OPTIONAL skills development skates for 2024. Beginning January 23rd and ending February 17th, we will be offering 4 weeks of development sessions leading up to the playoff season. As you all know, ice time is very hard to find in Collingwood and surrounding area so get those alarm clocks ready cause we’re back to early mornings!
As with our fall program:
Tuesdays 6 am Central Arena- U15 Blue, U15 White, U15B, U18HL and U18B.
Fridays 6:30 am Central Arena- U11B, U13 Blue and U13 White.
Saturdays 7 am Eddie Bush- U9 Blue, U9 Silver, U9 White, U11 Blue and U11 White.
We are excited to have Justine Azevedo from Azevedo Hockey Development coordinating our Tuesday and Friday sessions with a focus on small area drills and stations for skills development and progression. Jan and the Sk8 Georgian Bay team will continue to lead the very successful Saturday morning power skating sessions.
There is no additional cost for these sessions as our organization continues to invest resources from registration and fundraising to player development.
Here we GROW again
Congratulations to our 42 Bauer First Shift Players on the completion of their 6 week session and becoming Lightning Hockey Players! We are thrilled to announce that our Winter Fundamentals Program is already holding a waitlist over 46 registrants and we are working hard to accommodate all of those Little Lightning that want to keep progressing. We’re so proud of you!
Thank you Coach Kaitlyn and Crew for such an amazing First Shift Program and for your continued support of our Little Lightning Programs.
Winter Fundamentals- CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS
PWHL
If you haven’t heard about the PWHL then you’ve been living under a rock! For the first time in Professional Sports HERstory, there is a sustainable Professional Women’s Hockey League. The best way to support this endeavour and our Lightning dreams is to attend the games, watch the games, follow their social media handles, share their news, buy the swag, and tell your friends and neighbours. While you're at it, tell them about us too! In our little corner of the world, we are doing our very best to provide opportunities for all youth in our community; timekeepers, young referees, student volunteers, mentorship opportunities and players alike.
Check out the PWHL! CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS
Team Photos
U7 Little Lightning, First Shift, Winter Fundamentals and Player Retakes will take place Friday February 16th. Details to be announced. Stay tuned!
Hockey Equipment
Families looking to purchase or pass along used hockey gear can now reach out to a new business!
The Local Sports Store
7468 County Road 91
Stayner, ON
https://www.thelocalsportsstore.ca/
Social Media
Please follow our Facebook and Instagram feeds for the latest photos and team news. If you haven’t seen your team, then become the person that updates us! You can either send your photos and caption to us at collingwoodgirlshockey@outlook.com or post it on Facebook, it will be approved and copied to Instagram. Don’t forget to check in with our website for full team schedules and further Lightning updates.
Player Reminder
COLGHA expects ALL PLAYERS to treat one another with respect and encouragement. When teammates support one another, and communicate openly, they create an environment where every player can grow and develop to their full potential. It is the responsibility of every Lightning player to add to their teammates hockey experience in a positive manner. We do not expect them to be “besties” all the time, but we do expect them to support and protect each other.
“If you want to lift yourself up, lift up someone else”.
Good Luck this weekend Lightning!!
Thank You to our Generous Sponsors!
