Ball hockey breakthrough

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This article was published 26/07/2022 (1333 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Jeff Desjarlais had a revelation earlier this year.

Playing in his 23rd year of ball hockey, the 39-year-old CFS support worker wanted to work with more Indigenous youth. He decided his best bet was to leverage the sport he played to facilitate an opportunity for the next generation.

The United Warriors — the team Desjarlais helped create when he was 16 — had historically been a mostly Indigenous men’s team (16 and over) in the Winnipeg Ball Hockey League. With a stable brand already in place, Desjarlais branched from his long-standing squad to create a youth team (U17) in the Manitoba Minor Ball Hockey League, also called the United Warriors.

Desjarlais’ goal was three-fold: provide an outlet for Indigenous youth to stay in shape throughout the ice-hockey off-season, improve their stick skills and stay out of trouble.

But as valiant as his hopes were, the product of Brokenhead didn’t have much success attracting youth across the province to play. Many simply didn’t know enough about the game to care for it, he explained.

“Some of them didn’t even want to give it a try, but we kind of talked them into it,” Desjarlais said recently. “But once they tried it, they all loved it. Now, they’re trying to get their other teammates to come to the sport.”

To persuade the kids, Desjarlais name-dropped a few that have graced the ball-hockey floor in Manitoba, including Conner Roulette, a 2021 Dallas Stars fourth-round draft pick from Winnipeg who played with the United Warriors men’s team when he was 16.

“They liked knowing that he did it and he liked doing it, so it kind of helped bring them along,” he said.

“My goal was to get these kids to understand that the game is actually growing and it’s big with Canadian nationals and that you can go play for Team Canada like Conner Roulette did.”

Desjarlais’ kids will have a chance to follow in Roulette’s footsteps this week.

The United Warriors U17 squad will be a host team at this year’s junior national championships, played in Winnipeg. The tournament will run Thursday to Sunday, with games at Canada Life Centre, Bell MTS Iceplex and Keith Bodley Arena.

It’s the first time the national championships will be played since 2019 — owing to the COVID-19 pandemic — and the first time Winnipeg will host since 2014.

The national championships will feature 32 teams from across the country, competing in five divisions: U19 boys, U17 boys, U15 boys, U19 girls, and, for the first time, U16 girls. Seven squads will represent Manitoba, including the United Warriors — the first Indigenous team in tournament history.

Desjarlais needed a moment to find the right words to describe the tremendous opportunity awaiting his squad.

“I guess you could say I’m proud. I’m really proud that we’re giving these youth a chance to play in such a huge tournament,” he said. “Especially them being of Indigenous descent, it’s really huge for them, you know?

“I take a lot of pride in not just showing them the game, but showing them if they put their hard work into it, that they can be a part of (the tournament).”

Jeff Dzikowicz, event director for the junior national championships, said the team’s participation is significant for the game in Manitoba.

“We’re really excited about that,” he said. “They’ve been playing all year in the (Manitoba Minor Ball Hockey League) and they’ve got some pretty high-level hockey players on that team.

“We’re interested to see how they’re going to do and either way it’s a success already because they got some good buy-in from the players and (they will) hopefully bring out Indigenous fans.”

Dzikowicz noted the talent will extend beyond the United Warriors. The U19 boy’s division often features players from the WHL and NHL, while the U19 girl’s division will court players from collegiate, AAA and high school ice hockey.

The tournament is the biggest ball-hockey event of the year, according to Ball Hockey Canada, with more than 500 hotel rooms already booked for travelling teams, family and friends.

“We want people to come out and watch and support the Manitoba teams… once you come watch it, you kind of get hooked on it,” Dzikowicz said.

jfreysam@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @jfreysam