Morinville Mavericks host successful 2024 Fun Team Beginner’s Hockey Tournament

By Stephen Dafoe
The Morinville Mavericks hosted their 2024 Fun Team Beginner’s Hockey Tournament on
Saturday, Jan. 21, gathering eight teams for eight games.
Starting with a ceremonial puck drop by Morinville Mayor Simon Boersma, teams from Rivière
Qui Barre, Westlock, Linaria, Thorhild, Mayerthorpe, and Barrhead joined two Morinville
Maverick teams on the ice for a day of Fun Program hockey. Each team played two games at the
Morinville Leisure Centre’s Landrex Arena.
The annual tournament allows the Mavericks to bring several regional Fun Teams to the
community while raising the needed funds to keep the program affordable for future years.
The program is run locally by Jayson and Kimberly Wood, who took the program over in 2020.
Jayson is the Mavericks’ president, and Kimberley is the secretary.
Jayson Wood told MorinvilleNews.com that the purpose of the weekend tournament is to allow
the Fun Program participants and players to have a tournament experience as they would in
competition.
“Tournaments were always such a great event for kids in sports, having the competition, meeting
players from other teams, having the opportunity to stay in a hotel and everything that goes with
it,” Wood explained. “We want to offer a similar experience to our players as the ones they
would get in competitive, just without the competitive stress and price point, and in a more of a
fun setting.”
Saturday’s tournament saw scores on the board, but those scores were not recorded on a game
sheet. Wood explained the tally on the board is secondary to the purpose of gathering the teams
together.
“This tournament is more about the players having fun and building skills in this setting,” he
said.
With what the Woods and their fellow volunteers see as a sustainable emphasis on providing a
unique hockey experience for players and families, the Mavericks have seen continued growth
again this year.
“The Mavericks program is an alternative to the competitive options in our area and community;
it’s more affordable and more about our players developing skills and having fun in a not overly
competitive setting,” Woods said. “We want kids in our community to have the opportunity to
learn and play, so this option is great for those that aren’t ready for competitive [play], or maybe
their kids want to play just to have fun and not play too competitively.”