THE MAGIC OF BURNABY by dad

It was the beginning of last year's hockey season and Jerin was feeling a bit less than enthusiastic about the season. As first year PeeWees, she felt that her co-ed team was losing focus when it came to strengthening fundamental skills and that all of a sudden the whole game of hockey had been traded in for checking (hitting). While she was eager to learn checking, she was starting to feel the loneliness of being the only girl playing in her age group and, unlike the boys, she wasn't as eager to trade fundamentals for hitting.
Then came the first NW Selects tournament in Burnaby, BC. The NW Selects is Jerin's all girls team who, up to that point, she had never met. First, there was just the whole idea of playing in Canada. For Jerin playing in Canada is what she calls playing in the 'Motherland', she gets so stoked. Then, we arrived at the Burnaby 8 rinks, so called because there are actually eight (8) full size ice rinks under one roof. (1 was covered for indoor soccer at the time.) I thought we may never leave.
Then came the meeting of the team. Girls, just like Jerin, skating, playing and as excited about hockey as Jerin has always been. She felt connected right away. And the tournament...100's, nearly 1,000 girls, playing hockey on teams from across the north and west of Canada and the US. Despite the first time ever playing together, the NW Selects U12 team made it to the championship game, finally losing in the shootout. The whole tournament playing a goalie who had never played the position before.
What's so magical about Burnaby...quite possibly everything, but specifically for Jerin the Burnaby tournament rekindled something in her at just the right time in her season bringing her the passion and the desire to play the sport of hockey stronger and better than ever before. A passion and a strength that she'll be taking with her when she returns to Burnaby with the NW Selects this weekend.