Wild Hockey Academy Hosts Busy, Successful Tryout
WENATCHEE, Wash. - The push to the 2023-24 season is on for the Wenatchee Wild Hockey Academy.
The Academy held its tryout for the upcoming season this past weekend, with 140 players seeking spots on four teams - 18-and-under and 16-and-under programs that will compete in the Canadian Sport School Hockey League next season, and weekend-only programs for 14-and-under and 2008-born Major Midget players.
"It says a lot about the past, and what we're doing in the future," said Wenatchee Wild Hockey Academy director Troy Mick, who also coaches the 18U and 16U teams. "Those are only good things moving forward, and we really appreciate the parents that took the time out and spent their hard-earned dollars to come here - it's not only the hockey community that benefits, it's the community of Wenatchee in whole (that benefits) when we bring these players and families into town. The economic spinoff is very good for the community, and we're proud to be a part of it."
With so much talent to choose from, the 2023-24 campaign appears bright for the Academy's teams, which will feature an 18U team coming off of a 30-win season and a 14U roster that finished at the .500 mark during the past year. Three 18U players suited up for the British Columbia Hockey League's Wenatchee Wild during the season, with a fourth - goaltender Ayvin Eidsness - making a road trip with the team in November and dressing as a backup.
With the program's first year in the CSSHL on the horizon, there's still lots to be done before the season can officially begin, starting with the league's Annual General Meeting in Toronto this week. Mick and other directors will sort through league bylaws and set up the basic structure of the schedule for the upcoming season, among other tasks to prepare for the upcoming year.
"We'll be able to come back and have a general idea of what our schedule is going to look like," said Mick. "Then we start planning all of our weekends, booking all of the practice ice Monday through Friday and weekend ice for the weekend teams, and road trips, buses and flights. You name it, we're in the planning stage already. There's never a dull moment around here."
