By Tina Comeau
THE VANGUARD
NovaNewsNow.com
With the absence of bantam AAA hockey in the province starting next season, changes are coming to minor hockey associations, including the one here in Yarmouth.
Rather than having bantam AAA hockey in N.S., Hockey Nova Scotia has established a major bantam league with 12 franchises across the province. The one for the western region will use the arenas in Chester, Bridgewater and Barrington as a home base.
Brian Wentzell, Hockey Nova Scotia’s western region director, says the structure for bantam hockey within minor hockey associations will be – where numbers allow – bantam AA, A, B and C.
For an association like Yarmouth, tryouts for the bantam AA team will be similar to how tryouts ran for the AAA level. Players from Yarmouth, and also Clare and Shelburne County, who want to play the highest level of hockey available in this minor hockey region can try out for bantam AA in Yarmouth.
If players from the outside associations don’t make the AA team, they go back to their respective associations for try outs at the A and B, or C, levels.
Meanwhile, Wentzell believes bantam AA will be a strong, competitive level of hockey.
“I would envision that Yarmouth is going to have a very strong AA team because there are probably only a few select players who will have the commitment and the parent commitment to do two practices a week and games within that huge geographical location with the major bantam team,” he says.
