Smaller groups getting more individual attention at camp
Peterborough Petes assistant coach Derrick Walser is helping young hockey players improve their skills.
The Petes Coed Skills and Drills Before School Skates kicked off Friday morning at the Memorial Centre.
As the Petes await the tentative Nov. 15 start of training camp, the organization remains busy.
They’ve set up a series of camps and clinics for youth to receive instruction from Petes staff over the next three months.
Walser and an assistant put 10 children through 50 minutes of skating, passing and shooting drills.
“I love small groups,” Walser said. “There’s no such thing as too small but there’s such a thing as too big. It gives me an opportunity to touch base with kids regularly. I probably talked to each kid five or six times individually. It’s easier to give instruction and control things with small numbers.
“I love to have fun,” he said. “We’ll do some silly things on the ice and have fun with lots of puck touches but I don’t like in a 50-minute session to spend 25 minutes at the board explaining things. We keep it very basic but we move for 50 minutes.”
“A lot of people are craving ice,” said Shelbi Kilcollins, Petes director of growth and marketing.
“I know ice is rolled back for what people would typically get. We looked at ice slots that weren’t as attractive to teams or weren’t being used, like 7:15 to 8:15 a.m. isn’t commonly booked. We decided to do sessions on fundamentals and power skating.”
The program is five weeks of skills development each Friday led by Walser and five weeks of girls power skating starting Thursday led by Kilcollins.
There’s room for up to 19 skaters under the city’s COVID-19 restrictions. The cost is $150. All skaters receive a jersey and Petes Store coupon.
The second program is a P.A. Day skills camp Nov. 27 which is sold out.
Spots remain for the Petes Holiday Fun Camp Dec. 21 for skaters nine to 13, Dec. 22 for players four to eight and Dec. 23 for girls aged six to 13, all at the PMC. The cost is $105 plus tax for four hours of ice, lunch from
East Side Mario’s, a Petes practice jersey and Petes Store coupon. “We want to provide programming to kids and parents that is extremely safe and COVID-19 friendly,” Kilcollins said. “We’re pumped to get kids back on the ice.”
Details for all programs can be found online under the Fan Zone tab at gopetesgo.com, or by contacting Connor Massieby phone at 705-743-3681, or at cmassie@gopetesgo.com.