Sliding into a New Sport

Ice Hockey in the East Bay

By: Vincent Martorano

Youth sports cover the east bay like dry grass on our rolling hills. From baseball to water polo, it seems as if every kid that you ask will tell you that he or she plays a sport. The majority of these young athletes either play baseball, football, soccer, or swim. This is simply because that here in the bay area those are the more popular sports to participate in. But, there are lesser publicized sports that exist in our very own east bay. One of these sports is ice hockey.

Ice hockey has been around in California for some time now, but unfortunately the focus of the sport was based in southern California due to the introduction of the NHL's Los Angeles Kings in the 60's. Hockey is still in many aspects a young sport here in northern California, but the sport has spread like a wildfire. With the introduction of the San Jose Sharks in the early 90's along with the popularity of roller hockey many kids have traded in their wheels for blades and have opted for the frozen version of hockey. I am of course speaking of ice hockey.

Surprisingly enough, ice hockey has been around in the east bay for quite awhile. When the city of Dublin was still in the midst of establishing and developing itself, an ice rink was erected. For a short span Dublin Iceland was the only building that existed it that area. Dublin Iceland is also where ice hockey got it's start in the Tri-Valley. Since then teams have spurted up all over the east bay. From as north as Santa Rosa and Cupertino to as far south as San Jose and Fresno, bay area cities have adopted their own ice hockey clubs and organizations. Everyone of these clubs offer kids the opportunity to play ice hockey at various levels, and just in recent years some of these clubs offer players the chance to play at highly competitive and elite levels as do the Oakland Bears Junior hockey club with their Tier AA team. San Jose and San Mateo also offer a Tier AA team. And lastly, it has been through the efforts of many coaches, parents, and of course the players, that ice hockey has blossomed into one of thee elite and most respected sports in the bay area.

To get involved in any of these hockey programs simply call your nearest rink and they will be glad to give you the necessary information. For your ice hockey needs on the peninsula contact the Ice Chalet, which is located in San Meteo, at 650-574-1616. If you live in the south bay there is the Fremont Iceoplex (510-490-8001), along with the San Jose Ice Centre (408-279-6000). In the east bay your best bet for getting involved with ice hockey is to contact André Lacroix at the Oakland Ice Centre, phone number 510-268-9000 ext. 108.

San Ramon Valley News is a weekly column focussing on sports in and around the San Ramon Valley. Vincent Martorano is the sports editor for the California High School Californian. You can contact him at Rathje40@aol.com.

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