DMV Women's Hockey Celebrates Two Years!

March 2023 marks the two-year anniversary of DMV Women’s Hockey — it is also Women’s History Month. Thank you for contributing and building hockey history in the DC/MD/VA region. With two years in the books, we connected and grew women’s hockey with your help. Below are some highlights from our time together:

• 24 Monthly Newsletters to celebrate our community, streamline information, and highlight DMV Women’s Hockey Players

• 54% growth in our contact list over two years while maintaining more than a 50% open rate each newsletter

• Three Give Hockey a Try Day events—with our fourth this weekend—where we introduced over 100 new women to the sport

• Two DMV Women’s Hockey Tournaments that brought together our community to kick off the hockey season

• More than $3,000 raised for charities aligned with our mission, including the Baltimore Banners and Black Girl Hockey Club

• One Watch Party and Clinic for over 70 girls and women in the region to cheer on Team USA in the opening Olympic game

• Partnered with the Washington Capitals on their ALL CAPS, ALL HER hockey platform, featured in WTOP

• DMV Women's Hockey Clinic Series, run by an all-women coaching staff, to build our hockey skills as a community

• Featured in Women's Hockey Life, NBC, the DCist, and hit the ice with NBC anchors Jummy and Eun

• Countless memories on the ice playing the game that we love

From our humble beginning in the ice rink parking lot, we sincerely thank you for your support, encouragement, and passion for the game. Thank you also to The Gardens Ice House and the Washington Capitals for their partnership. We are eager to see what the next year brings. To stay up to date on DMV women’s hockey happenings between newsletters, follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Let’s connect and grow the hockey community in the DC/MD/VA region! Cheers to many more years! DMV Women's Hockey Jackie Sharp, Trash Pandas Carol Chan, Chesapeake Bay Lightning Colleen Doyle, Annapolis Osprey Amber Moore, Chesapeake Bay Lightning Emily Summers, District Renegades

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Thank you to our DMV Women’s Hockey community — every time you step on the ice you are making history and providing little girls and boys everywhere examples of what hockey players look like. It doesn’t matter if you just learned to skate or played professionally, we are all writing the history of women’s hockey together.

Mid-Atlantic Women's Hockey League Champions

Another MAWHL season came to a close this past weekend at Skate Frederick. The Baltimore Blizzard claimed the D division championship (below) and the Rebels edged out the Osprey after a shootout in the championship game!

The Rebels took home the championship in the C division.

Capitals Women's Hockey League Champions

Four teams battled it out all season in close matchups at MedStar IcePlex. The Red team ended up on top. Go big red!

WAP Crowned 3 v. 3 Champions

After one of the warmest winters yet, the 3v3 season has ended. A close battle between Women Against Patriarchy (WAP) and Fireball settled the fight for the champion of the pond. Congratulations to everyone who came out for another fun season.

PWHPA Showcase

The Professional Women's Hockey Players Association (PWHPA) played four games from March 4-5 at MedStar IcePlex. The event featured Team adidas, Team Harvey's , Team Scotiabank, and Team Sonnet. More than 40 Team USA and Team Canada Olympians were part of the tour. DMV Women’s Hockey attended the chalk talk and PWHPA awards ceremony. Check out the highlights on NBC.

Capitals Unveil Women in Hockey Warmup Jersey Celebrating Title IX

The Washington Capitals unveiled a Women in Hockey warmup jersey inspired by Title IX. The jersey, designed by former Professional Women's Hockey Players Association (PWHPA) goaltender and current PWHPA board member Kimberly Sass of SASS STUDIO, will be worn during warmups when the Capitals host the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday, March 23, during Women in Hockey Night presented by Fresh Vine Wine. Monumental Sports & Entertainment Foundation will auction the jerseys and provide a donation to the Women's Sports Foundation to help advance the lives of girls and women through sports and physical activity in the DMV area. The auction will open on March 23 at noon and run through March 31 at 3 p.m.

NHL Original Production 'Ice Queens' Debuts on International Women's Day

Ice Queens, a documentary about resilience, perseverance, and jubilance as well as the continued efforts and valuable contributions of Black women to the game of hockey, debuted on International Women’s Day, Wednesday, March 8 across all NHL platforms. The full film also is also available to stream on ESPN+ and on TVA Sports, NHL.com, and YouTube.com/NHL

Strong Girls United

If you know of any young women looking for a mentor – SG United is an organization with a mission to empower girls to be strong, confident, and resilient through sports, mentorship, and mental health programming. Learn more here.

This month we interviewed Kim Marshall and heard her hockey story ​​1. How did you get into hockey? I started playing in 2015 with the Montgomery Youth Hockey Association Hockey Moms. Soon afterwards a bunch of us went through Hockey North America hoping to form a women’s team, but we were split up onto coed teams. I then played with the coed Washington Whalers. 2. Where do you play hockey? I currently play for the women’s league at The Gardens Ice House in Laurel and a tournament team, the Travelin’ Cluster Pucks. 3. What does hockey mean to you? The word even makes me smile because of the wonderful friends I have met through hockey. I love the exercise, the feeling after the game, fourth period in the parking lot, and the progression of developing as a player. 4. What is your favorite hockey memory? So many. Winning the championship with the Whalers in 2017. Traveling with the Cluster Pucks to Las Vegas and making it to the championship in 2022. More traveling to Bethlehem, PA and Iceland with the Cluster Pucks. Not only did I see interesting places, but I played with talented and really fun women each time. 5. Is there anything you’d like to share with the hockey community? I am forever grateful to The Gardens Ice House women’s league and the Cluster Pucks for giving players of all levels and ages an opportunity to play the game.

Tournaments May 5-7, Saugerties, New York: Nightmares Women’s Hockey Tournament. Nightmares Women’s hockey is hosting a C and D division tournament at Kiwanis Ice Arena. Reach out on Facebook or Instagram to register. NEW! May 19-21, Springfield, VA: STJ Spring Tournament Series. STJ is hosting a Spring Tournament Series May 19-21, including a women’s D-level. Find some friends and sign up for what is sure to be a great event. Register here. May 19-21, Montreal Women Hockey Classic QC, CA. Register here. Calling all beginner players! June 17-18, Ice World in Abingdon, MD: We are looking for new or beginner players for a women's tournament. If you are interested in being added to a team please reach out to Emily Summers, esummers3@gmail.com. August 25-27, Laurel, MD: DMV Women's Hockey Mashup Tournament. Multiple dates and locations: Hockey Fights MS tournaments. Register here. Clinics Women’s Learn to Play at MedStar: As part of the ALL CAPS ALL HER platform, the Washington Capitals host the area's only Learn to Play program for adult women ages 18+. Register here.

• Spring session runs April 13-June 1.

• Cost: $279.00

• Eight (8) one-hour classes on Thursdays from 8:50 p.m. - 9:50 p.m.

• Combination of LTP1 and LTP2. Players will be grouped by skill level.

• On-ice instruction led by USA Hockey certified coaches!

• 15% discount at MedStar Capitals Iceplex Pro Shop for equipment

• Custom program jersey

• Guest coaches and volunteers including members of the Capitals Women's Hockey League (MCI Women's League), DMV Women's Hockey players, former NCAA Division I players, Capitals alums, and more!

• Priority access to Caps Youth Hockey events & programs

• Access to discounted Capitals tickets throughout the 2022-23 season

Nelson Adult Clinics at Piney Orchard: Register here to join Nelson's listserv to learn about the most up-to-date offerings. You can register here for Wednesday Hockey Moms. Local Stick-and-Puck: Many rinks have an adult 'Learn to Play' program and Stick-and-Puck sessions available. Linked here is a google map with all the rinks in the area and what they offer! Leagues Register Today! The Gardens Ice House 20th Women's Summer Season: Email Emily Summers tgihwomensleague@gmail.com to sign up and indicate which evaluation session you can make. First 180 women to email Emily have a guaranteed spot!

• Three divisions: Gold, Silver, Bronze

• Cost: approximately $350; Goalies: $175

• Season runs mid-May through mid-August

• Evaluations Dates ($20 to attend):

  • Sunday April 30: 9:30am -11:00pm (Silver/Gold)

  • Sunday April 30: 11:00am-12:30pm (Bronze/Silver)

  • Monday, May 8: 7:50pm – 9:20pm (Silver/ Gold)

  • Wednesday, May 10: 7:00pm – 8:30pm (Bronze/ Silver)

  • Saturday, May 13: 2:10pm – 3:40pm (all levels)

• Game nights are typically Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday

• 10 games + playoffs

• The league is also looking for captains – let Emily know if you are interested in managing a team!

MedStar Women’s League: Spring/Summer is full however there is a waitlist and you can add your name to. Learn more here. DCHL Spring Ball Hockey Masters Ball Hockey Tournament: This tournament is on April 1 and open to men born in 1984 or earlier and women born in 1988 or earlier, sign up here. Easter Tournament: DCHL is holding a draft tournament on Saturday, April 8 from 1-5 p.m. These tournaments are always a lot of fun ways to meet and play with new players. If you are interested in playing, sign up here. Monday Night Roller Registration: The Monday Night Roller League begins its spring season on March 13. There are two divisions. Games run from 7-11 p.m. If you are interested in playing in our next season, fill out this form. If you would like to enter a full team, email commissioner@playdchl.com Wednesday Night New Player/New Team Registration: DCHL Wednesday Rec and D2 Ball Hockey Leagues will begin their spring season on March 22. Thursday D1 Draft League will start on April 6. If you are interested in signing up to play in either of these leagues, fill out this form. Refs: DCHL is always looking for more refs. This is a paid position, so if you are interested in making some money while performing the league's most important job please reach out to commissioner@playdchl.com

The Garden's Ice House Girl’s High School Division is looking for coaches this summer. Email Hockey John if you are interested in helping make the second year of the league a success. STJ is looking for a 10U girls assistant coach for the fall/winter 2023-24. Email Kyra for more information.

Cheers to two years of DMV Women's Hockey!