For years, it’s been the Raiders cup to lose.
Since 1975, the Raiders have been dominating the Winfield men’s rec hockey league, but this coming season the league is looking for more teams to challenge the Raiders and the other men’s teams in the league.
The hockey games are played Sunday, Monday and Wednesday nights at the Winfield Arena. The league has regularly drawn some of the best rec hockey players in the Central Okanagan due to the lower cost per team to play in Lake Country, compared to elsewhere, as well as the ice at the Winfield Arena, long considered some of the best in the Okanagan.
With five teams set for play (the Raiders, Brewers, Falcons, Tree Brewing and Woody’s Pub), the league is looking for more players as well as referees and people who would run the time-clock and score sheet.
“We’d like to expand by as many as three teams and get some more competitive rec teams out to this league,” said president Trent Green, a member of the Raiders team, the defending league champions. “The teams in this league are competitive but it is still a recreation league so there is a camaraderie among the teams, who have all been members of the league for some time now.”
The Raiders, with long-time rec hockey veterans like Larry Oishi and Maurice Blanleil, have had a stranglehold on the trophy for years with a run of championships dating back to the start of the league. Last year the Raiders won the league again with Dean Witala scoring the overtime goal in the championship game.
The Winfield men’s hockey league is for players aged 27 and up.
The league will pay anyone who is interested in helping out score-keeping. Anyone interested can email Green at greentide@msn.com.