Edmonton Oilers Hockey School trains young hopefuls

By Craig Fraser

EDMONTON — Since it first came into existence, the Edmonton Oilers Hockey School has been a great place for kids around the city to learn about the game and practise their skills alongside some of their hockey heroes.

With new programs being proposed for west Edmonton, the already popular camp is expected to have an even greater influence.

Edmonton Oilers Hockey School has been a place for kids around the city to hone their skills alongside their hockey heroes.

The Oilers Hockey School is partnered with the Okanagan Hockey School, which is world renowned for its instruction and hockey know-how. Running during the summer, the school features former National Hockey League and Western Hockey League talent, as well as guest appearances by the Oilers themselves and the Edmonton Oil Kings of the WHL.

“We offer competitive instruction and guidance to all the young athletes that come to us,” said Kevin Goodwin, senior director of operations for the Okanagan Hockey School in an email interview. “The Oilers school is no exception.”

The camp runs from July through August in Fort McMurray and St. Albert, with some off-ice programs running in the west end of the city.

“We try to show the kids how to play the game to the best of their ability,” said Damien Gobeil, who has taught goaltending for two years. “You don’t just become a great hockey player, you have to learn how to play it.

“A school is a place of learning, so a hockey school is no different. Just different subjects.”

In the camp, each program lasts a whole week, Gobeil said. The students receive instruction on the ice with skating, puck movement, and a skills competition, as well as off-ice instruction with dry-land training, physical education, and lecture sessions about hockey discipline, sportsmanship and awareness, Gobeil said.

For Tyler Howler, a 12-year-old player from Callingwood, the Oilers school has been his hockey study hall for the past three years.

“It’s really cool because the Oilers are there,” said Howler, while playing street hockey outside his house. “My dad was really impressed with the organization, but I just love how much it has improved my skating and my wrister (wrist shot).”

The programs new to the west end of the city involve dry-land training meetings and even proposed scrimmage games between the camps’ participants at the West Edmonton Mall Ice Palace.

“It’d be cool to play at the mall, it’s huge!” Howler said. “There would be all the parents plus everyone else who’s in the mall. It’d be a great way to show off our skills to people besides our parents… It’d be like playing an NHL game.”

The Oilers hockey school instructs young hockey players five to 14 years in age. Cenovus Energy and the Oilers sponsor the camp itself. Oilers players such as Theo Peckham and Devan Dubnyk coached at the camp during their days in junior hockey playing for the Springfield Falcons when it was the Oilers’ farm team.

The Edmonton Oilers hockey school caters to more than 1,500 kids each summer. Registration for next year’s camp has already started.