Molded off the Minnesota Hockey 10,000 Puck Challenge, Waconia Hockey Association is implementing its own Puck Challenge this summer!  No ice time, equipment, or instruction required – just shooting those pucks!   This is a free opportunity for players to continue a great hockey skill during the summer months and have a little fun challenge with themselves or fellow teammates. 

Challenge Duration -  June 1 – Sept. 1

Puck Shooting Goals by Levels

Mites (Pre K- 3rd grade) -  3,000

Squirts/U10 (Grade 4 and 5) – 4,000

Peewee/U12 (Grade 6 and 7) – 7,000

Bantam/U15 (Grade 8 and 9) – 10,000

Aim for your level's Puck Challenge Goal above or shoot more!  Track your shots on the shots log provided.  Submit your shot log when completed or by deadline.   All entries that meet their level’s goal or beyond and have a parent signature will be entered into a drawing! Winners for each level will receive a Scheel’s gift card and be recognized on WHA’s social media.

Excel spreadsheet log and PDF log provided below!

Submit your shot log by September 5. Gift card winners will be announced Friday, Sept. 8!

Logs can be emailed to communicationsdirector@waconiahockey.org

Get shooting Wildcats!

The Westonka Hockey Association has invited WHA players to join then for their Open Hockey sessions on Tuesday evenings in May, check out the info: 

Brand new for 2023 the Westonka Hockey Association will be offering open hockey through the month of May!  Every Tuesday night there will be an opportunity to get on the ice and skate.  MWHA certified coaches will be on the ice for each session acting as referees!  These will be co-ed skates and will be based on age/level from mite all the way up to HS.  
These are drop-in sessions, so if you want to skate head up to Thaler at the appropriate time, bring along $10 and enjoy an hour of fun community hockey!

Details: 

Dates - May 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 (Tuesday nights)

Who can skate - Open to MWHA families and friends.  Information will be posted for other local associations to join in the fun as well!

Session Details:
5:00p-6:00p - Warrior U6/U8 and Whitehawk Mites 
6:15p-7:15p - U10 / Squirt
7:30p-8:30p - U12 / PeeWee
8:45p-9:45p - U15 / Bantam / Boys and Girls HS

Cost: $10 / session
 

Location: Thaler Rink, 5909 Sunnyfield Rd. E in Mound. 

Sign up and payment will take place on site!  We are treating this as a pilot program and if its successful, we'll look to find more opportunities for open hockey through the summer and fall!

All the info at westonkahockey.org/openhockey

In partnership with TCO, Training HAUS here in Waconia has come upcoming off-season training for levels Squirts to entering High School Hockey Players. Please read the information below from Training HAUS Sport Performance Coach, Matthew Montplaisir and members of our WHA Hockey Development Committee:

Hello WHA families,

As we near the district tournaments, and wrapping up dryland training, we want to highlight and promote opportunities for WHA athletes to train in the off-season. What we provide in-season adds value to an athlete’s athleticism, but our work is and always will be 2nd priority to hockey. The best time for an athlete for grow and develop physically is in the off-season, and to facilitate long term growth of each individual, and WHA as a whole, we desire to provide training throughout the calendar year.

The best training opportunity we offer is small group sessions. In a small group session, athletes receive an individualized training plan, specific for where they are as an athlete, the sports they play, their goals, status of their season etc. These would be ideal for your most dedicated athletes, at the U12/PW/Bantam levels. Jr. Dev would be the equivalent of this for the younger groups – Those sessions aren’t individualized, but provide a speed/agility blend, similar to small group. These sessions are offered year round, and are 75 minutes in duration – JR. Dev are an hour.

Specific to WHA athletes, this off-season we will hold three separate six week training periods for WHA athletes to train in a group. These sessions will be age specific (Squirt & U10, PW & U12, Bantam & PWA), run twice per week per age group, and are 1 Hour in length. Strength, speed and agility will all be prioritized during each session in differing amounts, based on the time of year.

The likely training window for each period is as follows:

1st Period – April 3rd-May 12th (focusing on general strength and general speed – Overall athleticism based)

2nd Period – June 12th-July 28th (focused on building strength/mass & power)

3rd Period – August 14th-Sept 22nd (Focused on Hockey specific strength and movement – Tryout prep focused)

We encourage athletes who participate in a spring sport to at least train one day per week outside of their sport, and those in the off-season to commit to more consistent training as it fits within their families schedule.

The majority of you coach at age levels where a coach/teacher plays a significant role in a child’s development (they value what you say/how you act towards them). We encourage you all to connect with your team about opportunities to train during the off-season, and take the extra step to recommend your dedicated athletes to consider small group sessions. We are grateful to play a role in the growth and development of the WHA athletes, and appreciate all that you do for them.

Lastly, we will be offering an open HAUS at the facility, likely after spring break, for parents who have never stepped foot in the facility to get a tour, and learn more about what training will look like these next six months. More on this will be coming out at a later date.

All the Best,

Matthew Montplaisir, Wyatt Scheu, John Bottoms, Kelsey Nowak

Registration can be a bit complex so please see the instructions below on registering your player(s):

1. Go to mindbodyonline.com
2. Click staff login (Upper right hand corner)
3. Search for Training HAUS (It’ll say Eagan under the name most likely)
4. Click “Looking to book a service” under the staff login
5. Create an account with your son/daughter’s name *Note to families with multiple athletes, a separate account is needed for both*
6. To purchase a training package, scroll right to my cart, scroll down to Waconia SP, and then look for the desired package, outlined below:

• For Small Group, find any package labeled “Waconia Wildcat Training”. This also applies if an athlete wants to participate in speed and agility sessions
• For Jr. Dev, find any package labeled “Waconia Wildcat Training”, rather than Jr. Dev, as it will be cheaper
• For WHA specific training, find either package labeled “WHA Performance Training”, or, the WHA/WBA single session, if a single session is desired

• Note to Parents with multiple athletes participating: we offer a 10% discount for each package if you have multiple son’s/daughters training with us. If this applies to you, please connect with Matthew, and he’ll provide the code.

To sign an athlete up for an individual session, scroll to Waconia SP at the top of the page, find the desired session and click “sign up”

We would like to invite WHA athletes to participate in our Spring and Summer programs. MN Steel was started to provide WHA & HS players with a local option to train with professional coaches to develop, grow, and help build a strong hockey program in Waconia. Below are the programs we are offering this Spring and Summer.  Questions, please send them to info@mnsteelhockey.com. 

Squirt/U10 & Mite/U8 3-on-3 League: For additional information and registration for Steel 3-on-3 league, go to https://mnsteelhockey.com/3v3-league/

3-on-3 is very fast paced, intense, fun, and entertaining to watch. There are many advantages to 3-on-3, players see an increase in puck touches, passes, shots, one-on-one battles, puck races, and have to make quicker decisions. Games are continuous action! There are 2 levels of play: Squirt/U10 and Mite/U8. Register as a free agent or form your own team. 

Training Programs: For additional information and registration for Steel training programs, go to https://mnsteelhockey.com/training/

Mite/U8 - Future Prospect Program: The Future Prospect training program is great for returning mite/U8 players who are not quite ready for AAA, but want to continue to develop. This program focuses heavily on skill development with an emphasis on skating mechanics and puck skills (stickhandling and passing).

Mite/U8, Squirt/U10, & Peewee/U12 - Skill Development Training: 

The skills training program is great for advanced mite/U8, squirt/U10, and peewee/U12 age players. This program focuses on developing the following individual skills: Skating mechanics, overspeed training, explosive starts, incorporating deception with stickhandling, receiving good and bad passes, giving passes, and different types of shots.

Peewee & Bantam / Girls HS & U12 Offensive & Defensive Skill Development Program:

This program is only offered to boys Bantams & Peewees and girls HS and U12. This program will help players develop and master skills for their specific position. Drills are created to simulate specific game situations players will encounter on a regular basis during a game for their specific position (Forward or Defensemen). 

AAA Team: For additional information and registration information for the Steel AAA program, email us at info@mnsteelhockey.com

The AAA program focuses on developing team concepts, strategies, and team play. AAA teams will play in 4 local AAA tournaments in the spring and summer.  AAA team will take a break from mid-May to late July.

The Waconia Ice Arena is now offering Mite Open Hockey!  Check out their schedule and get some time on the ice before the season begins.   

$6 a player on designated days.  Calendar link below! 

A special thank you also goes out to the following supporters who have generously provided prizes for the event:

• Sackett Waconia 

• Knotty Wood

• The Wood Guys

• Bode Gray's