Come join the Polar Caps and Learn to Play hockey!
The West Madison Youth Hockey Association “Polar Caps” invites you to join them this fall and winter for fun on the ice!
Try Hockey for Free | September 9th from 1-4pm
The Polar Caps will be hosting a Try Hockey for Free event at Madison Ice Arena on September 9th from 1-4pm. Come to the rink and we will gear your skater up and get them out on the ice with coaches. Please express your interest by filling out this form. Any kids signed up for Learn to Play “Back to School” (read below) can come out too!
Learn to Play Hockey | Ages 4-10
The Polar Caps will run four Learn to Play (LTP) “seasons” during the 2023-2024 school year. Each season is about five weeks long consisting of approximately 10 practice sessions. The goal of the Polar Caps LTP program is to help kids build confidence on the ice in a positive, safe and welcoming atmosphere. Activities are designed to get kids moving around on the ice, testing their balance on skates, all while having fun. No prior skating or hockey experience necessary! The program will mix in beginning hockey skills as the sessions progress. Information and registration can be found here.
Kids can sign up for one, two, three or four LTP seasons this school year. Many kids will complete the first LTP season (Back to School) and move on to a more structured team-based Polar Cap program, such as Cross-Ice (5 and 6 yr olds), Red, White and Blue (7 and 8 yr olds) and In-House U10 (9 and 10 yr olds).
LTP skaters can attend up to two on-ice sessions per week (usually one of those practices is on the weekend), and are encouraged to try our new floorball element described below. We know kids and families are busy, so we are happy any time we get to see your kids on the ice.
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Season |
Registration Closes |
Season Starts |
Season Ends |
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LTP Back to School |
September 11th |
September 13th |
October 7th |
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LTP Pumpkin |
October 16th |
October 18th |
November 18th |
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LTP Snowman |
December 4th |
December 6th |
January 20th |
|
LTP Valentine |
January 29th |
January 31st |
March 2nd |
New this Year | Floorball
New this year, the Polar Caps are adding an “off-ice” or “dryland” element to the LTP program – Floorball! Floorball will be on an optional sign-up basis (limited spots) and will take place at a local elementary school gymnasium. For an hour, we will work on stick handling, passing, stance/stability and we will scrimmage. The idea behind floorball is to give kids the opportunity to get comfortable working with a stick without having to worry about what their skates are doing.
Other particulars:
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Madison West & Madison Memorial: West Madison Youth Hockey Association consists of families that reside in the Madison West or Madison Memorial high school districts.
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Registration Cost: The cost to register for one of the four “seasons” of LTP is $65.
- Rental Equipment: Protective equipment can be rented for $10 per season (helmet, pads, gloves). We do not rent sticks or skates, but our pro-shop offers beginner sticks and many of our skaters find success with gently used youth skates at Play-It-Again Sports.
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USAHockey Membership: Registration requires an annual USAHockey Membership, which ranges in cost from $15 to $60, depending on age. See USAHockey for registration cost and membership benefits.
