In the United States, only about 16% of hockey players are women and girls, according to USA Hockey. But Arvada Hockey Association Executive Director John “Kibby” McKibbon is looking to boost girls’ participation after the success of the program’s inaugural year of fielding all-girls teams.
McKibbon has spent 26 years with the AHA, and aside from a one-off team about 12 years ago that had “no commitment,” the 2024-2025 season marked the first time the program has fielded full-time, all-girls teams.
This year, the program — which has over 600 boys and girls enrolled, in total — saw its 10u and 12u girls teams play a full season, while a 14u tournament team joined those groups at the Girls Irish South Bend Cup Tournament Series at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana from Feb. 21 to 23.
The 10u girls came home with a championship after besting teams from across the country, including the Indy Jr. Fuel and Las Vegas Storm, and the 12u and 14u teams also had strong showings.
McKibbon says he hopes this season is just the start of what will become a sprawling girls hockey program at AHA.
“We’re hoping, eventually, to be able to have full season teams at 10u, 12u, 14u and 16u, and maybe someday have multiple teams at some of those levels, if we can continue to grow this,” McKibbon said.
Recent efforts to grow the women’s game seem to be paying off. The Professional Women’s Hockey League, which had its inaugural season last year, recently hosted a “Takeover Tour” game at Ball Arena that saw 14,000 fans cheer on the Montreal Victoire and Minnesota Frost, and McKibbon expects next year’s Winter Olympics to further bolster interest in the women’s game.
“I talked to a couple of Canadian guys this weekend (at the Notre Dame tournament) and in Canada, they have more girls starting hockey than they have boys,” he said. “And we’re typically not far behind the hockey world when it comes to (these) trends.”
McKibbon says playing on all-girls teams allows players to develop their skills in a different environment than they would on a co-ed team.
“The benefits there are — well, there’s, there’s so many,” McKibbon said. “Just being in a locker room with other females and building a team that is together for a whole season, I’ve just seen so much growth in these young ladies this year by having so much time with other female athletes. It’s been pretty rewarding.”
For many of the older girls (most of whom play on co-ed teams during the regular season), the tournament was their first chance to play on an all-girls team.
“I didn’t have to try and fit in, try to be ‘one of the guys,’ ” Tamara Hansen, a 14u player who usually plays on a co-ed team. “I was just myself. (On an all-girls team) you get to show a different side of you. It’s more fun. It’s easier to bond with girls if you’re a girl.”
Hansen said a number of challenges stem from having co-ed teams, aside from the social element. Girls have to change in a separate locker room than the boys; because the boys get priority, girls are relegated to small auxiliary locker rooms or even equipment closets. That also cuts down on team bonding opportunities post game, she added.
One of Hansen’s teammates, Allie Lindberg, said the tournament presented new opportunities on and off the ice.
“My favorite part of the tournament was obviously playing hockey, but I also loved spending time with my teammates,” Lindberg said. “It is so much fun to hang out with the girls on this team, and I will miss them a lot.”
Although the 14u team didn’t have the chance to play on an all-girls team throughout the regular season, McKibbon said their mentorship of the program’s younger players has been vital to the organization.
“Those older ladies in our program have been great mentors and great athletes for our other girls to look up to,” he said. “My hat’s off to them, and I really appreciate them. I feel some guilt, to be honest with you, that we haven’t been able to have a full season (for the 14u girls team).
“But their legacy, and the fact that they stayed with it and played the game, and we were able to get some girls-only programming, hopefully was acceptable,” McKibbon continued.
The sport traditionally has had a high barrier of entry because of the expense of ice time and gear. AHA offers assistance with gear for kids just trying hockey, and the Colorado Avalanche’s Mile High Mites program has had a good deal of success with getting kids involved.
McKibbon says the organization has had to get creative, as its home rink, the Apex Center, has just two ice sheets, and finding times for all of the club’s programs is tricky. He believes it’s worth the effort.
“More girls should play hockey so that this team can be an option for all of us,” Lindberg said. “This year we were supposed to have an all-girls season team but there weren’t enough (girls), so it was a tournament team. If more girls play, we can make this team year-round so that everybody can experience being on a team like this.”
Addie Jade Brooker, who plays for AHA’s 14u team, said she also hopes more girls play so that there are more opportunities for everyone.
“It’s fun, and we need to have more girls teams,” Brooker said.
McKibbon said that while the early morning practices and long travel to games can be difficult, the effort from parents to make their children’s hockey dreams come true is worth it, and AHA will continue to foster a love for the game in the local community.
“We’ve got a large group of people who are committed to making this program grow and be successful, from coaching staff to volunteers, to parents and notwithstanding our female athletes and especially our older ones, who are really … the leaders in establishing this legacy,” McKibbon said.
Tagged: Arvada Hockey Associationgirls hockeyJohn McKibbon
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