Sledge hockey comes to Westman

If gliding across the ice on sleds and firing pucks with twin sticks for free piques your interest, then you’re in luck.

As of this week, the accessible sport of sledge hockey will now have a program in Brandon, as the Sportsplex will host weekly sessions free of charge on Tuesdays from 7 to 8 p.m. up until March.

The program organized by Manitoba Possible — a non-profit organization that focuses on inclusivity and providing programs for those with disabilities in the province — was created to offer more convenience, so athletes or anyone open to playing the sport in the Westman area no longer have to make the more than two-hour drive out to the organization’s programs held in Winnipeg and Winkler.

Manitoba Possible recreation manager Jaylene Irwin said bringing the game to Brandon has been in the works for at least five years but didn’t become a legitimate opportunity until around two years ago, when the funding and resources started all coming into place. Now that it’s finally here, she’s hoping it will continue to grow the game.

“I am really excited to see the community come together. The more kind of awareness that we can get out there and continue to grow the sport for the area is our goal over the next few years,” she said. “Sledge hockey truly is such an empowering sport for individuals, and knowing that there are limited sports and recreation activities in Brandon, we’re excited to just get folks involved and active.

“Our hope would be that this is sort of a pathway for folks to be active for life and fall in love with a different way of playing hockey, and just having that sense of community and belonging is really important to us. Sledge hockey is one of the leading programs that really fosters that inclusivity and connection for everyone.”

Manitoba Possible’s program is being funded by United Way West Central Manitoba, a charity that provided around $16,000 for equipment and ice time expenses. Irwin said they had gotten a grant approved two years ago but hit some roadblocks with finding ice in the city — a problem that had gotten even worse after the Sportsplex underwent renovations to replace its ice plant.

Once the community complex was reopened to the public in October, though, they were able to make the sledge hockey program one of its ice time priorities thanks to Manitoba Possible.

So far, Irwin said seven athletes ranging from age eight to 60 are participating in the on-ice sessions, which include a structure of roughly a 10-minute warm-up, 20 to 30 minutes of skills and drills, and then enough time at the end for a fun scrimmage — which at this time, would shape up to be three-on-three action with one player as a sub.

Irwin said their current numbers aren’t a surprise considering the program just started, but also because the accessible sport population is generally a smaller demographic. Nonetheless, Irwin said anyone is welcome to participate, including able-bodied people.

“It’s open for everyone, but our main goal is to continue breaking down those barriers,” Irwin said. “We are hopeful that the more consistent this startup program is, the more folks will find out about it and want to register with us and continue with the program.”

Irwin said because there will only be two coaches, having 12 athletes on the ice is the most they would be comfortable with. If the number of athletes surpasses that, they will look to expand their staff for on-ice volunteers.

“That’s what’s most comfortable in terms of being able to provide a positive and supportive experience for everyone,” she said. “If we had more volunteers in the area, our maximum on ice could be about 18. That’s usually about the highest that we would see at an ice time in general, just so it’s not too congested while we’re out there and everyone’s able to touch the puck, and you can run the drills a bit better that way too.”

With the addition of the Brandon program, Manitoba Possible has now reached more than 100 athletes across the three programs. The Winnipeg program has been running since 2007 and Winkler since 2019. Irwin said getting boots on the ground in Brandon has taken so long because they simply didn’t have the support staff to make it happen.

“We didn’t have a family in the area to really drive it forward or a volunteer,” she said. “The Winkler program started because there were two individuals that had been coming to Winnipeg to play sledge hockey, and then eventually, they really wanted to kind of spearhead it and be a part of creating this opportunity in their local area. Without that initiative or having folks that are really committed and passionate about, you know, growing the sport and wanting it in their community, it comes down to, do we have someone to champion this for us and lead it out there.”

Nobody in the area was willing to lead the charge until Rainey Delaurier, a sledge hockey athlete, came into the picture. Delaurier was introduced to the game around three years ago after he wanted to pursue an alternative to stand-up hockey because of a life-altering bone disease in his legs. He attended camps in Winnipeg to help develop his game and is now a member of Team Manitoba’s 2025-26 sledge hockey club.

He, his father, Tom, and mother, Cher, have now taken the reins to move the sport forward in Brandon. Delaurier and his dad will be on the ice volunteering as coaches, while Cher does some of the behind-the-scenes work to make sure everything runs smoothly. Irwin said the program wouldn’t be possible without them.

“Families like Rainey’s are the driving force behind this,” said Irwin. “It’s really, yeah, community-driven, and volunteers are a big part of that.”

At some point down the road, Irwin said the goal is to have enough athletes and resources to have home and away games between the Winnipeg, Winkler, and Brandon programs.

Manitoba Possible will provide the sleds and sticks for all the athletes, but they have a limited supply of protective equipment, so Irwin recommends people bring their own. That being said, all you need if you’re just getting started is a helmet and gloves.

“You have your own mentors, but to possibly be a mentor for the next kind of group of players coming up, it feels surreal,” said Delaurier. “It really makes me like so happy, and I just like love the game even more, just getting to coach this new generation and having like this opportunity for people to like play sledge in Brandon. I’m just so pumped for it, and I can’t wait for what the future holds for it.”

» mdelucataronno@brandonsun.com