Westman Volt Hockey teams head west

Westman Volt Hockey isn’t heading to nationals in Toronto this year, choosing instead to take a record three teams to play in a major event in Calgary this weekend.

Chad Wallin, who with wife Michelle helped bring the program to Brandon in 2022, said it’s a new adventure.

“We’ve never taken three teams,” Wallin said. “This is our largest group to date, which is fantastic. The more athletes we get to travel and be part of a team, the better. The support system is strong, we’ve got families and friends coming from all over to meet us there, and I know our athletes are really excited for this weekend.”

“They’re pretty close in time, and obviously time and resources are tricky,” Wallin added of choosing between Toronto and Calgary. “We decided to give this one a go instead.”

Volt hockey features people facing a number of ailments or developmental challenges guiding chairs via a joystick with a hockey blade mounted at the front. The sport originated in Europe and came to Canada in 2016 after a team in Toronto was launched.

It has since spread to other Ontario centres, along with Alberta and Manitoba.

Westman Volt Hockey wraps up its fourth full season of operation just before the May long weekend.

It had nearly 40 participants this year, enough to expand its programming to two nights. They had a dozen or more kids in each of their three sessions, with one every Monday and two on Wednesdays.

Wallin said there is a good awareness now that the sport is being offered in Brandon.

“The list is ever growing,” Wallin said. “We could certainly add more athletes to our program if we had the space and the resources to get more carts. Right now we’re kind of at maximum capacity in terms of the equipment and the resources we have. It’s a shame having a waiting list, especially when there are limited things for these kids to do.

“Our retention rate is 98 per cent, and that’s a great thing but it’s also provides a challenge for new people who want to start too.”

Westman has 14 carts, although one of the original ones is now being plundered for parts, so they have 13 that can be used.

“We’re always looking for more to continue the program,” Wallin said. The benefit to the participants staying in the sport is that their skills have grown exponentially. Wallin said it’s been a joy to witness for a program that actually won a national title in 2023 in its second season.

“The improvement is remarkable, almost from week to week,” Wallin said. “The comprehension level of the game from where we started to where it is now is incredible. “You think of when you start in Timbits hockey and you’re learning how to skate and do all those things and the next thing you know, you’re working on power plays and penalty killing. We’re learning by leaps and bounds and it’s really fun to watch.

“It’s so quiet now when the athletes are in their carts. When we started it was almost like a demolition derby. Now it’s quiet and controlled and contained.”

Each of the three Westman teams heading to Calgary will have a goalie and three forwards, which is incredible for a program that had just 15 kids overall in its first season.

The tournament, which runs an advanced division and a second division, is put on by Variety Alberta on Saturday and Sunday. The second division features teams from Alberta, Ontario and Manitoba — including Brandon’s three teams and two from Winnipeg — and Westman is there mostly because Wallin doesn’t have a good sense of where they fit in.

“I don’t think we’re quite at that advanced level yet without having the experience like the rest of the teams in Canada and the United States have with playing in multiple tournaments around their area,” Wallin said. “We’re just limited geographically with who we can play against.”

WVH is taking all its own carts this year, with one of the coaches driving a trailer out to Calgary. The carts weigh about 120 pounds each and are powered by two 12-Volt batteries.

“That’s a big undertaking but it will ensure we can know we’ve got our own stuff and the batteries are charged and things like that,” Wallin said.

On Saturday, Westman Gold meets Calgary Chaos-A at 11:15 a.m., and London High Voltage-1 at 3 p.m. They have their final round-robin game against Winnipeg-2 on Sunday at 9 a.m.

Westman Black plays the Edmonton Cubs at 9 a.m., London High Voltage-2 at 2:15 p.m., and Calgary Chaos-AA at 4:30 p.m.

Westman White faces off against GP Thunderbolts at 12:45 p.m., and the Variety Village Vipers at 3:45 p.m. They finish against Winnipeg-1 on Sunday at 9:45 a.m.

The playoff matchups begin at 10:30 a.m., with the finals at 2:45 p.m.

Each game is scheduled within a 45-minute window, and Westman Volt Hockey hopes to livestream all the action on its Facebook page.

“This our last hurrah for the year,” Wallin said. “It’s a big event.”

pbergson@brandonsun.com