A family affair

On February 26, 2020, the Provincial Archives of Alberta published a Facebook post that asked the following question:

“Did you know that Edmonton-born John Utendale; was the first Black hockey player to sign a contract with the NHL?”

That National Hockey League contract was signed with the Detroit Red Wings in 1955, three years before Willie O’Ree broke the NHL’s colour barrier in 1958 with the Boston Bruins. Utendale attended three or four camps with the Wings, skating with the likes of Gordie Howe, Alex Delvecchio and Red Kelly.

Utendale never played for the Red Wings, instead seeing action with Wings’ farm team, the Edmonton Flyers.

But O’Ree has been quoted, including in a 2018 article in The Undefeated, that it could easily have been Utendale, or O’Ree’s Boston teammate Stan Maxwell, or Herb Carnegie or Art Dorrington who could have the NHL’s first black player.

According to an Edmonton Journal article in 2006, as a youth and teenager, Utendale played on the outdoor city rinks in Edmonton while playing peewee, bantam and midget hockey. His post-minor hockey career started with the Edmonton Oil Kings, prior to his historic signing with the Red Wings. After that, he played three seasons with the Flyers, followed by a couple of seasons where he moved east, playing for teams such as the Windsor Bulldogs and North Bay Trappers (Ontario Senior league), Quebec Aces (Quebec Hockey League), and Sudbury Wolves (Eastern Professional Hockey League).

In his 1958-59 part-season (five games) with the Aces, Utendale would be joined by O’Ree and Maxwell, where they played together on “The Black Line.” And it is believed Utendale was only the fourth black player to play Senior A hockey in Ontario, joining Herb and Ossie Carnegie and Manny McIntyre

He eventually returned to western Canada, getting married to Maryan “Mickey” Maddison Leonard in 1959, and starting his university education. Utendale earned his teaching certificate from the University of British Columbia in 1961, and then enrolled at the University of Alberta, earning his Bachelor of Education degree in two years. He worked for three years at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT), when that school was being established in the mid-1960s, becoming the school’s first Director of Physical Education and coaching the men’s hockey team (1966-67).

Throughout the 1960s, until his on-ice career ended in 1969, Utendale was still playing, including stints with the Ponoka Stampeders, Edmonton Nuggets and Edmonton Monarchs, along with the Spokane Jets (Western International Hockey League).

Had his story ended here, Utendale would already have established himself as a significant figure in the history of the sport of hockey.

But a sentence included in his obituary, published in the Edmonton Journal following his death in 2006, illustrates that hockey really was a lifelong passion for Utendale:

“John’s career was a story of diversity from professional hockey player to professor.”

With the conclusion of his playing career in 1969, Utendale’s focus shifted to what would be a long and influential career in post-secondary education.

He earned his Master’s degree at Eastern Washington State College, and was hired at Washington State University. During his three years at WSU he was academic coordinator for the athletic department, a member of the Washington State Human Rights commission, taught a course in the black studies department and coached little league baseball, all while earning his Doctorate in Education.

Dr. Utendale then joined Western Washington State College (now University), becoming the first black faculty member of the Woodring College of Education. For a quarter century, he headed the Student Personnel Administration graduate program, dramatically increasing the number of minority students at the school. Utendale was nationally recognized for his academic work, and moved into full professorship, becoming one of the few minor faculty members with tenure. He also held numerous positions in the Washington state community, including leading the Higher Education Administration.

But hockey always played a significant role in Utendale’s life. During his time as an educator, he was involved in hockey at the local, post-secondary and regional levels in Washington State. He helped found the Bellingham Area Minor Hockey Association and the city’s junior team (which he also coached), coached the Western Washington University Vikings team, and served as Western Regional Director for the Amateur Hockey Association of the U.S.

He was also an assistant training coach with the U.S. Olympic team in 1980, becoming the first black member of the coaching staff of the men’s hockey team. That team won gold at the “Miracle on Ice” Lake Placid Olympics.

John Utendale was born in Edmonton in 1937. He retired from Western Washington University in 2001, and he died in Bellingham, Washington in 2006.

TEAM ALBERTA NORTH WINS GOLD AND SILVER AT 2023 ARCTIC WINTER GAMES

Team Alberta North won one gold and one silver medal on home ice at the 2023 Arctic Winter Games. The Junior Female team went undefeated throughout the tournament en route to a gold medal. The U15 Male team battled to the end, but fell to Team NWT 6-5, ultimately finishing with silver. The U18 Male team finished round robin as the first seed, but lost two close games in the medal round to finish fourth.

DETAILS >

VIEW THE REST OF THE ICE TIMES NEWSLETTER >

FORT MCMURRAY – Team Alberta North won one gold and one silver medal on home ice at the 2023 Arctic Winter Games.

The Junior Female team, comprised of players born from 2003-2009, took home the gold medal after a dominating tournament. The team went 4-0-0 through the round robin portion of the competition, outscoring opponents by a total of 29-4. They would advance through the semi-finals with an 8-0 win over Alaska, which set up a thrilling 2-1 victory over the Northwest Territories to capture the gold.

“The girls came together and created a culture built on teamwork and trust. The way each one of them bought in was ultimately the reason for their success. They were relentless with their efforts all week, while still embodying the spirit of the Arctic Games in terms of sportsmanship and fair play. They are an incredibly dedicated and hard-working group of players that carried themselves as professionals both on and off the ice,” said Head Coach Hayley Runnalls. “We had an amazing week of learning from each other and I’m sure they’ve all made lasting friendships! The gold-medal game was a hard-fought battle against a strong NWT team that made winning gold on home soil, in front of their friends and family, a once-in-a-lifetime moment they will never forget!”

RESULTS >

The U15 Male team, comprised of players born in 2007-2008, had a slow start to the tournament after dropping their first two games, picked up steam towards the end of the round robin, finishing with a 2-0-2 record. They would move on to the semi-finals, where they avenged their tournament opening loss to Nunavut and advanced to the gold medal final. In a tight, back and forth game against the Northwest Territories, they would end up on the losing side of a 6-5 decision, landing the silver medal.

"We described our players that they competed as "warriors" all week long while playing fairly and and with the spirit of the games sportsmanship in mind," said Kevin Kuryluk, head coach of the U15 Male team. "As coaches we were extremely proud of all of our players. Our message as coaches to the team before the final game was to take it all in and enjoy the moment as this is a once in a lifetime opportunty, but most importantly have fun!"

RESULTS >

The U18 Male team, comprised of players born in 2004-2006, started off the tournament strong, landing the top overall seed after the round robin with a 3-0-1 record. They moved on to face Alaska in the semi-finals, where they dropped a heartbreaker 5-4. In the bronze medal game, the U18’s dropped another one game to the Northwest Territories and ultimately finished in fourth place.

RESULTS >

The 2023 Arctic Winter Games were held in the region of Wood Buffalo from January 29 – February 4, with the hockey events taking place in Fort McMurray.

EVENT PHOTOS >

Hockey Alberta’s Elite Female Hockey Committee has been reviewing the location and number of teams at each level of hockey within the Alberta Female Hockey League (AFHL).

On November 2, Hockey Alberta announced the addition of a new U13 AA division within the AFHL, as well as expansion of the U15 AA division, and officially opened an application process for Minor Hockey Associations (MHAs) to apply to host those teams.

After a thorough review of all applications, Hockey Alberta’s Elite Female Hockey Committee is excited to announce the addition of the following Host MHAs, effective for the 2023-24 season:

1. U13 AA - 16 Teams
   • Host MHAs: Airdrie, Bonnyville, Calgary (3), Camrose, Edmonton (2), Grande Prairie, Leduc, Lethbridge, Lloydminster, Okotoks, Red Deer, Sherwood Park, and St. Albert
2. U15 AA - Addition of 2 Teams
   • 1 in Calgary (3 total)
   • 1 in Edmonton (2 total)

The Elite Female Committee also identified the need to address the operational structure of the South Central recruitment area. The current structure included two Host MHAs separately operating teams within the same recruitment area and lacked unified leadership. After working with the Host MHAs, it was determined one Host MHA was required, and Airdrie MHA will take on the responsibility of hosting all U13 AA, U15 AA and U18 AA teams in the South Central recruitment area.

The Elite Female Hockey Committee is working with all Host MHAs to finalize details of program and league operations for the upcoming season. We will also continue to review the structure and alignment of U18 AAA and U18 AA, discussing a potential expansion in the 2024-25 season.

For questions or more information, emails can be submitted to:

Lise Cote
Chair, Elite Female Committee

Kendall Newell
Manager, Female Hockey

Information Bulletin 22-08 >

February 1 is National Women and Girls in Sport day.

To celebrate, Hockey Alberta is reflecting back on Female Hockey Day, presented by ATB.

Female Hockey Day is a Hockey Alberta initiative to celebrate the female game by bringing together players, coaches, officials, parents and supporters to learn, develop and grow.

“Female Hockey Day is about introducing new girls to the game and encouraging girls already in the game to experience different sides to the game,” said Morgen Kidney, Hockey Alberta’s Female Hockey Coordinator.

This year, Female Hockey Day was held on January 7 in Calgary. The 2023 event marked the sixth annual Female Hockey Day. Previous events were held in Grande Prairie, Lethbridge, Red Deer, and Lloydminster along with a virtual event in 2021.

Traditionally, the event features Try Hockey and Try Goaltending sessions, a local feature game and off-ice activities including female coach and female officials development sessions and parent sessions.

Hockey Alberta encourages all communities to participate in Female Hockey Day, with support grants available from the Hockey Alberta Foundation.

“Success is measured by the smiles on faces and fun had at the event and Female Hockey Day is successful every year,” said Kidney.

Look back on Female Hockey Day >

Renee Hess was just a hockey fan in California when she noticed a lack of representation of Black women in the game. Wanting to create an inclusive and supportive space, the Black Girl Hockey Club (BGHC) was born.

“Renee noticed that when she went to games, she always felt really awkward and excluded, so she figured, why not make a club for Black women in hockey,” said Saroya Tinker, Executive Director of Black Girl Hockey Club Canada. “Renee has never played hockey, but a lot of girls that started out in Black Girl Hockey Club were just fans.”

Tinker got involved with the BGHC when she began volunteering on the scholarship committee. As a professional hockey player, Tinker saw an opportunity to raise money for the BGHC during the National Women’s Hockey League bubble in 2021.

“I set my goal at $5,000 and we ended up raising $32,000,” said Tinker. “We realized there was a lot of interest from Canadian companies. Obviously hockey’s huge in Canada and there was already a network of girls in the Greater Toronto Area, specifically. So we decided to broaden our network and move the BGHC across the border to Canada and implement our programming here.”

BGHC Canada offers a mentorship program for Black women between the ages of 8 and 21, financial aid and scholarships for Black women of all ages to play, mental health and wellness resources, including subsidized therapy and focus groups and partners with NHL teams and community initiatives to create accessible, diverse and welcoming events across the country.

“We want girls of all ages to play. A Black Grandma who wants to learn how to play hockey or two years old and need your first pair of skates,” said Tinker. “I think that’s really what we’re aiming to do is create that sense of community and realize that Black women do play hockey and we’re just trying to normalize it.”

Tinker began playing hockey as a kid. Her dad, a Black man who faced his own challenges in the game, had a passion for the sport. After introducing Tinker to the game, she fell in love with the freedom of being on the ice.

“Over the course of my career, I kind of always felt like I had to take a piece of my Blackness out to fit in in the arena and those settings,” said Tinker. “The experiences that I’ve had led me to what I’m doing today and that’s my purpose - to make sure these girls have a community.”

One of the first experiences of overt racism Tinker can remember happened when she was 12 when a teammate called her racial slurs in the dressing room.

“I didn’t know how to react. I remember talking to my Dad and he explained that I’m going to have more experiences like that,” said Tinker. “Now I’m trying to make sure that their (Black girls currently playing hockey) experience is better than mine and make sure that they have a piece of representation to look at.”

Today, Tinker plays defence for the Toronto Six in the Premier Hockey Federation.

“I’m still playing, but the girls are my purpose for playing. I get to do this for them, while I’m still opening those doors, that’s what I’m here to do,” said Tinker. “I’m happy that we were able to bring the Black Girl Hockey Club to Canada and be all over North America now.”

Though Tinker is based in Ontario, she has meetings with girls from across the continent via Zoom. When she’s able, she schedules in-person meet-ups with members of BGHC Canada.

“It’s so easy to connect with people now-a-days. It’s exciting to see that we’re all across Canada. When I’m in Alberta, I always want to make sure to meet the girls,” said Tinker. “I know I’ve met a few girls in Alberta, I have a few more to meet, but it’s really exciting when we get to meet each other in person and it make it that much more special.”

For now, BGHC Canada’s main source of communication is online. BGHC Canada is on Instagram, Twitter and has an option to contact the club on their website. Tinker encourages all Black women to connect with the club and become part of the community.

“We’re such a growing community. I see new Black girls in the arena every day. In that sense we’re ‘adding to the club,’” said Tinker. “These girls are creating friendships and networking connections that are going to last a lifetime.”

BGHC Canada is welcoming of all communities. Allies of BGHC Canada are invited to attend community events or to reach out to BGHC Canada to learn how to support the club.

The first of February is National Women and Girls in Sports Day and marks the beginning of Black History Month. Listen to the Centre Ice Podcast to hear the full conversation with Saroya Tinker, available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts and Podbean.