Sign up for our free daily newsletter!
(rdnewsNOW file photo)
Fourth place

Innisfail Eagles looking for strong second half in inaugural NCHL season

Dec 12, 2024 | 4:54 PM

The Innisfail Eagles have had a strong first half to their inaugural season in the North Central ‘Senior AA’ Hockey League (NCHL), but aren’t satisfied with the result just yet.

They’re currently in fourth place in the league standings with a 6-3-0-0-1 record, only behind the Stony Plain Eagles (3rd), the Wetaskiwin Longhorns (2nd), and the Lacombe Generals (1st).

Assistant coach Kent Wing said they’re still trying to find their groove, but overall the team has played a solid game.

“Expectations-wise, I feel that we’re underperforming a bit, but it’s such a condensed season. There are a lot of games early on and senior hockey is a working man’s league, so we haven’t been able to get our true lineup in consistently,” he said.

“I think we’re in a good position to make a good run in the second half of the season. We had a strong practice last night and we have a challenging game on Saturday.”

The Eagles are preparing for an exciting return to their longtime rivalry on Saturday night as they face the Stony Plain Eagles at the Innisfail Twin Arena at 8 p.m.

The two teams played against one another for years as members of the senior AAA Chinook Hockey League (CHL).

Over the summer, they both departed the league to join the NCHL and will play each other for the first time since the move.

Innisfail is looking to bounce back after a 5-4 overtime loss last Sunday to the Bonnyville Pontiacs.

“It’s definitely a game we’ve been building up for the last few weeks and the results last weekend weren’t what we wanted, but hopefully we come out with a win this weekend,” Wing added.

“We’ve been very impressed with the level of play in the NCHL; the quality has been very good and we’ve been happy with every team we’ve played. It’s fun to see the overall quality of AA hockey in Alberta.”

The Eagles recently launched their “Hockey Holidays with the Eagles” campaign, asking fans to buy Eagles merchandise this holiday season with the proceeds going directly to support the team’s operations, player development, and community outreach efforts.

Wing explained this time of the year, they focus on helping the Innisfail Christmas Bureau and the Innisfail Food Bank.

A few weeks ago, they did a toque and mitt drive for the Christmas Bureau where all the players donated winter clothing and asked the public to do the same.

At every home game, they do a $500 shoot to win competition in order to entice people to bring items for the Food Bank and Christmas Bureau.

Most recently, they held a food drive for the Innisfail Food Bank where they raised $310 in cash and 184 pounds of food.

“That’s huge for the food bank, especially this time of the year. There’s a lot of people who rely on that type of thing so we definitely try to help out every Christmas,” he said.

More information is at innisfaileagles.com.