The White Falcon - 10.11.1995, Blaðsíða 8

NATO hockey skates into new season
By J02 David W. Crenshaw
The crack of dawn after the first hard
freeze of the season and brisk air rolls
across the ice. Putting on skates to glide
out on a pond with stick in hand, you’re
ready to send a puck sailing toward the
makeshift goal waiting at the other end.
For people who grew up playing hockey,
dreaming of being the next Wayne
Gretzky, memories like these bring a cer-
tain pleasure. To play again is a dream
come true.
For 20 players at NAS, that dream is
becoming reality. The NATO hockey
team is preparing for its second season of
action. Center Stephen Mitchell is one of
those players. Growing up in Holyoke,
Mass., near Springfield, the 26-year-old
put on his first set of skates at the age of
four and never looked back. “I’ve been
playing hockey ever since my father put
me on skates,” he said. “I started playing
again about two years ago; I just do it for
fun.”
The chance to play again for the first
time since high school came when he took
to the ice with one of the local Icelandic
teams. It wasn’t long, though, before
Mitchell realized he wasn’t alone with his
love for the sport. “A lot of guys from the
base were saying, ‘Well, I want to play
hockey, too,”’ he explained. “So, I
talked with the Icelandic guys to get
everybody some ice time. We shared the
ice, and the next thing I knew, we had
enough people together to make a NATO
team.”
To his surprise, the team started with
much support. Thirteen players took to
the ice last year with help from the USO
and many motivated fans who braved the
cold to watch games in open-air rinks.
“It’s harder for the fans on base to actual-
ly sit out there and watch the game, but
we had a great turnout during the games
last year,” Mitchell stated. The fledgling
team rolled through its first year to a 3-2
finish against several teams from the
Reykjavik area.
Now, the NATO hockey team heads
into a new season, and Mitchell is excited
to be a part of the team. “We had a
scrimmage game last week against one of
the Icelandic teams and we beat them 10 -
0, so we’re taken very seriously,” he said
about this year’s team.
In a game last weekend, the NATO
squad was down 5-1 going into the third
period against Reykjavik Bjominn, whic:
placed second in the Icelandic Hockey
League last year. The team launched a
comeback, anchored by goalie Chris
Skilbred, who turned away every shot on
goal during the last 40 minutes of the
game. The NATO team ended up with a
5 - 5 tie.
Mitchell said the team hopes to begin
play as early as the last weekend this
month. He revealed the team will play
squads from Akureyri and Reykjavik Nov.
25 and 26. The games will be in
Reykjavik.
“We’re not going to be in the Icelandic
hockey league, though,” Mitchell noted,
explaining that according to Icelandic
rules, a foreign team is restricted from
certain recognitions. “Even if we did win
league play, we couldn’t be national
champs because we aren’t Icelandic. So,
we set up friendly games with Reykjavik.
They’re real games, with referees and
everything; they just don’t count for
points.”
The NATO men’s hockey team is
always looking for players. Anyone inter-
ested in playing can call Steve Galeski
ext. 7442 or Eric Gruszecki at 4849.

m
Gym Shorts
NATO men’s volleyball team practice
ongoing. Practices are Tuesdays and
Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. in the high school
gym. Matches around Iceland start at
the end of this month. Contact Ken
Rice at ext. 5063 or 2617 for further
information.
NATO team handball needs players.
Practices have started for this new sport.
They are Mondays and Wednesdays at
7:30 p.m. at the high school gym.
Interested players should contact the
Athletic Office at ext. 4588 for details on
the team.
Soccer referees needed. The Keflavik
Youth Athletic Association needs volun-
teer referees. If you are interested, con-
tact Kevin Gentry at ext. 7547 or 2209 or
Greg Perusse at ext. 6219 or 7461.
Admiral’s Cup swim meet set. It is
next Friday at the base pool at 1 p.m.
Swimmers should be there by 12:30 p.m.
8
Two for the cause ... K. L. Webb of the Marines drops in two points for his team
during second-half action against CFK last week at the Base Gym. The Marines
cruised to an easy 66 - 45 win. In basketball action tomorrow in the Over-30 League,
CFK meets Air Ops at 2 p.m., Njarfivfk faces 85 LS at 3 p.m. and NavFac and NCTS
will close the action at 4 p.m. Moving to the Troll League on Monday night, A.T^^^
Mahan tangles with 85 LS at 7 p.m. NavFac is pitted against NCTS in game two wit^^^ft
Njarbvik and the Hospital ending the night at 9 p.m. On Tuesday in the Viking^^
League, the Marines meet Sandgerfii at 7 p.m., followed by 932 ACS and CFK. The
closer features 85 SPS against 85 MSS at 9 p.m. (Photo by JOl Kevin A. Mills)
The White Falcon