BONNYVILLE - It’s been a good inaugural season for the Bonnyville U13 AAA Yaks. The team plays in the Alberta Elite Hockey League (AEHL) and started as a pilot program with the Jr. A Bonnyville Pontiacs organization, who are part of the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL).
The U13 Yaks finished the regular season in sixth place in the 11-team AAA division, with a record of 11-13-6.
“We are extremely happy with the team’s development and progress in the first year of the U13 AAA pilot project,” said Neil Langridge, associate general manager of the Bonnyville Jr. A Pontiacs.
From the beginning, the objective of the Pontiacs was to provide the next level of development for regional players. All but one of the 17 players on the Yaks’ roster are from the Lakeland region. Players come from Bonnyville, Cold Lake, St. Paul, Lac La Biche, as well as rural areas.
“We took a group of young men who have bought into getting better every day and their record proves it, currently sitting higher than many city teams who have a lot of players to pick and choose from,” said Langridge.
The goal of the Bonnyville Pontiacs is to have as many local players achieve the Junior A level. Part of that development starts at the grassroots level.
Regardless of where the players end up, team officials believe they are teaching the young athletes not only on-ice skills and abilities, but also the importance of being great people off the ice.
As to how the idea came about to start the U13 AAA Yaks program, Langridge explained that the Pontiacs were approached by the Bonnyville Minor Hockey Association to form the partnership in April 2024, after the local minor hockey group had been approached by Hockey Alberta.
The Pontiacs’ organization, he said, has been looking for ways to become more involved with the grassroots development of regional players and offer a level higher than traditional AA and local models.
The Bonnyville Minor Hockey Association, along with the Jr. A Pontiacs, Langridge said, are continually on the lookout for solutions to help solve some of the issues faced by local area players and families on a year-to-year basis.
One issue, he said, is being able to offer the highest calibre possible for Lakeland-area players - without families having to uproot or make difficult financial commitments to receive the development they want for their children.
When asked how elite hockey differs from lower levels in minor hockey, Langridge said the major difference is found within the program that the Pontiacs’ organization built early on. This, he explained, has involved hiring a top-level coach with experience at different levels who does not have a child or any relations on the team, along with increasing the amount of practice times to three or more skates taking place every week, and ensuring that the players are competing against the top calibre players in their age group.
“The Lakeland Panthers organization has done a great job building and developing athletes for many years and now, this new AAA program compliments their efforts,” said Langridge.
