By William Tauro
This past Saturday Oct. 26th the City of Somerville officially dedicated it’s new ice rick as the Founders Rink at a special event.
The new ice rink was opened in 2012, two years after the City took control of the Veterans Memorial Rink.
The City of Somerville also honored five veterans – George Hughes (Army), John Doncaster (Army), Raymond Deeran (Navy), James Papaluca (Marine) and Joseph Guidi (Navy) – who founded the Somerville Youth Hockey Association in the 1960’s. Now that it’s officially dedicated, the five men’s names now appear on a plaque at the new ice rink at 570 Somerville Ave., next to the Veterans Memorial Rink.
The ice rink will also be home to Igor and Somerville’s own, Boston Stars Elite & Select Hockey Teams.
The Boston Stars Hockey organization offers team participation at the Elite and Select levels. Our program provides players the opportunity to develop the skills necessary to play at the highest level of hockey competition.
Young athletes must be challenged to improve. Through the development framework of Igor Hockey, our program places a strong emphasis on skill progression in order to develop the speed, agility, and mental toughness that are essential for every young hockey player’s success.
More importantly, we teach our players the values of hard work, good sportsmanship, and fair play.
Although our teams consistently win while competing against some of the top hockey talent in New England, it is our overall player development throughout a season of this unique training that is a source of pride, and a true testimony of the philosophy of Coach Igor Gratchev.
It is no surprise that Junior, High School and College Hockey Coaches from around the country have consistently identified players who have developed the skills as students of Igor Hockey.
Our training program is intense and focused on your child’s development.
Our philosophy and approach are simple:
“We Do Not Recruit Stars, We Create Them!”
Go STARS!
For more on the history of youth hockey in Somerville: http://bit.ly/19B0TU2
