Capitals, MSE Foundation Help Support 'Rebirth' of Tucker Road Ducks

This article is part one of a five-part series highlighting the inaugural Capital Impact Fund beneficiaries. The organizations were selected by the Capitals based on their missions and impact toward diversity in hockey, as well as on their plans to use the funding to further advance diversity, equity, and inclusion in the sport.
Since its inception, the National Hockey League's Hockey is for Everyone program has worked with teams and community organizations to grow the sport of hockey and promote increased diversity across the game. As a result, both participation and interest in hockey have steadily increased across the United States over the past decade.

According to USA Hockey, youth hockey in the United States saw a 5.25 percent increase in participation during a five-year period between 2015 and 2020. In the greater Washington, D.C. area alone, youth participation increased 15.9 percent during the same period, over three times the national average. Moreover, the D.C. region has seen a 42 percent increase in total ice hockey participation since the 2003-04 season, while female hockey participation has grown over 129 percent.
The growth of hockey participation has not been limited to traditional demographics, however. Across the region, organizations like the Tucker Road Ducks, Fort Dupont Cannons, Washington Pride, and the Baltimore Banners work tirelessly to offer opportunity and improve accessibility for young athletes of any ethnicity, background, or gender. Through their efforts, these organizations prove that hockey truly is for everyone.
Meet Alexandria Briggs-Blake, the quintessential hockey mom who founded the Tucker Road Parent Hockey Organization (TRPHO) in 2013 and serves as president. Along with vice president Michelle Robinson and secretary/treasurer Koi Lin Hamm, Briggs-Blake has created a culture through which parents and the community are a huge part of the Ducks program.

The idea behind what eventually became the TRPHO began when Briggs-Blake's son, Antonio, developed an interest in playing organized hockey while participating in Learn to Play at Tucker Road Ice Rink. Enthralled with ice skating since the age of two, Antonio began his hockey career at the Fort Dupont Ice Arena since there was no team at Tucker Road. After playing at Fort Dupont for three years, Antonio's coaches encouraged Briggs-Blake to enroll her son on a formal travel team for the upcoming year.
However, Fort Dupont did not sponsor a travel program. This reality required Antonio and many other players to search for other programs, oftentimes at a great distance from their homes.
With the Tucker Road Ice Arena just minutes from their house, Briggs-Blake recognized the need for youth hockey in the area where she lives. It wasn't until 2013, after her son had already joined a travel youth program in Maryland, that's when Briggs-Blake had a vision and thought to herself, "Wait a minute, we should have our own team."
Briggs-Blake, who describes herself as a "highly involved" parent, serves in leadership roles for several parent organizations and volunteered on countless boards and committees for the better half of three decades. Following her decision to form the TRPHO, she chose to put her rolodex of connections to work.
First, Briggs-Blake approached the Maryland-National Capital Parks and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC), the organization that oversees the Tucker Road Ice Rink, and asked them to consider adding an organized hockey program. The M-NCPPC agreed, and the two parties formed a partnership. An integral function of the partnership is to curtail the financial obligations for players and their families, a barrier that impedes participation for many young athletes. Since 2013, M-NCPPC has allocated funds to help cover the ice time and registration fees for all Tucker Road Ducks players.
Located in a predominantly Black community, the Tucker Road Ducks is a diverse program. For the TRPHO, a non-profit organization, the primary objective is to eliminate barriers to ensure that every child who wants access to the sport of hockey can play. As importantly, Briggs-Blake points out some of the benefits of competing as a team allows young athletes to form life-long friendships while also developing important life skills that will serve them both on and off the ice, including the classroom.

"A program like the Ducks helps our players see there have always been people of color in the sport and there will be in the future," Briggs-Blake said. "It shows that youth from every culture and background have the opportunity to participate in a sport that is predominantly white."
Along with the team's Learn to Play programming, the Ducks also compete in tournaments, attend Capitals games and participate in team building events. In Briggs-Blake's eyes, these opportunities allow the young players to grow and develop, see the sport played at the highest level, cultivate important relationships and continue to thrive together as a collective group. It also builds hope.
Enrollment in the Ducks steadily increased over the first four years of the program until tragedy struck in 2017, when a fire destroyed the Ducks' home, Tucker Road Ice Rink.
Briggs-Blake said that for many of the Ducks, Tucker Road Ice Rink served as a home away from home - a staple of the community that offered a safe place where they could spend time with friends and play the game they love.
The fire left the Ducks without a facility to practice and compete at, however it did not diminish the resolve of Briggs-Blake and the Tucker Road Parents Hockey Organization.

In the months that followed the fire, Briggs-Blake remained determined to not let the organization's progress wither. Much like she had when she first helped establish the Ducks, Briggs-Blake once again relied on her rolodex of connections for guidance and resources.
First, she reached out to her contacts to secure ice time for the team. She knew it was vitally important to keep the kids on the ice.
While she was confident that her network would be eager to help, she never imagined the outpouring of support that followed. The hockey community across Washington quickly rallied around the Ducks, offering ice time and other resources to the team. SkateQuest in Reston, Virginia, donated several months of free ice time and became the temporary home of the Ducks.
Although the Ducks' new home in Reston was much further away than Tucker Road, Briggs-Blake was humbled by the generosity the facility showed by providing ice time at convenient times, including weekends. The community also supported the Ducks' by helping them raise funds following the fire, including a $5,300 donation from the Monumental Sports & Entertainment Foundation. Additionally, former Capitals defenseman Brooks Orpik and the NHL Players Association (NHLPA) visited the players and donated 25 sets of new equipment through the NHLPA's Goals and Dreams Grant.

The kindness shown by SkateQuest and M-NCPPC, who arranged ice time for the Ducks at Wells and Capital Clubhouse, allowed the Ducks to weather the uncertainty of not having a facility to play, and ultimately played a huge role in saving the Ducks program. To Briggs-Blake, the generosity shown throughout the community is something she will never forget - or take lightly.
"The support shown by M-NCPPC, SkateQuest and the hockey community as a whole meant the world to us and helped tremendously," Briggs-Blake recounted. "It was the most priceless feeling in the world."
While the Ducks welcomed the opportunity to continue playing at neighboring facilities, many involved were concerned that not having a consistent home rink would negatively impact the team's ability to attract and retain players. Recognizing this challenge, Briggs-Blake and the TRPHO went to work to lobby for a permanent home.
Following the fire that destroyed the rink, Prince George's County and the M-NCPPC did not have immediate plans to rebuild a facility at Tucker Road. Briggs-Blake, along with parents and members of the community, were adamant that a new ice rink would be essential to the team's survival.
For the next four years, under Briggs-Blake's leadership, the TRPHO lobbied the M-NCPPC, lawmakers and community leaders to support the construction of a new home for the Ducks. Using their resources and unabashed passion for the game, they succeeded in securing $28 million for the creation of a brand-new ice rink at Tucker Road.
With funding secured and great optimism, construction of the new Tucker Road Ice Rink began in October of 2019. After two years, the Tucker Road Ducks were welcomed home with a grand-opening celebration on August 28, 2021 - to a beautiful, state-of-the-art facility that far surpassed the previous rink. The Ducks triumphant return to Tucker Road after more than four years is a testament to the dedication and fortitude of the players, coaches, parents and supporters.
"Even with the fire, COVID-19, and any other challenges, Tucker Road and the Ducks have survived and thrived," Briggs-Blake proudly points out.
Constructed on the same spot as the original arena, the new and improved Tucker Road Ice Rink is now one of the region's premier ice-skating facilities. The list of amenities includes beautiful artwork, additional locker rooms for both players and referees, a café, a dance studio and classrooms. Along with the upgrades, the new facility chose to adopt a new theme of "Northern Lights" to pay tribute to an African-American trailblazer and Maryland native, explorer Matthew Henson.

The extraordinary efforts of Briggs-Blake and the Tucker Road Parent Hockey Organization have provided access and opportunity to a generation of young hockey players who may not have otherwise participated in the sport. For nearly a decade, the TRPHO has advocated on behalf of players, coaches, and parents to eliminate barriers and offer an equal playing field for athletes, regardless of socio-economic status.
Last month, the Washington Capitals and Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE) Foundation announced that the Tucker Road Parent Hockey Organization would be one of the inaugural Capital Impact Fund beneficiaries and will receive $10,000 in funding. The TRPHO was selected by the Capitals and MSE Foundation based on its mission and impact toward diversity in hockey, as well as its plans to use the funding to further advance diversity, equity and inclusion in the sport.
For the TRPHO, this funding will play an integral role in the Ducks 'rebirth & rebuild' following the fire in 2017. While the opening of the facility marked a meaningful return to normalcy, recruiting new players is a challenge so late in the season. Briggs-Blake points out that since the facility did not re-open until late August, some potential Ducks' players were forced to join other local teams. However, the team did see some new faces for the 2021-22 season.
The plan is to increase registration for the 2022-23 season and beyond. Using the grant provided by the Capital Impact Fund, the TRPHO will continue to sponsor Hockey for Free events, skills & development training, Learn to Play programming and other programs to help increase participation.
One way that the TRPHO plans to increase registration is by further enhancing its presence in local elementary and middle schools. By working with schools, the Ducks will promote its messaging and programs directly to students interested in playing hockey.
According to Briggs-Blake, one of the most important areas the grant will support will be in the implementation of diversity, equity and inclusion training for Ducks players and coaches. For several years, the TRPHO has worked to provide players with guidance and strategies to better understand the importance of diversity.
"It's important to understand diversity in everything that we do," Briggs-Blake said. "We are a human race, and each individual has a part to play in improving diversity and inclusion not only in hockey, but in our society as a whole." TRPHO is committed to promoting diversity.
Along with DEI workshops and multi-cultural events, the TRPHO plans to expand hockey programming over the coming years. This would include summer and spring programming, participating in and hosting tournaments, additional Learn to Play programs, Try Hockey for Free and teambuilding events. The TRPHO hopes that providing such programming will allow the Ducks to continue to grow during the offseason and help improve consistency throughout the year.
As a non-profit organization, the Tucker Road Parent Hockey Organization relies on donations in order to carry out its programming. To support the Tucker Road Ducks Youth Ice Hockey Program, please visit
www.gofundme.com/TuckerRoadDucks
. Individuals interested in learning more about how to get involved with the Ducks program are encouraged to visit the Tucker Road Ducks page on Facebook or on Twitter @TuckerRdDucks.
For more information on the Washington Capitals Capital Impact Fund, please visit
www.WashCaps.com/CapitalImpactFund
.