Kids At Bridger Middle School Try After-School Hockey

While Vegas Golden Knights goalie Marc-Andre Fleury gears up for the 2019 NHL All-Star game, a different set of all-stars were playing hockey in Las Vegas on Thursday.
Over 50 kids in the After-School All-Stars program in the Clark County School District picked up hockey sticks and received instruction from coaches from the Vegas Golden Knights Youth Hockey division. The kids practiced stickhandling, passing and shooting, got to say hello to Chance the Gila monster and were surprised with doughnuts from Vegas Golden Knights partner and After-School All-Stars supporter, Krispy Kreme.
"It means so much to me and everyone at After-School All-Stars to see the commitment from the Vegas Golden Knights organization and how much they give back to this community," said Jodi Manzella, Executive Director of After-School All-Stars. "Having the students witness how much the team gives back as well is truly priceless for them."

The kids involved in the after-school program enjoyed playing hockey for the afternoon, but they will also be able to play going forward thanks to the Golden Knights.
"The school received a donation from the Golden Knights of the sticks, hockey balls and nets. Some of the kids have had a hockey portion of their physical education class, but some of the kids haven't been able to play yet," Manzella said. "It was exciting for those kids to hold a hockey stick for the first time and slap the ball around."
After shooting around and playing in smaller games for 45 minutes, the kids went outside where they got to see the VGK truck up close and chant "Go Knights Go" along with the goal horn. Each young player received a treat from Krispy Kreme who brought doughnuts down for the kids to enjoy after their exercise.
"It's really great to see kids that have never been exposed to this game get to put a stick in their hands, have a little context and get to make a connection with our team," said Golden Knights Senior Manager of Youth Hockey Matt Flynn. "It helps them to understand what all the excitement with the team is all about."
The excitement of trying hockey in an organized setting for the first time may inspire some of the kids at Bridger Middle School to try some of the youth ice hockey programs offered by the Golden Knights, but Flynn said that the street hockey clinics are about more than that.
"We'd certainly like to convert kids into hockey players, but I don't think that's the goal of this," Flynn said. "First and foremost, it's about creating a fan and it's really hard to be a fan of something if you don't connect with it. Kids have grown up with every other sport, but now that we've infiltrated the school systems with hockey, these kids take it home and tell their siblings and parents about it. That's what we want to accomplish."