Mother McAuley's Abbey Murphy Shooting For 2022 Winter Olympics

By Howard Ludwig ~  Abbey Murphy trades her Mother McAuley school uniform for hockey gear most days after the final bell rings.  Murphy, 15, has been playing hockey since she was 7 years old and has excelled in the game like few others. In fact, Murphy was selected as the youngest member of Team USA's elite under-18 squad for a tournament last month in Lake Placid, N.Y.  Murphy scored a pair of goals in the three game series. Team USA defeated rival Canada, taking the first and last games of the three-game series. The 22 players chosen for the American team are often considered candidates for the Olympic Winter Games . FULL ARTICLE>>

By Pam Flores ~ Happy hockey new year! The Metro Girls High School league season is set to kick off this week with the first game being played on September 29, 2017.  This year we have 13 teams in the Metro Girls league (one more than last year!). The teams include: Barrington, Evanston, Fenwick, Glenbrook, Lake Forest Academy, Lake Forest High School, Latin School of Chicago, Loyola Academy, Maine Township, Naper Valley, New Trier Varsity, New Trier Silver and Warren.  During the first half of the season each high school team meets for one contest and the league is then divided into two divisions, Scholastic and Founders. It is sure to be a very tight contest again this year to determine where the teams will end up.  READ MORE>>

By  Chrös McDougall ~ Say the word, and you'll get a reaction from the U.S. women's ice hockey team.  Canada.  "Even brining it up puts a little fire in all of us," defenseman Monique Lamoureux-Morando said Tuesday at the Team USA Media Summit in Park City, Utah. "Just even talking about it." 

A lot has happened since Team USA lost a heartbreaking gold-medal game to its northern rival at the Olympic Winter Games Sochi 2014, including three consecutive world titles for the Americans. But in a sport that reaches its quadrennial climax at the Olympics, the memory of Sochi still stings.  With a 2-0 lead and less than 3:30 remaining, Team USA was en route to its first gold medal since 1998. FULL ARTICLE>>

This 13 minute long video (left) explores the toll that winning has taken on our young athletes. Is it worth it? Who benefits? Where has the multi-sport athlete gone? What pressures are we putting on kids? Youth sports participation is down, 70% of them wash out of sports by age 13. Watch and contemplate as some of North America's leading coaches and sports psychologist examine this phenomenon.

AHAI's Photo of the Month Contest is back, and the prizes are better than ever thanks to our sponsor,  Howies Hockey Tape! Submit photos of your AHAI player's awesome hockey Halloween costumes and pumpkins, wicked slapshots, dekes, dangles and great saves...or of your kids just plain having fun playing hockey.  Please email photos to AHAI Communications Manager, Gretchen Cockey at gretchen@ahai2.org. Please do NOT send your photos via Facebook message. Photos should include the following: a brief, witty caption, player's name, organization or club and age level. Limit of two photos per month.

ALL photos will be posted on AHAI's Facebook and Instagram Pages, but 5 lucky photos will be featured in AHAI's e-newsletter, SNAPSHOT and receive an awesome AHAI Baseball Cap, Howies Hockey Tape winter beanie (3 beanies to choose from), a roll of Howies hockey tape (best tape ever!) and a Howies Hockey Tape water bottle! We will also throw in a couple surprises from the Chicago Blackhawks and Rockford IceHogs!

Photo submission deadline for the October Photo of the Month contest is Tuesday, October 31st. AHAI will select the finalists; YOUR votes will select the Top 5! Voting will be conducted Thursday, November 2 through Sunday, November 5 until 5:00pm (CST); winners will be contacted via email and announced in the November 8th issue of SNAPSHOT!