Goode’s dream of Girls Hockey All-Star Game comes true Saturday
It didn’t look as if it could take place a couple of months ago, but persistence has paid off for Nashua businessman Jon Goode and the first ever NHGA New Hampshire Girls High School Hockey Invitational is set for Saturday at 7 p.m. at Tri-Town Arena in Hooksett.
Several local players are slated to participate. Goode, who owns KBK Sports in Nashua, began working on organizing the game to recognize the talent of New Hampshire girls hockey players, be it from prep schools, high schools, or junior progrms. The main requirement to be selected to the game is that a player must live in New Hampshire.
“We’re very excited to get the first game up and running,” Goode said. “It’s as best it can be with the pandemic and restrictions.”
The restrictions are that only immediate family members of the participants are allowed to be in the stands, which is an improvement from the original limit to one parent. Fans must wear face coverings at all times while in the building. The game was originally scheduled for late June but then moved to Saturday in the late spring.
Most, if not all of the locals, are on Team Dunn/Mounsey, named after New Hampshire Olympians Tricia Dunn and Tara Mounsey.
From Bishop Guertin competing will be senior defenseman and Telegraph Player of the Year Lindsay Hult and junior forward Julia McLaughlin. Sophomore wing Jenna Lynch is listed as a BG player but competes instead for a junior team.
Other locals expected to play are Taylor Anger, Nashua South; Paige Anger, forward, Nashua South senior; forward Maddy Debelis, a sophomore at Milford, Nashua North junior forward Anne McIntosh, and graduated senior defenseman Clare Woodford of Souhegan.
The other team, which is prep school dominated, is Team King/Flanagan, named after Olympians Salem’s Katie King and Hudson’s Kali Flanagan (originally from Burlington, Mass.)
“We tried to do a mix (of prep school, high school, and junior players),” Goode said.
The game will feature three 20 minute periods. Coaches for the teams are coming from New Hampshire youth hockey programs, and basically will just monitor line changes, etc., Goode said. Teams will wear uniforms modeled after the U.S. Olympians, either white or dark blue jerseys with the Stars and Stripes.
Goode has low-keyed the event due to the pandemic. There will be no public address announcer, given the small confines of the bench area, no anthem singer or pre-game ceremonies, etc.
“Obviously we would love to have all the ceremonial things, but from what I see is going on in other states across the country, we’re pretty lucky,” Good e said. “The easy thing would’ve been to cancel, but I was thinking of some of the players like Woodford, graduating seniors who will never have a chance to play in this game again.”