By Aaron Mahoney (@Mahones93 on Twitter)

Annual staff-student game wraps up R.I. Baker hockey academy season

Apr 11, 2018 | 1:36 PM

COALDALE – A report card isn’t likely necessary for the four dozen or so members of R.I. Baker Middle School’s Hockey Academy, as they should pass with flying colours based on their on-ice exam.

They bested their elders 18-11 in the recent Baker Cup, for the first time in years, the school’s annual student-staff hockey game.

A new release from Palliser Regional Schools states as the final buzzer sounded their schoolmates rose to their feet in the stands at the Coaldale Sportsplex, and the entire student bench poured onto the ice to accept the hardware after the victory.

The contest – which featured a first-time goalie in the form of Principal Jason Prebushewski, referees dressed up as Baker Bears, and academy director/former NHLer Bruce Bell robbed on a breakaway – was a culmination of the students’ twice-a-week, on-ice sessions this year.

With family, staff and the entire student population of R.I. Baker in the stands it was an opportunity for those students in Grades 5 to 8 to demonstrate how far they’ve come.

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The game was also a chance for the students to interact with those across the ice at a different level than usual.

The hockey academy, which according to school officials continues to grow at R.I. Baker each year, caters to players of all skill levels.

Students aren’t graded on how they match up against others, but on their own growth while class participation, accountability and sportsmanship also earn marks.

Many of the students will move on to the hockey academy at nearby Kate Andrews High School, where it was first born in 2008, and introduced the next year at R.I. Baker.