Minnesota Hockey Journal

J A N U A R Y / F E B R U A R Y 2 0 2 3 | M H J ON L I N E . C O M 23 Of course, scoring is fun and being on the ice is fun. But my favorite part of this experience has been that I have made many friends, and I feel at home in Minnesota." —Margo Biestuzheva is to provide an accessible, positive hockey experience for every kid interested in the sport. This year, the association deliv- ered over 7,000 flyers; one of them made their way to Biestuzheva. "I wanted to try something new," Biestuzheva says. "And I chose hockey because I have fun when I'm skating." Cecilia Teeuwen, registrar for the Minneapolis Storm, received an email from Biestuzheva's mother. After emailing back and forth a bit, Teeuwen realized that the family had just relocated to Minneapolis from Ukraine. Teeuwen reached out to Wood, and they worked with the associa- tion to figure out the next steps to get Biestuzheva ready to play. First, she needed equipment. But rather than pulling from their rent- al stock, the association president wanted to buy her brand-new gear. Wood and Teeuwen, along with their daughters who are also on the Storm 8U team, met Biestuzheva and her mother at Pure Hockey. While Wood and the girls helped her get the right gear, Teeuwen helped with registration. Registering for hockey can be intimidating for first timers. But a language barrier and extra registra- tion obstacles, such as foreign pass- ports and birth certificates, makes the process much harder. Teeuwen helped Biestuzheva's mother com- plete the entire registration on her phone and download the team's app. In a matter of hours, Biestuzheva was ready to play. PAVING THE WAY Hockey is not as commonly played in Ukraine—especially by girls. So when Biestuzheva stepped out on the ice for the first time, she was, under- standably, a little nervous. "At first I had fear," she says. "But the fear flew away after the first practice." While it's true that the Minneapolis Hockey Association, Teeuwen and Wood all helped Biestuzheva regis- ter and get suited up, the real hero of this story is Biestuzheva. "It takes guts to reach out to us, and to keep following through with it," Wood says. "She's here, in a new place, embracing this totally new thing. She was forthright enough to see the flyer and say 'Mom, I'm going to play hockey.'" Helping Biestuzheva also helps the association. "There are a lot of people in our program who hope that we can better pave the way for kids who are new to hockey," Wood says. "It doesn't have to be someone coming here from a war-torn country for us to roll out the welcome mat for them." The association's goal is to give any kid in the community the opportunity to play, says Bois. The association has a scholarship pro- gram for those who qualify—per- haps that's just the beginning. "I know there's an appetite to look bigger," Wood says. "I hope we can learn how to ease the commitment burden for others. I think we can do more outreach." For Biestuzheva, hockey has been more than just a sport. "Of course, scoring is fun and being on the ice is fun," she says. "But my favorite part of this experi- ence has been that I have made many friends, and I feel at home in Minnesota." Margo is now a fearless member of the Minneapolis 8U hockey team.

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