Issue link: https://read.uberflip.com/i/1533631
p More than 8,000 children across the United States had the oppor- tunity to try hockey for the first time on Feb. 22 during the second of this season's national USA Hockey Try Hockey For Free days. USA Hockey's Try Hockey For Free, presented by Discover, is an initiative focused on providing an opportunity for kids across the country to try the sport of hockey without cost. Certified coaches and volunteers provided instruction for children to play on the ice, with host sites providing equipment for children to borrow. Over 200 rinks across the country hosted Try Hockey For Free, presented by Discover, events. Saturday also marked USA Hockey's national Try Hockey For Free Day as part of the organization's Hockey Week Across America celebration. Monument Ice Rinks in Colorado Springs, Colo., welcomed 252 participants, the most of any host site in the country. The Kansas City Youth Hockey Association hosted the second and third highest attended Try Hockey For Free events; AdventHealth Sports Park at Bluhawk in Overland Park, Kan., saw 172 kids try hockey, while Line Creek Community Center and Ice Arena, in Kansas City, Mo., hosted 140 kids. Other sites with notable attendance included Janesville Ice Arena in Janesville, Wis., with 126 and Peaks Ice Arena in Provo, Utah, with 123. Of the 8,025 kids who tried hockey for free on Saturday, just under 30 percent (2,299) were girls, with 10 events across the country specifically focused on girls hockey. The Michigan District hosted the most Try Hockey For Free events in the nation, with 40, followed by the Central District (consisting of Nebraska, Wisconsin, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Illinois), with 39. With the support of the NHL and NHL member clubs, as well as sponsors and local associations, USA Hockey's Try Hockey For Free, presented by Discover, days are designed to provide a national plat - form for introducing children to the sport free of charge. The events are the world's largest introduction-to-hockey initiative. NOTES: Discover is the official presenting sponsor of Try Hockey For Free. USA Hockey's Try Hockey for Free initiative has intro- duced over 279,500 children to the sport of hockey. J NGB News U.S. Figure Skating & USA Hockey 'Legacy on Ice' Show Inspires Healing Over 8,000 Children Nationwide Attended Try Hockey For Free Events, Presented by Discover, on Feb. 22 p On Jan. 29, 11 skaters, four coaches and 13 family members per- ished aboard American Airlines Flight 5342 when it collided with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter over the Potomac River. They were returning from U.S. Figure Skating's National Development Camp in Wichita, Kansas, held in conjunction with the 2025 Prevagen U.S. Figure Skating Championships. All told, 67 people lost their lives that night at Ronald Reagan Airport near Washington, D.C., in the deadliest U.S. aviation disaster since 2001. Days after the tragedy, a tribute benefit ice show titled "Legacy on Ice" was born, with the goal of supporting victims' families and the first responders and aviation professionals who worked tirelessly in the aftermath of the tragedy. All proceeds collected were equally distributed to the U.S. Figure Skating Family Support Fund, Greater Washington Community Foundation's "DCA Together Relief Fund" and DC Fire & EMS Foundation. Past and current figure skating stars participated in the March 2 Sunday afternoon show at the Capital One Arena, with 15,000 people in attendance, showing their love and support. "I wanted to do something [to show] that we remember them, that they will be forever remembered in all of our daily lives," Ilia Malinin, a lifelong Northern Virginian who knew many of those killed, said. "Every time we step on the ice we'll think of them, and when we're competing, we'll keep them in our hearts." 22 / MARCH.APRIL.2025 USICERINKS.COM