Polar Bears win regional Silver Stick Hockey championship

Warwick - The Hudson Valley Polar Bear Squirt team, comprised of 9- and 10-year old players, won the North East Regional Silver Stick hockey tournament in Stamford, Conn., on Oct. 27-29. The three-day event hosted teams from across the Northeast; it also is one of many regional qualifying tournaments played across North America. Silver Stick tournaments have more than 65,000 participants and the qualifying tournaments are played as far west as Portland, Oregon, south to Dallas, Texas, east to Stamford, and north to Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. On Friday and Saturday, the Polar Bears won all three of their qualifying games and were seeded second of the remaining final four teams. The Polar Bears defeated Stamford in the semi-final game and then won the championship by defeating the Greenwich Blues 6-3. As a result of their victory, the Polar Bears are headed to the International Silver Stick Finals held in Ontario to compete against other regional champions from across Canada and the United States. The Polar Bears are coached by Dwight Healey of Goshen, Rob Clerc of Wappingers Falls, Rob Malota of Warwick, Rob Feldman of Warwick and Joe Miano of Campbell Hall.