It’s funny how a change of scenery can mean a shift in what makes the heart pump a little faster.
Alex Kidd was an accomplished alpine skier growing up in Northern Ontario, but now she’s turning heads in female hockey circles in Newfoundland and Labrador.
The 14-year-old native of Elliott Lake, Ont., daughter of Vince and Elizabeth Kidd, is a talented forward with the Western Warriors AAA female bantam hockey team in the provincial league.
Kidd moved to Stephenville two years ago when her mom accepted a job offer at College of the North Atlantic in Stephenville.
She was the Northern Ontario Under-12 female alpine ski team for two consecutive years. She won a bronze medal for overall points and a gold medal in slalom in the U12 division at the 2015 Ontario provincial alpine ski provincials.
Being an avid skier Kidd was sold on the idea of living in another province because in close proximity to Stephenville was Marble Mountain ski resort. She was figuring she would continue hitting the slopes with the Marble Mountain ski team, but a bunch of female hockey players just happened to lure her to the rink to give hockey a try.
She had played some hockey for fun and fitness with the boys in her native Elliott Lake, but she had never been serious about hockey until she got to share the ice with her new group of friends.
She had no time on her plate to even consider a trip to Marble. Her weekends are tied up with female hockey and that’s just fine with her because she’s having a lot of fun and loves to meet new people so it’s been exciting so far.
She has enjoyed everything from basketball to soccer with her friends, but hockey has quickly become her favourite thing to do. She loves the competitive aspect of sports and loves keeping focused on being fit.
“Hockey is important to me because it’s a group of activity and we all have to work hard together,” she said.
She is an offensive force on the wing for the Warriors. She’s been one of the leading scorers for the Warriors in the first two tournaments of the season so it’s safe to say she’s finding her comfort zone in unfamiliar territory.
She’s all about the team. She plays hard every shift and encourages her teammates to work hard and never quit.
She’s somebody who spends a fair amount of time in front of the opposing goalie because her five-foot-11 frame has been effective in creating offensive chances for her club.
“I stand and screen the goalie so that when people shoot they don’t know where it’s coming from,” she said.
The speedy winger with the knack around the net has made a smooth transition from flying down the slopes at high speeds to flying down the wing weaving her magic.
She hopes to earn a university hockey scholarship when she graduates from high school so she’s focused on improving her game as she forges ahead with every game.
Hockey, at one point, was simply a bit of fun shooting around the puck with boys, but with the female game growing exponentially over the past five years she’s pretty upbeat when asked about the big numbers of females playing the game today.
“It’s showing that girls can be just as good as the guys when it comes to competitive hockey,” she said.
Kidd will be in action with the Warriors when they host the next league tournament being staged Dec. 15-16 at the Corner Brook Civic Centre.
