The recent explosion of girls hockey, from local communities to the international stage, has helped reshape perceptions of the sport, not only highlighting competition but also the life lessons and opportunities it offers young athletes.

Colorado Extreme, a local free youth hockey program, announced it would begin rostering all-girls teams for the first time in the organization’s young history. 

“Our mission at Colorado Extreme is to grow the game, it’s that simple,” Bryan Berard, Colorado Extreme’s president, said. “We know there are a lot of girls in the valley who want to try hockey, and girls’ hockey as a whole has been exploding over the past few years. The girls’ skill level and talent are way up there, and they play a fun game of hockey. Hopefully, we can start developing that same game.”

The new Extreme girls’ program will host 8U/10U and 12U/14U teams based in Carbondale. 

According to Colorado Extreme Director of Operations Maybelline Beiring, the idea of an all-girls program had been discussed internally from the beginning. What ultimately pushed the organization forward, she said, was the continued growth of girls’ hockey and the number of girls already participating in the program. 

“With the amount of girls that we have now in the program, just even in our learn-to-skate, we felt confident it is a good time,” Beiring said. 

She said the all-girls program directly aligns with Colorado Extreme’s mission to make hockey more accessible and to make the rink a comfortable environment for everyone, though she didn’t shy away from dreaming of a competitive girls team.

“We’re trying to create more of a girls’ environment,” she said. “The whole idea of Colorado Extreme is to start the players young, then build them up as good players and people. I think we have a good plan in place, and who knows, maybe in a couple of years, those learn-to-skate players can be on a competitive team. I think that’s the ultimate goal.”

Beiring, who played hockey her entire life and has since dedicated her adult years to coaching and growing the sport she loves, has firsthand experience as one of the only girls on a hockey team and, conversely, the camaraderie of playing on an all-girls team. 

“When you get to be on an all-girls team and play with other girls rather than playing on a boys team, I think it’s incredibly special, and that camaraderie can’t be replicated,” she said. “I played boys hockey pretty much my whole life, so to give these girls the opportunity to continue their career playing with the girls is really cool to be a part of.”

She explained that the opportunity for girls to play in a league of their own may also keep more players within the sport, especially as boys’ hockey becomes more physical in the teen years.

“You start hitting in boys’ hockey at 14,” Beiring explained. “Starting this girls’ program gives the girls a place to age into contact, rather than having to either play boys hockey with checking or maybe not playing at all.”

Although Beiring doesn’t overlook the opportunity to coach and mentor the next generation of hockey players, she said the most meaningful part of her position is watching the game continue to grow.

“Being on the other side, when I’m the coach and mentor for these girls, has been pretty special for me,” she began. “But it’s just seeing the younger girls getting into hockey and skating for the first time. It’s been such a male-dominated sport for so long, so it’s just really cool to see more girls getting into it.”

For more information about the new Colorado Extreme all-girls’ program, visit coloradoextreme.org.