| "It's
a great day for hockey."
Just
as hockey coaching legend Badger Bob Johnson used to say,
we involved with the Beaver County Amateur Hockey Association
believe that every day is a great one to play this game.
The
BCAHA is one of the oldest and most successful associations
in the Pittsburgh Amateur Hockey League. Our teams have won
numerous championships at all levels, including 45 in past
12 seasons alone.
Tracing
our roots...
The year was 1973. Mt. Lebanon, Greensburg, Johnstown and
a few others were established in the Pittsburgh Amateur Hockey
League.
That's
when Sam Gruber, a Beaver County resident, met Judge Robert
Brosky of the Pittsburgh Common Pleas Court and the two became
interested in forming a youth hockey association in Beaver
County.
By
1974, following a lot of work by Brosky, the association had
enough players to begin play.
There
were no ice arenas in Beaver County at this time, but there
was on in nearby Sewickley, which is where the first Beaver
County Hockey teams practiced.
Fewer
than 30 players attended that first practice, and less than
10 of them had ever been on skates before.
In
1975, a new rink opened in Beaver County at the entrace to
Brady's Run Park, giving the fledgling association a home
of its own. That was also the year that the Beaver County
Amateur Hockey Association was accepted into the PAHL.
Needless
to say, that first season in the PAHL was difficult. Since
the association did not have enough players to field teams
at the Mite or Pee Wee division, the association combined
the groups to form a single Pee Wee team. Predictably, the
team struggled, failing to score a goal until the 13th game
of the season.
But
by 1981-82, the BCAHA was able to catch up to the rest of
the league and claimed their first two PAHL championships.
The first came at the Pee Wee level and the second at Bantam.
The
1983-84 season was highlighted by the Mite PAHL championship
team, led by Brad Frattoroli who scored a whopping 93 goals.
That BCAHA record still stands.
Beaver
County Hockey, like many hockey associations in western Pennsylvania,
hit its stride in the early 1990's, fueled largely by the
success of the Pittsburgh Penguins, and the introduction of
a USA Hockey-sanctioned initiation program. It began a legacy
of success that continues today.
From
1993-2002, at least one BCAHA team claimed a PAHL title each
year, highlighted by the remarkable success of our midget
teams, who won seven consecutive PAHL and state titles.
What's
in a logo?
Until 1993, the Beaver County Badgers were known
simply as Beaver County Hockey, with no official mascot.
The
logo on the jerseys for our inaugural season in 1975 read
"OAK HILL VFW," a reflection of the BCAHA's first
sponsor.
In
1977, a logo featuring a beaver with crossed sticks was introduced.
That
logo remained virtually unchanged until 1993, when Beaver
County Hockey officially adopted its mascot, the Badger, in
memory of former Pittsburgh Penguins coach "Badger"
Bob Johnson, who led the Pens to their first Stanley Cup in
1991 and who died shorly thereafter.
With
the mascot, the BCAHA also adopted a philosophy in line with
Badger Bob's favorite phrase..."It's a great day for
hockey."
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