Practice/Holiday Party Summary - 12/20/25
Today, the Dare Devils held their annual open skate and Holiday Party. It is one of our favorite days of the season. Not only does it offer an opportunity for the players, coaches and families to unwind, it also allows some of the players and coaches who attend college out of state a day to celebrate with their hockey friends while home on winter break. This year, it was great to see superstar Ryan Wahlers and Junior Coach Brenden Garcia back on the ice.
The excitement was in the air as the players put on their gear in the locker room. There was all sorts of chatter about what the players were putting on their gift lists and speculation about whether or not Santa would show up to the party. Similar to previous years, the players took the ice alongside our friends from the New Jersey State Police (both in hockey uniforms and dress uniforms) and had a leisurely skate around the rink. The players, coaches and police officers were all seen having a great time skating, laughing and catching up. A special thank you goes out to the NJ State Troopers for taking time out of their busy days to skate with the team this morning. Thank you for your support today and thank you for your efforts to protect and serve on a daily basis!
At around 9:45 am, a hush took over the ice and all eyes were on the man with the white beard making his way through the door. It was Santa Claus himself, dressed in his red suit, just as Coach Doug predicted. The players couldn't contain themselves and all made their way to Santa to plead their case that they are deserving of gifts. Santa was gracious, as usual, and posed for a group picture with the team and the police officers.
After the group picture on the ice, the players beelined to the locker rooms and made their way to the party area to celebrate. Everyone enjoyed bagels, snacks, drinks and desserts before getting an opportunity to sit and chat with Santa and his helpers. The players were all on their best behavior and as a result, they were all given medals, treats and personalized gifts. It was a great day all the way around.
There are many thank you's to go around for today. Kathy Kientz led the party efforts (from planning, to setup, to execution and cleanup). Kathy had help from several parents and all of your efforts led to a superb party. In addition, a thank you goes out to one of our biggest benefactors, Rich McDermott, for his generous donations to our annual holiday event. We would also like to thank Frank and his crew of photographers for documenting the day. All pictures can be found on Frank’s site via this link. Lastly, thank you to the players, coaches, managers, families and friends for your continued dedication to the team. Our team is a collective effort and we greatly appreciate all of you. Happy Holidays and have a wonderful winter break!