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A Great Assist To Get Kids On Ice P aul Owen remembers the first time he walked into the Abe Stark Arena after Hurricane Sandy. "There was 4 feet of water, up to the glass, and then 4 inches of mud after the water receded," said the youth hockey coach after surveying the damage at the Coney Island, N.Y., facility. "The whole thing was a mess." Who better to help clean up the residual effects of the super storm that rocked the east coast in mid-October than the Great One himself? Wayne Gretzky, who ended his legendary career as a member of the N.Y. Rangers teamed up with TD Bank to present the Greater New York City Ice Hockey League with a check for $15,000 to help replace equipment damaged or helping hand after being forced out of their home rink. Mariners president Jeff Jacobson and hockey director Rich Guberti were able to line up ice time at a number of rinks in Westchester and in western Connecticut. "People were very accommodating," Jacobson said. He found an added bonus for their players with help from the Rangers, who have allowed the Mariners to skate at their training facility in Greenburgh, N.Y. "That's the first time they've ever done that for a non-Ranger event," Jacobson said. "We approached them, and they were very accommodating, which is really cool for the kids and some of the parents. They may pass a Ranger, a familiar face. That's a really good thing." With help from the Rangers, and the rest of the hockey community, the Mariners have been able to keep their teams on the ice this season, but rumors and questions have begun to circulate about the future. Westchester County officials moved in late January to sell bonds to finance repairs at the Ice Casino and around the adja- destroyed when Sandy swamped the People's Playground rink. "We're back on our feet, getting on in the hockey business as normal, and that donation will go a long way in restoring the equipment we lost," said George Clark, the league's director of fundraising. While the check was greatly appreciated, it was Gretzky who stole the show with a few encouraging words and a drop of the puck to start a pickup hockey game. "It's great that the community and TD Bank rallied to get this rink back up and running," Gretzky said. "The best part for these kids is probably that they were able to miss school, so they're probably thrilled." — Harry Thompson The West Chester Mariners found a temporary home at the N.Y. Rangers facility in Greenburgh, N.Y. cent Playland amusement park, while the Rangers and Chase Bank announced in early February that they will lend a hand in both Rye and Long Beach through the new Rangers Assist program. Still, questions about when the rink can reopen and how the Mariners – the building's primary tenant – can function without it remain to be answered. "The biggest hurdle we've really had to face is questions about our existence going "The biggest hurdle we've really had to face is questions about our existence going forward. What's going to happen next year At this point, we don't really have any answers." —Jeff Jacobson, president of the West Chester Mariners 18 april/May. 2013 USAHOCKEYMAGAZINE.COM Cody Liguori, a Bantam player from Lavallette, N.J.. was evacuated from his home when the storm passed through. Cody's mom made sure to grab his hockey bag during the evacuation. forward," Jacobson said. "What's going to happen next year? At this point, we don't really have any answers." A Sense Of Normalcy Losing an arena can certainly hurt a program, but when a player doesn't have a house to go home to from the arena, it's an entirely different story. Cody Liguori, a Bantam player from the barrier community of Lavallette, N.J., is living that story, and with the help of his family and his teammates on the Philadelphia Little Flyers, he's writing one heck of a happy ending. Living in one of the areas most affected by the storm, the Liguoris were forced from their home when the storm rolled in, and didn't have much time to pack. Still, there was one thing that the Liguoris were sure not to leave behind. "The number one thing that went to my car when we evacuated was my son's hockey bag," said Cody's mom, Pegi Liguori. "I'm not even joking. It was the first thing that was in my car, and pretty Photos By Norman Lono; Jeff Jacobson