JAN 30, 2025 | SPORTS | By Lilly Asano
The American Hockey Coaches Association (AHCA) and NCAA held the first collegiate hockey national championship in 1948 at the Broadmoor Ice Palace in Colorado Springs, Colo. Twenty-seven years later, the U.S. Olympic Committee & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) relocated its headquarters to the city, and Colorado Springs was officially recognized as “Olympic City U.S.A” in 2016.
Colorado Springs will add to its hockey accolades on Feb. 7 for what Marc Romero, U.S. Sled Hockey League’s reporter and commentator, calls “Super Sled Saturday.” Despite Colorado Springs’s rich hockey history, this is the first time the city is hosting a professional sled hockey tournament.
“We should be able to have the world championships here,” said Jerry DeVaul, player and director of Colorado Sled Hockey. “But in order to get the world championships, you have to start smaller. You have to start with an event like this.”
The Colorado Avalanche Sled Hockey team, the NHL Colorado Avalanche’s affiliate, will host the Midwest Sled Hockey League for three days of league play starting Feb. 7 at Ed Robson Arena. Competitors include midwestern NHL-affiliated teams with U.S. and Canadian Paralympic athletes and other lower-tier professional teams.
“Super Sled Saturday” brings an opportunity to grow sled hockey in Colorado Springs. Despite being “Olympic City U.S.A.,” Colorado Springs does not have a professional or youth league, and DeVaul organized scarce events.
Ten-year-old Colton Perkins practices with DeVaul during Stick & Puck sessions at Robson. Perkins, who has played sled hockey for three years, travels to Littleton, Colo., once a week to practice with the Avalanche Sled Hockey youth team. He loves the Colorado College Tigers hockey team; his favorite player is captain Stanley Cooley ‘25.
Lori Perkins watched behind the plexiglass door, smiling as her son and DeVaul joked around as they played on Tuesday, Jan. 28. The sport has given her hope to find adaptable sports, especially when Perkins works with a successful para-athlete.
“Colton wrote his ‘Who Inspires Me’ paper on Jerry [DeVaul],” Lori said. “Jerry inspires him because Jerry never gave up, and he could have given up.”
DeVaul and the board of Colorado Sled Hockey have agreed to allow a young boy from Eagle County to do play-by-play broadcasting throughout the weekend. For DeVaul, Super Sled Saturday is an opportunity to grow sled hockey.
“You give kids with disabilities different opportunities, and this is one of those opportunities that he may have never thought he [would] have in life, but now he gets to do it,” DeVaul said.
Last year, DeVaul was honored as an NHL Willie O’Ree Community Hero Award finalist, honoring “an individual who, through hockey, has positively impacted his or her community culture or society,” according to the NHL. DeVaul has worked on bringing professional sled hockey to Colorado Springs for multiple years and now brings some of the best Paralympic players to Colorado College.
“We’ve got the No. 1 sled hockey program [The Colorado Avalanche] in the country, and we’ve got all the best players here: Declan Farmer, Malik Jones,” Romero said.
The U.S. Paralympic Sled Hockey team has won gold in the last four Paralympic Games. Their players are currently dispersed in NHL-affiliated and professional leagues across the country.
As a team, the Colorado Avalanche Sled Hockey team practices eight hours a week on the ice.
“They’re using small muscle groups to do what a large muscle group does,” DeVaul said. “You’re not supposed to be able to maintain that type of stamina with a small muscle group, but these guys go against the odds.”
DeVaul and Romero agreed that what separates a good sled hockey player from a great one is the ability to use both hands instead of just their dominant hand. Some top U.S. Paralympic players can reach 15 to 20 miles per hour in their sled.
“Everyone is at a different level with their disability in sled hockey,” said Romero.
Robson, however, was not built for sled hockey, and the rink faces accessibility challenges. The bench was built for able-bodied collegiate hockey players and does not have removable boards or plexiglass for sled players to navigate. Additionally, the arena lacks accessible seating and parking options.
Nevertheless, DeVaul and Romero are optimistic about the tournament and what it can bring to Colorado Springs.
“Once you get this stadium packed one time, then you can start building something for them,” said DeVaul. “That’s the goal towards all of that.”
The “Super Sled” weekend begins on Feb. 7 in Robson. While entry is free, visitors can donate or participate in a raffle. All proceeds will support Colorado Sled Hockey. The full schedule for the weekend is available here.