Chris Woida
Head Coach

Shane Valentine
Intro Coordinator

Intro to Hockey is a great place for youth to learn how to play ice hockey. Our program features non-contact classes and is designed for anyone who wants to work on their hockey fundamentals.  Ages five (5) and up are welcomed, provided they have the ability to skate on their own, and there are no safety concerns expressed by the coaching staff.  It is fun, safe, and we will get your player zipping around the ice in no time!

The Santa Rosa Flyers strongly believe that everyone can play hockey. Our mission is to grow the passion of hockey in everyone who is interested. Sometimes different abled kids learn differently. If your player has any special learning needs that need to be met in order to be successful in hockey please call Coach Woida before completing the registration in order to discuss how to ensure their success.

Experienced hockey players who are interested in helping on ice need to register with the club as a volunteer BEFORE taking the ice for any practices. Once you have completed the volunteer requirements and registration including background check and SafeSport please reach out to Coach Chris.

For questions regarding new players please include the following information in your contact form for each new skater.

• Player's name
• Player's age
• Player's skating ability

If you have any questions about your child's skating requirements for intro please contact Coach Chris Woida at 707-272-3451 or Intro Coordinator, Shane via introtohockey@santarosaflyers.org. We recommend a quick call with the coach or email to the intro Coordinator to assess your child’s skill level and determine the best place for them in Intro.

If you have any questions about the Intro to Hockey program, registration or schedule, please contact the Coordinator at introtohockey@santarosaflyers.org

For questions, contact:

Our Intro to Hockey program meets Sunday mornings at 7am and is designed for players ages five (5) and up who are new to hockey.  They learn the basics of hockey skating, stick handling, passing, and shooting. This prepares them to move on to next steps in our In-House program, the Mites for those 8 & under and House for those older than 8. It is normal for players to participate in multiple Intro sessions before moving on to next steps.

In order to be successful in Intro to Hockey players do need to be able to skate forward unassisted for an hour. If your player is not at that stage of development we recommend that you take them to public skating sessions including Parent and Puppy Sessions.

For direct skating instruction we highly recommend the Group Lessons run by Snoopy’s Home Ice. Group lessons include Snowplow Sam for 4-6 year olds and Basic 1 for those who are older followed by the Hockey 1-4 series. Many players continue these lessons while participating in the Intro program.

We offer five Intro to Hockey sessions over the course of the year: two fall sessions, two spring sessions, and one summer session. Each of the fall and spring sessions are each nine (9) weeks long while the summer session is a few weeks shorter.

Our 9 week Intro to Hockey sessions cost $170. *
First time players receive a $50 discount on their first registration. See details in the registration form.

Schedule for the 2022-2023 season:

• Intro Session 1 - August 7 to October 9, 2022

• Intro Session 2 - October 16 to December 18, 2022

• Intro Session 3 - January 8 to March 12, 2023

• Intro Session 4 - March 19 to May 21, 2023

• Summer Intro - June and July

* Summer Intro is fewer than 9 weeks and is priced accordingly.

** No practices on the weekends of Labor Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, President's Day, the Crystalline Classic (Spring), and the Snoopy's Senior Tournament (July).

In order to participate in Intro to Hockey each player needs at minimum a:

• Black hockey helmet with cage (HECC certified)

• Hockey stick

• Black hockey gloves

• Hockey skates

* If you already have non-black helmet, gloves, or breezers (ice hockey pants) do not replace them. If you do buy new gear please purchase black only.

We recommend also wearing:

• Knee pads or hockey shin pads covered with hockey socks

• Elbow pads

We offer an introductory gear package for purchase that includes a hockey stick, hockey gloves, and hockey helmet with cage. The gear package is $90 and can be purchased as part of the registration form. Any purchased gear can be picked up at the rink at 6:30am before your first session.