Female hockey players in Cape Breton looking for equal ice time

A Cape Breton hockey group is trying to make it easier for women and girls to get on the ice.

Women's hockey has seen an explosion in popularity in recent years, and there isn't enough ice time to accommodate the burgeoning interest.

Christina Lamey, president of the Cape Breton Blizzard Female Hockey Association, says female teams on the island are often fighting their male counterparts for ice time.

"We get literally what is left over after the other organizations take what they want first," said Lamey. "We can't live on leftovers."

The association is working to raise the funds needed to convert the Canada Games Complex, located at Cape Breton University, to a rink exclusively for female players.

The arena hasn't been used for hockey for more than two years, but Lamey said the number of girls playing hockey in the CBRM has doubled in the same time frame.

Since 2015, the number of teams in the area has increased from three to 20. She said a rink devoted to women and girls would go a long way toward resolving the issues around equity.

New female players say they've had limited practices and games because boys teams get access to ice times more frequently. With no home ice to call their own, women and girls are often left with bad time slots to play, or no availability at all.

"We had team ice times being taken over by boys teams. And so we lost a lot of ice times," said Madelyn Williams, who plays U-18 with the Blizzard.

Maggie Williams and Kaylee Primmer also play for the Blizzard and said they want just as much ice time as other teams.

CBU student and Capers women hockey team member Alyssa Burke said most of her practices were held in Membertou at times that weren't always convenient. 

"We had practice Monday night at