By Molly Lovell
Editor
     Sled hockey has become a growing a sport all over the country as well as in Maine, with the roots of the Maine Sled Hockey program firmly planted in Scarborough.
     Resident Craig Gray formed the program in 2005. Sled hockey allows people with mobility disabilities to compete with their non-disabled friends.
     The game is essentially the same as a stand-up hockey game. The difference is that players sit in a sled, which is attached to two hockey skate blades under the seat.
     Players use specially designed sticks to propel themselves. The sticks are curved like a regular hockey stick and on the opposite end there is a set of sharp metal picks that players use to dig into the ice.
     “The growth in both the number of adult and junior programs across the United States is phenomenal,” Gray said.
     In addition to being the founder of the program, he is also the head coach.
     According to the program’s Web site, MaineSledHockey.org, there are roughly 50 adult and junior sled hockey teams in the country and the game is also played in several foreign countries.
     Gray learned about sled hockey while participating in the Paralympics in Nagano. At the time he was cross country skiing and had to be exclusively focused on that sport.
     “I saw it and thought, ‘god, I would love to be doing that,’” he said.
     Gray said he had always been involved in team sports while growing up and thought sled hockey would be a perfect way to get himself reaquanted with such sports.
     “What’s terrific about this is that it’s one of the disabled sports that lends itself well to people with and without disabilities. Ultimately it will help us narrow the social participation gap,” Gray said.
     He said the number of disabled and non-disabled players on the team are half and half.
     Gray said participants don’t think of each other or the game itself in terms of disability, however.
     “It’s like the disability fades into the background. That’s the magic of it,” he said.
     He said sled hockey is just as fast-paced as a stand up hockey game.
     “This is full check and since we’re down at the level of the boards and not up at the glass, you get hit hard,” he said.
     It’s not uncommon for world class players to have 60 to 70-mile slap shots.
     Gray said the program has people in their 20s up to their 50s. He is the oldest player at age 51.
     Peter Grosso, vice president of operations and a captain is one of the non-disabled members of the team and said learning how to play sled hockey was different at first because he didn’t have the upper body strength and conditioning that someone who is used to propelling a wheelchair has.
     “As far as the learning curve, it’s harder because there’s more happening on the ice as far as strapping yourself into the sled and controlling the sticks,” he said.
     The Maine Sled Hockey program is open to players aged 15 and older. The Maine Sled Hockey Pirates are a distinct team within the Maine Sled Hockey Program with players aged 18 and older.
     The program has branches in Augusta, Bangor and Falmouth and coordinates several outreach clinics each season and plays in the Prudential Northeast Sled Hockey League.
     Teams from several New England states play in this league including teams from Maine, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, New Jersey and New York.
     The Prudential Northeast Sled Hockey League is the first organized adult sled hockey league in the United States.
     The Prudential Northeast Sled Hockey League Lobster Pot Tournament will be held Saturday, March 24 and Sunday, March 25 at the Falmouth Family Ice Arena.
     This will be their season closer. For more information visit MaineSledHockey.org.