Wolves need a place to stay

LACONIA — Usually, the New England Wolves owners spend their spring and early summer recruiting talented hockey players who want to hone their skills so they can play on a college team.

This year, said co-owner Andrew Trimble, “A lot of kids reached out to us. It’s been a different experience,” he said.

The reason for the turnaround has to do with the coronavirus pandemic. The Wolves, based at the Merrill Fay Arena, offer one of the few opportunities for players to display and develop their play this year.

And there’s more room on the Wolves rosters this year. Trimble, who co-owns the program with Tim Kunes, is the general manager of five Wolves teams, which range from U-14 to U-20. New for the 2020-2021 season, they expanded the U-16 program from a split season to a full season.

The pandemic presented an opportunity for the Wolves, but also a steep challenge. There are about 60 kids in the program, and although the older players can be placed in apartments, Trimble said he wants to find homes for younger players in host families – and it’s proving a harder sell this year than ever before to get local families to open their homes to someone from a different state, or even country.

“We get it, I get why families are a little hesitant about it,” Trimble said. “When you look at it from the other side, these kids are a healthy age, and we are doing a lot of precautions. I think our kids, compared to the rest of the population, are safer than other kids.”

Wolves players come from all over the country, one is coming from Canada and a handful are coming from Europe. Those who are coming to stay with families will arrive in late August, and are required to limit exposure for two weeks prior, taking their temperature daily and reporting it to their host family.

Once the players arrive, the Wolves staff and players will be following new rules and cleaning regimens to prevent the spread of illness.

The season is scheduled to start on Sept. 18, and will, at least to begin with, only feature opponents in other New Hampshire and northern New England locations, where the incidence of coronavirus is low.

“We want to get in games when New Hampshire is in a really good spot,” Trimble said, adding that the Eastern Hockey League will adjust the schedule for the late fall and winter in reaction to the ebb and flow of the virus in other New England and New York regions.

When the players are in town, they will contribute to the local economy through restaurants and shops, and will further support the community through a culture of volunteerism that Trimble and Kunes instill in the program. The Wolves have twice been honored with the EHL’s “Humanitarians of the Year” award. Of course, that all depends on having a place for players to stay while they’re here.

“It’s a win-win, provided we’re providing safe and healthy kids,” Trimble said. He said he still needs to find homes for about 15 of his 60 players.

Kerry Mull, who serves as the housing coordinator for The Wolves, said host families receive a monthly stipend of $400 for taking in a player, though she said financial gain shouldn’t be part of a family’s consideration – especially considering the caloric intake of teenage student-athletes.

“The host family obligations, it’s their responsibility to provide that safe space at the home. They need a bed, they need a bureau or a place to put their clothes, and they need meals. Host families would be responsible for having that food for them,” Mull said.

Breakfast is usually the grab-and-go type, something quick as the players dash off to practice. Lunch may or may not be provided at the rink, and for dinner, the team hopes the player can have a meal with the host family.

“The host family is there to provide that comfort and a place to stay,” she said, adding that the players are responsible for their own schedule and transportation.

Mull, who hosts three players each year at her Belmont home, said those Wolves quickly become members of the family. She continues to follow players who have stayed with her family, and one of them returns to visit each year.

“You really create that friendship with them after they’re gone,” Mull said.

For more, contact Mull at mullkl426@gmail.com.