thought we’d ever play hockey’

Vancouver Island.

The local newspaper, The Coquitlam Herald, regularly published articles about the team, helped spread the word about registration

Within a few years, the Satellites grew from 14 players to more than 18, and they had a league to play in, with teams from New West, South Delta, North Vancouver and Vancouver Island.

The team remained a going concern until 1992, preceding the formation of the Tri-City Predators Female Hockey Association a few years later.

With most of the players now in their mid-70s, they can look back at the old team photos and newspaper clippings of their hockey exploits with fondness, the physical and emotional bumps and bruises of forging new ground long soothed by the passage of time

Some parlayed their youthful exuberance for hockey into lifelong service as adult players, coaches and referees.

“You always give back for what you got,” Fonseca said.

And with women’s hockey now a recognized sport in the Winter Olympics, filling NHL arenas for important games and bolstering ratings of sports broadcasters, each of the former Satellites takes a measure of pride that they contributed in a small way to the sport’s acceptance and growth

“It hits my heart,” Taylor said “I don’t think any of us ever thought we’d ever play hockey. There was no opportunity.”

Also being honoured with induction into the Coquitlam Sports Hall of Fame this year are:

• Sarah Maglio, former member of Canada’s U20 and national women’s soccer team who played in the 1999 Women’s World Cup

• Bruce Murray, former captain of the Coquitlam Adanacs for nine years who also played in the National Lacrosse League from 2002–11 and helped Canada win gold medals at the 2003 and 2007 World Indoor Lacrosse Championships

• Shiv Jagday is being inducted as a builder for his lifelong dedication to developing field hockey at the local level with the Tri-City Eagles and at the provincial, national and international levels by coaching provincial teams at several Canadian junior and senior national championships as well as national teams at the Olympics, World Cups and Pan Am Games