Connecticut GC Youth Hockey Program, founded in 2019, prioritizes skill development and balance for West Hartford families.

By Melissa Cole 

Duncan Fletcher of West Hartford has spent his life around hockey. He played collegiately in Canada and later coached at Quinnipiac University. But when his own kids started getting interested in the sport, and playing it themselves, he had some thoughts about offering a different approach.

“So once upon a time, we were in a traditional hockey environment and found it really wasn’t working for my kids,” Fletcher said. “There really wasn’t a lot of emphasis on a lot of the core things related to what makes hockey players successful.”

That experience inspired Fletcher to create something different. In 2019, he founded Connecticut GC, short for Game Change, a youth hockey program built on a Russian-Canadian development model. Rather than emphasizing wins, the program focuses on building a strong foundation of skating and hockey skills, fostering a love of the game, developing character, and helping players achieve whatever goals they have in the sport.

“So what we did is we created an environment for the game that was really focused on the things I thought were going to result in the right outcomes for families,” Fletcher said. “Focusing on developing good young men and women, creating an environment that was focused on actually building the foundational skill set that kids needed to be successful, and really trying to create an environment for families that wasn’t as demanding.”

Players in the program practice at two nearby ice rinks, with sessions that typically last more than two hours. Altogether, they spend six to eight hours on the ice each week. That’s roughly three times the amount of practice time offered by many traditional youth hockey programs.

For Fletcher, that’s where real development happens. At practice.

“The whole architecture of our approach is, regardless of the level you’re at, how do we improve your fundamentals? How do we enhance your skating? How do we enhance your puck handling?” he said.

The season begins in September with one practice each month before ramping up from October through March. Built into the schedule are breaks around Thanksgiving and Christmas, giving families time to recharge and spend time together. One of the program’s mottos reflects that: “Stop touching seatbelts and start touching hockey pucks.” 

“There’s this sort of perception that if you’re going to play hockey, you’ve got to be up at 5 o’clock in the morning and traveling all over the New England region,” Fletcher said. “I think what we’re trying to do is really flip that narrative on its head.”

Connecticut GC began with about 20 players in 2019. Today, the program has grown to more than 80 boys and girls, and Fletcher hopes to continue expanding, especially by welcoming younger children who are just getting started in the sport.

He said the program is designed to meet players wherever they are, allowing them to pursue hockey as competitively as they choose. As players develop, they can transition to high school, prep school, or other competitive hockey opportunities when they’re ready.

Several players on this past season’s Hall and Conard varsity hockey teams came through Connecticut GC Hockey.

HALL

• Ben Goldstein (C)
• Dillon McDermott (C)
• Matthew McDermott (All Star Team)
• Ben Putnam (All Star Team)

CONARD

• Nick Alonzo (All Star Team)
• Liam Alver
• Bradan Gainey
• Jackson Matzinger
• Riley O’Keefe
• Henry Tamaccio

And while playing professionally may become a reality for only a very select few, Fletcher says the lifelong skills children develop through the program are invaluable.

“If you’re fortunate enough that you can get a scholarship, great. If you’re fortunate enough to sign a professional contract, awesome,” Fletcher said. “But really, a lot of the lessons you’re going to learn from sport that you’ll carry with you have nothing to do with whether you won or lost a game. I think that’s one of the things we really try to hammer home. One of the key messages is resiliency-being comfortable being uncomfortable.”

Families interested in learning more about Connecticut GC or registering for the program can visit ctyouthhockey.com. A week-long summer training camp is also scheduled for the week of Aug. 17, giving new players and families an opportunity to experience the program firsthand.

Fletcher hopes to make hockey feel more accessible to families who may have never considered the sport, as well as those looking for a different approach.

“Hockey is one of the best sports, hands down, for developing really good people,” Fletcher said. “I’ve seen it my entire career. I’ve worked with guys that have made it all the way to the highest level. It just builds phenomenal people. I think that’s one of the things we want families who are looking at different sporting opportunities in the West Hartford area to know.”

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