FARMINGTON – Adam Sandler portrayed a character who made a successful transition from hockey to golf in the movie “Happy Gilmore.”

Years later, a newly-formed Western Mountains hockey club is hoping other hockey fans will make the same transition, at least for the weekend, and play golf Sunday to raise money to put local kids on the ice.

Formed this past winter, the Western Mountains Hockey and Skating Association has been gaining support from area youths who have grown up idolizing players for the University of Maine at Orono and the Boston Bruins, but never had a chance to try out their talents on the ice. Twelve boys and one girl have already expressed interest in the program, with more meetings planned for the near future.

The association plans to have a team of 8- to 12-year-old boys and girls on the ice at Alfond Arena at nearby Kent’s Hill School by September. The team name, the Farmington Flyers, originates from a former Farmington professional baseball team and the club’s sponsor, the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League.

The event will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, June 29, at Sandy River Golf Course.

It’s important to support hockey, said association President Jeff Leonards, who points out Mount Blue is the only Class A school in the state without a hockey program. “The club is in response to community interest,” he says. “There is as much of an interest in hockey and skating here as there is anywhere.”

Already, the club has received $2,300 in NHL official uniforms from the Flyers.

“We are creating history as we put together a hockey program that will undoubtedly come to be a powerhouse in Maine, just like Mount Blue football,” said Leonards excitedly. “A program that will eventually send some of its kids to play for Division I colleges like UMO or Colby.”

For more information about the Farmington Flyers, log on to www.farmingtonflyers.com. To find out more about this weekend’s golf tournament, phone organizer John Maki at 652-2417.

sdepoy@sunjournal.com

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