The Coaldale Copperheads are looking for players to join them for a special season. The junior hockey team has posted information about open tryouts for the Fall 2026 season on its website as it gets ready to mark its 20th anniversary in 2026-2027.
The Copperheads play in the Heritage Junior Hockey League, a Junior ‘B’ league in Alberta. Players aged 16 to 20 can try out to earn a spot on the team for the coming season. Home games are played at the Coaldale Arena, and the team is led by head coach and general manager Doug Paisley.
The tryouts come after a tough 2025-2026 season that ended on February 13, 2026, with an 8-2 playoff loss to the Okotoks Bisons. In the previous season, the Copperheads finished fifth in the South Division with a 14-21-3 record.
The team started in 2007-08 when founding members, including Kevin and Kelly Wiebe, moved a struggling Lethbridge team to Coaldale. Since then, the Copperheads have won one league championship, back in 2014-15, and have twice been South Division title winners. Now, as the town of Coaldale grows, the team hopes local talent will help build a strong roster for the milestone season ahead.
