SMU Huskies Esports is taking shape

A student plays Rocket League in the new home of SMU Huskies Esports, the Esports Arena.

SMU Huskies Esports is taking shape at Saint Mary's University. Student-athletes are preparing, and identification camps will take place this month to establish the teams and Esports available for competition.   

"I think it's great," says Audrie Yue Min Au, a 3rd-year student majoring in Computing and Information Systems at Saint Mary's. "Esports, as an industry, has a level of organization and viewership that is comparable to that of traditional sports like football and basketball. So why not treat it like other sports? It also has the added bonus of being accessible to new players because anyone who has a laptop can play games online and join a community." 

Enterprise Information Technology and the Department of Athletics and Recreation are collaborating on Huskies Esports. There will be two streams available to students: recreational and competitive. The recreational stream will feature drop-in play sessions, tournaments, and other activities. The competitive stream is being established this fall. It will see our Huskies compete against other colleges and universities in games such as the vehicular-based, rocket-powered soccer game, Rocket League, and the team-based multiplayer online fantasy battle arena, League of Legends. For both streams, their home base on campus is the new Esports Arena at the heart of campus in the McNally East basement, ME009. 

"Esports offers students a unique opportunity to get involved, whether recreationally or competitively, within a growing industry and community," says Connor Miller BComm'16, Coach of the League of Legends competitive team. "Bringing Esports to campus is an excellent idea. I am excited to be a part of it, to give back to my university and help build a positive culture around Esports at Saint Mary's." 

Esports means competitive video games. It is sometimes referred to as 'competitive gaming', 'pro gaming', or 'egaming'. Esports often takes the form of organized, multiplayer video game competitions, with athletes competing individually or as teams. This can be through structured leagues including varsity college, university associations, competitive circuits, or tournament play for the purpose of entertainment, prizes, or money. 

Esports has seen a considerable surge in popularity and professionalism in recent years and is a billion-dollar global industry. Over 23 million Canadians play video games, with an average player age of 34 years old. Canada’s video game industry has grown into one of the largest and most successful in the world, with more than 900 active video game studios. The video game industry adds $4.5 billion annually to Canada’s GDP. As a business and art form, the industry is an emerging academic study and research area.   

Identification camps take place this month for the competitive stream and are as follows:  

• Friday, Sept. 16 – League of Legends  

• Monday, Sept. 19 – Rocket League 

• Thursday, Sept. 22 . – Apex Legends 

• Tuesday, Sept. 27 – Valorant 

More details on the I.D. camps will come shortly.  

For those interested in getting involved as a student-athlete, coach or team staff and need more information, reach out via email at esports@smu.ca.  

Huskies football season kicks off with a win

Student getting a husky paw print face painted

Football game in action

Two fans cheering on the huskies with a sign

Football game in action

Fans in the crowd with a sign supporting the huskies

Football game in action

Fans cheering on the huskies with a sign

Saint Mary’s Huskies football team defeated the Acadia Axemen 31-11 in a successful Home Opener on Friday night.  

We were excited to welcome fans back to Huskies Stadium and kick off the season. The Quad was alive with activity before the game: SMU Alumni hosted a Husky Cookout with live music, and SMUSA members were doling out all things Huskies spirit—face paint, noisemakers, and more—as fans got ready to cheer on their team. During the lively game, food and drinks were served at the Courtside Lounge, a beer garden and BBQ.   

It was great to come together to kick off the season, and cheer on our Huskies! Congratulations to the entire team who defeated the Acadia Axemen and thank you to our students, faculty, staff, alumni and supporters for coming out. 

Stay tuned at smuhuskies.ca for more games this season.

Gold Medals and Silver Linings: Huskies hockey alumna Kori Cheverie reflects on ‘whirlwind’ coaching journey

Kori Cheverie

On the evening of February 17, 2022, millions of Canadians tuned into the women’s hockey gold medal game at the Beijing Olympics, cheering on Team Canada from their living rooms.

Saint Mary’s alumna Kori Cheverie BA’12 may have been one of the more personally invested viewers in the country, as she was watching as an assistant coach for Team Canada, despite being more than 10,000 kilometres away from the Olympic Games.

Cheverie describes the first few months of 2022 as a “rewarding whirlwind,” as the New Glasgow, NS native has experienced some of the highs and lows of her career while proudly representing Canada.

In January of 2021, Cheverie was named to the coaching staff of the Canadian National Women’s Team.

“That was a dream come true,” said Cheverie. “Growing up as a female hockey player in Canada, that’s the gold standard. I grew up dreaming of playing for the National team, but that’s one of the great things about hockey, there’s always the opportunity to stay involved in the sport, so to represent Team Canada was a lifelong goal.”

But a week before the team was scheduled to fly to Beijing, Cheverie tested positive for COVID-19, meaning she wouldn’t be able to travel to the Games.

“It was devastating news, but the cool thing about our group was we really focused on being a team first,” she said. “When the news came that I wasn’t able to go, I was disappointed but quickly shifted to focus on the silver linings. I went back to Nova Scotia and focused on doing everything I could still do to help us win the gold.”

Despite being stuck on the other side of the world, Cheverie was able to stay involved with the team through virtual meetings and watching all the games live from her living room in Nova Scotia.

“It was a 12-hour time difference, so the math wasn’t too hard… If the team had a 7 p.m. meeting in Beijing, I would be FaceTiming in at 7 a.m. from Nova Scotia,” laughs Cheverie. “It was a hard couple of weeks in terms of sleep schedule, but it was definitely worth it.”

Canada went on to win the gold medal, defeating their American rivals 3-2 in the final. When the final whistle blew, players FaceTimed Cheverie from the ice so she could virtually join in on the team celebrations.

“I talked to the coaches and players every single day and they kept me involved, so I still feel like I was part of the team that won gold.”

Making hockey history

Just two months later, Cheverie reached another major career accomplishment, becoming the first woman to serve as a coach for a Canadian men’s national team when she was named an assistant for Team Canada at the under-18 World Hockey Championships.

“To be honest, when they reached out with that opportunity, I wasn’t thinking too much about being the first woman to coach a men’s team,” recalls Cheverie. “It was just another opportunity to represent my country, work with some great athletes and coaches, and do whatever I could to help the team win.”

“I think it’s important for us as role models, not just for young girls, but for boys too, to be able to see that women can do what men can do in the game.” ”

— Kori Cheverie

Team Canada finished fifth at the tournament in Germany, and Cheverie says it was a great opportunity.

“It was a great experience, even though the outcome wasn’t exactly what we wanted. It was great to be a part of these young athletes lives on their trajectory to pro hockey, and their next career steps.”

Now back in Nova Scotia, Cheverie has had time to reflect on her trailblazing accomplishment of being the first woman behind a Canadian Men’s team bench.

“I don’t think I ever sought out to coach on the men’s side, it’s just kind of where the opportunities have led me,” says Cheverie, who also works full time as an assistant coach for the men’s team at Ryerson University.

“The men have been coaching on the women’s side for a really long time, and there are tonnes of qualified women coaches out there, who haven’t always gotten opportunities in the men’s game,” adds Cheverie. “I think it’s important for us as role models, not just for young girls, but for boys too, to be able to see that women can do what men can do in the game.”

Once a Husky, always a Husky

While her hockey journey has seen her travel around the world, Cheverie credits a large part of her career development to her time at Saint Mary’s University.

Kori Cheverie

“I played at Saint Mary’s for five years and it was a great experience. Looking back at my time there, I got a great education, got to play the sport that I loved, and made lifelong friends.”

Cheverie played at Saint Mary’s from 2005–2010, graduating as one of the most accomplished players in program history. She was selected as an AUS First Team All-Star three times, winning the AUS Student-Athlete Community Service Award twice, was named Saint Mary’s Female Athlete of the Year twice, and represented Team Canada at the 2009 FISU World University Games.

But as one might expect from a future coach, Cheverie points to team success as her greatest accomplishment with the Huskies.

“Winning the AUS Championship in 2010 to finish off my career was amazing, and beating St.FX in the semi-finals was one of my most memorable experiences. Some of my best friends played at St.FX and they were the league favourites for my whole five years, and we didn’t beat them once in the regular season. I’ll never forget beating them in the semi-final, and then going on to win the finals against Moncton.”

Cheverie also credits the roots of her coaching career to her time at Saint Mary’s.

“(Former Huskies coach) Lisa Haley had a huge impact on myself, and many other players that she coached. At the beginning of my time at SMU, I had no ambitions to coach, but in 2009 I got the opportunity to help with some girls’ teams here,” she said. “From that moment on, I stayed in the hockey development world.”

Just 34-years-old, Cheverie still has a lot of goals left to accomplish in her coaching career.

“There’s a lot I still want to do in hockey,” says Cheverie. “I really enjoy the scouting side of the game, and obviously coaching, whether it’s on the bench, from the press box or from another continent. I just want to continue to learn and grow, whether it’s on the men’s side or the women’s side, I want to continue to get the opportunity to stay in the game and learn from the people around me.”

And she offers some advice for anyone chasing a dream, in athletics or not.

“Just stick with it,” says Cheverie. “The most important decision I made was continue to play. After my time at SMU, I moved to Toronto to play in the CWHL. That pushed me into an uncomfortable zone that I had to navigate, but it’s how I ended up with my first full-time coaching jobs, and it’s one of the best decisions I ever made. It’s easy to stop playing the sport you love and move on to your career, but you can find so many amazing experiences in the world of sports outside of playing.”

Inspiring words from a proud Huskies alumna who continues to break barriers on and off the ice.

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To learn more about our Ice Hockey teams here at SMU, visit our varsity athletics website.

Hockey for everyone: Huskies host Canadian Blind Hockey for fun practice

You could tell from the sounds of rattling ball bearings and children’s laughter in the Dauphinee Centre on Wednesday afternoon that this wasn’t a usual practice for members of the Saint Mary’s Huskies men’s hockey team.

The Huskies hosted Canadian Blind Hockey for their annual Learn to Skate and Try Blind Hockey program on Nov. 24. Nearly 20 participants, between the ages of two to over 30, took to the Dauphinee Centre ice to skate, pass, shoot and have some fun with the Huskies.

“We haven’t been able to get on the ice in a while because of COVID, so we partnered with Saint Mary’s to bring blind hockey to the Dauphinee Centre, and to show kids young and old what blind hockey is all about,” explained Kelly Serbu, President of Canadian Blind Hockey, and the captain of the Canadian Blind Hockey National Team.

Serbu is a former Saint Mary’s Hockey player who was diagnosed with Stargardt, a hereditary eye disease during his second year with the team and continued playing after being declared legally blind.

Now he’s on a mission to spread awareness of blind hockey, and make the sport accessible to everyone, even those who are partially sighted and blind.

Blind hockey is much like traditional hockey with a few key differences, most notably the noisy puck.

“We play with a larger puck, it’s a metal puck, about 5.5 inches across the top and has eight ball bearings inside of it. People like me, who are partially sighted can track the puck on the ice by seeing it, but also by hearing it,” says Serbu. “The only other differences are the nets are one foot shorter, the goalies are totally blind, and wear blindfolds, and before you score a goal you have to complete a pass in the offensive zone. Other than that, it’s just like regular hockey.”

Some of the young hockey players say blind hockey has created a community and taught them some valuable life lessons.

“Just because you’re disabled, doesn’t mean you can’t play sports. They’ve tried to adapt many sports for everyone to be able to play,” said Carter Ryan, who has been playing hockey for three years.

“I came out to have a lot of fun with the community of blind hockey. Since I was like four years old, this has been a supportive group, like a family kind of. Not only just in hockey, but in anything you’re doing, they’re very supportive and always there for you,” said Mary Ellen MacEachen.

According to the Huskies head coach, his players were also inspired.

“This is part of our culture, we’ve been involved in Move for Inclusion, Motionball, Ronald McDonald House. So for our players, it’s very rewarding for them, they know they get a lot and they’ve been given a lot growing up, so it’s very rewarding to see them giving back,” said Huskies interim head coach Tyler Naugler. “We didn’t tell them to come, we told them about the event and we had almost everyone of our guys who didn’t have a class commitment today stay, so it’s a very rewarding experience for everybody.”

After a fun session on the ice, the group had a pizza party lunch and were given a tour of the Huskies facilities. It was an afternoon full of smiles, laughs, and inspiring messages.

Ryan Francis Returns for Two-Year Indigenous Research Fellowship at Saint Mary’s

Ryan Francis

A familiar face to the Saint Mary's University community is back to continue working on projects that foster the potential of sport and recreation to bring people together for intercultural understanding.

Ryan Francis, the university’s first Indigenous Visiting Fellow, recently returned for a two-year fellowship with the Faculty of Arts and the Centre for the Study of Sport and Health (CSSH). His first fellowship was  a four-month term from January to April 2020, coinciding with the onset of the global pandemic.

“A lot of our plans and programs involved people gathering and coming together, so it was very challenging to do that,” says Francis. “We highlighted in the previous fellowship that there is a lot of work that can be done. With a longer runway, we’ll be able to implement a lot more of those meaningful opportunities for the university community.” 

Part of the fellowship includes working with Saint Mary’s and organizers of the North American Indigenous Games, postponed in 2020 but now scheduled to take place July 15-23, 2023 in several locations in Kjipuktuk (Halifax) and Millbrook First Nation. NAIG 2023 will include competitions in 16 sports, bringing together 3,000 local volunteers with more than 5,000 athletes, coaches and team staff from 756 Indigenous Nations.

“SMU’s commitment to being a part of the Games, through facility use and accommodations, is really significant,” says Francis. “It will be really neat to think about how we can play a role, and factor in how to support the participants coming to campus, and make this environment feel especially welcoming to them.”

One idea already in development is the creation of “Brave Spaces” – spaces on campus where athletes and attendees can gather to share and learn more about each other’s cultures, since the Indigenous athletes will be attending from across Turtle Island.

During his first fellowship in 2020, Ryan was also a key player in the university’s inaugural Red Tape Game, working with Athletics and Recreation and the men’s Huskies hockey team. The growing movement across Canada and the U.S. aims to promote inclusion in ice hockey. The initiative was started and inspired by Logan Prosper of Whycocomagh First Nation – now an Arts student at Saint Mary’s – and his father Phillip, to create awareness of racism in hockey and encourage players to take responsibility for combatting racism. SMU’s second Red Tape Game is in the planning stages for this winter. Francis and Dr. Cheryl MacDonald, Associate Director of Outreach for the CSSH, hope to build on the idea and expand it to other teams.

“Ryan has been such a wonderful contributor to the Centre,” says Dr. MacDonald, noting he has provided guest lectures in the Health, Wellness and Sport in Society program, and participated in the international Hockey Conference hosted by the Centre.

“The Centre’s mandate is very much to facilitate and disseminate research on sport and health,” she adds. “We’re also committed to community outreach and interdisciplinary approaches. I think what we are creating here is meaningful opportunities to combine research and education with community.”

The fellowship builds on Saint Mary’s ongoing initiatives to engage with Indigenous communities, strengthen intercultural research and curriculum, and respond to the Calls to Action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action.

Francis grew up in Cole Harbour and is a member of Acadia First Nation. He is currently the Manager of Provincial Outreach & Coordination for the Nova Scotia Department of Communities, Culture, Tourism and Heritage, in its Communities, Sport, and Recreation Division. He has a Master of Physical Education degree from Memorial University, and majored in sport management for his Bachelor of Science degree at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia. Follow him on Twitter at @RyanFrancis58.     

Saint Mary’s Looks to Future with New Brand Story

Saint Mary’s University is looking to the future with the launch of a new brand.      

“It is time for Saint Mary’s University to assert our place boldly among the top Canadian universities and proclaim our advantages at home and around the globe,” says Saint Mary’s University President and Vice-Chancellor Dr. Robert Summerby-Murray. “This is the brand for our university and for our times. Saint Mary’s University offers a bright, ambitious vision for the future.”  

The new brand platform results from months of qualitative and quantitative research and extensive consultation with a diverse group of more than 3,000 faculty, staff, students, alumni and other stakeholders.   

The new treatment includes a logo, wordmark and tagline, ‘World Without Limits.’    

“‘World Without Limits’ is a wonderful distillation of who we are and what Saint Mary’s strives for every day. It is about investment in people, about economies, international relations and social prosperity, changes in science, technology, environment and business. It is also about acknowledging and tackling the very real limitations placed on diverse and marginalized cultures and peoples, and addressing the mental health issues that many grapple with every day. It is about Saint Mary’s bold vision and our commitment to our university community, for Halifax and for Nova Scotia,” says President Summerby-Murray.    

“More than an updated look and feel, our new brand platform is a powerful way of telling the Saint Mary’s story,” says Erin Sargeant Greenwood, Vice-President, Advancement. “Saint Mary’s offers a unique experience. We are a caring community, more typically associated with smaller universities, combined with the research and student engagement opportunities of the largest institutions. We are moving the university forward in a way that reflects our traditions and values and embraces our bright future.”   

Related links

• Learn more about our new brand platform

• Learn about the Sobey School brand

• Learn about the Husky logo

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Saint Mary’s University hosts The Hockey Conference featuring Hockey Hall of Fame member Angela James

Over sixty presenters and guest speakers from across North America and Europe are expected to meet virtually to celebrate the 10th anniversary of The Hockey Conference, an academic conference on ice hockey that was founded at Saint Mary’s University twenty years ago. Hosted by the Saint Mary’s University Centre for the Study of Sport & Health, the theme for this year’s conference is hockey in a changing world. 

The conference, happening online June 4-6, will feature keynote speaker Angela James, a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame and a trailblazer for women’s hockey and Black hockey players in Canada. Other guest speakers include Kaleb Dahlgren, who survived the Humboldt Broncos bus crash; Kurtis Gabriel, an athlete in the National Hockey League; Jessica Platt, the first transgender woman to play professional hockey; Kieran Block, the first Black parahockey athlete on the Canadian National Paralympic team, and Rhonda Taylor, the first woman to sit on the Board of Directors for the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (which eventually became part of Hockey Canada).

“We had to postpone by a year as a result of the pandemic and move it online, but I think we’ve still managed to come up with a solid event despite the setbacks,” says conference organizer Dr. Cheryl MacDonald, who is also the Associate Director of Outreach at the Centre for the Study of Sport & Health. “My main goal was to celebrate Dr. Colin Howell, who founded the conference in 2001 and just retired after 50 years at Saint Mary’s, so I’m glad we can still make that happen for him.” Dr. Howell will be giving the inaugural Dr. Colin Howell Distinguished Lecture at the conference as part of the celebrations.

Local guest speakers will include Ryan Francis, a member of Nova Scotia’s Mi’kmaw community, Nicole Durand of the parahockey community, Serge LeBlanc of the Acadian community, and Savannah Newton from Hockey Nova Scotia’s female high-performance program. SMU men’s hockey alumni Bob Dawson, a member of the first all-Black line in Canadian university ice hockey, will also be speaking briefly about Black hockey in the Maritimes as he introduces Angela James’ keynote speech.

The Hockey Conference is an interdisciplinary event held every two years in a different city. It brings together scholars and community members and facilitates a range of analyses and discussions on the sport in its many forms. Presenters have come from diverse fields such as history, economics, sociology, human kinetics, and business. Notable guest speakers have included Jean Beliveau, Hazel McCallion, Ken Dryden, Jenn Botterill, Billy Bridges, and Ted Nolan.

The conference is free for observers, and all are welcome. Registration is required on the conference website at www.thehockeyconference.ca.

The Homburg Centre surpasses cleaning expectations in surprise inspection

The Homburg Centre recently impressed the departments of Labour and Advanced Education and Occupational Health and Safety with the rigorous safety measures put in place to keep community members safe. The surprise inspections by Labour and Advanced Education and Occupational Health and Safety are used to ensure that businesses are being compliant with COVID-19 regulations put in place by Dr. Strang, Chief Medical Officer of Health.

Upon re-opening the Homburg Centre has enacted stringent protocols that include capacity limits, two-layered contact tracing, pre-screening measures and enhanced cleaning practices.

The Homburg Centre allows for a maximum capacity of 51 people in the building, which includes staff, facilities and members. The weight room and cardio rooms would normally hold 40–50 people; they have decreased their capacity respectively to 15 in the cardio rooms and 10 in the weight room. The new capacity limits allow the equipment to be spaced out appropriately.

“When setting up the rooms for re-opening, we were focused on the increased respiratory rates of people when they are undertaking exercise activities,” says Greg Knight, Assistant Director of the Department of Athletics and Recreation. “The general public maintains a social distance of six-feet, but after our assessments, we based our set up around an eight-foot separation.”

When a member arrives at the Homburg Centre for a workout, they must answer a series of pre-screening questions before entering the building. They are then asked to wash their hands or sanitize before signing in and scanning their membership card at the front desk. Masks are mandatory at all times, with the exception of while they are working out. 

After a member uses a piece of equipment, they are required to clean it themselves before a student staff member follows behind with the hydrostatic sprayers, a new sanitization investment by Saint Mary’s University. The chemical agents in the sprayers require time to effectively kill coronaviruses so it must dry completely before another member may use that equipment. After the 90-minute workout time slot, the gym is closed for a 30-minute deep sanitization before the next session begins.

“Upon re-opening we had our chemical supplier facilitate a session to teach our staff and student employees how to properly use the hydrostatic sprayers in a safe and effective way,” says Roberta Graham, Custodial Manager. “This is a major step in our multi-layered approach to protecting our members while they enjoy a workout.” 

This week, the Homburg Centre has added a seventh time slot in the day and is opening up the option for day-use lockers. With the cooperation of its members and persistent hard work by staff and custodians, the Homburg Centre continues to serve the community in a safe way.

To learn more or to book a workout, visit smu.ca/campus-life/smufit-main

The Homburg Centre for Health and Wellness to reopen Monday, September 21, 2020

The Homburg Centre for Health and Wellness and SMUfit is reopening for students, community members, faculty, and staff.

On Monday, September 21st, the Homburg Centre will open for SMUfit gym operations. The Department of Athletics and Recreation is excited to welcome the community back to the Homburg Centre and to reassure the community that there will be strong systems and protocols in place to support a positive and safe experience required during the COVID-19 pandemic.

There are a number of modifications and enhancements outlined here.

As part of this reopening, varsity student-athletes and their teams will begin training and practicing on campus following strict guidelines that align with the directives of public health.

Homburg Centre staff have been hard at work throughout the pandemic, and all modifications are being done with the health and safety of the entire community in mind.

SMU researcher to look at impact of COVID-19 pandemic on student-athletes

Dr. Cheryl MacDonald

Atlantic University Sport (AUS) student-athletes have found themselves in an unusual predicament since the cancellation of national championships last season and the current sporting season being on hold as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many classes have moved online and there are no current decisions regarding the status of AUS schedules in 2021.

After having conducted previous research with this demographic, Dr. Cheryl MacDonald of the Centre for the Study of Sport & Health at Saint Mary’s University has shifted her focus to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the everyday lives of AUS student-athletes. Participants between their second and fifth year of sport eligibility will be asked to complete an online survey and photo sharing exercise aimed at examining how their activities, relationships, and mental health may have been affected since March of this year.

“From both an academic and administrative perspective, it’s important to hear from the student-athletes themselves about how they are doing with the changes they have experienced,” said Dr. MacDonald. “We have an opportunity here to document their experiences and perhaps use that information to determine how to better support them right now, in the transition back to sport participation, and maybe beyond that.”

Dr. MacDonald is a sport sociologist who is best known for her research on masculinity and ice hockey, but university-level athletes have been participants in her studies since 2009. Her work has been published in the Sociology of Sport Journal, she has a forthcoming anthology on social issues in ice hockey, and she has twice been a media panellist for the Hockey is for Everyone initiative on behalf of the National Hockey League’s Edmonton Oilers. When the COVID-19 pandemic halted her most recent study on gender and sexuality education in ice hockey, she used the pause as an opportunity to change directions and find a way to serve the athletes with whom she was already working.

This survey and photo sharing project on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on AUS student-athletes’ lives will require between 30 and 90 minutes to complete because it involves some short answer questions and will thus depend on how participants respond. We have removed the collection of IP addresses in an attempt to anonymize responses and participants are cautioned to not include any names of people or places, to block out any university or team logos using emojis or other digital shapes, and to avoid sharing any criminal content (obscenity, illegal substances, etc.).

Click here to take the survey in either English or French.