Page 36 - February 2018 FOP Newsletter

36 CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ FEBRUARY 2018
B
The FOP Stars hockey team faced off against the Chicago Fire Department team on Jan. 19 in the annual intra-city rivalry game.
B
B
l
l
lu
u
u
e
e
e
I
I
Ic
c
ce
e
e
FOP Stars hockey team growing into its own
n BY DAN CAMPANA
n PHOTOS BY JAMES PINTO
Chicago’s love affair with hockey rekindled a decade ago when the “One Goal” era began for the Blackhawks.
Three Stanley Cups and a superstar-anchored team have inspired countless youngsters to lace up skates and join youth hockey programs which have flourished throughout Chicago- land. The Hawks’ success and popularity have also been a boon for CPD’s hockey franchise – The FOP Stars.
In existence since the late 1980s, the Stars proudly boast a roster today of approximately 80 players spread across four teams based on skill level, according to Area North Detective Adam Katz, one of the team’s organizers.
Katz picked up the game in his mid-30s and has been with the Stars for nearly all of his 20 years on the job. He exemplifies the diversity of the individual hockey journeys which com- prise the organization’s makeup.
“I figured it looked like fun, and I figured I could play – it didn’t look that hard, so I tried it,” Katz explained. “We do have a lot of guys who have played at the NCAA Division I level.
W s
e
M 7 t
t o p
o
e w
c
s s
t K C