‘Rink of Dreams’ on Saskatchewan lake allows father and son to hone their hockey skills

Mick Favel brings us the story of a Saskatchewan teen who has a special setup for goalie training on Buffalo Pound Lake.

A father and son duo have created a hockey rink on Buffalo Pound Lake specifically for goaltending training.

The idea of the rink began to take shape during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dakota Kuntz said his son Trip was missing hockey at the time, and he envisioned the rink as a great way of getting his son back into the game.

Since its inception, several additions have been made.

“It transformed into adding boards, an ice trail, a sauna. It just kept going from there,” said Kuntz.

The “Rink of Dreams,” as its now known, has already hosted goalie-centered events.

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Trip, now 14, is beginning to learn the goaltending position as a coach. He uses the rink to help younger players try out the position to see if they like it.

“We can skate whenever we want and make those kids train and just get as high as they can be,” Trip explained. “You don’t know if they want to be a goalie or not, then they start training and then eventually get to that next level.”

Building a rink on the lake is a different experience compared to a rink on land.

Due to other activities happening on other parts of the lake, it can impact the rink conditions.

“With lake ice it’s a lot trickier. You have to heat the water to try eliminate the cracks,” said Kuntz. “There are so many vehicles, so many life shacks out here that it is non-stop maintenance.”