Whitehorse’s senior men’s AA hockey team is looking to make an impact this year and they have a plan to make it happen.

The Whitehorse Huskies, which have historically been autonomous, are joining forces with Hockey Yukon.

“We’re in collaborations to join forces,” said Huskies head coach, Michael Tuton. “I think we’re doing it right and taking small steps and we may not have been ready to join up.

“We wanted to get ourselves to a position where we’re looking at the long term and joining up with these guys I think is really going to help that.”

The Huskies will still be self-governing, but working together with Hockey Yukon makes sense for the team, said Tuton.

The hockey community in Whitehorse has steadily been growing in the past few years. December’s international showdown has gone from three teams four years ago to 15 last year, said Hockey Yukon vice-president Carl Burgess.

“Whitehorse is becoming a bit of a hockey destination,” he said. “We’re trying to make the most of that growth.”

A partnership between the Huskies and Hockey Yukon will help both parties, said Tuton.

Fundraising opportunities at the games are plentiful, while Hockey Yukon can help with a lot of the administrative behind-the-scenes jobs.

It may also make the Huskies and minor hockey players closer, giving the younger skaters athletes to look up to.

“There’s definitely some hero worship going on, said Burgess. “It’s beautiful to see and it’s nice to watch the Huskies guys respond to it as well.”

Much of the Huskies’ roster is made up of players who skated through the Whitehorse Minor Hockey Association and went on to play with their universities, colleges or at the junior level across the country. Now, they’ve come home.

“(It’s) huge for the kids to see they’re in good hands with the Whitehorse Minor Hockey,” said Tuton.

“The Huskies guys are young enough that a lot of those kids remember when they went off to play junior hockey,” said Martin Lawrie, head coach of the Mustangs U16 team. “They’re recognizable.”

The groups are also finding ways to coordinate schedules, including the October 15-16 weekend, during which the Huskies will be hosting a team from Bonnyville, the U16 Mustangs will be hosting a high school team from Anchorage and the Midgets will have their own games as well.

After a close run for the Coy Cup, B.C.’s senior men’s AA contest, when the Huskies made it to a semifinal game, this year they want to win it, and they want to do it at home.

“This year we have a little bit of a different attitude coming in and I don’t think second place is going to be good enough,” said Tuton. “We’re here to win.”

The Huskies have submitted a bid to host the Coy Cup tournament in March 2017.

“If the Coy Cup comes to town,” said Burgess, “everyone will be at the rink.”