We have a “gear bank” of equipment that you can borrow for up to 2 weeks, and you can rent hockey skates at the APEX center. If you want to borrow our gear, please e-mail us at to let us know you’re coming and we will have the necessary equipment on hand to get you started.

Once you’ve decided this is the sport for you, consider going to a used sporting goods store (Play it Again Sports or Athletic Attic). They usually have good equipment at a decent price. You will need shin pads, a hockey garter belt, socks, hockey pants, shoulder pads, elbow pads, a jersey, a helmet, stick and skates.

Our New Players Page has much more information that will help ease you into the sport and get you started.

Our coaches are very knowledgeable and can answer any further questions.

Sorry, all DWHL events have a no-refund policy. We do make exceptions for season-ending injuries and pregnancies; those are handled on a case-by-case basis. Contact us via e-mail at if this applies to you.

We understand that hockey is a very expensive sport and it can be difficult for some players to fund the more expensive events (such as leagues). Our Treasurer has the ability to work with individuals who wish to arrange payment plans; these are all handled on a case-by-case basis.

We also offer payment options through credit cards for our more expensive events; please read the details of the payment process for the event when you register - it will tell you if PayPal is accepted or not.

We have 2 leagues every year: Summer League and Fall/Winter League. Both are held at Apex Ice Arena in Arvada. Summer league usually starts in June, goes until August, and includes approximately 10 games per team plus playoffs. The fall league starts in October, goes through March, and includes approximately 15 games per team plus playoffs. There are 2 divisions to choose from: Novice and Intermediate. The number of teams in each division depends on the number of player registrations. All skaters are welcome in the Novice division (regardless of experience), but player evaluations are required for the Intermediate division.

First, go to our Sign Up page and register 1) to be a DWHL member (free) and 2) to be a USA Hockey member ($30 annually). You must complete both of these registrations before you can skate with us.

When league registration is open, go to our Registration Page to sign up for the league. You do not need any experience to sign up in the novice division, you just need to sign up!.

You will be contacted about team placement approximately 2 weeks before the season begins.

We accept players after the league starts, but requests for specific team placement cannot be honored. Players registering after team formation are placed on the next team scheduled to receive a player. Players cannot join the fall/winter league after January 15th or the summer league after July 15th.

We do not pro-rate fees due to the free sub policy. Rostered players can sub free of charge on nights that their team is not playing (within your division). We do allow a reduced fee beginning in December through January 15th for the fall/winter league.

Watch for an e-mail announcing that the 2nd half registration is open. After you sign up, you will be notified of team placement once your payment is received.

Yes! You can drop in to camp or league. The drop in fee varies by program, but is usually around $25. The details of the event will be listed on our Upcoming Events page. USA Hockey registration is required for drop in play. In the league, you can drop in for games in your division (Novice or Intermediate) only. Drop in players are accepted up to 25 players for camps and 30 players for games on a first come basis.

The most important part to remember about ice time is how many factors are involved; many of which are outside of the Board's control. Every effort is made to provide a fair, easy schedule for all players, regardless of their team or division.

The league schedules for both the summer and fall/winter sessions are determined in much the same way. The biggest difference between summer and fall/winter is the availability of earlier ice in the summer, as many youth hockey leagues do not skate then. Therefore, the DWHL is afforded the luxury of early (i.e., before 9:00 p.m.) ice times. When the youth leagues start up in the fall, they get priority ice. As a result of its longevity, the DWHL has experienced increasingly earlier fall/winter ice times over the years. The ice cost is the same regardless of the time.

Due to the high demand for ice time and the limited availability, it is extremely difficult to break into the master schedules of an ice arena. We have tried to contact other arenas but have not been able to get consistent ice times. We do try to schedule our FunFests at other locations, but even that hour of ice is hard to schedule. For the past 4 years, the Apex management has been very flexible and understanding. We continue to work “up the ladder” in search of better ice times.

Contact the DWHL board at . A board member will get back to you. Remember that we are all volunteers. If you do not receive a response soon, please keep trying.

There is also an abundance of information on our site. Specifically, look at our New Players page, our Sign Up page and our Upcoming Events page.