The opportunity for girls in kindergarten and first grade to play hockey has turned into an enticing one in Eden Prairie, Minn. That’s right, Eden Prairie has joined Twin Cities neighbor Edina as a hotbed of 6-Under girls’ hockey.

Brown University women’s hockey coach Digit Murphy saw a need in Rhode Island when it came to girls’ hockey at the youth level. At the risk of using a baseball metaphor, Murphy stepped up to the plate and hit a home run.

To listen to Bay State Breakers director of hockey operations Tom MacDonald, it’s easy to get the impression that the Massachusetts-based girls’ program has the best of both worlds. Players enjoy a no-pressure atmosphere combined with a program that brings home banners.

Eastern Hockey League president Jerry Buckley isn’t stunned at the rate at which the girls’ program has grown since its inception prior to the 2004-05 season. But he is pleasantly surprised.

While there may have been a sufficient number of leagues for young girls earlier this decade in the tri-state area that encompasses Pennsylvania, Delaware and New Jersey, that wasn’t the case when it came to leagues for adult women. That’s one reason why the United Women’s Hockey League (UWHL) is such a big success story.

When the U.S. Women’s National Team kicked off the Qwest Tour in September against the WCHA Women’s All-Stars at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Emily Johnson made sure she wouldn’t miss it.

Simply check the numbers. When tryouts were first held for the fledgling Girls American League of Hockey prior to the 1999-2000 season, no more than 12 girls showed up. Now, flash forward to the 2009-10 season. GAL will field 38 teams spread out over six divisions. Crunch the numbers and you’re talking about approximately 640 players along with 76 coaches.

The Mid-Atlantic Women’s Hockey League, the oldest league of its type in USA Hockey’s Atlantic and Southeast Districts, currently fields 11 teams — which encompass more than 130 women — in three divisions. The league credits its expansion and sustainability to the growth of girls and women's hockey since the sport was added to the Olympic Winter Games.