Benally brothers build hockey life far from the rink
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Sage Benally, left, and his younger brother Rivers Benally pose in their Arizona Hockey Union Knights uniforms. Sage, 11, wears No. 13 for the 12U White team, and Rivers, 8, wears No. 83 for the 8U Silver team as the brothers continue building their hockey careers together.
By Nolan Bruno
Special to the Times
WINDOW ROCK
Brothers Sage Benally and Rivers Benally spend much of their week on the ice, chasing pucks, sharpening drills and making long drives to the rink.
Sage is 11. Rivers is 8. Both play for the Arizona Hockey Union travel teams, and both have already picked up titles and runner-up finishes in youth competition. But the story of the two brothers is not just about wins. It is about how a family from Diné Bikéyah built a life around a sport not often tied to home.
The brothers got their start in organized hockey two years ago in the AZ Ice House League. Their parents, Latoya Benally and Wesley Benally, said it did not take long to see the sport had taken hold.
“Sage has done every sport you can imagine. Hockey was the final sport we tried him in,” Latoya said. “In hockey, we just see his self-confidence shine.”
To read the full article, please see the April 9, 2026, edition of the Navajo Times.
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Highway 264,
I-40, WB @ Winslow