Hockey is back.

No, not the NHL. Those folks still can’t figure it out.

The WPIHL — Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Hockey League — is back and it’s bigger and better than ever.

There were 64 high schools in Western Pennsylvania and the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia sporting varsity teams in the WPIHL last season, including five from Butler County.

One of those — Knoch — isn’t fielding a varsity team this winter, but continues to build its foundation through its youth programs and will likely return to varsity status next year.

Considering the state of the economy and how expensive it is to play hockey, the dedication of youths and their parents when it comes to this sport is amazing.

The WPIHL grew in popularity when Mario Lemieux first arrived on the Pittsburgh hockey scene 28 years ago. It spiked in popularity again when Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin arrived a few years ago.

Mars has been to the Class A Penguins Cup championship game four straight years — winning three titles — and has developed a youth system that continually replenishes the roster.

Freeport is a small community with no ice anywhere nearby, yet the Yellowjackets have also won the Penguins Cup and produced a 10-7 record last year with an extremely young team.

Parents have to get kids to games at ice arenas miles from home, often with late-night starting times due to ice availability. Cost of equipment can run into thousands of dollars.

The best example of this dedication lies with the Butler program.

The Golden Tornado lost 20 of 21 games last season and the program’s won-loss record has been dismal since its recent return to varsity status.

Former Butler player Mike Guentner stepped in as head coach midway through last season and put together an offseason program that required total commitment to pull off.

Butler hockey players were doing conditioning work in July. They attended a camp together in Jamestown. They practiced throughout the month of August.

Some high school hockey teams don’t even hold tryouts until September.

And, keep in mind, Butler hockey players have to travel to the Ice Connection in Valencia just to practice or play home games.

When it comes to perseverance, dedication, passion and love for their sport, combined with the monetary expense, nobody goes the extra mile more than high school hockey families.

If the Penguins don’t hit the ice anytime soon, no worries.

These kids are picking up the slack.

John Enrietto is sports editor of the Butler Eagle