Arizona Coyotes forward Conor Garland’s younger sister grew up playing hockey with him in Massachusetts – first as someone to play with in the street, then when they went to school together and played for their respective boys and girls teams.



On the East Coast, that was far more common. The girls programs were competitive and plentiful — and even as far west as Chicago, where Christian Fischer and his teammates with the Chicago Mission knew that the organization’s girls program was full of future Division I athletes and Olympians.



Out in the desert, though, there are just four options for girls wanting to play hockey. There’s a newly formed high school program, a pair of development programs geared toward the youngest players, a two-team house league, and a mid-tier travel program with just two age groups.



When the National Women’s Hockey League held its 2018 draft Dec. 19-20, Arizona native Makenna Newkirk, from...