Some mothers and daughters build memories shopping together, sharing movies or hitting the salon.

Not Lori and Katie Dubro. They forge their special moments by lacing up skates, pulling on pads and hitting the rink at Centre Ice.

“It’s a riot. It’s really brought us together,” says Lori, who’s been playing for eight years in the non-checking, recreational TC Women’s Hockey League.

Her 14-year-old daughter agrees.

“It’s awesome,” Katie tells The Ticker. “I love it. I really look forward to playing with my mom. I love to see her out there skating. When we’re on the ice together, it’s like she’s my friend. I see her as a teammate, an equal.”

Lori and Katie are one of four mother-daughter duos who play every Wednesday night in the women’s league, a four-team circuit with 60-plus players. Lori is a member of the Red Team; Katie is a league substitute, filling in on any team that needs a player. That means sometimes Lori and Katie are teammates, sometimes opponents.

More than other sports, hockey players – from tiny Mites to the NHL – have a tradition of handing out nicknames. With the last name of Dubro, it wasn’t long until Lori picked up the moniker of “Doobie.” Not long after that, Katie was christened “Little Doobie.”

TC Women’s Hockey began in 1992 when a few boys teams in the Grand Traverse Hockey Association had a “parents and kids” game. A few hockey moms had so much fun that they wondered if other women might want to play too. They tacked up an index card at Howe Arena asking for interested women players. Within weeks, 30 women had signed on.

“A friend encouraged me to play,” recalls Lori, who grew up in a hockey family in the Detroit area – her father coached and two brothers played. “We used sons’ and husbands’ gear, and we’ve been playing ever since.”

While Lori grew up a self-described hockey-loving rink rat, Katie had a different approach. “Katie started as a figure skater,” says Lori. “She did that for a year, then when she was six said ‘I think I’d like to play hockey.’ She’s been playing ever since.”

And she’s a fine player. In addition to playing Wednesday nights in the women’s league, Katie is a member of the under-16 traveling team, where she’s a top scorer. The Grand Traverse Academy freshman says she’d like to keep playing for years. Her dream? Earn a scholarship to play hockey for the University of Michigan.

Meanwhile, Lori will play in a national over-50 tournament in Florida at the end of April. Her goal is to come back with a national championship win, like she did a few years ago.

Interested in joining the league or watching the women face off? Check out centreice.org.