LEH, India — During the early years that Sonam Paldan played hockey he admits he was afraid of the puck. It is understandable for someone who wore a cricket helmet with no face-mask and more forgivable considering Paldan is a goalie.

"Guys were getting hit in the eye," he recalled during a rink-side conversation, "and you know that hurts."

Getting proper equipment has been one of the bigger challenges for India's few ice hockey teams in a country obsessed with cricket. Stores do not see a reason to sell it: In a country of 1.2 billion people the number of registered ice hockey players is 700.

That Paldan finally got a used helmet and the rest of his national squad has skates is credit to a group of expat Canadians who for the last decade has promoted hockey and coached local organizers.

The gear arrived a couple of seasons ago in a shipping container that made its way to the brittle Himalayan plain from Canada but a lot more of it is still waiting to navigate India's bureaucracy.

"Donations aren't the problem," said Tony Kretzschmar, an engineer from Calgary now living in Shanghai who has spearheaded many of the hockey initiatives in Leh, "it's convincing the Indian government not to charge 200% duty on a bunch of used equipment."

Ice hockey actually enjoys a curious history in India that dates back to the British Army in the late 1800s. More recently, the Indian Army battalions posted along the northern border began to play out of winter boredom. They used field hockey sticks, strapped blades to their army boots and used either an old heel or a shoe polish tin as a puck.

In Leh, a town rich in Buddhist history and stunning mountain views, the game is still played outdoors on natural ice. At an altitude of 3500 meters the air is thin and inhospitable and temperatures dip to a breathtaking minus 20 degrees Celcius.

The conditions are reason for Paldan to smile, "This is our game."

One of the driving forces behind ‘the game' is Cynthia Hunt, a Canadian who has worked here for years with her NGO called Health Inc. Women in Ladakh's remote villages asked her what they could do to help kids build confidence and steer them from feeling disaffected.

Her answer? Hockey.

They don't think they're learning," said Hunt, who is on skates and thinks it is important for girls to know they can play, too, "They think they're just having fun and playing all winter long. But they are learning."

And every year there is a highlight: The Indo-Canadian Cup, that pits the best local players against a team of Canadians mostly from the High Commission in New Delhi. Four members of parliament traveled from Canada to join.

This year's tournament was played in biting temperatures. The rink was lined with banners painted with slogans like, "Brave Play Ice Hockey" and "Ice Hockey for those who are Physically Strong, Mentally Tough but Soft at Heart".

There are no penalties; the rink is rectangular with ‘sharp' corners. Nobody could confirm the exact size but safe to say it was not regulation. At the end of the period each team was responsible for moving their ‘bench' – a line of plastic lawn chairs – to whatever side their goalie was taking.

The Zamboni was three guys with straw brooms.

The game was fast-paced. The Canadians felt a little winded playing at high altitude and the home team took an early lead.

"They really know how to play the boards," said one Canadian player shaking his head.

"There aren't any boards, man," said another.

"Yeah and they use that to their advantage!"

By the end the Canadians prevailed by a score of 4 to 3. The members of parliament accepted the winner's plaque and both teams were awarded medals (many appeared to be surplus from other tournaments and bore inscriptions like ‘Best Girl Player 2008').

But it is the post-game that matters. In the 11 villages (of 24) in Ladakh that Hunt has introduced to hockey women have been lugging buckets of water to make outdoor rinks and more kids are staying in school.

"Hockey is played only in a few places in India," said one young fan, "it means we're special."

Kids going to hockey camp.