tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4835166173114766252024-02-18T20:23:21.753-08:00Women's Hockeyhockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.comBlogger35125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-41468021872003987742019-03-31T07:34:00.001-07:002019-03-31T07:34:18.792-07:00Seeing is believing for CWHL fans<div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
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There was a picture book back in the mid 1990’s called “NHL’s Top Rookies.” Each page featured bios and stats on NHL players who had either won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the league’s Rookie of the Year or who had come pretty close. The book featured the likes of Mario Lemieux, Martin Brodeur, Pavel Bure, and Teemu Selanne, just to name a few.</div>
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While their rookie year statistics were amazing, it was the book’s first page that was the most impactful. The book started with a fictional, yet likely fairly accurate depiction of a rookie’s first NHL game. The years of hard work to get to this moment, the pre-game jitters, the sitting on the bench waiting for the first shift, the tap on the back from the coach, the leaping over the boards and onto the ice. It was quintessentially the journey to making the NHL, summed up in a paragraph.</div>
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Boys and girls enjoyed pouring over this book and reading the stories of how their favourite NHL stars came to be. For the boys, they read the first page and dreamed about the moment when it would be their turn to experience the thrills of their first NHL game. But for the girls, dreaming about being an NHL rookie stopped there – at the dream phase – because, as everyone knew, females didn’t play in the NHL and there was no equivalent league for women to play in.</div>
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Girls barely played minor hockey back then and there was no women’s hockey component to the Olympics. Girls played hockey, if they were able, on boys teams and maybe they got the unfortunate task of being put in net when their brothers played street hockey.</div>
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Fast forward to today and the Canadian Women’s Hockey League is providing a home and a stage for the world’s best female hockey players to strut their skills. All of a sudden, young girls can aspire to have their own “rookie shift” in the CWHL, and the league continues to provide a platform on which to showcase the sport around the globe.</div>
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Women’s hockey, right now, is at a critical phase of growth. A beneficiary of society at large where women are demanding equality and letting their performance help drive this change. The CWHL, women’s hockey, and women’s sports in general are on the uptake.</div>
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Not many people are old enough to remember the early days of the NHL, but reading about the foundational years, the one thing that stands out is the humble beginnings. Back then, it wasn’t about eight-figure salaries, multi-million dollar endorsement deals, and thousands of fans in the seats every game. The goal of the NHL back then was to find a sustainable model and connecting with the fans was at the core of its existence.</div>
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That’s where the CWHL is now. It’s baby steps each day to get the word out there that outside of the Olympics, where every 4 years, all eyes are on the sport for the games, there is a league where all of those great players are playing. It’s about connecting with the fans, especially the young girls, and letting them know that the players they are seeing on the ice today, are the players they can become tomorrow.</div>
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And it’s not just about providing an attainable dream for players.</div>
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At the Esso Cup Awards banquet in 2013, Olympic Gold Medalist Cheryl Pounder told a story about how minutes before Team Canada entered the stadium for the Opening Ceremonies at the Salt Lake City Olympics in 2002, she caught sight of a member of the women’s hockey team’s therapy staff standing in a corner crying.</div>
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Upon asking what was wrong, the staff member told Pounder that as a child, she had tried to “make it” in virtually every sport she could find, but that she got cut from every team and eventually had to concede that she was never going to make it to the Olympics. And yet, here she was, just moments away from walking into the Opening Ceremonies of an Olympic Games as a member of Team Canada.</div>
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“There’s always a way. It may not be the route you expected to take, it may be different, but there’s always a way,” Pounder concluded her speech with.</div>
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The CWHL is providing a platform for females in several landscapes to hone and showcase their knowledge and their talents. The coaches, referees, trainers, broadcasters, commissioners, board members, managers, marketing and communications staff, and even the volunteers are being given their own platforms – their own “rookie shifts” – to live out a dream that perhaps they had given up on when playing in the league was not feasible for them.</div>
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The platform the league continues to provide is, in turn, producing people who will help the league attain its goals, but also people who will make the world around them better.</div>
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Former CWHL Commissioner Brenda Andress has gone on to establish SheIS – a network to ensure careers as professional athletes become viable and sustainable for women. Former Board member Cassie Campbell-Pascall has gone on to become a mainstay on Hockey Night in Canada’s broadcasting team. Sami Jo Small has gone from Clarkson Cup winning goalie to now General Manager of the Toronto Furies. Jayna Hefford, the league’s Interim Commissioner, is a recent Hockey Hall of Fame inductee and a former CWHL player herself. The league’s Board boasts everyone from former Olympians to lawyers to high-powered executives. The league has already partnered with 3 NHL teams and has negotiated TV visibility of their regular season games, All-Star Game and Clarkson Cup finals with Sportsnet.</div>
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And there is still so much more to achieve. A unified league stands amongst the top on any women’s hockey fan’s wish list. Fair salaries for players and staff, expansion into more markets (Vancouver says hi!), and overall greater visibility for the league and its superstars is still on the growing list of goals.</div>
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Looking back on the NHL’s early days, we hear about the builders – the men with a vision and dedication who drove the league towards what it is today. That’s what we get to do with the CWHL. This is our league to craft and mold today into what we dream for it to be tomorrow so that young girls and women of all backgrounds will feel the thrill of a “tap on the back” when opportunity comes calling for them. </div>
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<span style="border: 0px; font-style: italic; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Written for the CWHL Globe and Mail Fan Article of the Month Contest </span></div>
hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-16784960889499511962017-01-13T21:29:00.002-08:002017-03-07T09:34:23.832-08:00An open letter to Hayley Wickenheiser"The big girl."<br />
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"The brown kid."<br />
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"No talent."<br />
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No one should ever have to hear these things said about them at any point in their lives, but certainly not when they're 9, 10, 11 years old, and most certainly not from the mouths of adults who are supposed to be better and wiser. But when you're a figure skater - one that doesn't fit the stereotype of the sport - you had better have a thick skin, because these slurs are exactly what you're going to hear.<br />
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This was my life as a kid. Actually no, that's not true. Hockey was my life as a kid. From the earliest days I can remember, I wanted to be a hockey player. Not just skate around and score goals. Nope, what I wanted most was to lose my teeth like Gino Odjick, to leap over the boards like Pavel Bure, and to celebrate goals by leaping into my teammates' arms like Trevor Linden. It never occurred to me that all the players I watched on Hockey Night in Canada with my dad every Saturday were all male. In the naive mind of a 4 year old girl, I felt that someday I could be out there too.<br />
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But girls didn't play hockey at the time. At least that was the popular opinion. So figure skating it was. Trying to wrangle a rambunctious hockey-loving girl into a pink dress was no easy feat. My mother can vouch for that. Trying to get her to perform intricate jumps and spins was even harder. I hated it, I was terrible at it, and my heart wanted hockey. Only hockey. But girls didn't play hockey.<br />
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"The Americans had our flag on the floor in their dressing room, and now I want to know if they want us to sign it."<br />
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Yeah, those words changed my life. To come across this sweaty, teary, triumphant hockey player on TV who had just brought home Canada's first ever gold medal in women's hockey was a moment I'll never forget. Could this really be happening? A woman? Playing hockey? The figure skates were sold and the hockey gear bought. 15 years later, hockey has given me some of my greatest memories and learning opportunities. I am a female hockey player and this is my sport.<br />
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You can't be what you can't see. I saw Hayley Wickenheiser and, while I couldn't replicate her mastery as a player (I don't think her greatness will ever be replicated), her courage and her example propelled me to pursue a career in sports. And for so many young girls and women, Hayley is the living proof of what they want to be. They see her, they work hard every day to be her.<br />
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On the occasion of Hayley's retirement from hockey, I would like to convey to her, some sentiments.<br />
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<i>Hayley,</i><br />
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<i>You set out first to establish yourself on a team where you were a youngster, then to bring home a gold medal for Canada, then to pave new roads for the sport, then to inspire young girls to follow that road. You did all those things, and so much more Hayley. You did it all. </i><br />
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<i>But what you also did was change the life of a person who will never play for Canada but for whom hockey runs through her veins. Hockey has given me friends, it has kept me out of trouble (and sometimes gotten me into trouble!), it has taught me to be tough both physically and mentally, it has taught me to focus and to be calm, it has given me confidence and maturity, and it has molded me into who I am today. And there are so many others out there for whom you've had the same impact. </i><br />
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<i>None of this would have happened without you Hayley. You made it cool to be a female hockey player. You gave us a reason to have "swagger." But you did all this without ever having an ounce of arrogance or ego. You had beer spilled on you and slurs uttered at you that were so much worse than the ones I had to endure. </i><br />
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<i>But today you stand above it all, and in rising above the critics, you have given an entire generation of female athletes a platform to do the same. The young girls playing sports today know they belong. They don't justify their presence and they don't apologize for it. It's because they are standing on your shoulders. We all are. Every day that I walk in to the office and work to better the lives of people through sport, I stand on your shoulders.</i><br />
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<i>You have set the sport of women's hockey on a trajectory towards great success. I will be there for it and I know you will be too. I wish you all the best in your life after hockey. You deserve all the great things that will no doubt come to you. </i><br />
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<i>Thank you, Hayley, thank you so much. </i>hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-67751683043928122262016-09-25T10:18:00.002-07:002016-09-25T10:18:34.469-07:00[Interviews] Shannon Miller, Perry Pearn, Blake Nill, & Tyler KuntzShannon Miller ( formerly with Hockey Canada & NCAA Women's Hockey), Perry Pearn (Vancouver Canucks), Blake Nill (UBC Football) and Tyler Kuntz (Vancouver Giants) were all presenters during The Coaches Site's Vancouver Conference during the summer of 2016.<br />
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I had the pleasure of interviewing each of these highly respected and accomplished coaches. Have a watch as we talk about coaching tactics, the importance of mentorship, and the growth of their respective sports.<br />
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Shannon Miller:</div>
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Blake Nill: </div>
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Perry Pearn:</div>
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Tyler Kuntz:</div>
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hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-28851324315432087762016-09-06T11:33:00.001-07:002016-09-06T11:33:26.012-07:00[Interview] Marie-Philip Poulin talks all things Women's HockeyI had the great pleasure of interviewing Women's Hockey superstar Marie-Philip Poulin. We chatted about her heroics at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi and how it has led to her being mentioned with some of the greatest names in hockey history. We also talked about leadership and the growth of the sport.<br />
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Have a watch at the interviews and feel free to leave your comments!<br />
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Part One:</div>
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Part Two:</div>
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A Special Message from Marie-Philip Poulin:</div>
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hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-25917479222155572192015-08-07T21:04:00.000-07:002015-08-07T21:04:43.090-07:00Gratitude: A goalie's journey back from the brink<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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They say hockey is a team sport and that your team is your family. They tell you to fight every moment for your team. "Play for each other," they say. Because that's what hockey players do. That's fair, but what happens when you lose?<br />
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I remember going into a shootout in a championship game of a big tournament 2 years ago. I looked over at the bench from my perch in the net and all I could see was the eager, hopeful faces of my team mates. "Play for them," I told myself. "Win it for them." I tried, but one of the shooters went bar down on me, and before I knew it, I was in the locker room with 19 sobbing team mates. "You had one job," I told myself. The devastation of not doing that one job put me in to a deep dark hole. I had been a goalie for 10 years to that point, but in my brain, I couldn't remember the last time I made a save. I went into a shame spiral. Seeing my team mates, even away from hockey, was a chore. I had failed them. To look them in the eye was just too difficult. For the record, it wasn't any of them that said that I'd failed them. If anything, they apologized for not scoring more goals and not defending better. But the brain is a tricky organ. It can't be lied to and it's stubborn. Once it believes something...good luck trying to convince it of anything else.<br />
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The loss of the hockey game was secondary to what else I lost that day. Confidence, passion, gratitude - they all disappeared from my game. Quitting was not an option. No one quits just because they lose a game. And I had lost plenty of games before. Why this one hit me so hard, I still have no idea. So for the next 2 years I continued to put on the gear, take my place in the net, and attempted to make saves. Sometimes I made them and sometimes I didn't. All I knew was, I didn't really care. I was just there, going through the motions, and getting angry and emotional whenever I played poorly, because I saw each game I played as an attempt at redemption, so every loss felt like it was setting me back in my quest of being able to look my team mates in the eye again.<br />
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A quote that always makes me laugh: "there is an I in TEAM. It's in the "A" hole." I certainly don't want to be an "A hole" but maybe a certain amount of selfishness is needed to be a good athlete. 2 years after that disastrous tournament, I find myself back in the same setting. Same tournament, same team mates, same opponents. It was a chore for my coach to even get me to play in this tournament again. After what happened 2 years ago, I don't have much lower to sink. One more bad experience and there will be no passion left to draw me back to the game I've been in love with my whole life. But here I am, putting myself through mental agony once again. Only this time, I have a different approach. I'm playing for myself and only myself. Me vs. Me. And I have only one goal at this tournament: bring back the love. "How you handle yourself and how you play. This moment is part of the journey. You were meant to make that save. You were meant to give up that goal. You are meant to be a little scared. This moment is part of the journey that is your life." That narrative was constant in my head during the tournament. Like I said earlier: the brain is a tricky organ. It can't be lied to and it's stubborn. Once it believes something...good luck trying to convince it of anything else.<br />
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So I tested that theory. I visualized myself making every save and pictured myself being calm and controlled in my emotions. Game after game, moment after moment, play after play, I just kept trying to stay in the moment and do the very best that I knew I was capable of doing. We make it to the playoff round and find ourselves in a shootout against the same opponent as 2 years ago. Cue the dramatic music and get ready for the Hollywood ending...except for...we lost...again. Time to walk away from the game right? Not at all. I played as well as I could have and my team played as well as they could have. We tried and we came up short. It sucks. But we tried. I stayed true to my mantra - I played well and I handled myself well. And just like that, the love came back, the passion came back, the confidence came back, and the gratitude came back. I didn't realize what a huge void it had left in my life when it was gone, but to stand here today and to be thankful for being a goalie and for being able to play this beautiful game and for being part of a team is something that I haven't done in 2 years.<br />
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The same disappointing result 2 years apart. So why the difference in attitude? Maybe because of the difference in mindset going in. When you belong to a larger team, there has to be a recognition that you can only control so much. Unlike a singles sport where you control your own destiny, a team sport isn't always like that. You can have the game of your life but still come up short. Or you can have an off game and your team mates can pull you through it for a victory. You just never know. What you can control is your mindset and your actions. "How you handle yourself, how you play."<br />
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What this experience has taught me is that losing a hockey game is not the only thing that can be lost every time I step into the net. There is so much more on the line. And though I focused solely on myself and my game in this tournament, it was not because I was trying to be an "A hole." If anything it was because I was trying to be the team mate that my team needed me to be. And even though we still lost, I'd like to think that my attitude allowed me to be more of the player...and the person...that I expect myself to be. We know ourselves best and we can't be lied to. And we have only ourselves to look to when we need to pull out of the "deep dark hole." It's a process and it takes time, but when you stand at the other end, stronger and more humble, you'll know why you were made to go through the process. Because it's part of the journey.<br />
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*Gratitude*hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-62715846667694527232015-02-25T14:44:00.000-08:002015-02-25T14:48:22.725-08:00"Like a Girl" and Proud of It<span id="goog_1502704968"></span><span id="goog_1502704969"></span><br />
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Ohhh Morgan Rielly. Most of the country already hates the Leafs. Why are you making it even easier to hate them?</div>
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On February 20th, 2015, Reilly of the Toronto Maple Leafs was asked by a reporter to describe what it was like going through yet another Leafs' seasonal debacle. His response, as captured above, sparked a lively debate on social media due his use of the word "girl" with a negative connotation attached to it.</div>
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The popularity of the phrase "like a girl" is so common in society, that many of us don't even think twice when we use it in conversation. Even as girls and as women, it has taken time for us to realize that behind that phrase is an insult; one that is as offensive as any racial or gender-based slur that society has worked to eliminate from our vocabularies. Only now is there a push for public awareness and change around using this phrase. As the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjJQBjWYDTs" target="_blank">Always - #LikeAGirl</a> campaign asks: "when did doing something 'like a girl' become an insult?" </div>
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Dumping on the Leafs is a national pastime in Canada. The cliche is true - we ride our sleds to Tim Horton's, buy a Double Double and a donut, and we sit there and bash the Leafs all day long. And let's be honest, the Leafs have given us a lot of material to cover in recent years. So maybe Morgan Rielly's comments garnered an unfair amount of attention. Tons of people still say things like "you hit like a girl" or "stop being such a girl." They do not incite a national debate on social media and on the airwaves of national TV and radio about it. Rielly did. Because Reilly is a role model. By virtue of the fact that Morgan Reilly is a hockey player on one of the league's most storied franchises, when Reilly or his team mates talk, people listen. Kids listen. And kids imitate. </div>
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We grew up on the phrase "like a girl" being an insult. But for the next generation of young women to grow up with that phrase carrying the same connotation would be a shame, because it would mean that we haven't made any progress. And that is not true, because we all know how much progress has been made. We are all athletes. We see examples of physical and mental toughness all around us in our team mates, opponents, coaches, and in ourselves. We see it in our bosses and in women in positions of leadership and power everyday. People say it all the time: "women are more emotional than men." And again, they say it like that's a bad thing. In reality, emotion, passion, commitment, loyalty, care, compassion, and love are all qualities that go a long way in the world. They create a less clinical and more cohesive environment to work in. And women don't take anything for granted. We work hard every day to represent ourselves and our fellow women, because we know that one wrong step can set everything back by a decade. </div>
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This article isn't mean to rag on Morgan Reilly. That's been done...a lot. It is meant to make all of us think twice when we use negative phrases in everyday conversation. It is about changing our mindset to being proud of who we are and about honing our skills as women. All of these traits that have been seen as negatives and as drawbacks in the past are actually great traits to have. And if there was any doubt about what women are capable of achieving, just remember that Morgan Reilly's comments came on the one-year anniversary of this: </div>
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hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-2634558305760213152015-01-27T19:02:00.001-08:002015-01-27T19:07:28.630-08:00Beer League (Injury) BluesI have been injured for 8 weeks and have not played hockey in 6 weeks. I'm like a bear who has not been fed. Approach with caution.<br />
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Hockey players have a reputation across all sports as being the amongst the toughest athletes out there. They play with broken bones and torn ligaments, and only when an injury is severe do they agree to being stretchered off the ice. It's a point of pride with hockey players to leave the ice on their own two feet.<br />
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As someone who plays at the recreational level, I feel this same point of pride. The fighting spirit that pushed Hayley Wickenheiser to play through the 2014 Olympics with a broken foot and Meaghan Mikkelson to play with a broken hand exists in recreational players too. I have seen it with my own eyes. I have played through pain and discomfort too, but nothing like what I've been through with this latest injury. The whole process of being injured and missing hockey for the first time in 12 years has opened my eyes to what the process is like and it has definitely given me more respect for any athlete at any level who comes back from injury. <br />
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From a psychological standpoint, there are several stages of dealing with an injury. Once we get over our denial and admit that we actually are injured, we have to go through the process of determining what medical services we require, where to get them from, and how much they're going to cost. As rec leaguers, this stage varies vastly from the elite sports realm. In the world of Olympic, professional, and college sports, each team carries their own trainers who are available to examine and treat players as soon as an injury occurs. In the case of leagues like the NHL, players don't even have to wait for appointments with specialists or to get advanced scans like CT's or MRI's. Such is not the case when you're just an "Average Jane." No one cares that you're missing games and are desperate to get back to being with your team. No one cares that you're in pain severe enough that it's affecting your job and the rest of your life. You are about to join a long list of fellow Average Joes and Janes in waiting for the treatment you need. As someone who has recently been through this experience, here is some advice I would give to my fellow injured rec leaguers:<br />
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1) <strong>Get the treatment you need right away.</strong> Don't delay. I delayed because I was concerned about costs and was hesitant to go through so many time consuming appointments. Delaying treatment only made my injuries worse, and it actually made my healing time and the cost of my overall treatment much higher. <br />
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2) <strong>Google is not a doctor.</strong> Plugging your symptoms into WebMD and waiting for a computer-generated diagnosis doesn't make it an accurate diagnosis. I would suggest getting a proper diagnosis from a medical professional. Once your injury has a name you can always Google treatment ideas or suggestions for stretches/workouts you can do.<br />
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3) <strong>Find the right practitioner.</strong> You want someone who listens to you and treats you like a person not like a case. You also want someone who recognizes that you're an athlete. One of my chiropractors told me that she was going to put me on the same treatment plan as the 80-year old woman who she saw before me that day. Needless to say, I was offended. <br />
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4) <strong>Take accurate notes about all of your symptoms</strong>. Every sensation you feel that is not "normal", make note of it so that you can relay it to your practitioner(s). The more clues you give them, the easier it will be for them to nail down the source of your discomfort. It might even save you the need to get certain scans.<br />
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5) <strong>Be careful with self-treatment.</strong> Again, let a professional tell you what exercises to do. Don't formulate stretches and exercises yourself that you think might be helpful. They might actually be making things worse.<br />
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6) <strong>Be patient</strong>. The pro's have a team of people who have to sign off on the player before they return to game action. Us Average Janes don't have that. Several times during my 6 weeks without hockey, I considered going back and playing. At one point I found out that one of my teams lost their last game pretty badly and it made me want to forget my "plan of patience" and just get back out there. But then I thought how helpful I would be if I was playing at 50% health, and how much damage I might potentially do if I forced my body to do something it clearly wasn't ready to do? Think of the bigger picture and the long term goal. Don't rush your body. <br />
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I wish a safe and healthy hockey season to all, but sometimes injuries are inevitable. For those times, I wish my fellow Average Janes a speedy and more importantly, a successful recovery. In the meantime, feel free to come join me in cage of unfed bears! hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-53614179582542040832014-10-23T18:49:00.000-07:002014-10-23T18:49:15.209-07:00The Concussion Conundrum - How to take care of our players<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Amanda Kessel will miss the entire NCAA season due to concussion symptoms</td></tr>
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When it was announced by the Pittsburgh Penguins in January of 2011 that star player Sidney Crosby had suffered a concussion and that he would be out indefinitely, NHL analysts both professional and amateur took to the airwaves and blogosphere to analyze the injury and its repercussions. It seemed that for every game Crosby missed, the speculation, rumours, and theories just intensified. An injury to a superstar player and league poster boy took the concussion epidemic from being a sweep-under-the-rug nuisance to being the most talked about news story in the sport. At one point "Crosby Concussion" was even given it's own spot on the TSN ticker. <br />
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Fast forward to 2014, and another star hockey player has suffered a concussion that will see them miss significant time. Yet somehow, this player's news has barely made headlines. The player's name is Amanda Kessel, and to most people, the name probably only rings a bell because of it's similarity to that of Toronto Maple Leafs star Phil Kessel. Yes, Amanda Kessel is Phil's sister. But she is also a star hockey player in her own rights. Amanda is a gold medalist at both the World Championships and the 4 Nations Cup tournaments. She was part of the silver medal winning Team USA at the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics. Beyond the national team, she has led the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers to back-to-back NCAA titles, and she won the Patty Kazmaier Award as the nation's top female collegiate player in 2011. <br />
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The reason Kessel's injury is important is because of the implications it has on other female athletes. When we think of concussions, we think of them being sustained as the result of big men being hit by even bigger men. The reality is, concussions are sustained in all different ways by all different types of people. In fact, research suggests that female hockey players at the collegiate level are at a greater risk to suffer a concussion than their male counterparts <a href="https://www.womenssportsfoundation.org/en/home/research/articles-and-reports/mental-and-physical-health/female-athlete-and-concussions" target="_blank">[1]</a>. And yet, concussions in female sports are routinely misdiagnosed and overlooked. From talking to fellow hockey players at various levels of the game, it is astounding to hear how many of them were prematurely cleared to return to the ice after having suffered a concussion. In the cases of a few players, they were back on the ice within minutes. This could have occurred for a variety of reasons. Maybe the concussion test was administered too soon after initial impact and symptoms hadn't yet surfaced. Or maybe the player misreported their symptoms to avoid being pulled from the game. In the sad case of some, symptoms were disregarded because the coach needed the player back on the ice. In a few cases, this hasty decision saw careers come to an untimely end. <br />
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So what can we all do to help ourselves, our teammates, and our players, not fall victim to this epidemic? The good news is, we can look out for one another without having to first become brain scientists. The <a href="http://bjsm.bmj.com/content/47/5/267.full.pdf" target="_blank">Pocket Concussion Recognition Tool</a> can be used by parents, coaches, or even fellow team mates as a way to determine the presence of a concussion. It involves a basic line of questioning, as well as just observing behaviours that the patient may be exhibiting. An alternative test, the SCAT 3 - <a href="http://www.parachutecanada.org/downloads/resources/SCAT3.pdf" target="_blank">Sport Concussion Assessment Tool</a> - is to be used by medical professionals only. However, portions of it, like the basic memory questions for example, can be administered by anyone to help determine a player's well being. These tools are by no means a black and white way of determining the presence of a concussion, but they are a way of quickly evaluating symptoms in a setting where doctors and specialists may not be around. <br />
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The player's best interest should always be number one when determining whether or not they should be cleared to go back onto the ice. It is not about getting them back into the game without missing a shift. Any athlete will tell you, they'd rather miss a shift or a few games and get the care they require, because the alternative is that they miss a full season or possibly a career. It should be noted that any player with a suspected concussion should seek medical advice as soon as possible. But if the above mentioned tests can prevent players from being rushed back into action and save careers from coming to premature ends, it means the sports community has succeeded in looking after their own people. <br />
hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-60887817166253189842014-08-24T15:10:00.000-07:002014-08-24T15:18:52.590-07:00Go outside and get a tan! The case against year-round hockey<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hayley Wickenheiser at the 1998 Winter Olympics and 2000 Summer Olympics</td></tr>
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Back to school commercials on TV, gleeful parents engaging in back-to-school shopping in anticipation of finally having a quiet household again, and grouchy kids begrudgingly following along, knowing their days of freedom will soon be over...it must be the end of summer. For most, the arrival of September brings with it a change in schedules and routines. For us hockey players, perhaps September is the month where we return to our routines. Practice days, training days, travel days, game days, and rest days. All 7 days of the week might soon fall into one of those categories. If the off-season has been spent the right way, the return to hockey should be an exciting one. Players should be "feeling the itch" to get back on the ice for a new season of hockey. If you're not "feeling the itch" perhaps it is your body and your brain telling you that you need to change up your off-season activities. <br />
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The concept of year-round athletics is debated in sports circles almost as much as year-round schooling is debated in academic ones. Should kids be training all year round or should they be given a break to do other things and pursue other interests? In some senses, a hiatus from hockey during the summer may seem like a bad idea. Players spend all year improving their skills, developing their hockey IQ, and reaching their peak physical conditioning. Why then would they waste all of that by taking 2 or 3 months away from hockey? That is the rationale behind why some parents and coaches opt to have their kids in hockey year round. But there is a flip side to that too. <br />
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In most sports, peak performance isn't reached until well after puberty. Studies show that female athletes don't reach peak performance until age 27 <a href="http://www.pponline.co.uk/encyc/0270.htm" target="_blank">(1)</a> , and males (specifically in the NHL) don't peak until age 28 or 29 <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/when-nhl-players-peak-hockey-metrics-1.2646054" target="_blank">(2).</a> There is a myth that if players do not specialize in one sport early, they will not be good enough to make it to the pros when it's time for them to make that leap. This is far from true. Almost on cue for this blog, this tweet was posted by USA Hockey a few moments ago:<br />
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<u><span style="color: red;"><strong>USA Hockey <a href="mailto:Magazine%E2%80%8F@USAHMagazine">Magazine</a></strong><a href="mailto:Magazine%E2%80%8F@USAHMagazine"></a></span><a href="mailto:Magazine%E2%80%8F@USAHMagazine"><span class="username js-action-profile-name"><s><span style="color: #ff6666;">@</span></s><b><span style="color: red;">USAHMagazine</span></b></span></a></u> I would encourage playing other sports and not dedicating yourself to year-round hockey. Dan Bylsma <a class="twitter-hashtag pretty-link js-nav" data-query-source="hashtag_click" dir="ltr" href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/usahlevel5?src=hash"><s><span style="color: #ff6666;">#</span></s><b><span style="color: red;">usahlevel5</span></b></a></blockquote>
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Here are a few reasons why year-round hockey is not a good idea:<br />
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1. We all know that kids get bored pretty easily - (think of the "are we there yet!?" question and how often it gets asked during long trips). Kids are just as likely to enjoy playing competitive hockey every day as they are to enjoy eating the same food every day. Even if that food is ice cream, they will eventually tire and ask for something else. <br />
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2. Physical development - Playing different sports strengthens different muscle groups. It is important for young kids to strengthen all parts of their bodies and not just one or two areas. Often times, the motions required to play one sport will compliment the motions of another sport too, so trying new sports is a great way to learn different skills while still working on improving at your "main sport". Henrik Lundqvist, goalie for the New York Rangers, has recently taken up tennis as a way to strengthen all the muscle groups required for the lateral movement of a goalie <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/nhl/henrik-lundqvist-plays-tennis-to-gear-up-for-nhl-season-1.2745112" target="_blank">(3).</a> <br />
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3. Mental and physical burnout - Hockey is a fast and exciting game. It should never feel routine or inconvenient. But when you overdo it, there will be days where the motivation to get back on the ice is lacking. There is no way kids will perform at their best if they're exhausted. Summertime is a great time to heal up the bumps and bruises that are inevitably sustained during a long season, and to refresh the brain and get it ready for the new season as well. If the body is tired, players will look for shortcuts. Their stride will become lazy, their shooting motions may become abbreviated, and they will look to just make it through games rather than to thrive and succeed in them. <br />
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4. Sports IQ - The ability to think the game of hockey is not only developed by playing hockey. Funnily enough, one can work on their Hockey IQ - their ability to read the game, make creative plays, anticipate the moves of opponents, etc. - by taking part in other sports too. Thinking tactically about one sport might yield some ideas about how to succeed at another. <br />
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Pertaining specifically to the sport of women's hockey, there is perhaps no better example of this whole concept than to examine one of its greatest players. Hayley Wickenheiser has 5 Winter Olympics medals, but she also represented Canada at the 2000 Summer Olympics in the sport of softball. If there was any doubt that time away from hockey is a good thing, looking back at Hayley's career should erase all of that. If being a multi-sport athlete didn't hold Hayley Wickenheiser back, it shouldn't hold the rest of us back either!</div>
hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-84016890268634789302014-06-23T19:26:00.000-07:002014-06-24T15:30:23.334-07:00Losing a Necessary Evil on the Path to Winning.Risk assessment is necessary for anyone in life who wishes to...well...live. As much as some people will do their very best to defy this very simple logic, the reality is that without the ability to evaluate the risk in an action or activity, human beings would be putting themselves in dangerous situations far too often for their own good. On a daily basis, we are called upon to judge the risk in a situation more often than we might even realize. "Is it safe to cross the street? Is it safe to turn left with the oncoming traffic? Is it wise to eat an entire pizza in one sitting (it's ok, we've all been there at least once!)." This same process of risk assessment happens in the world of sports. The concept of risk manifests itself in several ways for athletes. Obviously, there is risk in playing sports in the sense that one could get injured due to the physical nature of sports. It can also be said that some of the most successful athletes in the world are those who know how to successfully assess risk. "Do I pass this puck up the middle? Should I go for the buzzer-beating 3 pointer? Should I try going for the ace on 2nd serve when facing break point?"<br />
<br />
There is one aspect of risk in the world of sports that might be underrated or less analyzed, but it certainly plays a large role in defining the journey of an athelte. Simply put, it is the risk of losing. Athletes are fuelled by the desire to win. It's why we work hard, make sacrifices, and push ourselves to the max. It's because we know that the thrill of winning will make it all worth it. As we all know though, one can't experience only victory in the course of an athletic journey. <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3ms4ve1eb1we30q8w527h1j9f4u.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content//uploads/2014/02/OLY_HKW_Canada_United_States_20140220_TOPIX.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3ms4ve1eb1we30q8w527h1j9f4u.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content//uploads/2014/02/OLY_HKW_Canada_United_States_20140220_TOPIX.jpg" height="257" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So many emotions in one picture</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
As a recreational-level goalie for 10 years, I always used to tell people "hockey has given me so much. I have learned so much just by being a hockey player. I owe the game so much." This was certainly true, but what I didn't know was that I was about to do more learning in my 11th year of hockey than I did in the previous 10 combined. It was the summer of 2013. My team entered a tournament that would see us compete against teams from across Western Canada. Within a few minutes of watching the other teams warm up, we knew we were the heavy favourite to win. The cities which, in previous years, had iced pretty stacked lineups, had for whatever reasons, not been able to do so this year. Fast forward to the gold medal game. My team went undefeated through round robin play and we gave up only 1 goal in 5 games. We are now leading 1-0 and there is less than 1 minute left in the gold medal game. We're already picturing our winning celebration when...the other team ties it at the 45 second-mark. Before we know it, we're in a shootout and their final shooter scores to win the championship. I've lost games before. Lots of them. But this loss broke me. For a person who eats, breathes, and lives the game of hockey, I remember leaving the ice that day and ripping my gear off in the locker room as though it might have been on fire. For the first time in 10 years I wanted nothing to do with the sport. For the rest of the summer I got asked to play goal in different leagues for different teams. "Stop calling me," I'd say to every last offer. The entire summer was spent deliberately staying away from hockey. This was extraordinarily hard to do. As I realized, hockey governs my life. It's everywhere!<br />
<br />
As September rolled around, I knew I had a decision to make. Fall/winter hockey was about to get going and my team was going to come calling soon. They are an incredible group of women and I couldn't imagine not playing hockey with them. As much as the wounds were still fresh, I paid my fees like everyone else and showed up for the first game. If felt strangely foreign to put on my gear and even more foreign to step into the net. As it worked out, we got outshot by a wide margin in that game and we lost it 4-1. As I got into the car after the game, my dad, who had decided to join me, looked at me anxiously. He was afraid this latest lost was the last straw for me. My first words to him after getting in to the car? "Dad, I freaking love this sport. How could I ever have imagined not playing!?" Just like that the love was back.<br />
<br />
Losing is inevitable. It is heartbreaking, but it is inevitable. It is also necessary. In an interview after winning the 2011-2012 NBA Championship, LeBron James described how his team's heartbreaking loss the year before had helped pave the way for the win this year.<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"It took me to go all the way to the top and then hit rock bottom, basically, to realize what I needed to do as a professional athlete and as a person," James said. "... I got back to being myself. Last year, I tried to prove something to everybody, and I played with a lot of hate. And that's not the way I play the game of basketball. I play with a lot of love, a lot of passion, and that's what I got back to this year." </blockquote>
<br />
Sports have a way of bringing us back down to our core basics. Just when we're getting a bit cocky or just when we're starting to play for the wrong reasons or with the wrong attitude, events will transpire to remind us of why we're here. When you have your heart broken by a sport but you decide to go back and do it all over again, knowing that there's a risk of the same heartbreak all over again, that's when you know you love the sport. In my case, that knowledge alone has helped me heal and it has given me something to be thankful for. Through this loss I was humbled. I also stopped playing the game for others. I stopped worrying about awards, stats, compliments, and accolades. Through this gutting loss I became a better player, a better teammate, and a better person. Only after nearly walking away from the sport can I now say that I have experienced hockey from all 360°. It took 11 years but I have now experienced winning, losing, and downright collapsing. One thing I know for sure: my worst day as a hockey player was still a great day. It's a day I wouldn't change or take back. I was playing a great sport with people I love. And knowing that heartbreak could happen all over again? Let's just say that I'm willing to take the risk!hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-67131804004400094142014-05-24T15:51:00.001-07:002014-05-24T15:51:35.215-07:00Women's Hockey: Why Harry and Ron neeeded HermioneBoys will be boys. There aren't many truer statements in the English language. And that statement holds true at any age. Honestly, it's the cutest dynamic to observe a little girl attempt to boss around her older brother. "Don't do that! Mommy's gonna get mad at you!" Equally endearing is to then observe the same dynamic between a couple who has been married for 50 years. "I told you not to do that. You're going to hurt yourself. You're not young anymore you know!?" The best way to look at it is with a Harry Potter reference. Without Harry and Ron, Hermione would have been a bookworm who holed herself up in the library and didn't have much fun in life. The boys showed her how to take some chances and enjoy some adventures. Without Hermione, Harry and Ron's plans to save the magical world from doom would have had major flaws and they'd likely all have been killed. <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6677_rj67lIBxqhPZqUivzHEcvL19sr6dtKwY0UHQtx9PvqXiQ8ql39ap_X-kldDydKnOEZQJOVfYqmPPZc2gd41X1NZUOPCJbFlyCZ9efJEvb0TVKYxLmf1YQH62f1tYOBe-cyMEhwA/s1600/BGeL62-CYAAkkXB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6677_rj67lIBxqhPZqUivzHEcvL19sr6dtKwY0UHQtx9PvqXiQ8ql39ap_X-kldDydKnOEZQJOVfYqmPPZc2gd41X1NZUOPCJbFlyCZ9efJEvb0TVKYxLmf1YQH62f1tYOBe-cyMEhwA/s1600/BGeL62-CYAAkkXB.jpg" height="241" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We've all been there</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Men and women are wired differently, which is why both sexes are critical in determining the successes and failures of the world. It is always suprising therefore, when people look at certain tasks or roles and claim that in order for them to be done right they must be done "like a guy" or "like a girl." And if they are done the other way they are considered to have been done wrong. Why? And what does that even mean? "Throw like a girl." "Cook like a guy." We all know that some of the best chefs in the world are men. And we probably all know a few girls who can throw a wicked fastball. It's not about doing a task "like" anyone. It's about doing it in a way that works. <br />
<br />
The growth of women's hockey in Canada and worldwide has been a popular issue in the past decade or so. Many people like to ask the question of what it will take to establish and run a successful pro women's league in North America and what it will take to fill the stands, sell tickets and merchandise, and to make that league profitable. Often, these questions are answered through a comparison. It is declared that in order for all of that to happen, female hockey players must be able to play the game like men. Clearly though, the people who say this don't know very much about the differences between men and women. It's not as easy as women skating a little faster or shooting a little harder. What makes the men's pro game so fast and so strong is the attitude and approach of the men who play it. While women are a more calculating and analytical group, men live in the moment. They do things in the moment because it seems right in that moment. They don't often stop to consider consequences because, to them, consequences don't matter. In the moment, men narrow in on one goal and it becomes their chief purpose to achieve it. Apply this principle to hockey and this is how the same play is approached by the different sexes:<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<em>There's a loose puck along the end boards and there's a race between two players to see who can get to it first.</em></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<em> </em></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<em><strong>Male player:</strong> Skate as hard as you can and as fast as you can. Get to that puck first at all costs.</em></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<em> </em></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<em><strong>Female player: </strong>Skate as hard as you can and as fast as you can...but...the opponent has a step on me and if I push her she'll go flying into the boards and it'll be a dangerous hit, not to mention that I'll probably get a penalty or even a suspension for it so maybe I should either angle her off or let her win the race and then use my body to take her off the puck so she can't set up a scoring play.</em> </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
That's a lot to compute in just a few seconds. But yeah, the female brain does actually work like that. The concept of consequences is ever-present in the female brain. It doesn't mean we battle any less hard or want to win any less. It just means we approach things a little differently. To get women to play like men is not simply to have them lift more weights until they get stronger. It is to change the genetic imprint of how they are wired. So when people say that women's hockey will not be a marketable product until it is played like NHL hockey, that is to say that women's hockey will never be marketable. One of most gender-equal sports in the world both in terms of prize money and in terms of skill level is tennis. But even the greatest female tennis player in the world - Serena Williams - plays the game differently than Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal or Novak Djokovic. She's strong and fast and tactical just like the men but she executes differently. Women's hockey at the highest level, Canada vs USA, and even in the NCAA has shown what a great product it can really be. In an era where the NHL is making headlines for reckless plays that threaten to end players' careers prematurely, there is more and more of an appreciation developing for how the women play the game. The will to compete and to win is equal and there is still an element of growing the game and playing for the right reasons, which doesn't exist in men's pro hockey anymore. <br />
<br />
The goals, the passes, and the saves in women's hockey still leave fans gasping in amazement. And the competitiveness and dramatic moments still have us on the edge of our seats. There is no right or wrong way to play hockey. There is a safe and an unsafe way to play it, but not a right or a wrong way. Just as in the NHL, where certain teams prefer to be more defensive-minded while others take more offensive risks, the same can be said for women's hockey. The sport is riding a wave with Canada's Sochi heroics still fresh in everyone's minds. It would be wrong to discredit that and to say that the sport is not yet marketable. When an entire nation comes to a standstill to watch an event unfold, that right there is a marketable sport. We must appreciate women's hockey for what it is and work to establish more teams and more countries that can play at the highest level. We must capitalize on this rather primal place that the sport is in right now because to be part of a period of growth is also to be part of a legacy.<br />
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</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-86687767235035205112014-04-27T08:43:00.001-07:002014-04-27T16:10:01.547-07:00Handle With Care: How to take care of your goalie<blockquote class="tr_bq">
These games are the reason why "you play hockey like a girl" is an
endangered-species insult. You should be lucky to play like these girls.</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://twitter.com/Proteautype" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Adam Proteau</span></a><span style="font-size: x-small;"> - The Hockey News - 2014 Sochi Olympics</span> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7lPN8i3G0_CDFWEimCqGY3kt75FKMzlwsyBnTf8d5yXE42fQqvTrRk3ZIxdWPkNR2Sugco9VrhweV8GKRNoJCUw9X26EEQg8o8SEgmEhsJ63kuJ7p6fkgZ1tDst5QMd27HxNAL-YMwUE/s1600/97081696-473x315.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7lPN8i3G0_CDFWEimCqGY3kt75FKMzlwsyBnTf8d5yXE42fQqvTrRk3ZIxdWPkNR2Sugco9VrhweV8GKRNoJCUw9X26EEQg8o8SEgmEhsJ63kuJ7p6fkgZ1tDst5QMd27HxNAL-YMwUE/s1600/97081696-473x315.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">How to treat a goalie :) </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Hockey is an emotional sport. This emotion is not specific to women, but it certainly doesn't help our mental state to have to be put through the wringer in do or die situations. When a group of people puts their hearts and souls into achieving a common goal, and when that common goal is or is not achieved, the outcome can lead to the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. And sometimes, the difference between experiencing a high versus a low can be miniscule - a couple of seconds, a couple of inches. This is what we sign up for when we become athletes. Whether at a recreational level or at a competitive level, we are resigned to the fact that we will, at some point in our careers, experience heartbreak. We work like crazy to avoid it at all costs, but it is still inevitable.</div>
<br />
When these devastating losses occur, we as a group need to ask ourselves how we wish to respond. Looking around the locker room and seeing the agony on the faces of your team mates is always tough. It is natural to go through the process of asking "what could I have done better?" The experience is even tougher for goalies. It is often said that goaltending is the closest thing to an individual position in a team sport. By sheer virtue of the fact that goalies look different, play a different role, and often act different (hey we're not THAT weird!), they are primed to always be picked out of a crowd. When a team wins, the goalie is the hero. When a team loses, all eyes are on the goalie. It really is a double-edged sword. Unless you've been a goalie, it's hard to ever relate to the feelings of isolation that are felt when you've given up 5 goals, you're only half way through the game, the hockey net looks like a soccer net, and the puck looks like a marble. As members of a hockey team, everyone needs to get to know each other. When a large team of people come together there are always different personalities and energies within the group. Priority one is for each player and each coach to figure out what different personalities they have amongst them, and what role each of these personalities will contribute towards the overall group dynamic. Once that has been established, the team as a whole is more prepared to support one another through the good and through the bad times that inevitably come in the duration of a hockey season. <br />
<br />
As a goalie for 11 years, here are some of my general tips on Goalie Handling 101:<br />
<br />
<b>DO:</b><br />
<ul>
<li>Take the time every now and then to chat with your goalie. Checking in with the goalie is like a staff meeting. Goalies often have a different perspective of how the team is playing because their vantage point is different. It's never a bad idea to make sure they are on the same page as the rest of the team.</li>
<li>If you have an experienced goalie, feel free to turn to them during a game and ask "Hey, what are you seeing out there? Anything we should be doing differently?" It makes goalies feel appreciated for more than just their role as puck stoppers. And we like to be confided in. We want to help our team mates out.</li>
<li>Listen to their suggestions. Goalies, especially experienced ones, are very specific in how they want their team to play defensively in front of them. Some want their D's to try and block shots in front of them, while others prefer to have a clear view of the shot so that there's no danger of a screen or deflection from their own team mate. If they tell you to move...MOVE!</li>
<li>If a goalie is struggling and you see something they could improve upon, feel free to mention it...respectfully. If we can critique our players, certainly our players should be able to give us tips too. </li>
<li>Sense when your goalie is in pre-game prep mode. It's great to talk a goalie's head off about your latest boy (or girl) troubles, how you're pretty sure you picked up a nasty infection from your pedicure place, or why you need to move out of your parents' house pronto. We care about our team mates and we'd love to counsel you through these clearly very tough times...but not right before a game! When your goalie is trying to get into "the zone" please leave them to it. </li>
<li>Recognize what the goalie brings to the team. Often, especially at the rec league level, multiple goalies lobby to get onto the team, but one goalie is clearly the frontrunner to be the team's #1. Don't make that goalie split games 50/50 with a backup if one's skill level is clearly superior to the other. Give credit where it's due. </li>
</ul>
<b>DO NOT:</b><br />
<ul>
<li>Light a goalie up in pre-game warm ups. You want your goalie to be confident heading into a game, and sending pucks whizzing past them, or worse, drilling them in the mask from close range, is not a good way to achieve confidence. Start with basic warm-up shots and get harder as they get more comfortable.</li>
<li>Kid-glove a goalie. Most goalies who have played the position for a long time know their capabilities and limitations. They don't need anyone to point out that they had a bad game. And the worst is when a goalie has a bad game and all their team mates can say is "OMG you were AMAZING!" Thanks for the gesture, it's appreciated, but it's actually also a little humiliating. To use Roberto Luongo's favourite word, goalies are not looking for a "tire-pumping". We just like appreciation (when it is deserved) every now and then.</li>
<li>Compare them to the back-up or to the goalie at the other end. Much like parenting multiple kids, nothing pisses a goalie off more than to be compared to someone else. There is a tremendous amount of respect between "tendys" but there is also a recognition that each goalie has their own style of play. While we are always trying to improve our respective games, telling us to mimic someone else is a great way to puncture our belief in our own game. </li>
<li>Gloat. I once played in a league All-Star game where the format was All-Stars vs Alumni. A current team mate of mine who had been struggling to perform so far that season was put on the Alumni team because they needed a few extra players. She scored a few goals on me and then loudly and publicly gloated about it for the rest of the day. She'd walk by me (several times) and yell "oh yeah guys, it's coming back! I can feel it guys, the swagger is coming back and no one can stop me, I'm back baby, yeah yeah yeah." I know it was just a fun event, but goalies are competitive and we like to play well all the time. The irony was that in a few days, we'd be on the same team again, and all this player had done was gain confidence by trying to shatter mine. A friendly ribbing when you score on a team mate is always fun, but walk the line and don't cross it!</li>
</ul>
A confident goalie is a good goalie. It's not easy being on a team with so many different personalities and roles. But that is also what makes it great. Having that person who will jam tunes and have an impomptu dance-off in the locker room right before a big game to lighten the mood and ease the nerves, or having that person who will rally the troops after a tough loss and get everyone to believe in the team again - these are the people and these are the moments that make the losses so worth it. Because when they finally lead to a victory, in that moment, you realize that this is why you play on a team. <br />
<div>
</div>
hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-70460716985487674762014-02-26T16:46:00.000-08:002014-02-26T22:30:47.227-08:00Sochi 2014 Women's Hockey - the gold belongs to the sport<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmiVA8KvOHY4aXar6LKUL7NPVW1ouPhfGG0pJtV0H5LZ3u4N9ViuvNdIFvjUstYtojmyXLOaGReEX0Hm3fZBEM_WAap3nK1z8-S6j7vvYW2IUKufIEBEZgSVNHMEzIFOcWVgHWNR5ghs0/s1600/unnamed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmiVA8KvOHY4aXar6LKUL7NPVW1ouPhfGG0pJtV0H5LZ3u4N9ViuvNdIFvjUstYtojmyXLOaGReEX0Hm3fZBEM_WAap3nK1z8-S6j7vvYW2IUKufIEBEZgSVNHMEzIFOcWVgHWNR5ghs0/s1600/unnamed.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a><i><span style="font-size: small;">9:00AM (PST) on February 20<sup>th</sup>, 2014 - All across Canada, nervous Canadians are
tuning in coast to coast to cheer on their hockey team as they take on arch-rival Team USA in the gold medal game of the Winter Olympic Games in Sochi.
</span></i></div>
<i><span style="font-size: small;">
</span></i>
<i><span style="font-size: small;">
</span></i><i><span style="font-size: small;">11:13AM – It’s 2-0 USA with about 5 minutes left in
the 3<sup>rd</sup> period. Team USA
has done a masterful job of limiting Team Canada’s chances. We knew they’d be
hungry for revenge after what happened at the Vancouver Olympics. I guess they
really came to play in this one. Thanks Canada, it’s been a great ride on
top, but now it’s time for a new Olympic champion.</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-size: small;">
</span></i><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-size: small;">11:15AM – Brianne Jenner scores. 2-1 USA with 3:26
left. That’s an eternity in hockey time.</span></i></div>
<i><span style="font-size: small;">
</span></i><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-size: small;">11:17AM – GET OUT OF THE WAY YOU CRAZY OFFICIAL…followed by…Thank
you Hockey Gods…and thank you Sochi Goalpost…wow that could have been game
right there.</span></i></div>
<i><span style="font-size: small;">
</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: small;">11:20AM – TIE GAME! Is “Marie-Philip Poulin” French for “clutch?”</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: small;">Intermission – No one talk to me. Seriously…everyone out.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: small;">11:51AM – History = made.</span></i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-bfMgcrn5hfwzz1_92185424tDwpMweav48CVOmFSIGM63dcdefx096PohSrekmbkPw-6rURHUWhfia5p_A4lZ6RIRPEur08C9PRupvOmoGl6sAW40wpStsmknfPHTFrIShbmWUczIUg/s1600/Bg8eNyeIIAAbVg4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-bfMgcrn5hfwzz1_92185424tDwpMweav48CVOmFSIGM63dcdefx096PohSrekmbkPw-6rURHUWhfia5p_A4lZ6RIRPEur08C9PRupvOmoGl6sAW40wpStsmknfPHTFrIShbmWUczIUg/s1600/Bg8eNyeIIAAbVg4.jpg" height="76" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
When Marie-Philip Poulin scored the Golden Goal 11:50 into
overtime, Canadians across the country leaped out of their seats and into each
others’ arms to celebrate the most improbable of hockey comebacks. While most
were celebrating with uncontainable excitement, a select few fans across the
country had noticeably different reactions. Theirs were reactions of sheer and
utter relief, and of understanding that this moment would go down not just in
Canadian women’s hockey history but in hockey history in general as one of the
greatest comeback stories of all time. These select few fans sat, likely alone,
hands cupped against their mouths in shock and disbelief, tears involuntarily
streaming down their faces, knowing that a wrong had just been righted in the
world of women’s hockey and in women’s sports. For many people, this was their
first exposure to the sport of women’s hockey. “Hey these girls are pretty
good.” But there are others who have been involved with this sport for 10, 20,
30, 40, even 50 years. And for them, February 20<sup>th</sup>, 2014 was their
day of redemption.<br />
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These were a pivotal Games for the sport of women's hockey. Coming out of the Vancouver Games, the sport was put on high alert. Improve competition or you risk expulsion from the Olympics. Whether this was just a threat made to scare hockey federations into supporting their women's teams, or whether the sport really was in danger of being cut from the Olympics is anyone's guess. But, in all honesty, the sport did need to improve its level of competition. Like many other amateur sports, women's hockey comes onto most people's radars once every 4 years. Not many are tuning in to watch 4 Nations Cups or World Championships. All people want to know is: has the sport improved at the Olympic level? Things needed to go well for women's hockey at these Olympics. And boy, did things ever go well.</div>
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From day 1, and actually, even before day 1, women's hockey was well-represented in terms of story lines and exposure in Sochi. It started months ago when Team Japan successfully qualified for the Olympics. They made headlines at home and it earned them the nickname "Smile Japan" because of their positive and fun-loving attitude towards being Olympians. A few weeks before the Games, U.S President Barack Obama announced that former Team USA player Caitlin Cahow would be part of the US Delegation to head to Sochi. A short time later, it was announced by the Canadian Olympic Committee that women's hockey legend Hayley Wickenheiser would carry the flag and lead Team Canada into the stadium for the Opening Ceremony. And then the puck dropped. Florence Schelling became a household name as she made 64 saves in a losing effort against Canada. Finland scared the heck out of Canada in the very next game when, going into the 3rd period of their round robin game, Noora Räty was shutting the door and the score was 0-0. Japan played Sweden in their first game of the tournament and only lost 1-0 against a nation that, not too long ago, won silver at the Olympics. Sweden shocked Finland in the quarterfinals, eliminating a team that had just upset the Americans to win silver at the 4 Nations Cup. And then of course, there was the gold medal game. Women's hockey at its finest, skill on skill, will on will, and a comeback of epic proportions that brought with it a fighting message of what it means to be confident and to never give up. As the world marveled at what Canada and the USA had just showcased on the ice, adulation for the sport and its athletes continued to pour in. USA veteran Julie Chu was selected as American flag bearer for the Closing Ceremonies. Hayley Wickenheiser was elected by her peers to the International Olympic Committee's Athlete's Commission - an honour that speaks to her reputation internationally. The tournament All-Star team was named by the media, and it included Canadian and American players, but also a Swiss and a Finn. And finally, representatives from the IOC and IIHF, at a joint press conference with the NHL, looked into the sea of media surrounding them and vowed: “That [women's hockey being cut from the Olympics] will never happen. I can guarantee you that.”</div>
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So you see, long before Marie-Philip Poulin scored the Golden Goal for Team Canada, the women's hockey tournament at Sochi had already been won. It had been won by the sport itself and by all those who have invested money, time, sweat, and tears into securing the sport's future. The progress is palpable. 4 years ago in Vancouver, Switzerland lost a game against Canada by a score of 10-1. Today they are bronze medalists. The Swiss could have opted to rest their all-star goalie Florence Schelling in the semi-final vs Canada. There was a good chance Canada was going to win that game anyways. Why not keep the #1 goalie fresh for the bronze medal game? But no, 45 saves later, Team Switzerland and Florence Schelling could stand proud knowing that they didn't hand the game to Canada. They made them fight for it. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The sport got what it wanted out of the Sochi Games. Increased competition, closer results, upsets, international attention, and ultimately, security. But now is not the time to rest. When 24-year old Finnish goalie Noora Räty announced her retirement after the Games, citing a lack of financial security as her reason for having to walk away prematurely from the sport she loves, it was a reminder that we have a long ways left to go. We want these women to train like professionals and we want them to play like professionals, but we can not afford to pay them even remotely like professionals. They have only one league to play in after they graduate from college. The Canadian Women's Hockey League is home to the game's greatest players, and yet it can not afford to pay its players and it averages an attendance of only a few hundred fans per game. No now is not the time to rest. If anything, it is the time to capitalize on the sport's marketability and to keep building towards a brighter future. But, just as in the early days of the NHL when there were struggles and bumps in the road, these are the times for struggles and triumphs for women's hockey. Mississauga's Mayor "Hurricane" Hazel McCallion grew up playing hockey for $5 a game in a 3-team women's league in Montreal. Today, the 95 year old pioneer stood at the Toronto airport and watched as Team Canada arrived home from Sochi with their gold medals around their necks and with hundreds of fans packed into the arrivals terminal to welcome their heroes home. What a moment that must have been for her. </div>
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<br /></div>
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The sport of women's hockey has been around for decades, but it was never given a chance to succeed because society wasn't ready for women to take on the role of a "professional" anything back then. Women playing hockey in the 1920's or 30's wouldn't have been any better received than women going to medical school or women owning their own businesses. But society has changed. We are ready for a new era of women in positions of power, and that is why this is women's hockey's best chance to succeed and to become a part of sports culture forever. Even 15 years ago, we were not ready. I am 25, and when I was 10 I was told "if you play hockey you'll be an outcast and society won't accept you." Today, I play hockey, I coach hockey, I write about hockey, and I work in sports development. And no one questions my presence in the field. </div>
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21 players came home from Sochi 2014 with gold medals in women's hockey. 21 more came home with silver, and 21 others with bronze. But for every Olympic medalist there are hundreds more who were once told they couldn't play the sport. There are those who did play but were eventually forced to quit because of gender discrimination. There are those for whom playing wasn't even an option because no team would have them. For every Olympic medalist there are tens, hundreds, and thousands more who have been defending their sport from critics for decades. For everyone who has ever fought and continues to fight for the sport of women's hockey, February 20th, 2014 was for you. Now let's get back to work. There's lots more to accomplish! </div>
<br />
<br />hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-18085164480291984382014-01-24T15:50:00.000-08:002014-01-24T15:50:25.227-08:00Vancouver 2010's Women's Hockey Legacy<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsn5A2G0chh2_ED4qNP_TCAjYZwSiRgJMFx6YjRVD2LRe9ai71SEq8ewPc5cnqLrnTkuFXWcJm9XAMLqis_si9hfhyc5hhj2etR8vZrjDOsqJSBn2gkwjyW4GWiLkWmtUe1QSu9A16qZc/s1600/unnamed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsn5A2G0chh2_ED4qNP_TCAjYZwSiRgJMFx6YjRVD2LRe9ai71SEq8ewPc5cnqLrnTkuFXWcJm9XAMLqis_si9hfhyc5hhj2etR8vZrjDOsqJSBn2gkwjyW4GWiLkWmtUe1QSu9A16qZc/s1600/unnamed.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Olympic Cauldron - Jack Poole Plaza - Vancouver, Canada</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
If anyone is ever visiting Vancouver and would like a tour, please let me know. I am happy to show off the beautiful city that I am lucky enough to call home to anyone and everyone who is up for a nice long walk (green tea and yoga mat in hand of course). Just know one thing: the tour will start and end at the same location - the Olympic Cauldron at Jack Poole Plaza.<br />
<br />
The Olympic Cauldron overlooks Vancouver's gorgeous waterfront and is a popular attraction for locals and visitors alike. To many it is an opportunity to stand where Wayne Gretzky stood when he lit the 5 pillars that make up the glacial sculpture during the Opening Ceremony of the 2010 Olympics. To me, it is a chance to sink back into nostalgia - to go back and picture the packed streets of downtown with everyone clad in red and white clothing, to go back and remember the sounds of spontaneous outbursts of O Canada when our athletes would win a medal, and to go back and remind myself that even though the Cauldron has long since been extinguished and the athletes are now prepping for another Winter Games, the Olympics were here not too long ago in my city, and that when they were here, history was made and believers were born. <br />
<br />
Up until the 2010 Winter Olympics, Vancouver's history with the sport of women's hockey had been somewhat weak. Perhaps it explains why Team Canada has never had a BC-born player on its Olympic roster. Canada has hosted the IIHF World Women's Championships 6 times in 17 years, but never in Vancouver. We have also never hosted the 4 Nations Cup in Vancouver, despite Canada having been the host nation 5 times. So when the women took to the ice at UBC for their preliminary games and Canada Hockey Place for the medal games it was, for many Vancouverites, their first exposure to the sport of women's hockey. Smart and passionate hockey fans as we are though, we caught on fast, and by the end of the Olympics Vancouverites had gained a true appreciation for the sport's capabilities and we already had our favourite players picked out. When Finland's goalie Noora Räty was presented her bronze medal, the Canadian crowd roared its approval because they recognized how talented this goalie was and how important she was to her team's success. When American Julie Chu was presented her silver medal, the crowd gave her a lengthy applause in recognition of her years of service to the sport, her incredibly sportsmanlike demeanour throughout her career, and the fact that she was of Asian descent much like a large share of Vancouver's population. And when Hayley Wickenheiser had a gold medal placed around her neck, the cheers from the home fans were deafening. If it's one thing we know it is that Hayley Wickenheiser is an icon. <br />
<br />
Despite the boom of girl's hockey and women's hockey in Canada since the sport's inaugural Olympics in 1998, Vancouver and B.C in general are still in the dark. We have players and we have teams, but the level of play and the desire to strive for more is still lacking. Women's hockey got some much needed exposure during the Olympics and the
legacy is something that will hopefully see the sport catch on more out
west than it has in the past. Women's hockey in Vancouver wasn't just about the on-ice games. It started at the Opening Ceremonies when it was Wickenheiser who was selected to represent all 2,566 athletes in reciting the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MxZpUueDAvc&feature=player_detailpage#t=10362" target="_blank">Athlete's Oath</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>"In the name of all the competitors I promise that we shall take part
in these Olympic Games, respecting and abiding by the rules which govern
them, committing ourselves to a sport without doping and without drugs,
in the true spirit of sportsmanship, for the glory of sport and the
honour of our teams."</i></blockquote>
It was a mark of how highly regarded Wickenheiser is in the world of
sports that she was entrusted with laying the groundwork for a fair and
clean competitive event. Many of Canada's athletes became adored for their post-victory celebrations as much as for their achievements in their respective sports, and the women's hockey team was no different. Team Canada may have drawn criticism for their post-gold medal beers and cigars but to us, they were even more loved for it, and it further reinforced our belief in one statement we all know is true: "Canadian hockey chicks are cool!" On the same day as the gold medal game, IOC President Dr.Jacques Rogge released a <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/olympics/winter/2010/icehockey/news/story?id=4947679" target="_blank">critical review</a> of the sport of women's hockey.<br />
<br />
"There must be at a certain stage an improvement. We cannot continue
without improvement," Rogge said. "There is an improvement in the number
of nations - and we want to see this wider."<br />
<br />
Dr.Rogge's comments were a blow at the time, and his words distracted away from a fantastic gold medal game, which Canada had just won on home soil, but it laid the groundwork for action to be taken. Since then, the IIHF has committed roughly <a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/olympics/womens-hockey-to-make-small-gains-in-sochi-after-rogges-threat-in-vancouver/article16370476/?page=all" target="_blank">$2.1 million</a> into growing the sport internationally. That happened on our soil here in Vancouver. Is it enough? Probably not. Is it a start? Absolutely.<br />
<br />
Since the 2010 Games, Vancouver has hosted the Esso Cup female midget championships, and the <a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/hockey/ex-national-team-goalie-turned-36-year-old-rookie-leading-the-way-for-ubc/article9392044/" target="_blank">UBC Thunderbirds</a> women's hockey team has gained attention by winning the Canada West title in 2013. Vancouver played host to the Wickenheiser Female World Hockey Festival for 3 years. The sport is in the news now. People are taking note. <br />
<br />
Vancouver's Olympic legacy will not be one of extravagant venues and mind-blowing special effects at the Opening and Closing Ceremonies. Our legacy will be in what those 17 days did to change the face of sport in our country and beyond. In Vancouver we learned that in order to get the best results out of our athletes, we have to first provide them with the tools to train and hone their talents. We committed to more funding for our athletes. We committed to better training facilities for them. There is recognition that Vancouver now has an affiliation to the sport of women's hockey.
We too care about its past, present, and particularly its future. We believe that our players can make the team too. There is support and there is hope. As VANOC CEO John Furlong said in his speech to close out the Games: "It is possible to achieve greatness through the power of a dream." <br />
hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-23817179755955639242013-11-24T10:11:00.000-08:002013-11-24T10:11:20.298-08:00Minor Hockey - Make the rink your classroom<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.yummymummyclub.ca/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/hockey-in-canada.jpg?itok=JIWnYaau" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.yummymummyclub.ca/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/hockey-in-canada.jpg?itok=JIWnYaau" height="187" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
People always say that it's not the homework or the exams you'll remember when you're no longer in school. It's the class field trips, the school plays, and all the special events that you'll look back on with fond memories of what it was like to be a kid. The same is true for minor hockey players. No one remembers every game they ever played or every opponent they ever faced. What everyone does remember from their minor hockey days though, are the weekend tournaments, the team parties, and all the other festivities associated with being a minor hockey league player.<br />
<br />
Minor hockey is a time like no other in the life of a hockey player and it is very equatable to academic schooling. Early on in Novice, Atom, and PeeWee the players aren't really concerned with their futures as pertaining to hockey. Just like Grades 1-7, it's about learning the basics, making friends, and having fun. But then suddenly a student hits Grade 8 and they have to contemplate their futures in academics just a little bit because they want to make sure they're taking the right courses and doing the right things to prepare for potential entry into University faculties. Let's equate that phase of school to the Bantam, Midget, and Juvenile phases of hockey. It's still about having fun but suddenly there's an end in sight. Players are asking themselves: <i>"What happens when I graduate from minor hockey? Do I want to continue to pursue hockey seriously? Because if I do, I have to start taking my games more seriously." </i><br />
<br />
There are great opportunities available to pursue hockey after minor hockey. Scholarships to great Universities in Canada and the US are available to those who strive for them. From there, there are further opportunities to continue to play competitively thanks to the Canadian Women's Hockey League, which offers players a league to play in where the caliber is high and ties to the National Teams are rich. The opportunities are there, but the players have to be willing to go get them. Just like in school, if the grades aren't there, the opportunities won't be either.<br />
<br />
Having been around the Minor Hockey scene as an adult for a few years now, I can honestly say that the opportunities come easier to some players than they do to others. Some players are naturals. Their talent is obvious, their skills are effortless, and their physique is ideal. Maybe their parents were both athletes in their day so they've inherited the sports gene. Others are not so fortunate. They might be a first generation athlete in their respective families and the only physical attributes they may have inherited are short legs and a sweet tooth (thanks Mom and Dad!). It is a lot to ask of teenagers to contemplate their professional futures. While their friends are out having a good time and enjoying their freedom, hockey players are at the rink every day of the week trying to hone their trade. Not only that, they are also having to be cognizant of what they're putting in their bodies. Cookies or fruit? Pop or water? Drugs or...no drugs?<br />
<br />
From what I have witnessed, the players who are meant to have success make these decisions effortlessly and unbegrudgingly. Even if they are not the most skilled, they do have the most maturity. While the rest of their team mates are throwing back sodas before a big game, they are walking around with a homemade protein shake. While their teammates are slacking off and playing Candy Crush (addicting game, I know!) before a big game, they are in a quiet corner thinking about what they need to do to help win this big game. They are working on their physique away from the rink. Hockey players are famous for having big strong legs. Hands up - whose pants no longer fit around the thighs now that we're into the thick of hockey season? But these Minor Hockey players are focused on their upper bodies too. They recognize that if they want to shoot with velocity they need strong arms. They recognize that if they want to be hard to beat they have to protect the puck so they need a strong core. They are already incorporating extra training because they know that the on-ice portion won't be enough.<br />
<br />
I am not trying to depress players by making hockey sound like school. It's not, trust me! It's way more fun! But I guess what I'm saying is this: if you have the talent and if you have the means, try to recognize this so that you don't waste the opportunity. It may feel like a sacrifice right now but it'll lead to years and maybe even decades of a great life in hockey. Enjoy the games, the tournaments, the parties, and even the training. You will never forget those experiences. If you're a young person who has the opportunity to pursue hockey further, give it a shot. What's better than having an ice rink as your classroom right!hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-42449607143016117772013-10-18T13:34:00.001-07:002013-10-21T01:23:49.124-07:00Swan Song for the Dynasty? Appreciating Team Canada and all they have accomplished. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZBlfzVmUXSegOlO12ASeYYOj0UfC4gvpdnYMgH1QO3eMqZ8k8GWE973WXxNLmuJLxdMYLoRfWTAxhLCP8GsBBGj9yAC12No_mCxO0OldLwa8YsiKby1QUzuZnnK_UEqibVAsrTdHIgaY/s1600/hayley-wickenheiser-jayna-hefford-caroline-ouellette-2009-12-21-17-42-28.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZBlfzVmUXSegOlO12ASeYYOj0UfC4gvpdnYMgH1QO3eMqZ8k8GWE973WXxNLmuJLxdMYLoRfWTAxhLCP8GsBBGj9yAC12No_mCxO0OldLwa8YsiKby1QUzuZnnK_UEqibVAsrTdHIgaY/s1600/hayley-wickenheiser-jayna-hefford-caroline-ouellette-2009-12-21-17-42-28.jpg" height="265" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Newsflash everyone: We are living through a hockey dynasty right now. When we think of hockey dynasties we think of the Detroit Red Wings of the 1950s, the Montreal Canadiens of the 1960s, or the Edmonton Oilers of the 1980s. Those teams accomplished it all during their respective eras of supremacy. Their players dominated the competition, the teams won multiple Stanley Cups, and their successes captivated a new generation of hockey fans. Each of those dynasties is defined by players whose accomplishments during those periods have become the stuff of legend and have led to the players being worshiped and immortalized. The NHL has not seen a true dynasty come along since the 1980s, but that does not mean that hockey hasn't seen a dynasty since that time.<br />
<br />
Three Olympic gold medals, ten World Championship gold medals, the emergence of several players into becoming household names and Hockey Hall of Fame candidates, and their successes leading to the sport more than doubling its enrollment numbers since its inception into the Olympics. That is the <span class="st">résumé of accomplishments for Canada's National Women's Hockey Team from the year 1990 till present day. Team Canada women's hockey has become an international model of consistency, commitment, and professionalism. The Wings, Habs, and Oilers had the likes of Gordie Howe, Ted Lindsay, Jean Beliveau, Rocket Richard, Wayne Gretzky, and Mark Messier as the backbones of their respective teams. Team Canada boast equally illustrious names. Angela James, Geraldine Heaney, Manon Rh</span><span class="st"><span class="st">é</span>aume, Danielle Goyette, Cassie Campbell, Jennifer Botterill, Hayley Wickenheiser, Jayna Hefford, Kim St-Pierre, and Caroline Ouellette are just some of the legends this era has produced. These women, along with the rest of their team mates, are directly responsible for the meteoric rise of women's hockey in Canada. They have also taken a sport that is becoming synonymous with multimillion dollar salaries and lucrative endorsement deals, and taken it back to a place of honest intentions and to a place where athletes are fueled by passion rather than by money or fame. To the women of Team Canada, the word "Role Model" is not just about signing autographs and posing for pictures. For them it entails running hockey camps, reaching out to international hockey federations, and growing the game both here at home and globally as well. </span><br />
<br />
<span class="st">Critics who are reluctant to see the rise of women playing hockey will cite the lack of parity in competition as a reason to banish the sport from the Olympics and to discredit the athletes from their efforts. Does the rest of the field need to catch up to Canada and the USA? Absolutely. Does the lack of parity diminish the top players' accomplishments and skill levels? Absolutely not. By the time all is said and done, many of Team Canada's players will have given more than half their lives to playing for the National Team. Hayley Wickenheiser and Jayna Hefford played in women's hockey's inaugural Olympics in 1998 and both remain with the team today. Caroline Ouellette, and Charline Labonté joined Wickenheiser and Hefford to help bring home our first gold medal in 2002, and both remain important members of the current team. The game has already lost some great names, with several elite players such as Botterill, St-Pierre, and Becky Kellar calling it quits after the Vancouver Olympics in 2010, and several others retiring even prior to that. The Sochi Olympics in 2014 might just be the swan song for many of the remaining members of Canada's original finest players. Considering that by the next Winter Games in 2018, Wickenheiser will be 39 years old and Hefford will be 40, this could possibly be it for them. Now this is going strictly by age. Physically, Wickenheiser, Hefford, and Ouellette (who happen to play on a line together) still look like they could go full throttle for years. They put me and my weak strides to shame that's for sure! But their retirements are still a possibility, and for fans of the game, just the thought of these legends hanging up their skates should evoke some emotion. We will look back on this era of Canadian women's hockey and call it the Golden Years. There will come a time where other nations will challenge us and overthrow us at the top of the ladder. When that day comes, we will look back at this era in Canadian hockey history and we will finally realize, "wow, those girls were good. What a great time that was to be a fan of the sport." By then the legends will be long into their retirements.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="st">How many of us wish we could have seen Richard or Beliveau play live or even on TV? Well folks, the Richards and the Beliveaus of women's hockey are still here. They're on the ice at arenas near us and they're on TV for all of us to cheer on. Don't wait till it's too late. Tune in and support them. Google their bios, learn more about their journeys, and follow them on Twitter and get to know who they really are. If you have young sons, and especially if you have young daughters, introduce them to these players and teach them that this is what a role model should be. These are the players who got it all started. They will go down in history as the people who put women's hockey on the map. And their reign just happens to coincide with all of us being at an age where we can understand and appreciate all that they have done. If this is indeed the swan song for the first generation of women's hockey royalty, we can't let them stroll quietly into the sunset. We must take advantage of this privilege we have been given and enjoy every last minute of their brilliance on the ice. And when they give the word that it's all over, we must stand and applaud, for if it is one thing we know it is that dynasties are rare and can not be replicated, but that when a dynasty comes along, it changes the landscape of the sport forever. </span> hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-8490221828584734782013-01-24T21:37:00.000-08:002013-01-24T21:44:47.658-08:00The Fight - what fuels you to train harder?<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://theinspirationroom.com/daily/print/2010/2/nike-attack-ice.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://theinspirationroom.com/daily/print/2010/2/nike-attack-ice.jpg" height="186" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jayna Hefford - Team Canada</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Twitter. A place to connect with those we know, those we
wish we knew, and those we don’t know but are getting to know better through
their tweets. I follow a lot of pro-level athletes on Twitter, and following
them is basically an invite to go along and spend a day with them in
cyberspace. If there was an “athletes on Twitter drinking game” (great idea, I
know!) we would definitely be reaching various levels of inebriation based
solely on one statement: “drink when an athlete tweets that they’re heading to
the gym.” After big wins, tough losses, painful injuries, and even during
holidays, it seems like the gym where athletes spend a majority of their lives.
Even in leagues like the Canadian Women’s Hockey League, NCAA, and CIS, where most of the
players have day jobs or college classes or families to attend to, they still seem to be able to squeeze in the time for a workout session no matter what. The
commitment of these players into improving their skills and conditioning is
remarkable. As a recreational hockey player, I am not required by my team or
league to meet specific requirements or pass any tests in the gym (for which I
am grateful, because I’d fail miserably), but I still think about finding that
motivation from within and how it would factor in to an athlete’s overall
performance. Why is it that some athletes are able to play at a high level for
decades, while others fizzle out in just a few years? Why is it that some
athletes are able to enjoy season upon season of injury-free participation in
sports, while others can’t seem to go more than a month or two without ending
up on the shelf? And as athletes, when are we most motivated to train harder:
after a big win or after a tough loss?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
In January of 2012, after losing a tennis match that lasted 5 hours and 53
minutes, Rafael Nadal was asked how he felt about the match. “It’s nice (to) be
there fighting, trying to go to the limit, bring your body to the limit of its
chances,” <a href="http://sports.nationalpost.com/2012/01/29/rafael-nadal-claims-small-victory-in-australian-open-loss-to-novak-djokovic/" target="_blank">he said</a>. “It’s something I really enjoyed, and I (have) always said
it’s good (to) suffer. So when you are fit, when you are with passion for the
game, when you are ready to compete, you are able to suffer and enjoy
suffering.” And, as legend would have it, Rafa and his opponent Novak Djokovic
were both back in the gym training within a week of their marathon match.<br />
<br />
There are constantly features on NHL players and their training regiments. A
lot of them are interviewed while they ride the stationary bike or jog on the
treadmill. The general public is well aware of the players’ commitments to physical
fitness when they’re not on the ice. Such is not the case in women’s hockey. It
is always surprising to talk to people who claim to be knowledgeable sports
fans but who are still under the impression that female hockey players are
merely beer leaguers with a bit more publicity. They claim to be fans of the
sport yet they are unaware of how much the women commit to strength training
and cardio. They think the women just show up to games and hit the ice. If only
it were that easy eh! They never stop to ask themselves: “how was it that at
age 35, Becky Kellar was able to compete at the Vancouver Olympics against
opponents who were 12 or 15 years younger than her? How was it that Kim
St-Pierre was able to be back playing for the Montreal Stars just <a href="http://www.montrealgazette.com/sports/StPierre+returns+after+hiatus/7406874/story.html" target="_blank">8 months</a>
after having a baby? And how is it that, at the age of 35 and with over 200
games played for Team Canada,
Jayna Hefford is still able to compete for a spot on the National Team for the
2014 Olympics?”<br />
<br />
For those of you who follow these players closely, you know the answer. They
train. They train hard. And they get fitness tested all year round (including
on the day after Christmas <a href="http://w.espn.go.com/espnw/blog/post/3102/" target="_blank">apparently</a>!). What I would like to know is, what is
their motivation when they train? Are they training so that they can play their
best against a longtime rival? Are they training to avenge a tough loss against a
longtime rival? Are they training to ensure longevity in their career so they
can play the sport they love for as long as possible?<br />
<br />
And what about the rest of us – what motivates us to get up off the couch
and head to the gym? What are we picturing in our minds when we are trying to
push through that final leg of the cycle on the elliptical? What pushes us to
add those extra 10 pounds to the free weights? There is no right or wrong answer to these questions. For me, it is not the promise of
winning or the fear of losing that motivates me. It is the knowledge that the
only way to sleep soundly at night is to know that you did everything you could
to be the consummate player and professional for your team. It is the feeling of a certain pride and joy that is associated with knowing you came through for
them because you were ready for the challenge. And it is believing that nothing
is ever “meant to be” unless we make it so. As Jayna Hefford and Jarome Iginla
once said in a commercial for Nike: “Let the world keep believing we owe
everything to fate. We’ll keep training till we control theirs.” hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-57494735592819491422012-12-21T22:26:00.000-08:002012-12-21T22:50:58.083-08:00Say Yes - How parents mold athletes into legends.<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://saeclearningadventure.weebly.com/uploads/6/0/7/6/6076292/2858693.png?645" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://saeclearningadventure.weebly.com/uploads/6/0/7/6/6076292/2858693.png?645" height="144" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Pursuit of Happyness</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<blockquote>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Chris Gardner Jr. (after
scoring a basket):</b> “Hey Dad, I’m going pro! I’m going pro!”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Chris Sr. (looking at
his son):</b> “I don’t know, you know. You’ll probably be about as good as I
was. That’s kind of the way it works, and I was below average. You’ll excel at
a lot of things, just not this, so I don’t want you out here shooting this ball
around all day and night all right?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Chris Jr. (looking
dejected and throwing the basketball away angrily</b>): “Alright.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Chris Sr.: </b>“Hey.
Don’t ever let somebody tell you, you can’t do something. Not even me, ok? You
got a dream, you gotta protect it. People can’t do something themselves, they
want to tell you that you can’t do it. You want something, you go get it.
Period” </div>
</blockquote>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajjGtsjI7CM" target="_blank">beautiful scene</a> between the on-screen (and real
life) father and five year old son, in Will Smith’s The Pursuit of Happyness brilliantly captures the role of a parent in a child’s life. Thinking back to
all of the hockey parents I meet every year at Hayley Wickenheiser’s hockey
festival, all the sports parents I meet in every day life, and even to my own
parents, I realize that this scene is one that is played out for real in homes
all across the world on a daily basis. At least I hope it is. I think about the parents of my heroes: Hayley Wickenheiser's parents, Christine Sinclair's parents, and Serena Williams' parents, just to name a few. They could have said no to their children pursuing such ambitious goals. They could have said no knowing that women's sports are not nearly as lucrative as men's sports, and that their daughters were looking at a potential future of financial insecurity and obscurity. They could have said no because a career as a pro female athlete usually means instability and relatively no glamour. They could have said no for all these reasons and their reasons would not have been wrong. They could have said no and our world would be without these incredible role models. But instead they said yes.<br />
<br />
After over 25 years of research, the Women's Sports Foundation published an <a href="http://www.womenssportsfoundation.org/en/sitecore/content/home/support-us/do-you-know-the-factors-influencing-girls-participation-in-sports.aspx#" target="_blank">article</a> detailing why by age 14, girls are dropping out of sports at almost double the rate of boys. The article identified six key factors that influence this high rate of drop outs:<br />
<ol>
<li><b>Lack of access</b> - There are 1.3 million fewer opportunities for girls to play sports in high school than boys.</li>
<li><b>Lack of transportation</b> - It is harder for girls to find safe training sites and the location of such places can make it hard for busy families to participate.</li>
<li><b>Social stigma</b> - There is still a fear of being socially isolated because of preconceived notions about girls in sports.</li>
<li><b>Quality of experience</b> - Lack of equal competition as players get older. Players are sometimes required to play with and against boys, which most are unwilling to do. </li>
<li><b>Lack of role models</b> - The females that our society hold in high esteem aren't always consistent with the mold of athletes. There is peer pressure on teenage girls to look and act a certain way. Often, being an athlete can interfere with this image that they are expected to portray. Lack of proper self esteem can lead to them deciding to quit their sport rather than go against the expectations that society has placed upon them. </li>
<li><b>Cost</b> - Schools are being forced to slash their athletic department budgets. Female programs are usually the first to get shortchanged, meaning that participants end up having to pay more money out of their own pockets to keep programs running. </li>
</ol>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Despite all of these challenges, studies show that "girls active during adolescence and young adulthood are 20% less likely to get breast cancer in later life." The studies also revealed that more than 3/4 of career women feel that sports increases their self image. All the factors listed above can be mitigated by parental involvement and support. For young children, the support is in the form of financial assistance, transportation, and general encouragement. As kids get older and begin to play at a higher level, parents are needed to be sounding boards and supporters after setbacks or discouraging days. Teenagers face tremendous pressures to perform academically and athletically. They encounter peer pressure, tough coaches, challenging team mates and opponents, and general bumps along the long road to adulthood. Parents are what keep them grounded and confident. And once they hit adulthood, as Wickenheiser, Sinclair, and Williams have, their parents are still there to be their biggest fans. My mom and dad have the <strike>pleasure</strike> unfortunate task of being the parents of a goaltender. Every goal surrendered is dissected, every loss is vented about, every pressure filled moment leaves them breathless and stressed out, and my mom ends every day by asking me the same question: "why do you do this? And more importantly, why do <i>I</i> do this with you?" </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">There are so many parents out there who make sacrifices for their kids to play sports. I hope they continue to provide encouragement and support to their children, no matter how old they get. We don't know where the next Hayley Wickenheiser, the next Christine Sinclair, and the next Serena Williams is right now. But no one wants to be the parent that says NO and forces their child to turn their back on the sport they love. There is a future in sport for everyone who pursues it. Your children can be difference makers on a local scale and maybe even on a global scale. Say "yes", be their rock, and watch where their passion takes them.</span> </div>
hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-14139943411159838642012-11-24T19:25:00.001-08:002012-11-25T01:28:04.123-08:00Hola from the Wickenheiser Festival<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i48.tinypic.com/mr7hap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i48.tinypic.com/mr7hap.jpg" height="241" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Mexico Women's National Ice Hockey Team at Wick Fest</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
You know how most kids had a place growing up that they
considered to be a second home? Either it was their grandparents’ place, their
friend’s place, or, in the case of most Canadian kids, the ice rink. When I was
about eight years old a new multi-purpose sports facility opened up just
minutes away from my house. Eight ice rinks, a gym, physiotherapy clinic, dance
studio, restaurant, and seminar rooms all under one roof. Appropriately named Burnaby 8-Rinks, the
arena became a place where I spent every spare minute of my day, training to be
a….figure skater. Yes, I said figure skater. 8-Rinks is the home of the BC
chapter of Skate Canada– the governing body of figure skating in the country.
At the time it was first opened, they were pushing hard to recruit anyone and
everyone to go into figure skating. When a rather decorated former figure skater who shall remain nameless
approached my parents, let’s just say I was being outfitted with a bright pink
spandex skating dress before I knew what was going on. Days consisted of me
spending countless hours in a sport that I knew wasn’t mine, working towards a
goal I didn’t even want to achieve, and all the while dreaming of joining the
boys who were playing hockey on adjoining rinks. But I was told that girls
don’t play hockey and, judging by the hockey teams on the ice every day, this
was true because there wasn’t a single girl on any of the teams. Girls and
hockey did not mix.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Fast forward roughly 15 years to the weekend of November 15<sup>th</sup>,
2012 and 6 out of the 8 rinks at 8-Rinks were occupied by female hockey teams
from Canada, the US, and one very special team from Mexico. Each
locker room had a sign with a team logo and a message on it: “No boys allowed.”
Girls were warming up by jogging around the facility while chanting, cheering,
hooting, and hollering. On the ice they were putting on impressive efforts with
their skills and speed. Off the ice they had taken over the entire building.
And somewhere in all the mayhem was the world’s greatest female hockey player –
the reason for all this excitement and domination of 8-Rinks – Hayley
Wickenheiser. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
For the third year in a row, 8-Rinks and the City of Burnaby
has had the honour of hosting the Wickenheiser International Women’s Hockey
Festival, known to most as Wick Fest. Wick Fest consists of on-ice hockey
tournaments for all the different levels of minor hockey, as well as on and off
ice skills workshops, leadership and training seminars, team building
exercises, and one on one time between the players and Hayley Wickenheiser. It
is truly a weekend of comprehensive exposure to the game for all its
participants and it is a weekend where the girls rule the roost. One of the
best things for me about being involved in Wick Fest is the ability to witness
how the players operate. These girls aren’t THAT much younger than I am and yet
it is obvious that they are growing up with a different school of thought in
their minds. Their generation knows with 100% confidence that they belong in hockey. They’re loud and talented
and energetic. They’re hockey players and they’re proud of it. In previous
years, my role at Wick Fest has been pretty minimal. I’ve volunteered my time
for a few hours during the weekend and have been assigned to tasks that did
well in breaking me in to how the festival works. This year however, due to
either a shortage of volunteers or perhaps just my own eagerness to be more
involved, I was given more hours and more jobs to do. For the first time since I
mercifully quit figure skating at age 12, 8-Rinks became my second home, at
least for the weekend. Being more involved this year allowed me to meet more
people and truly understand better the vision that Hayley has for the festival
and the sport. Several times during the weekend I popped in to a locker room to
deliver pre-game <a href="http://distilleryimage2.s3.amazonaws.com/5475b1d631ac11e2871d22000a1f92db_7.jpg" target="_blank">snacks</a> only to find Hayley hanging out in the room talking to the players. How's that for a pre-game pep talk eh! From impromptu autograph sessions, to an hour of great country music tunes courtesy of Dean Brody, to a beauty corner where two kind volunteers were applying henna tattoos for the players, Wick Fest truly had it all. There was a great energy around the event - an energy that was apparent in its volunteers. I worked hard, yes, but so many others worked harder and longer than I did. Many volunteers were also parents who popped in to lend a hand in between their kids' games. Many others started their shifts at 5am and were still going strong at 7pm. And many others went home with their hands dyed blue or red or whatever colour the Gatorade coolers they were scrubbing out happened to be. The volunteers worked with a mantra - perhaps the same mantra as the festival's namesake - keep your head down and work hard. Not for the cameras or the gratitude but because you care.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
One of the highlights of this year's festival was the participation of the <a href="http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/Fiesta+Mexico/7569052/story.html" target="_blank">Mexican</a> Women's National Team.When most of us think of Mexico we think of sunshine, beaches, all-inclusive resorts, and possibly Salma Hayek. Ice hockey is not synonymous with Mexico and yet here they were - the Mexican National Team clad in long green jackets and colourful sombreros announced their arrival at Wick Fest. As volunteers we didn't formally discuss it but there was an unwritten, unspoken rule we all adopted for the weekend - make Team Mexico (and all the other teams) feel as welcome as possible. It was incredible that they had accepted Hayley's invitation and taken the effort to travel across the continent to be here. The least we could do was encourage them and let them know how inspiring they were. And they were a heck of a team too. In speaking to one of their coaches I learned that this was the first year that Mexico had a women's only league. In the past all the players have played on co-ed teams and they all came from an inline hockey background. Both these concepts were incredibly evident in their play. They were aggressive and not afraid to use their physicality to defend, and they were all terrific skaters. Their goalie was positionally sound and had exceptional rebound control and they played with a ton of confidence. Being involved in Wick Fest is humbling in many ways and one of the great things I get to witness every year is the coming together of the greater hockey family. In this year's case, a parent of a hockey player from one of the Vancouver teams noticed that Team Mexico didn't have enough pucks to practice and warm up with. They only had about 10 pucks whereas all the other teams had buckets full of them. He mentioned to me that he had been collecting pucks for years and had a crate full of them in his garage. He brought them in for Mexico to use and take home with them. Team Mexico, in return, were humble and had a great spirit to them. They quickly made friends with players on other teams and could be heard yelling "HOLA!" as they passed fellow competitors around the arena. They were gracious and allowed me to take a picture with them, and were more than willing to chat and answer the million questions all of us Canadians had for them. Their upbringing may be different, their culture may be different, and even their exposure to the sport of hockey may be different from ours. But their passion? It is identical. <br />
<br />
Wick Fest is a weekend of doing good things all around. There is the obvious goal of growing the game of women's hockey, cultivating friendships, establishing leaderhip, and creating lasting memories, but there are other more global goals being pursued there too. There are silent auctions and 50-50 draws where 100% of the money raised goes to Kids Sport and Right To Play. This year the <a href="http://fortiussport.com/news/tourism-burnaby-and-fortius-sport-health-announce-long-term-strategic-partnership" target="_blank">Fortius Foundation</a>, which is in the process of constructing an elite sports medicine and development facility adjacent to 8-Rinks, stepped up and donated to the two charities as well. In addition, Fortius along with Tourism Burnaby announced a long-term partnership with events such as Wick Fest as well as other sporting ventures in the city such as the Esso Cup.<br />
<br />
These showings of support from both individuals who donate their time and from companies and organizations who donate their funds is proof that Hayley is not alone in her vision. We all share in it and we support it and we want to be a part of it. There is no ego or hierarchy to this legend of our sport. She is as humble and as authentically Canadian as they come. Access to her is unlimited. She is always around and always makes herself available to chat with the girls who look up to her. She works hard, is disciplined, and is a tremendous leader. She has set the bar high. But that is part of the honour of getting to work with her - knowing that you have to work to those same standards. My pink spandex figure skating outfit has long since been stashed in the (very back of the) basement but I couldn't help thinking back to it during the weekend of Wick Fest. Thanks to Hayley and her team mates, we've come a long way since those days. It's a source of comfort to me knowing that girls are now free to chose their preferred sport rather than be forced into it. It is a sign of progress. Till next year's girl's only invasion of 8-Rinks I bid farewell to Wick Fest 2012 and all its participants and volunteers with a salute of my red Gatorade-dyed hand.<br />
<br /></div>
hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-5589029037147000062012-10-23T19:01:00.001-07:002012-10-23T19:01:05.198-07:00Turkish Delight: Positive hopes for women's hockey in Turkey<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://english.cis-sic.ca/universiade/winter/2011/releases/Feb3-whock.jpg?max_width=350" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://english.cis-sic.ca/universiade/winter/2011/releases/Feb3-whock.jpg?max_width=350" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Turkey vs Canada at the 25th Winter Universidae in 2011</td></tr>
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Happy hockey season everyone!
Here’s wishing all of you a safe and successful season that is filled with big
wins, great team mates, and only limited stenches from smelly equipment. Every
new season brings with it new opportunities to grow the sport both here in North America and worldwide and to promote it so that it
reaches places that are farther and wider than ever before. At first I thought
that the concept of growing women’s hockey internationally was pretty simple –
get some equipment and some willing volunteers, send them to various countries
to introduce and promote the sport, and work with the participants who show the
most skill and enthusiasm to form a team or perhaps even a league. My recent
family vacation to Turkey
was amazing and educational in many ways, none more so than the way it changed
my perspective on what it means to be a woman in sport.</div>
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Let me start by saying that Turkey is one
of the most beautiful countries I’ve ever been to. The people, the places, the
weather, the lifestyle, and the food (pigging out for 3 weeks right before the
start of hockey season wasn’t my finest decision!) are all second to none. The
city of Istanbul
alone is home to over 13 million people. And judging by the traffic and
concentration of pedestrians, I think all 13 million plus are out enjoying life
every night! The <a href="http://oi45.tinypic.com/wsr3h5.jpg" target="_blank">mosques</a> are breathtaking, the
museums are historic, and there is nothing more humbling and calming than
listening to the Azan (Muslim call of prayer) while swimming in the Mediterranean. </div>
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Prior to leaving for Turkey I did
some digging on the caliber of women’s hockey that was being played there. I
was surprised to discover that Turkey
has a national women’s ice hockey team that is currently ranked 35<sup>th</sup>
by the IIHF. Their players play on teams at Turkish Universities or on club
teams based in the northern part of the country. They finished the 2011 Women’s
World Hockey Champhionships in 4<sup>th</sup> place in Division V – ahead of Ireland, and behind Poland,
Spain, and Bulgaria.
Though they have never qualified for the Olympics and have never played any
higher than Div.V at the Worlds, the city of Erzurum did host the 25<sup>th</sup> Winter
Universidae in 2011, and they did submit a women’s hockey team for the
competition. The team was unable to score a goal throughout the tournament and
they were defeated by large margins (15-0 to USA
and 32-0 to Finland)
but they were still supported strongly by the home fans. </div>
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“I am proud to play for Turkey,” said
22-year old forward <a href="http://www.todayszaman.com/mobile_detailn.action?newsId=234186" target="_blank">Çağla Baktıroğlu</a>. “We are learning a lot. We won’t be
number one but we will improve. When you play with a good team you become
better.” </div>
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Baktıroğlu’s team mate Çağla
Sevgili went on to make an astute observation that plagues many of the
lower-tiered nations in women’s hockey. “The US has 45,000 players,” she says.
“In contrast, Turkey
has 150. They pick the best among them, while we have limited options.” To an
outsider the Turkish national team’s prospects may look bleak. And they did to
me too until I went to Turkey, saw their culture first hand, and realized A)
How far their women have come in society, B) How empowered they are, and C)
What an accomplishment it is for them to have a women’s hockey team in the
first place. </div>
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Over the years, much has been
publicized in the media about the role of women in Muslim countries but, at the
risk of being wrongfully influenced by possible biases, I chose to approach Turkey with an
open mind. There were some surprises both ways. One thing that stuck out right
away to me was the respect that the women had for themselves. There was about a
50-50 split of women who wore a headscarf and women who did not. Even those who
did not, however, were still dressed respectfully. They were well-covered and
did not showcase their bodies in an overt way, they spoke well, were trendy,
educated, and independent-minded. Certain aspects about their culture certainly
made me realize and appreciate the challenges their hockey players must
encounter as they attempt to pursue and grow their sport. A shopping trip to a
large Adidas store in the heart of Istanbul,
for example, revealed that they don’t sell too many styles of shorts. They
prefer for the women to work out in long pants. The majority of posters of
professional athletes endorsing different clothing brands featured males only.
There were no notable female athletes such as Serena Williams or Abby Wambach
featured on any of the Nike ads. Though more and more girls are pursuing
educations and careers there is still a large emphasis on getting married young
and starting families. The traditional life path of women leaves little time
for pursuing a career as an athlete. In general, there isn’t a culture for ice
hockey in Turkey.
As we all know, being an ice hockey player requires a certain aggressiveness
and vocality that isn’t exactly part of the blueprint of Turkish women. </div>
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Witnessing this is when I realized
that for current members of the national team, growing the sport is not simply
about coaching and exposure. They literally have to shift an entire set of
cultural practices that have been in place for centuries. It will take time.
Improving a team’s passing, shooting, and skating are simple enough to do.
Opening them up to a new way of thinking and getting them to discover and embrace
this passion that they never knew they had might be harder. It will happen, as
it always does, through the trailblazing done by their own current players.
Çağla Sevgili of the national team is a student at Turkey’s
Kocaeli University and is a great ambassador for
the sport. She makes sure to recommend skating to everyone she meets and
describes it as being “free despite the fact that you skate within a limited
area.” Sending a Canadian or American to Turkey is not the answer to growing
the game. The face of the sport must be a local. Anyone else will be seen as an
outsider who doesn’t recognize the values and traditions of Turkey. It must
be the local girls and women, through their modern ways of thinking and their
vibrant and youthful personalities, who must appeal to those around them and
inspire them to give hockey a try. Similar stories exist in soccer. It was the
Canadian women’s national team’s coach John Herdman from England who
changed the program and led it to its historic bronze medal at the 2012 Olympics.
But the face of the team and the one who inspires young girls to lace up the
cleats is a local – Christine Sinclair. Same goes for the US team. Pia
Sundhage of Sweden was the mastermind coach behind their gold medal. But Abby
Wambach, Hope Solo, and Alex Morgan are the heroes in the eyes of young girls. </div>
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Congratulations are in order to all
members of the Turkish women’s national hockey team for getting this far
already. Passion is like a flame. It just needs to catch fire and, before we
know it, it’ll spread beyond anything we ever imagined. And nothing can torch
that fire. In return for their amazing hospitality, I give to the people of
Turkey my best wishes for continued growth in all areas, and I truly hope that
some day soon, the red and white of Canada will join forces with the red and
white of Turkey to produce a prosperous women’s hockey program that will change
lives, inspire growth, and create history.</div>
hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-37873490437457019892012-07-25T12:48:00.000-07:002012-07-25T13:02:19.858-07:00Layers of Leadership<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.examiner.com/images/blog/EXID32838/images/2010_Olympics_Women%27s_Team_Canada_Crease.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="http://www.examiner.com/images/blog/EXID32838/images/2010_Olympics_Women%27s_Team_Canada_Crease.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
When Roberto Luongo gave up his captaincy of the Vancouver Canucks, one phrase he used ad nauseum to explain his decision was "you can always lead without a letter." Basically what he was saying was that while there is only room for one captain and four assistant captains on a hockey team, it doesn't mean that they are the only 5 players who are allowed to be leaders.<br />
<br />
Think of a hockey team's composition as being similar to that of the Planet Earth - there is the core, which is responsible for controlling some of the most critical functions of the unit. Then there is the mantle, which uses what the core is generating to carry out its own functions and which works to create valleys and mountains for the next layer to use. And finally there is the crust, which uses what the core and the mantle have created to make the earth liveable and sustainable. The same functions occur on a hockey team. The formally named captain and assistant captains who wear the letters on their jerseys are the core. They are responsible for laying the foundation for the team by setting the standards and helping everyone play up to those standards. They make the tough decisions on behalf of the team, all the while keeping in mind that they must act in the best interest of the team. The core is assisted by the hockey team's version of the mantle - veteran players who, despite not being given a formal leadership role, are still very much a part of the fabric of the team. The core leans on these veteran players to provide support and build on what the core is preaching. And finally, there is the crust - the rookies and younger players of the team. They may feel like they are far away from the core but in reality they are a critical component in ensuring that the core's vision of the team pans out. And despite not being as strong as the core or mantle players, the crust players are still free to forge their own blueprint on the team.<br />
<br />
Every player on a hockey team serves a function both on and off the ice. Nowhere in any hockey rule book is it written that rookies are not allowed to lead or that veterans are not allowed to learn from the rookies. Veterans bring a sense of stability to the group. They have been around different situations before and so they have the benefit of being able to draw upon those experiences to help guide themselves and the team through the ups and downs of a season. Rookies bring a sense of optimism to the group. For us rec-hockey players, we rely on the rookies to inject some energy into the room when we are all dozing off while waiting for our late-night-I-should-be-in-bed-right-now games to start. One of the greatest strengths of the rookies is that they don't over-analyze the game. They play it as they see it.<br />
<br />
Women's hockey brings with it a very intimate style of leadership. Women have a special bond with each other and it means that we develop a fierce loyalty to each other. This loyalty is what fuels our desire to block shots and take hits for one another. Women are also very maternal and comforting and, in my experiences of playing hockey throughout the years, this emotion is reflected well in how women lead a team. Most teams have a few players who are quite a bit older than everyone else. They get offended if you refer to them as "team mommies" but in actuality that is exactly what they are and the title is not meant to be a jab at their age. It is more a reflection of the comfort and kindness they show to the team. Most teams also contain quite a few middle-aged (in sports that usually means age 25-35) players who are less maternal and more tough-love. They're a bit more cocky and they push the team hard every night but they are equally as supportive as the team mommies. The only difference is, they are less willing to share band aids and energy drinks with you and they don't apologize after they drop f-bombs. <br />
<br />
One of my favourite sports quotes of all time is: <b>"Good players inspire themselves. Great players inspire others."</b> Before the start of each season and each game we must ask ourselves: what layer of the team are we, what can we do to bring leadership to the group, and what can we do to inspire those around us to play harder? And after every game we must look in the mirror and ask ourselves: did I do enough? If the answer is yes, we are not only building towards winning championships and trophies and medals, we are also building towards a legacy of wisdom and leadership that the next generation of players will carry with them going forward, ensuring that our legacies as players live on into the future. <br />
<br />
<br />hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-80554886989826357832012-04-25T13:22:00.000-07:002012-04-25T13:24:50.334-07:00NHL's loss, Women's Hockey's gain? Capitalizing on the NHL's blunders<br />
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Over the past few weeks I’ve had the pleasure of witnessing
some incredible hockey - fast, physical, agile, and skillful, with intense
rivalries, upsets, and edge-of-your-seat overtime heroics. NHL playoffs you
ask? Sadly the answer to that is no. Since my beloved Vancouver Canucks barely
even made an appearance in the playoffs (*moment of silence *) I have found the
NHL’s post season quite difficult to watch. Between the diving and embellishing
to try and draw penalties (yes I know my Canucks are guilty of that), the line
brawls breaking out at every whistle, and the potentially career-ending head
hits being delivered on a daily basis I was starting to wonder where the pure,
skillful hockey had gone. Luckily I didn’t have to wait long for my answer. </div>
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Women’s hockey doesn’t get a whole lot of air time.
Particularly in Vancouver where we don’t have a CWHL team and our CIS team the
UBC Thunderbirds aren’t exactly stellar (they finished the season with a 1-21-2
record), if we want to watch high-level women’s hockey we have only limited
opportunities to satisfy our interest. Luckily this season SSN Canada live
streamed every game of the Clarkson Cup tournament and TSN showed most of Team
Canada’s games at the 2012 Women’s World Hockey Championships. Of course TSN
did not show the gold medal game live. Those of us without TSN2 were forced to
follow along on USA Hockey’s live blog for updates from the gold medal game. </div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivSEaO6b9uTClWKu4nkx-07fHYtv8IMdBlRIgccEN47QaBFPbq5KBvXcymC5fDIR09MHkJBnuBtcwI_c-LsC5rOcQlydRXb5Cpx_cx9OQTg2EVhbevZAwkdd7AUbVLC9OhUsGG8_TR3jg/s1600/Capture.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="128" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivSEaO6b9uTClWKu4nkx-07fHYtv8IMdBlRIgccEN47QaBFPbq5KBvXcymC5fDIR09MHkJBnuBtcwI_c-LsC5rOcQlydRXb5Cpx_cx9OQTg2EVhbevZAwkdd7AUbVLC9OhUsGG8_TR3jg/s400/Capture.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">How I found out who won Gold at the
Women’s World Championships</i>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 1in; text-align: left;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Thanks USA Hockey for the live blog!</i></div>
</td></tr>
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<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>It was a good thing women’s hockey got the exposure it
did this year because I found myself thoroughly enjoying the action and
appreciating the brand of hockey that was being played. In my opinion, the NHL
was at its finest when it was being led by people who loved the game for what
it was. When it wasn’t about multi-million dollar contracts, TV deals, and marketing
the game to people in places who don’t understand it anyways. The game was the
finest when it was about homegrown heroes; superstars who came from humble
beginnings and were cultivated in their own backyards. Women’s hockey is right
now where the NHL used to be back in the 70’s and 80’s. There is no hype and
fanfare surrounding the players but there is passion – passion for the sport
and for the cause – and the players are playing for the right reasons. Because
body checking is illegal in women’s hockey the players defend against opponents
the right way – with their speed, positioning, and defensive awareness. Players
are being able to make beautiful plays with the puck. Goals are no longer the
result of a fluky bounce - they are works of art. The players are skating
faster, shooting harder, and making stronger plays. And almost every team in
the CWHL and on the National Teams has a goaltender that is capable of putting
the team on her back and leading them to victories. There is a genuine understanding and
appreciation that is evident when the ladies play. They are appreciative to be
there, to have support, and to be playing the sport they love at a high level.
They don’t complain about the fans or the media pressures being too demanding
mainly because they don’t have those pressures. These ladies have real
pressures such as how to keep their league running on a season to season basis,
how to incorporate their careers, families, and educations into a very busy
hockey schedule, and how to ensure that their sport continues to grow
worldwide. And there is an underlying respect between the players. There are
bitter rivalries, sure, but they never spill over into line brawls, cross
checks, deliberate collisions, and blindsided hits that result in one player
being carted off the ice on a stretcher. Scores are settled the right way – on
the ice, during plays, between the whistles. </div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The NHL is losing respect from its loyal fan base every
time Brendan Shanahan has to suit up and record another suspension video. There
were years past where the couch in front of the TV would be my perch for hours
at a time while I watched game after game after game of the Stanley Cup
playoffs. This year I’ve watched maybe 3 games of the first round because the
antics of the league and its players is so demoralizing. And I can’t be the
only one. But yet I watched every Clarkson Cup game and every Team Canada game.
There is a great opportunity looming for women’s hockey. If the sport and its
players continue to develop the way they have so far, and if the national teams
can continue to bridge the skill gaps between the nations, even the sport’s
toughest critics will have no choice but to tune in and recognize that this is
the way hockey was meant to be played. This mission could be given a further boosted
if there is an NHL lockout next season. Major networks like Rogers Sportsnet ,
TSN, and CBC will have large time slots available with no NHL games to
broadcast. What a perfect opportunity for the CWHL, CIS, and NCAA to showcase
their skills to fans in Canada and/or the US. It could be the one thing the
sport has been looking for to give it a real boost. </div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Honest hockey is still out there folks, we just have to
embrace it. The NHL’s loss could be women’s hockey’s gain. One thing is for
sure: we are approaching a pivotal time for the sport of women’s hockey. One
more Raffi Torres knockout hit in the NHL and it might just send fans flocking
in our direction as they crave to watch hockey in its purest form, and the way
it was always meant to be played. </div>hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-27957949269184431012012-03-18T22:22:00.001-07:002012-03-18T22:29:45.749-07:00No Fear: Fighting through playoff nerves and emotions<span id="goog_547281084"></span><span id="goog_547281085"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuLvZU6I7LdQ71W49nBrRzvDvopTzgi06z4c0Qz0RwtEsAraC3O70hg2sA0jkRGwQkdCzZbXrQMpZ2pU4tbmT6JHffamxeSVw1mDzBYYJjBNHFh9x8A8rmTZVp4XSbTVXcyyr_GriZSbM/s1600/AppsNike.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="189" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuLvZU6I7LdQ71W49nBrRzvDvopTzgi06z4c0Qz0RwtEsAraC3O70hg2sA0jkRGwQkdCzZbXrQMpZ2pU4tbmT6JHffamxeSVw1mDzBYYJjBNHFh9x8A8rmTZVp4XSbTVXcyyr_GriZSbM/s320/AppsNike.JPG" width="320" /></a></div></div><div class="MsoNormal">It’s that time of year again folks: the time of year where you check the NHL standings ten times a day to see if your team is above or below the top 8 in the conference (or, in the case of Leafs fans, how far below the top 8 they are). Yup, it’s almost playoff time everyone. Hope your nerves are ready for it! And if you happen to be a player as well, your league is likely getting ready for their playoffs too which means that in addition to being a nervous wreck of a fan you also get to be a nervous wreck of a player. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">This brings about an interesting topic of conversation. Are championships won with skill, toughness, speed, or mental strength? The best answer is probably all of the above and that is probably the correct answer too. Up until recently though, I’ve never thought too much about the mental strength component of it. Now I believe that it is the most underrated component – the X factor – in determining who will win championships.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Women are emotional as it is. That’s why I am so proud of our gender for breaking through into the world of sports. Because in addition to conquering the physical challenges of being an athlete, we also have to deal with that wonderful thing called emotions. It is so hard to stay even keeled when things are going bad out there. And for me as a goalie it is so frustrating to have to pull myself together after surrendering a goal. In my case there is a constant temptation to smash my stick against the net. Sometimes I’ve involuntarily given in to that temptation and one time it resulted in my favourite stick ending up in pieces (may she RIP). Every play of every shift of every game brings with it new challenges. Things can change in an instant out there. And there are no do-overs in the playoffs. And yet, while a million thoughts and emotions run through our heads, we have to maintain a poker face. Not show any signs of weakness. Brush off a bad play and get right back on the horse. We have to stay loose, keep our minds clear of distractions, and not become paralyzed by the fear or the nerves. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">There is no 100% fool proof way to handle yourself under pressure. It doesn’t matter if you’re a rookie or a ten-year veteran: the mental aspect of sports is always a work in progress. It is human nature to get nervous and it is natural that when we are passionate about something, we want to succeed at is as much as possible. But in spite of that there are a few things that I try and remember to help me deal with the pressure:</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">1)<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Heroes are human – </b>it is natural that we want to be the hero of the hour for our team. But don’t forget that every hero is also human and every human makes mistakes. Don’t approach games by saying “I’m going to have to be the hero here. If I’m not heroic my team will lose.” You are one member of a larger team. Everyone will make some great plays and everyone will have a few gaffes or miscues. What’s important is that you back each other up and that you battle as one whole unit and not as a group of individuals. The concept of heroes is a figment of the press and media.<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b>It makes for better TV drama (i.e. better ratings) and it gives those almost redundant newspaper columnists something to write about. Behind every MVP is a story of the team mates that enabled that player to be the best he or she could be. Don’t be fooled into thinking that they got that title alone.</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><br />
</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">2)<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The calm swagger – </b>When Hockey Night in Canada shows the players walking into the arena for their game the players are all looking dapper and well….sexy. But they also have a bit of a swagger and a look of confidence to them. Most of our parents have taught us to be modest and not cocky. But in sports sometimes you need a bit of a chip on your shoulder. You have to approach games with an attitude that says “I’m good, my team is good, and we will win this game.” Every doubt you have about yourself or your team is a chink in the armour and it is something that an opponent can easily exploit. </div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><br />
</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">3)<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Don’t let others tell you what your job is - </b>at the end of the day you know yourself better than anyone else knows you. Only you know your own capabilities and only you know your mental state. People will try to tell you to play a certain way, they’ll try to give you tips, and they’ll try to tell you what they expect of you. It’s ok to nod politely and pretend you’re listening to them but you are the only one who can set a standard for yourself. Examine what plays, moves, tendencies, and attitudes got you to where you are today. Why are you a successful hockey player? Identify what the best traits of your game are and then stick to them. You playing your style of hockey is always better that you trying to play someone else’s style. Just make sure that your style incorporates your whole team and that it allows for the best possible performance you can have.</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><br />
</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">4)<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">No fear –</b> since we were young we’ve been told that for every action there is a consequence. We’ve been told to fear the consequences of a bad decision. In sports fear is paralyzing. Mistakes happen, bad plays happen, and bad breaks happen. You can’t play in fear of them happening. Play in the moment, leave everything out on the ice, and don’t worry about what’ll happen if you make a mistake. Chances are that if you play loose and you are having fun you’ll make less mistakes anyways. Stay focused and stay in the moment but stay loose and take time to enjoy the process. Before you know it hockey season will be over and we’ll be healing our blisters and bruises and saying how much we miss hockey season and our team mates. So while we still have them around us, let’s take advantage and enjoy our time with them.</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Like I said, being nervous and emotional, and getting caught up in the moment are part of human nature. We can’t fault ourselves for doing it but we can try to prevent those emotions from taking over our game and our skill. Focus on the team and on the goal. Have no fear, just freedom. </div>hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-72262848462882950982012-01-23T17:33:00.000-08:002012-01-24T10:59:20.455-08:00The Common Jersey - the future of women's hockey development<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i.usatoday.net/sports/gallery/2011/Olympics/ruggiero/1999-harvardpg-vertical.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="267" src="http://i.usatoday.net/sports/gallery/2011/Olympics/ruggiero/1999-harvardpg-vertical.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Canada's Jennifer Botterill and USA's Angela Ruggiero have joined forces in retirement</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal"> All around us there are examples of unlikely partnerships - partnerships that when we hear about them or see them in action we say “hmm that’s unexpected.” For example, the former Democratic adversaries Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, who now run (or at least attempt to run) a nation together. Or the team of Rohan Bopanna, a tennis player from India, and Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi from Pakistan who formed a <a href="http://news.outlookindia.com/items.aspx?artid=693141" target="_blank">successful doubles partnership</a> and who, despite detractors at both ends, used their fame to promote teamwork rather than violence and hatred amongst their two nations. Similarly, during the peak of the Cold War, Russia and the USA decided to unite their respective space programs to build the first ever space station Mir (meaning “Peace” in Russian). There is that old saying: “common goals lead to unlikely partnerships.” In the case of women’s hockey there is perhaps no better quote to describe the process of what it will take to grow the sport internationally.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Borje Salming was part of the first wave of European hockey players to make the move over to North America to play in the NHL. The move was a historic one because it paved the way for more and more players from outside of Canada and the United States to bring their talents to the NHL and it changed the face of the league and hockey in general forever. It took time for the masses to warm to the idea of Europeans playing in the NHL (and if your name is Don Cherry you have still not warmed up to the idea). Salming made his NHL debut in the early 1970’s but it wasn’t until 1994 that Sergei Fedorov became the first European born and trained player to win the NHL Hart Trophy as league M.V.P. Since then, 7 out of 16 Hart Trophy winners have been European. Several teams are now captained by European players and, in general, Europeans have taken great strides in terms of establishing themselves as talented and capable NHL players. The 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan were the first Games that allowed NHL players to participate and represent their respective countries. Between the 3 medal winning nations (Czech Republic, Russia, and Finland) in men’s hockey that year, there were 22 players who played for club teams in Europe and not in the NHL. Compare that to 2006 – the only other Games where neither Canada nor the USA won a medal – and there were a total of 14 non-NHL players on the 3 medal winning teams (Sweden, Finland, and Czech Republic.) But of those 15 players, 12 of them did go on to play in the NHL after the Olympics year. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">These stats are proof that the partnership between pro hockey in Europe and North America is a mutually beneficial one. And it doesn’t just exist at the NHL level. European players are now open to playing in the Canadian Hockey League prior to being drafted because it keeps them on the radar of NHL scouts and prepares them for the game at the pro level much more than if they were in Europe. The exodus of European players into the NHL proves that there is a recognition of the fact that the hockey is better here and there is more to be gained in a pro career in North America over Europe or Asia. Women’s hockey is already attempting international partnerships of their own and this is good news for the Canadian Women’s Hockey League, the NCAA, and the sport in general. Ideally, all the elite women’s hockey players in the world need to be playing under the roof of a common hockey league where they can all grow, and develop, and improve together. Is the Canadian Women’s Hockey League our sport’s best chance for such a league? I would have to think so. The league is still in its infancy but they have already reached out and attracted players from Sweden and Finland to come play in the league. And while the CWHL may find it hard to attract international players at the moment, the NCAA has already had tremendous success in doing so. This is another encouraging sign for the sport and possibly something that could be of benefit to the CWHL as well. NCAA players are able to play the game at an elite and competitive level while they pursue their educations. It gives them the opportunity to graduate and pursue their respective careers as a means of providing financially for themselves while also continuing to play high level hockey in the CWHL. Several international players are currently playing for or are alumni of NCAA programs. While this list is, by no means, comprehensive it certainly does highlight the incredible successes the players have achieved:</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmO-HehaC2qNRJh6wgZZKBnwRUIcXBvw7CMOOzv5bpAcAeEc-2qy1OZVBunEUP5IL_afPZVNERbnFlkP_wO4bC8wEwiQ34LgFe0XEsAX8TFwzxnQq6AOl5Rl1k2lakOjUyJgkGJr3YdYQ/s1600/Blog+Chart.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="367" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmO-HehaC2qNRJh6wgZZKBnwRUIcXBvw7CMOOzv5bpAcAeEc-2qy1OZVBunEUP5IL_afPZVNERbnFlkP_wO4bC8wEwiQ34LgFe0XEsAX8TFwzxnQq6AOl5Rl1k2lakOjUyJgkGJr3YdYQ/s400/Blog+Chart.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">International players in the NCAA</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal"></div><div class="MsoNormal">The University of Minnesota-Duluth program alone has been home to <a href="http://www.umdbulldogs.com/teams-womens-hockey.php?page=19" target="_blank">23 Olympians from 7 different countries</a>. All the players who appear on these lists were not just participants at the Olympics. They were leaders on their respective teams. They learned from the best in the NCAA and they took that knowledge home and helped their national teams try to raise their game. If only a few players were able to be difference makers because of the skills and experiences they gained playing in North America, imagine what a Team Russia or a Team Switzerland would look like if every player was an NCAA or CIS or CWHL product. It's a daunting task to recruit female players to come play in North America. It's one thing to lure Alex Ovechkin away from Russia with the promise of a multi-million dollar contract and endorsements, and it's quite another to lure a women's hockey player for whom there isn't a penny to be made. But the one thing I respect the most about women's hockey players is that they train as hard as and make all the sacrifices that their male counterparts do simply because they want to be the best. This is where our Canadian and American players can take advantage - appeal to players on European and Asian teams, pitch to them the idea of playing in the NCAA or CWHL, encourage them to consider it, and make them feel at home if and when they decide to make the move. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Women’s hockey is like a family. At the end of the day the players have more in common than they do apart. The players, coaches, and governing bodies of elite nations like Canada and the US have a responsibility to share their resources and knowledge with the up-and-coming nations who are doing all they can to grow their programs. In the end, what European players learn from their North American counterparts they will take back to their national programs and they will apply it to help their teams improve. And much like how it happened in the NHL, there is a good chance that for every thing we teach them there will be something else that they teach us. Angela Ruggiero and Jennifer Botterill (speaking of unlikely partnerships) have already <a href="http://boxscorenews.com/canadas-botterill-and-usas-ruggiero-insist-innsbruck-can-prove-cruci-p31724-68.htm" target="_blank">joined forces in their retirements</a> to visit the Youth Olympics in Innsbruck to help inspire the next generation of women’s hockey players. The knowledge and experiences that players like them will share with other nations will be invaluable and critical to those nations as they then move forward and apply that knowledge towards their programs.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">When the puck drops between two women’s hockey teams at international competitions each player should be playing for keeps; playing to bring victory to their respective nations. But when the final buzzer blows and the jerseys come off, the players, coaches, management, and fans alike need to put on a new jersey – a women’s hockey jersey. We all need to put on an identical jersey and work towards identical goals because that is the only way our sport will improve. Recruiting international players, teaching them the tools of our trade, and encouraging them to share these tools with their fellow country mates may someday lead to Canada and the US no longer being at the top of the podium in women’s hockey. But it’ll be our victory too, because for every gold medal being placed around a European or Asian player’s neck, there will be a story of what they did to win that medal and who helped them along the way. If we take cues from Ruggiero and Botterill and continue to share our knowledge, I guarantee that the gold medal winning players will have a story of a Canadian or American who helped them win that medal.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The efforts and sacrifices made by women’s hockey players, coaches, and officials all over the world are admirable. They are the reason the sport is where it is right now – growing at a rapid pace, improving every day, and inspiring young girls along the way. The results may not be evident on the world stage just yet but the sport is moving in the right direction and there is reason for optimism and continued dedication towards helping our counterparts in other countries improve their programs so that someday we can all unite under the banner of women’s hockey and do battle against each other at the highest level possible. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>I’d like to dedicate this blog entry to the memory of Canadian skier Sarah Burke who passed away earlier this month. I said earlier that women’s hockey is like a family. In reality though, women’s sports in general are a family. We encounter the same challenges, fight the same fights, and all the athletes who compete at the highest level are heroes to many young girls and women who will someday follow in their footsteps. Sarah Burke was one of those heroes and what she did for her sport and for elite-level women’s sports in general won’t soon be forgotten.</i></span></div>hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-483516617311476625.post-65084464210797174492011-11-24T16:17:00.000-08:002011-11-24T18:08:33.340-08:00Into the cage; into the spotlight: Female goalies should get their moment in the NHL<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih3JxzGhwNtKa1V7HfEsX_YHm4yppnJ_FTK7bNdbtUbCRPWtFYbbYSOnVcCHYZM9KW-jH7ZRC0HnfJjse9k2fssu7FUDdIfHjIhhyphenhyphenLbOvkwkKZ2KwQ7xbXc4EypJ46tiSRLiyZcXmf-NQ/s1600/Capture.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih3JxzGhwNtKa1V7HfEsX_YHm4yppnJ_FTK7bNdbtUbCRPWtFYbbYSOnVcCHYZM9KW-jH7ZRC0HnfJjse9k2fssu7FUDdIfHjIhhyphenhyphenLbOvkwkKZ2KwQ7xbXc4EypJ46tiSRLiyZcXmf-NQ/s400/Capture.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Cory Schneider is everyone's favourite Canuck right now. He is a co-Jennings Winner, uncanny Jannik Hansen impersonator, and the best backup goalie the team has ever had. The love for our beloved ginger is aplenty on the West Coast. And, while Schneider's rise to the NHL is a good <a href="http://canucks.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=546992" target="_blank">story</a>, it certainly doesn't rival that of fellow ginger and once (literally once) loved Canucks backup goaltender Chris Levesque.<br />
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Everyone remembers the story of Dan Cloutier getting injured in the Canucks' morning skate and the team needing a goalie to back up Johan Hedberg for the game that evening. Since the farm team was not an option (the Moose were away on a road trip out east), the Canucks turned to the unknown but soon to be famous Chris Levesque - goalie for the UBC Thunderbirds to assume a front row seat for the game that night. Even just sitting on the bench, the young ginger became the story of the game. Though he was never required to step in and play during the game, no one will forget the view of him on the bench calmly chewing his gum as trainers frantically tended to the injured Hedberg so as to spare Levesque from having to make an unplanned NHL debut. All ended well for the Canucks - Hedberg was able to finish the game, and the team won 4-3 in OT - and for Levesque, who got his <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Levesque" target="_blank">moment of fame</a> and then returned to the real world where he is now a sous chef at Joey's on Broadway.<br />
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There have been similar stories to that of Chris Levesque. A UBC goalie was once again <a href="http://www.ctvbc.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20110120/bc_ubc_sharks_110120/20110120?hub=BritishColumbiaHome" target="_blank">summoned</a> last season, this time to play for the opponent, as the San Jose Sharks needed a backup on an emergency basis for their game against the Canucks. And just yesterday, the Minnesota Wild signed a <a href="http://espn.go.com/nhl/story/_/id/7275103/minnesota-wild-sign-51-year-old-practice-goalie-emergency-backup" target="_blank">51-year old</a> beer leaguer to backup against Nashville. And while everyone loves a feel-good story like that of Levesque, one can't help but wonder what might have happened if Levesque, or the 51-year old Paul Deutsch, or anyone of those other callups would have been required to actually get into the cage and play a portion of the game. With the way goalies are being run nowadays, injuries are always a possibility. Even on an emergency basis, why not call up someone who would at least be capable of holding their own in the net just in case they were actually needed? "How many NHL-calibre goalies are out there just waiting for their moment of glory" you ask? Not many. Not many at all. But how many elite goalies are out there ready and willing to step in if needed? Just ask Shannon Szabados.<br />
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When the Edmonton Oilers were looking for an emergency backup, one name that was thrown out there as a possible option was Canada's Olympic hero and gold medal winner <a href="http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Columnists/Jones/2010/03/24/13341086-qmi.html" target="_blank">Shannon Szabados</a>. Minus international competition, Szabados has played most of her hockey career against men. She played games for the Tri City Americans of the WHL and went head to head against the Camrose Kodiacs (Mason Raymond's junior team) in the Alberta Junior Hockey League Finals. Despite being the only female player in the league, Szabados was named the league's <a href="http://icehockey.wikia.com/wiki/Shannon_Szabados" target="_blank">most valuable goaltender</a>. Who better to play backup for one game in the NHL? Who is more deserving of a moment of glory like that? The Oilers didn't follow through on the plan. They opted instead to sign a University of Calgary goalie who hadn't played a game for the Dinos all year.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">"I'm just so disappointed," Szabados said. "It's the story of my life, being a girl goaltender. They don't give you the opportunity. That shows you right there."</blockquote>Shannon wasn't backing down from the challenge. But apparently the Oilers were. The disappointment in that quote from Szabados says it all. I felt so bad for her that I felt the need to send her an email of encouragement. To my surprise (and elation), she responded back only a few days later conveying her gratitude for the support. She reiterated her disappointment at not getting the call but didn't dwell on it. Instead she opted to send me some encouraging tips on how to be a good goalie myself! Spread across Canada and the US are female goalies who are playing the game at the highest level there is. The <a href="http://cwhl.ca/" target="_blank">Canadian Women's Hockey League</a> is home to some of the game's best goalies:<br />
<ul><li> Sami Jo Small - Toronto - Team Canada Olympic gold medalist</li>
<li>Molly Schaus - Boston - Team USA Olympic silver medalist</li>
<li>Brianne McLaughlin - Brampton - Team USA Olympic silver medalist</li>
<li>Christina Kessler - Brampton - Team Canada Four Nations Cup gold medalist</li>
<li>Kim St Pierre - Montreal - Team Canada Olympic Gold Medalist</li>
<li><layer id="google-toolbar-hilite-0" style="background-color: yellow; color: black;"><layer id="google-toolbar-hilite-0" style="background-color: yellow; color: black;"></layer></layer><layer id="google-toolbar-hilite-1" style="background-color: cyan; color: black;"><layer id="google-toolbar-hilite-1" style="background-color: cyan; color: black;"></layer></layer>Noora Raty - University of Minnesota - Team Finland Olympic Bronze medalist </li>
</ul>Many of the above mentioned goalies have played for Ivy League universities and have spent their entire careers playing elite-level hockey. Certainly they would be equally, if not more qualified to play in the NHL than some of the men who have actually gotten the call. It may be seen as a publicity stunt, or it may open up a debate about women in the NHL (trust me guys, we don't want to play in the NHL - we want our own league!), or it may lead to many unpleasant jokes about "a girl in the locker room." But in that moment of glory, I doubt any of these players would care. They've spent their whole lives going up against the doubters and naysayers of the sport they love. Doing it once more won't hurt them one bit. Female goalies should not get the call with the intention that they can someday gain employment in the NHL. At the end of the day it's about growing the game, raising awareness of the sport, and giving its current stars a well-deserved opportunity to take their place among highly skilled players. It should have no implications on a co-ed NHL (which is where the panicked minds of some will go if they even hear about a woman playing in one NHL game!). It's just a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the players, and some much needed insurance for the team who requires her services. And heaven forbid a women does have to step into the cage and play a few minutes of goal in the NHL, I think she'll do just fine. Just ask <a href="http://www.google.ca/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=manon%20rheaume&source=web&cd=10&ved=0CFsQtwIwCQ&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DW_i8dcNRbqU&ei=TdrOTvilIeaaiALjruiECA&usg=AFQjCNHOtK8FpxldiQfknUcBJ2Q3avqAVg&sig2=VzjHBMPYFK2H-lOfe5-h0Q&cad=rja" target="_blank">Manon Rheaume</a> :)hockey_queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13450127831751530433noreply@blogger.com2