Tag Archives: amateur athletics

02.20.13
by

Memo to parents: Hockey is supposed to be fun

Between the World Junior hockey championships hosted in my home province and coaching two completely hockey-crazy boys – along with a few other things – hockey has been on my mind a lot lately. That’s why a recent column by Joe O’Connor prompted me to write the letter below, that was today published in the National Post.

The original column is a fascinating look at the numbers around amateur hockey in Canada and how the US is catching up to Canada in terms of the number of kids taking the game up and then sticking with it to go on and play at high levels. The writer gives Hockey Canada, and all hockey-loving Canadians, a lot to think about, but I thought there was one part of the discussion he overlooked. Continue reading →

12.19.11
by

Hockey is more than a game

Writing about anything more personal than my take on new technology isn’t something I’m real comfortable with. I tend to avoid anything more personal than bragging about my kids – or complaining about them, as the case may be.

But something touched my life last summer that stuck with me, changed my perspective, and inspired me to try be a better father, husband and coach.

A good friend of mine passed away while on holidays with his family at age 40. The story was covered in the media a few times, in part because Jason Turner was a hockey coach, and an overwhelming number of his hockey family came out to remember him.

But what those stories didn’t capture was just what an amazing person he was. Continue reading →

06.09.10
by

Body checking study misses the mark.

kronwall_lays_out_havlat_large[1] A new survey has reopened an old hockey debate about whether young kids should be able to bodycheck. CBC ran quite a thorough report on the University of Calgary study, which found that kids are three times as likely to be injured or suffer a concussion if they play with body contact. The study was based on a comparison between Alberta peewee players, who play with body contact, and Quebec kids who don’t.

The study is accurate in what it reports, but it shows a profound lack of understanding of hockey in what it chose to study in the first place. Very few hockey coaches argue for hitting at 11 years old for the sake of hitting. And, frankly, even an old goon like me has to wonder at the sanity of those who do.

Rather the reason they want kids to learn how to hit at this age – or even younger – is because they’re too young to seriously hurt each other at this age. An 11 year has the strength and size to hit pretty hard, but nothing that generally causes any serious, lasting damage. Continue reading →