Tag Archives: girls

Strength in the Face of Adversity

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Hearing bloodcurdling screams of pain and then watching your team captain get rolled off the ice on a gurney after suffering a season-ending leg injury is no way to start a championship game.  But that’s the exact situation the Devil and her teammates had to contend with this past weekend.

My better half, the hockey mom, will concur as she, in her role as team trainer, was tasked with assessing the situation, ordering an ambulance and huddling on the frozen rink to console the frightened victim of a crater in the ice. I believe she would much rather simply deal with the normal course bumps, bruises and missing hair-clips that befall a female hockey team. But hockey is a fast-paced game, which does bring with it the occasional more serious injury.

It was heart-warming to see both teams lined up together on the blue line tapping their sticks on the ice in unison as the fallen soldier was ushered off by paramedics. This was definitely a new set of circumstances for almost all of them.  Not a easy situation for any team to bounce back from, much less a group of 13-year old girls.

When the game finally resumed twenty five minutes later, the shell-shocked players were definitely off their game; their focus understandably shaken.  On the bench, we extolled the players to regain their composure.  We suggested they summon their strength and do it for their suddenly absent captain.  The opposing side took advantage of the situation, scoring two quick goals before the first period ended. At the break, we tried to rally the troops, reminding them again that they were in a final game.

The cobwebs faded in the second.  The team came out with a renewed commitment to winning; erasing the 2-0 deficit. They would have a brief lapse against a strong opponent and fall behind again 3-2, but would come storming back to take a 4-3 lead, which would last until less than two minutes left in the game. A quick, laser of a shot taken off a face-off in our end would find its way over the shoulder of an unsuspecting goaltender.  The championship contest would need to be settled in a five minute overtime or possibly a shootout — far too much drama and stress for several spectators.

The game would unfortunately end on a scramble in front of the Devil’s net with only 30 seconds left in the extra frame.  An opportunistic attacker danced around our keeper and slid the puck into the waiting net behind. The girls didn’t get the win, but they gained a world of experience in dealing with much more than just wins and losses. They rose above a tense situation that would have been pretty easy to just pack their bags on. They showed a fantastic resilience in the face trying circumstances.

Tonight they played game one of their opening provincial playoff series; hot on the heels of five weekend games and all of that drama. The effects of the weekend were evident in their sub-par play against a bitter rival, but they gutted out a 1-0 win and a 1-0 lead in the best of three showdown. Their injured comrade was able to attend; albeit on crutches as a scheduled surgery is in the offing to properly mend her injured limb. She led a team cheer before the game and in between each period, which no doubt buoyed a noticeably fatigued group. The team will miss their captain on the ice, but will continue to draw inspiration from her absence as they continue through to the end of the season.  Time will tell how far that inspiration, coupled with their ever-improving play, will take them. Regardless, it’s games like the final we witnessed on the weekend that make us proud of how far they’ve already come.

#imahockeydad

Strength in the Face of Adversity

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Hearing bloodcurdling screams of pain and then watching your team captain get rolled off the ice on a gurney after suffering a season-ending leg injury is no way to start a championship game.  But that’s the exact situation the Devil and her teammates had to contend with this past weekend.

My better half, the hockey mom, will concur as she, in her role as team trainer, was tasked with assessing the situation, ordering an ambulance and huddling on the frozen rink to console the frightened victim of a crater in the ice. I believe she would much rather simply deal with the normal course bumps, bruises and missing hair-clips that befall a female hockey team. But hockey is a fast-paced game, which does bring with it the occasional more serious injury.

It was heart-warming to see both teams lined up together on the blue line tapping their sticks on the ice in unison as the fallen soldier was ushered off by paramedics. This was definitely a new set of circumstances for almost all of them.  Not a easy situation for any team to bounce back from, much less a group of 13-year old girls.

When the game finally resumed twenty five minutes later, the shell-shocked players were definitely off their game; their focus understandably shaken.  On the bench, we extolled the players to regain their composure.  We suggested they summon their strength and do it for their suddenly absent captain.  The opposing side took advantage of the situation, scoring two quick goals before the first period ended. At the break, we tried to rally the troops, reminding them again that they were in a final game.

The cobwebs faded in the second.  The team came out with a renewed commitment to winning; erasing the 2-0 deficit. They would have a brief lapse against a strong opponent and fall behind again 3-2, but would come storming back to take a 4-3 lead, which would last until less than two minutes left in the game. A quick, laser of a shot taken off a face-off in our end would find its way over the shoulder of an unsuspecting goaltender.  The championship contest would need to be settled in a five minute overtime or possibly a shootout — far too much drama and stress for several spectators.

The game would unfortunately end on a scramble in front of the Devil’s net with only 30 seconds left in the extra frame.  An opportunistic attacker danced around our keeper and slid the puck into the waiting net behind. The girls didn’t get the win, but they gained a world of experience in dealing with much more than just wins and losses. They rose above a tense situation that would have been pretty easy to just pack their bags on. They showed a fantastic resilience in the face trying circumstances.

Tonight they played game one of their opening provincial playoff series; hot on the heels of five weekend games and all of that drama. The effects of the weekend were evident in their sub-par play against a bitter rival, but they gutted out a 1-0 win and a 1-0 lead in the best of three showdown. Their injured comrade was able to attend; albeit on crutches as a scheduled surgery is in the offing to properly mend her injured limb. She led a team cheer before the game and in between each period, which no doubt buoyed a noticeably fatigued group. The team will miss their captain on the ice, but will continue to draw inspiration from her absence as they continue through to the end of the season.  Time will tell how far that inspiration, coupled with their ever-improving play, will take them. Regardless, it’s games like the final we witnessed on the weekend that make us proud of how far they’ve already come.

#imahockeydad

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We’re Number Two (But One in Our Hearts)!

The Devil and her Shark teammates certainly had an eventful tournament weekend.  After a slow start with a 1-0 loss followed by a 0-0 tie in round robin play, the girls just kept getting stronger with a 4-2 quarterfinal win, a 4-3 shootout win in the semi-finals. The rollercoaster three-day event ended with a heartbreaking, albeit inspiring, 5-4 overtime loss in a turbulent final.  A final that would have the team watch their captain leave the ice on a stretcher after suffering a season-ending injury, but still manage to come back from two 2-goal deficits and hold a lead going into the last two minutes of the game. More details to follow as the weekend wore this father/temporary assistant coach out.  For now I’ll let the smiles in the photo tell the story of an overall successful, team and character-building effort.

#imahockeydad

Every Game Has Its Hightlights

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Both the Devil and da Boy played today.

She had her last regular season game, which meant little in terms of final standings, but quite a bit in the general scheme of things as they played their closest rival, who are coincidentally expected to also be playing in the first round of the playoffs. I joked before the game started that the girls needed to “set the tone for the playoffs” with a win.  And a tone was certainly set before the game ended, but not quite the way anyone expected.  The girls started strong and really took the play to the other team.  A good majority of the play occurred in the opponent’s end of the ice. The Devil herself had several scoring chances in the match, though she failed to put one past the other team’s keeper who was solid between the pipes. The Sharks did, however, manage to open the scoring in the second period and held a one goal lead for most of the rest of the frame. The other team would knot the score at one.  But our side was relentless today and managed to pull ahead as one of our forwards managed to put a rebound in the back of the net through sheer determination.

And then the otherwise typical game got interesting.  With about five minutes left in the third period, there was a relatively lengthy battle on the boards between one of the Sharks’ forwards and an opposing defender.  Having lost the puck challenge, the frustrated defender decided to thrust her glove into the mask of our player. Not backing down, our player shoved back and from there it got a little ugly.  Keep in mind, these are 13 year old girls.  A couple of punches were thrown by both combatants, but did not really land. Then, as our player, attempted to back out of the situation, the rival defender threw a straight right that knocked her to the frozen surface. The referees quickly interceded.  The shocked forward made her way to the penalty box, while the one who delivered the extra punch was sent to the change room.  Our player received a two-minute roughing penalty, while the other was likewise assessed a two-minute minor, along with a five minute fighting major penalty and a match penalty.  A match penalty means she could end up missing up to four games; four games presumably against the Sharks in the playoffs which start in a couple of weeks or less.  Not too often we get to see punches thrown in girls hockey.  

The end result of all the hubbub was a lengthy delay in the game and a four on three situation for the Sharks.  Our girls would come away with a 2-1 victory as the ice time allotted ran out (the game was curfewed). The stage has certainly been set for an upcoming playoff series with this very same rival.

Hockey mom and I hustled back home to pick up the Boy to bring him back to the rink for game one of his new regional playoff series.  As chance would have it, this series is to be played against the same team the regular season ended against; a team who went winless during the entire season; a team who our boys defeated by a combined score of 33-3 in the final three games of the year.  Suffice it to say, this is not expected to be a pretty round.  But these games do need to be played.  The Boy opened the scoring tonight with a laser beam goal over the right arm of the goalie.  He added a second a few minutes later; only this time over the other shoulder and from a little closer in.  The rout was on.

Entering the third period, the coach decided to do a little tweaking of his bench; moving one of his defencemen up to left wing on a line with the Boy and another forward.  A few minutes into the final frame and at the beginning of a shift, the Boy fed a nice pass to his new winger who fired a shot through the opposing keeper, who to that point had played a pretty solid game in front of his shaky teammates. The Boy’s line stayed on the ice. Within a few seconds of the ensuing face off they were back in the offensive zone.  The Boy fed his defenceman-turned-winger another puck in front of the net, which he quickly deposited in the back of it.  Two goals in one shift is pretty impressive. But they weren’t done.  Another face-off at centre resulted in another surge into the visiting team’s end.  I quickly commented to the defenceman’s father in the stands that his son could get a hat trick in a shift, which would in turn prompt me to launch my ball cap onto the ice below. The Boy fed his line mate another pass in close which was turned away by a quick leg save. But the other winger, picked up the rebound, circled the net and again snuck the puck over to the erstwhile defenceman.  On cue, he deposited his third goal of the two-minute shift neatly behind the other team’s goaltender. Within moments, my “Hockey Dad” chapeau was hurling through the crisp arena air in celebration of the rare feat.  It was nice to have a highlight in an otherwise lacklustre match which ended with our boys on top 10-0. 

Post-game, the defenceman’s father, who helps during practices and played competitive hockey when he was younger, was ribbed by the team who said his son scored more goals in one shift than he scored in his career. He, of course, shot back claiming he scored at least four goals one season as he was considered more of a defensive, enforcer type of player. It all made for some good laughs following the disappointing loss the team suffered earlier in the week.

The boys are in another six-point series, meaning there are at least two more similar games on tap for tomorrow and later this week.  My hat may find the ice yet again, though only as a result of something at least as spectacular as three markers in a shift.

Our girls are expected to be fired up, finishing fourth overall in their 10-team league and getting ready to face their closest fifth-place rival both geographically and competitively. I believe every one of their five or six games this year has been a one goal affair. This trend will likely continue.

We hope the same fire can be summoned by the Boy and his mates in the next round, who cannot be faulted for becoming lackadaisical against questionable competition.  Management is actually looking to find a last minute tournament to enter as a tougher warm-up for the next series; a series which will certainly provide a greater challenge than the one they currently face.

Time will naturally tell what the fortunes of these two teams hold. And I’m sure each game from here on in will have its share of highlights.

#imahockeydad

Every Game Has Its Hightlights

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Both the Devil and da Boy played today.

She had her last regular season game, which meant little in terms of final standings, but quite a bit in the general scheme of things as they played their closest rival, who are coincidentally expected to also be playing in the first round of the playoffs. I joked before the game started that the girls needed to “set the tone for the playoffs” with a win.  And a tone was certainly set before the game ended, but not quite the way anyone expected.  The girls started strong and really took the play to the other team.  A good majority of the play occurred in the opponent’s end of the ice. The Devil herself had several scoring chances in the match, though she failed to put one past the other team’s keeper who was solid between the pipes. The Sharks did, however, manage to open the scoring in the second period and held a one goal lead for most of the rest of the frame. The other team would knot the score at one.  But our side was relentless today and managed to pull ahead as one of our forwards managed to put a rebound in the back of the net through sheer determination.

And then the otherwise typical game got interesting.  With about five minutes left in the third period, there was a relatively lengthy battle on the boards between one of the Sharks’ forwards and an opposing defender.  Having lost the puck challenge, the frustrated defender decided to thrust her glove into the mask of our player. Not backing down, our player shoved back and from there it got a little ugly.  Keep in mind, these are 13 year old girls.  A couple of punches were thrown by both combatants, but did not really land. Then, as our player, attempted to back out of the situation, the rival defender threw a straight right that knocked her to the frozen surface. The referees quickly interceded.  The shocked forward made her way to the penalty box, while the one who delivered the extra punch was sent to the change room.  Our player received a two-minute roughing penalty, while the other was likewise assessed a two-minute minor, along with a five minute fighting major penalty and a match penalty.  A match penalty means she could end up missing up to four games; four games presumably against the Sharks in the playoffs which start in a couple of weeks or less.  Not too often we get to see punches thrown in girls hockey.  

The end result of all the hubbub was a lengthy delay in the game and a four on three situation for the Sharks.  Our girls would come away with a 2-1 victory as the ice time allotted ran out (the game was curfewed). The stage has certainly been set for an upcoming playoff series with this very same rival.

Hockey mom and I hustled back home to pick up the Boy to bring him back to the rink for game one of his new regional playoff series.  As chance would have it, this series is to be played against the same team the regular season ended against; a team who went winless during the entire season; a team who our boys defeated by a combined score of 33-3 in the final three games of the year.  Suffice it to say, this is not expected to be a pretty round.  But these games do need to be played.  The Boy opened the scoring tonight with a laser beam goal over the right arm of the goalie.  He added a second a few minutes later; only this time over the other shoulder and from a little closer in.  The rout was on.

Entering the third period, the coach decided to do a little tweaking of his bench; moving one of his defencemen up to left wing on a line with the Boy and another forward.  A few minutes into the final frame and at the beginning of a shift, the Boy fed a nice pass to his new winger who fired a shot through the opposing keeper, who to that point had played a pretty solid game in front of his shaky teammates. The Boy’s line stayed on the ice. Within a few seconds of the ensuing face off they were back in the offensive zone.  The Boy fed his defenceman-turned-winger another puck in front of the net, which he quickly deposited in the back of it.  Two goals in one shift is pretty impressive. But they weren’t done.  Another face-off at centre resulted in another surge into the visiting team’s end.  I quickly commented to the defenceman’s father in the stands that his son could get a hat trick in a shift, which would in turn prompt me to launch my ball cap onto the ice below. The Boy fed his line mate another pass in close which was turned away by a quick leg save. But the other winger, picked up the rebound, circled the net and again snuck the puck over to the erstwhile defenceman.  On cue, he deposited his third goal of the two-minute shift neatly behind the other team’s goaltender. Within moments, my “Hockey Dad” chapeau was hurling through the crisp arena air in celebration of the rare feat.  It was nice to have a highlight in an otherwise lacklustre match which ended with our boys on top 10-0. 

Post-game, the defenceman’s father, who helps during practices and played competitive hockey when he was younger, was ribbed by the team who said his son scored more goals in one shift than he scored in his career. He, of course, shot back claiming he scored at least four goals one season as he was considered more of a defensive, enforcer type of player. It all made for some good laughs following the disappointing loss the team suffered earlier in the week.

The boys are in another six-point series, meaning there are at least two more similar games on tap for tomorrow and later this week.  My hat may find the ice yet again, though only as a result of something at least as spectacular as three markers in a shift.

Our girls are expected to be fired up, finishing fourth overall in their 10-team league and getting ready to face their closest fifth-place rival both geographically and competitively. I believe every one of their five or six games this year has been a one goal affair. This trend will likely continue.

We hope the same fire can be summoned by the Boy and his mates in the next round, who cannot be faulted for becoming lackadaisical against questionable competition.  Management is actually looking to find a last minute tournament to enter as a tougher warm-up for the next series; a series which will certainly provide a greater challenge than the one they currently face.

Time will naturally tell what the fortunes of these two teams hold. And I’m sure each game from here on in will have its share of highlights.

#imahockeydad

Missed it by that much!

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Another weekend, another tourney for the Devil and her team. Tournaments are good tools for team building, working on line combinations and in-game tactics and gauging team strength against competition they don’t normally get to see.

In this tournament, the girls started with a game against a very familiar rival. Coincidentally, or not, their closest local competitor has turned up in three of the same tournaments; this in addition to an exhibition game and four scheduled regular season games.  This will be the same team the girls will have to go head-to-head against in their quest to play in the provincial championships.  In five previous games so far this year, these two teams have skated to a virtual draw with either one-goal wins for either team or ties.  Game one of this tournament was no different.  Our girls unfortunately came out of the gate a little slow and fell behind by one and then two goals.  They would turn the play around in the third period, but were unable to tally more than one goal against.  They dropped this latest challenge 2-1.

In round robin tournament play, losing game one generally forces a need to win the next two, depending, of course, on the strength of the other teams in your division. With a win at stake, the coach set a strict curfew for his players, who were scattered in hotels around the small host city.  Not a problem for the Devil, who was wiped out from the school day, a 90 minute drive, followed by an 8pm hockey game. This was likely the case for her teammates as well.

The next morning, the Sharks came out with a vengeance against what seemed to be a stronger competitor.  After giving up the first goal despite dominating the play, the girls came storming back.  They scored three unanswered markers of their own; renewing their chances of advancing to the playoff round.

However, in order to reach the playoffs, they would have to contend with a decidedly larger and reportedly even stronger team.  Indeed, as the puck dropped for game three, the Sharks were at a noticeable size disadvantage.  That being said, the girls certainly didn’t back down.  They were all well aware of what they needed to do in order to move on. For two periods of scoreless hockey, the Devil and her mates skated as hard as they’ve skated all year. They battled in the corners, stood their ground in front of the net at both ends of the rink and had a few good scoring chances.  Unfortunately, in the third period, their strong opponent was able to break through with a first goal. Undaunted, but slightly overmatched, the Sharks never gave up.  Their counterparts, who would eventually go on to become tournament champions, scored two more times.

As the game neared its conclusion, the manager informed the team that they needed one goal to have a chance to move on.  That goal never came.

And indeed, as it turned out, the girls would end up in a three-way tie for second place in their division. A tie-breaker would ultimately determine that they would miss making the semi-finals by a single goal.  Ironically, they would give way to the team they beat in their second game, who happened to have a better goals for/goals against differential.  Such is the tournament format, where a slow start can come back to bite you in the proverbial ass.  A tie or win in game one against the weakest of the three teams they faced would have done the trick.

It would have been nice to make the semis where there is always a chance to proceed further in a single game knock-out situation.  In fact, the team our girls beat in their second game went on to play and lose to the team from the third game in the Championship final. The Sharks were obviously in the tougher of the two tournament divisions.  There was definitely no disappointment for the coaching staff or the players based on how the team performed against increasingly stiff competition. Its heartening to see how they can play at their full potential.  The challenge with this team, as with all teams in all sports, is realizing that potential on a consistent basis. 

I believe this ends the tournament schedule for both the Boy and the Devil.  At least tournaments I know about at this point. Sometimes end of season tournaments are added depending on how long a team’s playoff run is.  And so, we’ll hope there are no more tournaments this year, signalling a long and prosperous post-season run for each squad.  There are still a handful of regular season games for both teams, which will ultimately determine their rank and playoff match-ups.  Plenty of fun and games yet to come.

#imahockeydad

Missed it by that much!

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Another weekend, another tourney for the Devil and her team. Tournaments are good tools for team building, working on line combinations and in-game tactics and gauging team strength against competition they don’t normally get to see.

In this tournament, the girls started with a game against a very familiar rival. Coincidentally, or not, their closest local competitor has turned up in three of the same tournaments; this in addition to an exhibition game and four scheduled regular season games.  This will be the same team the girls will have to go head-to-head against in their quest to play in the provincial championships.  In five previous games so far this year, these two teams have skated to a virtual draw with either one-goal wins for either team or ties.  Game one of this tournament was no different.  Our girls unfortunately came out of the gate a little slow and fell behind by one and then two goals.  They would turn the play around in the third period, but were unable to tally more than one goal against.  They dropped this latest challenge 2-1.

In round robin tournament play, losing game one generally forces a need to win the next two, depending, of course, on the strength of the other teams in your division. With a win at stake, the coach set a strict curfew for his players, who were scattered in hotels around the small host city.  Not a problem for the Devil, who was wiped out from the school day, a 90 minute drive, followed by an 8pm hockey game. This was likely the case for her teammates as well.

The next morning, the Sharks came out with a vengeance against what seemed to be a stronger competitor.  After giving up the first goal despite dominating the play, the girls came storming back.  They scored three unanswered markers of their own; renewing their chances of advancing to the playoff round.

However, in order to reach the playoffs, they would have to contend with a decidedly larger and reportedly even stronger team.  Indeed, as the puck dropped for game three, the Sharks were at a noticeable size disadvantage.  That being said, the girls certainly didn’t back down.  They were all well aware of what they needed to do in order to move on. For two periods of scoreless hockey, the Devil and her mates skated as hard as they’ve skated all year. They battled in the corners, stood their ground in front of the net at both ends of the rink and had a few good scoring chances.  Unfortunately, in the third period, their strong opponent was able to break through with a first goal. Undaunted, but slightly overmatched, the Sharks never gave up.  Their counterparts, who would eventually go on to become tournament champions, scored two more times.

As the game neared its conclusion, the manager informed the team that they needed one goal to have a chance to move on.  That goal never came.

And indeed, as it turned out, the girls would end up in a three-way tie for second place in their division. A tie-breaker would ultimately determine that they would miss making the semi-finals by a single goal.  Ironically, they would give way to the team they beat in their second game, who happened to have a better goals for/goals against differential.  Such is the tournament format, where a slow start can come back to bite you in the proverbial ass.  A tie or win in game one against the weakest of the three teams they faced would have done the trick.

It would have been nice to make the semis where there is always a chance to proceed further in a single game knock-out situation.  In fact, the team our girls beat in their second game went on to play and lose to the team from the third game in the Championship final. The Sharks were obviously in the tougher of the two tournament divisions.  There was definitely no disappointment for the coaching staff or the players based on how the team performed against increasingly stiff competition. Its heartening to see how they can play at their full potential.  The challenge with this team, as with all teams in all sports, is realizing that potential on a consistent basis. 

I believe this ends the tournament schedule for both the Boy and the Devil.  At least tournaments I know about at this point. Sometimes end of season tournaments are added depending on how long a team’s playoff run is.  And so, we’ll hope there are no more tournaments this year, signalling a long and prosperous post-season run for each squad.  There are still a handful of regular season games for both teams, which will ultimately determine their rank and playoff match-ups.  Plenty of fun and games yet to come.

#imahockeydad

Meet the Parents

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We’ve seen all too many stories in the news about over-zealous parents at hockey games who get in shouting matches and even physical altercations. I suppose, if you tried really hard, you could start to understand how, in the heat of the moment, a parent could get caught up in the excitement of a game or the defense of their child on the ice.  I myself have had an intense moment or two during a game where I felt either the Devil, the Boy or one of their teammates had been wronged. I’ve shouted sarcastic comments at the odd ref and even exchanged a few verbal jabs across the stands with parents from other teams.  But I don’t recall any instances where things could have gotten out of control.  I have seen other parents come eye-to-eye on a few occasions.

Such an occasion occurred this past weekend at a game hosted by the Devil’s team. The girls were playing a team that sits at the bottom of the standings; they have lost far more games than they have won.  Parents from that team are likely a little more sensitive to questionable plays or referees’ calls. And indeed, in this game, there were a couple of rough hockey plays along the boards where one’s perspective could have been skewed. However, there was one father, in particular, who became quite animated after a couple of these plays, throwing his share of expletives at the officials on the ice.  

A little later in the game, with the score 4-0 for the home team, there was a more vigorous altercation. In fact, I thought an older boys’ game had broken out. Four girls converged in the corner of the ice at the end of a play and two girls ended up on the ice. One of our girls who had been pushed down…pushed back.  In fact, a couple of punches may have been thrown.  The refs were quick to defuse the melee with multiple penalties to follow. High drama for 13 and 14 year old girls.  When three players from the opposing team and only two players from the Devil’s team entered the penalty box, the aforementioned frantic father flipped his lid.  He became ever more agitated; hurling even more venomous, coloured language at the officials.  A woman, I believe was his wife, physically pulled him aside; imploring him to tone it down.  One of our fathers rightly took exception to the language being used and asked that he pipe down.  Two of the opposing fathers now howled back over at our father. Moments later the referees sorted out the infractions with the Devil’s team actually being given an extra penalty.  Saner heads prevailed, though it was easy to see how this could have been one of those hairier moments you hear about on the news.  A similar situation reportedly unfolded on the benches as one coach from the visiting team was likewise perturbed with the “rough” play of our girls or more likely was also frustrated by another loss.  He exchanged a few select comments with one of our coaches, who defended the aggressive, and certainly not dirty, play of the eventual victors. 

Thankfully, the rest of the game was played without issue. The Devil’s team held on to the four goal lead for a win.

Win, losses, ties aside; it is just a game, played by our kids for fun.  It’s not to be taken too seriously. We should all try to keep that in mind.

#imahockeydad

Meet the Parents

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We’ve seen all too many stories in the news about over-zealous parents at hockey games who get in shouting matches and even physical altercations. I suppose, if you tried really hard, you could start to understand how, in the heat of the moment, a parent could get caught up in the excitement of a game or the defense of their child on the ice.  I myself have had an intense moment or two during a game where I felt either the Devil, the Boy or one of their teammates had been wronged. I’ve shouted sarcastic comments at the odd ref and even exchanged a few verbal jabs across the stands with parents from other teams.  But I don’t recall any instances where things could have gotten out of control.  I have seen other parents come eye-to-eye on a few occasions.

Such an occasion occurred this past weekend at a game hosted by the Devil’s team. The girls were playing a team that sits at the bottom of the standings; they have lost far more games than they have won.  Parents from that team are likely a little more sensitive to questionable plays or referees’ calls. And indeed, in this game, there were a couple of rough hockey plays along the boards where one’s perspective could have been skewed. However, there was one father, in particular, who became quite animated after a couple of these plays, throwing his share of expletives at the officials on the ice.  

A little later in the game, with the score 4-0 for the home team, there was a more vigorous altercation. In fact, I thought an older boys’ game had broken out. Four girls converged in the corner of the ice at the end of a play and two girls ended up on the ice. One of our girls who had been pushed down…pushed back.  In fact, a couple of punches may have been thrown.  The refs were quick to defuse the melee with multiple penalties to follow. High drama for 13 and 14 year old girls.  When three players from the opposing team and only two players from the Devil’s team entered the penalty box, the aforementioned frantic father flipped his lid.  He became ever more agitated; hurling even more venomous, coloured language at the officials.  A woman, I believe was his wife, physically pulled him aside; imploring him to tone it down.  One of our fathers rightly took exception to the language being used and asked that he pipe down.  Two of the opposing fathers now howled back over at our father. Moments later the referees sorted out the infractions with the Devil’s team actually being given an extra penalty.  Saner heads prevailed, though it was easy to see how this could have been one of those hairier moments you hear about on the news.  A similar situation reportedly unfolded on the benches as one coach from the visiting team was likewise perturbed with the “rough” play of our girls or more likely was also frustrated by another loss.  He exchanged a few select comments with one of our coaches, who defended the aggressive, and certainly not dirty, play of the eventual victors. 

Thankfully, the rest of the game was played without issue. The Devil’s team held on to the four goal lead for a win.

Win, losses, ties aside; it is just a game, played by our kids for fun.  It’s not to be taken too seriously. We should all try to keep that in mind.

#imahockeydad