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Hello Everyone! I took a little hiatus to "rest and recover" over the summer, but with hockey camps and tryouts getting started, I thought I would get back at it!
Many people love the excitement and wonderment of starting a new year! They look forward to turning over a new leaf, making a few resolutions, ditching anything negative in their life or continuing to work on achieving their life's goals. And for most, all of this happens January 1...well not for me! For me, the most exciting and unnerving time of the year has to be September when hockey tryouts start. Each player and their parents go into the start of the season with high hopes and expectations. And along with that also comes the potential joy of making the team to the devastation of being "cut" from the team. Everyone's life is put on hold until everything shakes out and it gets determined where you favourite hockey player is going to end up!
Over the years, with our two boys I have experienced both the joy of making the team and the disappointment of not making the team. When they made the team there was a great sense of pride and satisfaction that this is where they should be playing. When they didn't make the team, well that was never nice to have to deal with. I remember one year, Kurtis was trying out for a rep team in Morell and he ended up being the final cut and didn't make the team. For him it felt like the world was going to end. I remember clearly, the evening we found out, Zack and Kurt's friend Morgan were sitting at the kitchen table trying to cheer him up. Zack, who is five years younger than Kurt just couldn't believe that the coach would be "so dumb" not to pick his big brother. Morgan was also very consoling and told Kurt that the team just wouldn't be the same without him. After listening to them chat for a bit, I jumped into the conversation and talked about the fact the Kurt tried his hardest, but sometimes coaches pick different kids for different reasons, and the best thing Kurt could do was tear up the team he was going to be on, because with being the "last cut" he was sure to get lots of ice time on his new team. So that is the attitude he decided to go with. However, after about a week or so of playing with his other team, we get a phone call. It was the rep team's coach. A guy on the team had a bad accident and ended up breaking his leg, so they wanted Kurt to take his spot on the team until he could come back. Well as the year went on, Kurt played like he had something to prove to that coach and he was never sent back to his other team!
Fast forward a few years later which I believe was 2010 or 2011 when Zack was trying out for the PEI Canada Games Team. He was 14 or 15 years old and trying out for team where the majority of the guys would be 1 or 2 years older than him. As the tryouts moved along, the parents were asked to attend some information sessions and at one of these sessions, the coach said something to the boys that always stuck with me. He said, "We can't all be great hockey players, but we can all be good people. When you are playing hockey your attitude and actions on and off the ice will follow you for the rest of your life. And no matter where you go, your reputation will always follow and you want to make sure that you can be proud of that reputation." As it turned out, Zack didn't make that team but two other guys who were the same age as him did make it. Once again, I brought out my speech that you never know what coaches are looking for when they are making a team and that they pick different players for different roles or jobs. All you can do is respect their decision, keep a positive attitude and continue working hard and surprisingly enough, even though he didn't make that team....life still moved on!
And now here I am once again, sitting back watching Zack begin tryouts for another year. Only this time it's on the biggest hockey stage in the world. And whether or not he ends up with the "big club" out of camp, my advice to him will remain the same, "Work hard, keep a positive attitude, respect the coaches decisions and good things will happen!"
For all of you hockey players, and hockey moms and dads going through the grueling tryouts of yet another season, my advice to you is simple, "Worry about the things that you can control, stay positive, work hard and respect the decisions that get made in the end."
Here's to another great season of hockey! Good luck to everyone and keep your stick on the ice!