Most of you will remember that first time you stepped on the ice, and I think we can all agree that it probably resulted with you sliding around on your ass a lot more then you were flying down the ice –but you loved it. Your father would stay up late at night so he could water the rink in the back yard because that’s when it was coldest; he did that all for you and perhaps a little for himself. Fathers and sons have long shared a sacred bond between them through the game of hockey. Be it the early morning practices, time on the outdoor rink, tournaments on the road, or the long talks on a cold snowy highway back home, you enjoyed it all. As you grew older, hockey became more serious. At fifteen you started to hear talk about playing Junior, and your dream of playing in the NHL one day was still alive. Some dreams come true, but some led the way to spawn bigger and better dreams for years to come. Remember, some of God’s greatest gifts are unanswered prayers. The dreams that don’t come true lead the way for bigger and better things to happen. I truly believe that the experience you will get out of Junior and College hockey is no different then the experience of a professional hockey player. This is because, the experience relies less on happenings on the ice and more so on what happens off the ice. You get a chance to travel all over the US and Canada, perhaps live in different cultures, become part of a new family with your billets, and ultimately meet some great Playing hockey is a life lesson in itself. It teaches you camaraderie, friendship, emotion, pressure, fair play, toughness, and ultimately molds you into the person you become later on in life. That person is a man proud of what he’s done on the ice, but ultimately a man that is grateful for the path that hockey has sent them upon. So, as I said in my opening sentence if someone laughs at your dreams on playing hockey for a living, remember that whatever happens in the end, you’ve already won. You have great friends, good memories, and a lifetime of lessons learned. How you use those lessons is up to you. So is hockey just a sport? Hockey is your life…..