Hockey Begins

N had his first practice last weekend, and so far, so good. He indicated that he's way out of shape, and he looked like he was wheezing a bit on the ice, but that's how one gets into shape in the first place, right? Since the big city program is more hardcore, they start earlier and offer pre-season condition and skills practice, both of which N balked at. In retrospect, I think he would have benefited from taking part, and I think he would agree, though he might not admit it.

Either way, it's a new start in a new program, and with a new coach, no less. I've been told that the big city program is trying to get away from having parents coach the teams, and sure enough, this year they have young Canadian guy (from Montreal) taking the reigns. He's a post-doctoral student over at the college, and he wants to coach youth hockey. Sounds good to me.

He's already reached out and let us know what he hopes to accomplish with the boys, but at the very least, I think it's good to get a fresh perspective on the game. Plus, when parents coach their own kids, things always get a little complicated.

Several of N's teammates are still playing soccer, so a little more than half of the skaters were out there, but enough to get some drills done. Best of all, yours truly didn't have to lace up his skates and act like I know what I'm doing out there. Somehow I just don't do a good job of faking it.

-->

Until the next time, thanks for reading, and thanks to Bradley Reiter for the pic.