Grown-ups mar kids’ tourney
REFEREE, COACH INJURED, ASSAULT CHARGE LAID AFTER VERBAL ALTERCATION ESCALATES
A grainy cellphone video shot in a southern Alberta hockey arena has once again turned attention toward grown-ups at their kids’ hockey game, as the short clip shows a confused brawl involving skate-less coaches, family members, the referee and a player, while the crowd screams and hoots from the stands.
“It’s absolutely crazy, it should never happen … having a disagreement about a call is one thing but I can’t fathom people taking it to that extent,” said Blair Spence, whose 10-year-old son was playing in the tournament.
Tales of parental fist fights, among those who grew up playing hockey, are spoken of in the sort of tones that simultaneously evoke both pride in the martial abilities of one’s elders, but also embarrassment that mom or dad would throw a punch in public.
“The actions of the individuals go against everything we believe in and against our mission to lead, develop and promote positive hockey experiences,” said an email from Hockey Canada spokeswoman Katie Macleod.
The scene of the melee was in Lethbridge, a city an hour or so north of the U.S. border, at the Crossings Ice Centre, around 2 p.m. Sunday. The skills-development tournament, the eighth-annual Quest for the Cup was unsanctioned by Hockey Canada, and was hosted by High Performance Hockey. It involved boys and girls between the ages of seven and 12.
At some point in Sunday’s game, a usual occurrence — a verbal altercation between player and referee — turned unusual when it escalated to the point that the child, a 10-year old, according to the local police, whacked the referee twice with his stick.
The Lethbridge Police Service, which issued a statement detailing the incident but didn’t respond to the National Post’s followup requests for further information, said the referee then pushed the kid to the ice.
In the video, just 10 seconds long, five men can be seen charging onto the ice. It’s unclear if anyone was trying to break up the fight, but one man gets punched by another, hard enough for him to fall to the ground.
To the right, two players in red jerseys skate away from the scrum, with one appearing to crouch over and hold his head.
As the referee skates backwards, seemingly trying to avoid any altercation, two men catch up to the official, one with his dukes raised like a Fighting Irish mascot.
One shoves the referee, causing all three to fall onto the ice in a mix of bodies with punches flying. A coach from the opposing team was shoved to the ground and the referee was punched multiple times — by the player’s relative and a second man — before the fight was broken up, police said.
The referee and the opposition coach were both reported to have been injured.
Police have laid an assault charge against a relative of the 10-year-old who smacked the referee. Robert Farrell Creighton, 55, of Standoff, Alta., was detained at the arena.
He’s been released and is scheduled to appear in court Oct. 9.
Assault charges are pending against a 36-year-old man who left the scene and hasn’t been located by police.
“Parents’ involvement and behaviour in youth hockey contexts is of growing concern,” says research from a team of Canadian academics on “rink rage.”
Kids, generally, other research says, are embarrassed when their parents behave barbarously. “Children of all ages want parents to act like supportive parents at youth sport events and avoid acting like demanding coaches or crazed fans,” concludes a separate study.
As a minor hockey coach and a hockey parent, Spence said he’s never seen an incident like Sunday’s.
Spence said he’s also at a loss as to why such a young boy would strike a referee.
“That kid will never be on another team,” he said.
High Performance Hockey issued a statement saying it was co-operating with police.
“Actions like this have no place in our game,” the statement read. “The Quest for the Cup tournament is an opportunity for players to enjoy the game of hockey with their friends. For that reason, we are especially disappointed to see an act like this occur.”
In a statement released Monday, the Lethbridge Minor Hockey Association said it had nothing to do with the tournament, which involved unsanctioned, uncertified activities and officials not up to its standards of discipline.
“The safety of our children, our officials, our coaches is a very high priority in our program and any actions that impede a safe learning environment for all is not condoned and dealt with seriously and swiftly,” wrote association general manager Keith Hitchcock.
Last winter, news reports went wild over an Ontario Provincial Police news release that described something akin to a gladiatorial death match featuring 30 brawling parents in Simcoe, Ont. The only catch is that officials at the game said it didn’t happen, but there was a lot of yelling and tension.
And, last spring, Peel Regional Police investigated a brawl between two youth hockey teams in Mississauga, Ont.; it appeared coaching staff and perhaps parents were involved.