P.E.I.’S BILLY BRIDGES GOES FOR GOLD IN SLEDGE HOCKEY
Canada claims spot in para ice hockey gold medal game with 7-0 win over South Korea
Billy Bridges lived through the lean years of Canadian sledge hockey, when the privilege of playing for Canada’s national team came with a hefty $15,000 price tag.
“Plus we had to pay for our travel and all our own food. We were eating fast food. We had 4 a.m., 5 a.m. ice times, because that’s all we could afford, the cheap ice,” Bridges said.
Bridges and Tyler McGregor each scored two goals as the Canadians dispatched South Korea 7-0 in Thursday’s Paralympic hockey (formerly sledge hockey) semifinals, booking their first berth in the goldmedal game since they won Paralympic gold in 2006.
They face the world No. 1-ranked Americans, who defeated Italy 10-1 in the other semifinal.
Canada, which beat the U.S. 4-1 for a record fourth world title last year, has yet to be tested in this tournament, running roughshod over opponents 42-0 through four games so far.
Bridges credits Hockey Canada, which brought Canadian sledge hockey under its umbrella in 2004, with raising the level of excellence and professionalism in the program.
“I’m so lucky that I was a part of the team before Hockey Canada took over, because I got a chance to see what they’ve done,” said Bridges, a five-time Paralympian from Summerside.
The Canadian players are as well-funded as “any amateur athlete” Bridges said, receiving a monthly stipend – or carding – from Sport Canada, money from Own The Podium, plus sponsors.
“I can’t believe I’m a disabled athlete, basically making a living and playing hockey on the greatest stage and having people watch, and doing interviews,” said Bridges, who was born with spina bifida. “Tenyear-old me would never believe this right now, when I realized I was a disabled person, and that I wasn’t going to the NHL. That was always my dream, to go to the NHL and be a big hockey star. And it’s something special to be a part of this now.”
The Canadians put on a show at Gangneung Hockey Centre, with Liam Hickey, a St. John’s, N.L., native, who played wheelchair basketball for Prince Edward Island at the 2015 Canada Games in Prince George, B.C., Dom Cozzolino, and Greg Westlake each scoring one goal. Corbin Watson and Dominic Larocque shared time in net, making a save apiece, as the Canadians outshot South Korea 24-2.
Canadian coach Ken Babey would like to have seen more parity in a tournament that saw the Americans breeze through the first round, outscoring opponents 28-0.
Canada and the U.S. also have the youngest teams, each averaging about 27 years old. There are five players older than 50 in the tournament, including 61-year-old Japanese netminder Shinobu Fukushima.
“It’s kind of like women’s hockey in the sense that we have to help grow the game, we have to share our knowledge, share some of our resources, because it’s not going to grow unless we do,” he said. “I really think as leaders, Canada and the United States . . . I think we should continue to do what we do, and maybe do even more.”
South Korean fans certainly seem to have embraced the game. Fans danced and sang along to the blaring K-pop tunes. Ear-splitting screams erupted with every Korean pass or shot that came near the Canadian net.
Prompted to cheer loudly during one timeout, the screaming reached a cacophonous 106 decibels – about the equivalent on the ears of using a power saw.
“I couldn’t believe how loud it was out there,” said McGregor. “It was almost deafening.”
Canada will be gunning for gold on Sunday less than a month after the Canadians wrapped up a disappointing Olympic tournament. The men were eliminated in the semifinals by Germany, while the women lost to their archrival Americans in a shootout.
McGregor, a former AAA hockey player who lost a leg to cancer, said his team would love to bring hockey gold and glory back to Canada.
“Canadians expect that of us, our country takes a lot of pride in being a leading hockey nation and as a team, we want to bring home a gold medal, because I think it would showcase our sport tremendously back home, it would have a huge impact on the growth of our sport,” said the 24-year-old from London, Ont. “We want solidify our stake as a leading hockey nation.”
Canada had to settle for bronze four years ago in Sochi after losing to the U.S. in the semis.
The Americans went on to win gold, with the Russians, who were banned from Pyeongchang due to doping infractions, claiming silver.