Shinny in the Sunbelt is producing stars
Gostisbehere, Matthews prime exhibits
Remember when Hockey Day In America symbolized teeth- chattering parents in parkas drinking stale hot chocolate while watching their kids play in frigid rinks in northern states such as Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michingan, New York, Pennsylvania and all of New England. That was then. This is now. Now means there are actually hockey families wearing T- shirts, shorts and sandals who slather themselves with sun screen and brave sweltering temperatures while heading to the local arena to catch some minor hockey.
Welcome to Hockey Day in The Sunbelt, a trend that is gaining more and more momentum by the day.
All you need to do is look to the likes of Shayne Gostisbehere and Auston Matthews as proof.
Sunday was the stage for the 2016 edition of Hockey Day in America, a celebration of the sport south of the border that was highlighted by an outdoor game between the Wild and visiting Chicago Blackhawks at TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.
It was, in fact, wonderful theatre, with big puffy flakes of snow fluttering down upon a throng of 50,000 puckheads who were making a statement as to why Minnesota proclaims itself to be The State of Hockey.
Interestingly, through it all, two of the American players creating the most buzz throughout the hockey world these days developed a love of the sport a long way away from the Twin Cities.
Exhibit A: Shayne Gostisbehere. The holder of the record for most consecutive games with a point by a rookie defenceman with 15.
The kid known as The Ghost grew up in Florida. His dad Regis was a Jai alai player who moved from France to the Sunshine State, where he got married and eventually welcomed son Shayne into the world.
Exhibit B: Auston Matthews. The overwhelming favourite to be the No. 1 overall pick in the upcoming June entry draft, he grew up in the land of cactus and blistering heat.
Auston’s mother Ema is from Mexico. His father Brian is from California. With the couple settling down in Arizona to raise their family, young Auston learned to play hockey in The Valley of The Sun.
Not actually the traditional paths to puck prominence, are they?
Whether you agree with commissioner Gary Bettman’s Sunbelt push, the fingerprints of the NHL’s move to the Sunbelt can be seen in the form of The Ghost and Matthews.
“It just shows what type of hockey is down there,” Gostisbehere said. “It’s not only just me, there are a bunch of guys down there. It’s cool to see all the kids blossoming into good players.
“I don’t know if it’s momentum. I just think if you’re good enough, someone will find you. If you’re a good player, you’ll be found.”
On Saturday, The Ghost scored the dramatic winning goal in overtime to give his Philadelphia Flyers a 5- 4 win over the host Maple Leafs, upping his consecutive games-with-a-point run to 15. The previous defenceman to have had a longer streak was future Hall of Famer Brian Leetch, who had a 17 gamer back in 1991.
Of course, the Air Canada Centre is a long way from South Florida, where young Shayne spent four years playing for a minor hockey team coached by former NHLer Ray Sheppard. Almost twice a month, the boys would climb on a plane for games in the Northern U. S. and Canada.
“Even though we didn’t win that much, we were very competitive. It got us out there, got us the exposure we needed. He coached us in a way I don’t think a lot of young coaches did. He treated us as a professional team and was really hard on us, but it was good for our future.”
As f or Matthews, he ditched baseball in favour of hockey while growing up out in the desert. Now, as he finishes up a season of playing in Switzerland, he is poised to hear his name be the first one called during the 2016 draft in Buffalo in four months.
The common thread between these two gifted players: both attended games of the local NHL teams as kids — The Ghost watching the Panthers, Matthews cheering on the Coyotes.
“There are so many good players coming from nontraditional markets now,” Flyers coach Dave Hakstol said. “And that’s the effect of having NHL teams in those areas.
“You are getting good athletes opting to play hockey rather than other sports in those markets. Like Phoenix. Like Dallas. Los Angeles. A few years from now we won’t be calling them non- traditional areas.
“We’ve seen a lot of good athletes playing the sport in areas where we haven’t seen that before.”
Athletes like Shayne Gostisbehere and Auston Matthews.