Saskatoon Contacts’ Bumphrey a two-sport throwback
Jonah Bumphrey hasn’t told football to take a hike.
A hockey forward with the Telus Cup-bound Saskatoon Contacts, Bumphrey is also a quarterback for the Holy Cross Crusaders and Football Saskatchewan’s provincial program.
Back in the fall, Bumphrey doubled up on Crusaders football and Contacts hockey.
Not every coach is as accommodating and understanding, but Contacts head coach Marc Chartier has allowed this before with some of his players.
He also looks at assistant coach Tim Leier — a two-sport athlete in football and hockey with the University of Saskatchewan Huskies — as a source of sports perspective. It bucks the trend. During a time when young athletes are encouraged to pursue and focus on just one sport yearround, there are those who see the benefit of practising multiple sports.
“It’s actually nice to see kids play two sports rather than just focusing on one — he’s a good athlete,” Chartier says of the 6-foot-3, 185-pound Bumphrey.
“We had a few guys in there — (Jordan) Walls and (Kobe) Kindrachuk a couple of years ago who were both (high school football) starters and played against each other.
“This year, when (Bumphrey) committed, we talked about football and we had no issues with it. We had Tim Leier here who played Huskie hockey and Huskie football, a double-sport guy, so there are no issues.”
Bumphrey, 16, is coming off a memorable Telus Cup West final in which he scored a goal — a most unusual one — on a penalty shot. When the Winnipeg Wild goalie went to poke-check Bumphrey, the puck flipped up, and over, a bewildered netminder.
“Absolutely, it was the weirdest goal I’ve scored,” admits Bumphrey, who played his minor hockey in Saskatoon’s Bobcats zone.
“I had a moment of sadness there as the puck went into the air and then I saw it go in and I couldn’t contain myself — it was great.”
Even a grizzled vet like Chartier hadn’t seen anything like it.
“It was a thousand-and-one, thousand-and-two, thousand-andthree (count) and then it went in,” says Chartier.
“A nice chip goal off the goalie’s stick. We were pretty happy with that.”
Bumphrey — who scored two goals and an assist in four games at Telus Cup West regionals — had just one goal and 10 assists during the regular season. He was used primarily in a checking and penalty-killing role as a rookie. What Chartier likes, most of all, is his compete level.
“Long stick — just a big kid and a very disciplined kid,” Chartier says. “His compete level is way up there.
“He did a very good job in bantam with (Dawson) Holt, a very good centreman. Next year, he’ll be playing football, starting with his high school. At the same time, with us, he’s going to be one of our key players.”
The Contacts leave Saturday for the weeklong Telus Cup tournament in New Brunswick.
“I’ve never had the opportunity in hockey to go to a national championship,” says Bumphrey. “It’s going to be a great opportunity and, with the guys here, it’s going to be super fun and I’m really looking forward to it.
“For sure, mental toughness (is key). It’s a seven-day grind. We thought the regionals were tough but this is going to be a long tournament. The mind drives the body, so we’ve got to keep it going out there.”
Bumphrey, who is listed by the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League’s Weyburn Red Wings, plans to continue his two-sport pursuit.
“I plan on playing another year of football,” he says. “It’s going to be fun.”
He admits juggling both is physically and mentally challenging. He stretches his body as much as his time.
“You have to stretch after each because two sports are tough on your body. You just have to put up with it because I enjoy both sports.”