A salute to waiting players
I couldn’t imagine how a 17-year-old Richard MacKenzie would have dealt with his hockey being put on hold and threatened to end in January because of a pandemic. Or an 18-year-old, 19, 20, 21, etcetera.
Playing junior in Truro in the mid-1980s – against the Copperall wearing Pictou County Stewart Jackets for those with good memories – it would have been inconceivable not to have our regular practices and, at least, a couple of games, per week.
I also think about my years playing for the St. Mary’s Huskies and how hockey wasn’t just something to add to my university experience – it really was the experience, with earning my degree more the sidebar.
I realize how that might sound (the expression isn’t athlete-student), but I don’t mean it from an ‘importance’ standpoint, more of a time one.
Meaning, while I did a lot of assignments and studying away from my classes, it wasn’t like a had a class in English literature or political science every day (we practiced every day), and then battled with those classmates versus a rival school a couple of times a week … that was hockey.
So my university experience was enriched and more memorable and I certainly can’t blame the hockey athletes who have decided to leave school a little earlier to pursue professional hockey – like former Crusher Dylan Riley recently did, going from York University to the Southern Professional Hockey League – because of the uncertainty with COVID.
No, I simply can’t imagine no hockey at that time of my life.
Crushers head coach Garrett Lambke had the same type of reaction and his playing days, unlike mine, didn’t happen before the turn of this century.
“I just can’t,” said Lambke, a Crusher from 2013 to 2016 (including with the league winning 2015-16 team), said about losing his playing days to a pandemic.
“And I think about when I was 18 to 20, just how different the world was. I really do feel for them. We have five 20-year-old players that if we don’t finish this season, I’ll be just heartbroken for.
“They’re really good kids, very influential on our group which, as a first-year head coach, I just appreciate so much.”
Lambke said the hope is for good news at the end of the month or the start of February.
The MHL did announce on social media last week that they hope to return to play on Feb. 1, but as we've seen, things can change fast. As for keeping the Crushers engaged and interested as the pause drags on, he said they’re fortunate with the team’s attitude.
“With our group, where we’re so young, we don’t have anyone that is, kind of, in that burnout stage that some people get to in junior hockey,” he said.
“Everyone is always getting a hold of me asking when we can get on the ice, when is there ice? So every time we get to the rink, the group is energized to begin with, which makes it easy on us.”
He said one of the messages coming from team officials is to not do anything to jeopardize the chance to get back playing.
“If the government or whoever makes the decisions (to end it), if it goes that way, it is what it is, but do everything we can to stay safe, out of trouble, and when we get the green light, we’ll be ready to go.”
Brookfield Junior B Elks’ head coach Phil Lynds wishes he had all his players around to, at least, be able to have those conversations, but some university guys haven’t come back to Nova Scotia yet.
“Emotions are all over the map,” said the veteran coach who is also team president.
“We try to be positive, but also try to not say we’re going to be up and running at this time. We just tell everyone we’re going to wait and see, and hope for the best.
“Hopefully we’re on the ice Feb. 1 which is our regular Tuesday night (practice) and start games that weekend. We would get as many games as possible in February, and then our playoffs would start the first of March.”
The keyword in all of that is ‘hopefully.’
Hope is what would have kept me going back in the day and it’s what I have for all the players, whether they just starting their hockey journey this year or are waiting to get on the ice with their beer league buddies. Let's hope.