Help for a Discouraged Hockey Goaltender
The following came in recently via email (although I’d prefer folks contact me through the Ask The Coach page). No matter, I felt for the young guy who sent it, and I wanted to offer some thoughts as soon as I could.
With that as an intro, I’ve removed just a few things from the following question, just to protect the young goaltender’s identity…
– Dennis Chighisola
“I need some advice, big time. I played high school hockey as a goalie the past couple of years and did great. this year I tried out for the local junior empire team. Despite playing incredible along with the other top goalies at the tryouts i didn’t make the team, at the the moment I’m at community college part time, thinking i was going to get my big break. but I didn’t. It seems like no one is giving me the chance even though i know i can take my game to the next level. I feel like I’m coming to the end of my career, end of the line and i don’t know what to do, i still want to keep playing competitively but i always feel like the underdog. what should I do?”
Ironically, I often write or say that, “Others will tell you when your hockey playing days are over.”
That IS usually true. Yet, I don’t think there’s anyone on the face of the earth who can really tell anyone else his (or her) playing days are over — until the player wants it to be that way. I mean, even if one is rejected numerous times, there are still usually plenty of other places to play.
I also tend to think that goaltenders can mature later than skaters. So, there is always the chance that a goalie can get better and better with age, and that he could pass by all the rest a few years down the road.
As an aside… Obviously, the latter is hardly do-able without a ton of work. And the kind of work I’d be envisioning would be Rocky Balboa style (if you know what I mean).
As far as future opportunities go, I will suggest that nearly everyone is a “walk-on” at Division II and III college hockey tryouts. In other words, there are few guarantees at those levels, and it’s more a matter of a player showing what he can do at the tryouts. Walk-on goalers have also been known to make it at Division I schools, although the chances probably aren’t all that great. Then, minor league professional hockey leagues abound — across North America and abroad, and these provide further opportunities for players to extend their playing days.
All that said, the day comes for all of us when we feel we’ve gone as far as our skills and energies will take us. And, when that day comes, I always like to see a player leave the competitive game with a good feeling — like he gave it his best, he attained the highest level he could, and he had a hell of a time along the way. (I’d also like to see him have a college degree in his back pocket.) For some of us, coming back to coach keeps us close to a game we grew to love, and it at least partially fills a certain void.
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PS: To be honest, I don’t think I’m any sort of authority on this subject. So, I would love for others to jump in here, in hopes you might shed a different light on things, and perhaps give this young man some even better advice.
