The Blowout Game

So my son's U14 team recently took part in a showcase that was billed as "Tier 1".

First game was a 9-0 win.

Not competitive at all...but these things happen from time to time in youth hockey.

As with most hockey parents, I've been on both sides of that.

No big deal.

I really did't think too much of it.

Second game, though, was...34-0.

Maybe 36-0. Scoreboard stopped at 6 -- who knows.

Tier 1, huh?

So, there are a lot of things at play in a situation like this.

First off -- I want to say that it was heartwarming how this absolute ass-whipping was done respectfully.

And, I know, how can a 30+ goal differential be anything but disrepsectful?

I would not have believed it myself -- but at no point was there a goal celebration (it was 5-0 in the first 90 seconds), at no point did the other team start getting physical or going for cheapshots, and the opposing parents weren't up in arms over the situation either.

I don't think anything was agreed upon in advance but both coaches, both benches, and all of the parents seemed to have an understanding of what was taking place 15 seconds into the game.

The officials seemed a little baffled, though... Legit -- they seemed confused.

But, yeah, it was one of those...hey, there's a really good group of youth hockey people in here right now...

That doesn't happen often.

They knew they were heavily outmatched.

Both teams knew they were in a division they didn't belong.

Both teams also knew that this game was a waste of time for everyone involved.

Tons of blame to pass around.

I mean, who entered them into this showcase?

Who let them into this showcase?

Who sold the "Tier 1" level to our program when it was clear the field of teams was not of that level.

And who set up this draw?

Okay -- maybe 95% of the blame falls on the organizers...

100%, actually.

Money, man. Some folks are just in this for the money... Summer tourament teams, cough, cough...

None of that matters at this point -- the weekend has come and gone.

It is what it is.

No one's feathers were ruffled, no one got hurt, and no parent challenged another parent over their children's pride.

Dare I say it -- if this team were more local, we should mix the teams up and scrimmage every now and then.

Clearly level headed hockey families that "get it" -- not easy to get so many in the same room at the same time.

Side note -- one of my kids plays defense and a common complaint from teammates is that he's a drill buster, you now, breaking up offensive rushes before they even get going.

Kids slamming their sticks getting all bent out of shape or whatever.

I totally understand the frustration too.

I've always thought it would be a great idea, for offense oriented drills, to invite younger or lower level players to come in and play defense for these types of drills.

Serves two purposes -- first, it's not some kid just standing there backing up barely playing defense (which is often what the offense wants).

Instead, the less skilled players get reps trying to defend higher end players in a practice environment.

Second, it's a "lighter" defense that won't easily break up the offensive rushes or actual purpose of the drill.

Every player involved in the drill benefits.

The issue is, frequently, parents in the peanut gallery don't see the benefit -- either thinking their kids are unfairly outmatched or practicing against inferior competition.

They also happen to be the exact same parents that can't stand when the defense breaks up rushes in the neutral zone.

You just can't win sometimes...

Best drill I ever witnessed in youth hockey was a breakout drill for kids at the peewee age level...with first year squirts coming in on the forecheck.

Semi-realistic resistance and gameplay from an opponent that made the drill so much more effective.

Parents complained, though. Too many kids on the ice. Our team was supposed to have the whole sheet to themselves...

Classic "can't see the forest for the trees" situation...

But, what I really wanted to put out there is that weekends like this, when you step back and look at them, should make you appreciate how great your kids are at this sport.

Youth hockey is very compartmentalized -- you only really have your finger on the pulse of the level your child plays in.

I look at my kid and, yeah, he's okay.

Not going to the show, will probably play high school but, pretty good, I guess.

Middle of the pack at the AAA or Tier 1 level in New England.

No one is in awe saying, "Wow, look at that kid!"

And no one, that I know of, is thinking, "Jeez -- why is that kid even on the ice?"

And we're hard on our own kids more often than not but it's games like these, where it's 36-0, and your kid has, probably, 10 points, that you realize they're a more skilled player than probably 90% of the players their age playing hockey...because you so infrequently see ALL of the levels of kids their age playing hockey.

So, like, sure, while he often seems like a bottom 1% player out on the ice and it frustrates me to no end, the fact is, he's actually among the top 10%.

Perspective.

Another forest/trees type of thing.

And that's pretty special.

Now, for all of the negative nellies that think a 36-0 score is disrespectful no matter how you slice it... having been on both sides of a game like this more times that I want to admit to, you know what the worst feeling in the world is?

Like, what's really demoralizing?

It's when one team goes out and thinks it's doing the "right" thing by making 5 passes before shooting or, worse, not shooting at all.

It feels right...but it isn't.

That's where games like this get ugly.

Mmmm...45 minutes of playing keep away.

Monkey in the middle sucks when you're the monkey.

That's disrespectful.

At the end of the day, kids want to play hockey -- the score doesn't matter at a certain point.

The secret ingredient here is respect.

Kids weren't celebrating goals.

Kids weren't showboating.

No one was getting leveled.

No between the legs nonsense.

No Michigan attempts.

No obnoxious music between play.

No pointing at the scoreboard.

The temperature in the room never raised -- no one was getting frustrated. Not even their goaltender.

One of those rare lightning in a bottle moments.

Good parents. Good coaches. Good players.

Terrible showcase.

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