Girl power

So how often has that phrase been coined? Countless times and I don’t think we’ll hear the last of it.

It’s true that hockey has been a male dominated arena, but women have made great strides through the years to get on the map and stand alone as a power force.

Yesterday as I watched a hockey clinic at my neighborhood rink, I noticed a young female goalie on the ice. I’m guessing she plays pee wee or bantam. Hard to say given that she was a little taller and far more advanced in skills than the other 3 goalies on the ice. Needless to say, she symbolizes how different the boys and the girls are on the ice and the learning curve at a young age.

It brought me back to when I worked with some minor league female goalies, pee wee and midget level. If I can identify an immediate difference, it would be that when in a group, the girls get real chatty, but when 1 on 1, their focus is very high and you can see the concentration as they execute the drills. It’s seems to be the opposite for boys. Of course, as the level progresses (midget and up), the level of maturaty seems to equal itself across the board.

All this to say that, although there are so few female goalies on my side of the river (Gatineau), what I see is impressive and is without a doubt good competition for the guys to worry about.

So keep it up! Work hard, pay close attention, keep a high focus and sooner or later, maybe some of the boys will be asking you for some of that "girl power" to help elevate their game.

Hope you’re having a great start to the season!

Stop you later,
Rich