When Dean King moved to Hollister from Calgary in the early 1990s, he never expected to find good enough ice to play hockey on and teach his three children the sport he grew up loving. But after having season tickets for the San Jose Sharks during their first six years of existence, he was told a revelation. The Sharks themselves had a ice skating facility that was open to the public.
Today, King and his kids make the trip to Sharks Ice in downtown San Jose nearly six times a week. His oldest daughter, Corissa King, 13, is now a full fledged hockey player – a somewhat rarity for a town more know for the rodeo, softball and football.
“It’s a sport that like no one knows about,” she said laughing. “I love playing it because I’m one of two people at my school to actually play the sport of hockey. Most people do rodeo, basketball or softball. But I’m one of the people that does the sport that nobody knows about. I have to explain to people that I play ice hockey and I have to tell them how to play the game.”
Having played the sport since she was eight, King is a member of the Jr. Sharks girls 14U AAA team. It’s the highest ranked team among her age group affiliated with the Sharks. And on Wednesday, King and the Sharks opened the 2013 National Championship tournament at Sharks Ice. The Sharks will play throughout the weekend leading to Sunday’s 11:45 championship game.
For King, the experience of playing in the National Championship is a dream come true.
“I’m very excited,” she said. “This is the first time being to the National Championship. It’s very exciting. It’s big for San Jose because we don’t have very many tournaments. It’s huge for San Jose. We have a lot of hockey stores that are just opening for nationals.”
For her dad, the availability of hockey in the region has been a blessing, he said.
“It builds team and teamwork,” he said. “It keeps them out of trouble and it makes them really focus on getting their homework done. They want to get their homework done because they know when they get that done they are off to their rink.”
And that love for hockey started the moment they stepped on the ice more than five years ago, Dean King said.
“When I found out about this place I brought the kids by and it was almost love at first sight with them,” he said. “There were into it right away.”
Corissa King said she fell in love with the sport the moment she went onto the ice thanks to her dad’s heritage.
“Well, my dad is Canadian,” she said. “So I’m half Canadian and I love hockey. It’s in my blood. My dad, when he was little, used to play pond hockey in Canada. That’s what grabbed my attention. I love hockey.”
For the younger King, hockey is a release of some sort. No matter what happens during a day, the moment she touches the ice, it’s all forgotten.
“I just enjoy being able to be on the ice,” she said. “When I’m on the ice after I have a bad day at school or a bad day at home, I forget about everything. I forget everything and now I’m playing my favorite sport. I don’t have to worry about anything.”
And King hopes to carry hockey into a collegiate or international career, she said. Eventually she wants to play for Cornell and the USA Olympic Team. After scoring five goals in consecutive games, she is finding that confidence to get there.
“I’ll definitely keep on going with the sport of hockey,” she said.
The Sharks play the third game of the tournament at 1 p.m. Friday at the North Rink at San Jose Ice.
