For all you hockey fans that have been waiting for the simmering
summer to end, action on the ice is back.
For all you hockey fans that have been waiting for the simmering summer to end, action on the ice is back.
The San Jose Jr. Sharks will be putting its two best squads, the 16-and-under AAA and 18-and-under AAA boys, against some of the best youth clubs from across the country at Logitech Ice rink in San Jose this weekend for the 4th Annual Labor Day Kick-Off. The two Sharks teams, previously known as the San Jose Blades, will face squads from Los Angeles, Texas, Colorado and Alaska.
Most of the players have been hitting the ice since grade school and have hopes of continuing on to junior hockey (similar to a minor league) or college, if not the NHL. In June, defenseman Corbin McPherson became the first Jr. Shark player to be drafted. He was selected in the fourth round by the New Jersey Devils.
Chas Sudol, a 16 year old from Gilroy, has hopes of reaching the same heights as McPherson, but says he would be just as happy playing in hockey’s lower levels.
“I’m hoping that maybe college (is possible),” Sudol said. “For sure, college is number one after high school. If college doesn’t happen right away, then a junior team.”
Junior teams can often be a stepping stone to playing for four-year institutions. Sudol said many players tend to be in their late teens or early twenties before playing their first game of college hockey.
This weekend’s tournament is just a tune-up for a regular season that will take youngsters from around the Bay Area all over the country.
“This year I think were going to Ohio, Michigan, Chicago, L.A. a bunch of times and wherever there’s a tournament,” Sudol said.
For kids that are still managing a high school curriculum, its can be taxing.a
“Yeah, its pretty hard,” Sudol said. “It takes a lot of time management.”
18-year-old Morgan Hill resident Kyle Dutra agrees that it can be a lot to handle.
“It’s really hard actually. You gotta bring all your homework on trips and try to keep ahead of the game,” he said. “(But) it’s definitely worth it.”
What makes the Jr. Sharks so remarkable, is how competitive the teams are. Especially when you consider players would have to travel hundreds of miles just to find a patch ice big enough to do a pirouette.
“For our whole organization, were pretty much ranked in the top-10,” said Evan Greenwood, a Hollister resident that plays on the 18-and-under squad.
Greenwood and Sudol both got the bug by watching others play street hockey on rollerblades.
“It started out when I was 7 years old and my neighbor, Matt Simpson, was playing roller hockey and he gave me a pair of skates,” Sudol said. “And that was it.”
Greenwood saw his older brother playing and knew it was something he had to do.
Vice President of the Jr. Sharks, Tony Sudol – Chas’ father, knows plenty about this area’s passion for hockey, and thinks this is exactly the kind of action hard-core fans will appreciate.
“It’s fast, it’s just as physical, fighting is not legal, but everything else you see in the NHL – the contact and everything – is what you’ll see at this level as well,” he said. “These are very skilled young men.”
