Watch above: Life can be difficult at times for junior hockey players as they chase their dreams. Kim Thue looks at how they deal with balancing life on and off the ice.
SASKATOON – Balancing life on and off the ice for players in the Western Hockey League (WHL) can be difficult at times. Some take on the task in their hometown, while others hit the road at a very young age to chase their hockey dreams.
Cameron Hebig is only a couple months away from graduating. He’s spent grades 10 thru 12 at the same high school, which has helped the Saskatoon Blades forward manage the balancing act of playing in the WHL and getting good grades.
“(It’s a) hectic schedule, so I just have to keep up with school work and we’re on the road lots so getting sleep and eating healthy (is important),” admitted Hebig. “Staying at my high school my whole high school career is nice and I get to know the teachers there, so they know my schedule. It’s awesome playing at home.”
Most junior hockey players don’t have the same luxury as Hebig.
“The first few times I left home I could see some tears in my parents eyes. My mom was crying,” recalls Brett Stovin.
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The former Saskatoon Blades captain first left his home of Stony Mountain, Man. when he was just 16 to play junior hockey with the Blades.
“I had a girlfriend back home and I had all my family and everything. I came out here (to Saskatoon) thinking I’d be gone for three weeks and I was here for three months.”
Stovin got the call back up to the Blades one more time that year before becoming a WHL regular the following season. He’s knows firsthand what’s it is like leaving home, the difficulties of being a WHL rookie and the effect it also has on a young man’s education.
The now 20-year-old also knows what it takes it grow up fast.
“It’s extremely tough, especially on a young guy in high school if he’s getting called up and sent back down. It hurts your marks,” claims Stovin.
“You got to grow up. You got to come to the rink and take care of yourself. And on top of taking care of yourself, you’re a rookie and you have your rookie duties. You can go from a kid in one week to a man the next week.”
READ MORE: Saskatoon Blades captain ready to say goodbye to junior career
While Hebig continues his junior career at home and Stovin ends his on the road, Nelson Nogier relates with both players. The Winnipeg Jets prospect played his first 128 games of his junior career in his hometown of Saskatoon before being traded to Red Deer.
Nogier excelled in the classroom while in the Bridge City, earning WHL scholastic player of the year honours in 2013-14.
After graduating that year, and now away from home, the 18-year-old is able to put all his resources into his hockey career.
“Once I got word that I was on the move, it was time to focus on hockey,” expressed the six-foot three defenseman. “Now that I’m living away from home, hockey seems to be a little more isolated, so it’s a little more easier to focus to make sure you are always putting out every night.”
While Nelson is able to concentrate more on hockey, his parents now watch him from a distance for the first time in 18 years.
“As a family, we are out of the loop,” conceded Nogier’s father Pat. “We had the luxury of what was going on on the inside and having some of the guys come over which was always nice to have. Now when you talk to your son it’s about making sure he has gas money, he’s getting fed and all those little important things.”
“We miss having him around, but know it’s an important part of his development,” added Pat.
Whether junior hockey players are at home or on the road, what you see on the ice on a nightly basis is only a small portion of their life.
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