level to the next and had a fu-
ture life path – and hockey
path – laid out for
him. It would also
be wrong.
It
hasn’t
been that
easy for
C y l e
McNabb. As a 12-year-old, he lost his dad, Jamie, to can-
cer. The world changes pretty quickly when your dad is
no longer around. No longer around the house, no lon-
ger around your life and, yes, no longer around to take
you to the rink and encourage your efforts and point out
those areas that need work.
“I started hockey a little later than most people,” he said
matter-of-factly. “I started when I was nine. I played with
the Varsity View Falcons and went on to the Winnipeg Mon-
archs and now RHA. I always thought I was quicker at devel-
oping and I see now that I‘m still developing and a lot of kids
aren’t. I guess, because I started later, I had that much more
developing to do.
“The most influential person in my life? Probably my mom.
Since she’s a single parent, she has to do way more than oth-
2017 CHAMPIONS EDITION
GAME ON 55