Hockey Manitoba says...
‘Kids, play other sports’
By Scott Taylor, Photo credit Bruce Fedyck and Dave Darichuk/courtesy Shane Moffatt
Wayne Gretzky always believed
that in the summer, it was time to
throw his hockey equipment in the
basement and bring out his ball
glove and spikes. For two of the top
young teenaged hockey players in the
province, Canada’s Game is great, but
baseball is pretty important, too. Not
surprisingly, Hockey Manitoba agrees.
Brody and Joey Moffatt are two
of the best young hockey players in
Manitoba.
Brody is 16 and is playing in his
second season playing for the Central
Plains Capitals in the Manitoba Triple
A Midget Hockey League. This fall,
he attended the training camp of the
Western Hockey League’s Calgary
Hitmen, although he didn’t sign. He’s
still thinking about the WHL, but he’s
also hoping that he might play Jr. A
hockey and then earn himself an NCAA
Division 1 scholarship.
Joey is 14 and plays Bantam Triple
A for Central Plains. This is a huge
year for Joe. He’s currently one of the
highest-rated Manitoba players in the
Western Hockey League’s bantam draft.
For an accomplished 14-year-old kid in
his WHL draft year, there is always a tad
too much pressure.
However, pressure of not, Joey and
Brody have vowed not to give up one
important part of their life for hockey –
baseball.
For example, young Joe, a Grade 9
student at Portage Collegiate, played
baseball last summer with the Portage
Bantams and the Triple A team out of
Pembina Hills.
“Yeah, I’m a pitcher and I have a
fastball, curve ball and side-arm slider,”
said Joey. “I love playing ball. I wouldn’t
be able to choose between hockey and
baseball. I wouldn’t quit playing either
one just to, maybe, be able to play the
other one a little better.”
Brody, a Grade 11 student at Portage
Collegiate, played on U-16 Team
Manitoba this summer, and is one of
the top young players in the province.
“I don’t think I could make a choice
of one over the other,” Brody said. “I
like both games too much. I want to
keep playing both.”
Not surprisingly, Hockey Manitoba
agrees. Last month, the governing
body for hockey in Manitoba sent out
a release encouraging young players to
play other sports.
“Hockey Manitoba is pleased
to release the following multisport promotional initiative aimed
to enhance long-term player
development for young hockey
players,” the association said in a
written statement.
“Hockey Manitoba’s
Better Athlete, Better
Hockey Player initiative
offers an unprecedented
multi-sport promotion by
hockey’s governing body
in Manitoba. The initiative
is intended to add further
awareness from an official
standpoint regarding the
importance of young players to
develop a strong foundational
base for physical literacy and
athleticism; with the primary
objective of educating parents,
coaches, and players about
these benefits in developing
better hockey players.”
Joey Moffatt
In other words, don’t play
hockey 12 months of the year,
10 / sportslife
Brody Moffatt
kids. Play soccer, play baseball, heck,
play roller hockey. Just take some time
off from the game. Burn out is still an
issue and Hockey Manitoba should be
commended for en