Why, as a parent, I have a new appreciation for hockey

I really hope hockey survives in the Pacific Northwest.

It should. The sport is so fast that it poses a significant barrier to entry to learning how it is played and how to track the puck. It takes a commitment that not every sports fan is willing to make, especially later in their viewing life. But that same fast pace that makes it difficult to watch at first ultimately gives the game all its excitement, and it's why I've loved watching it all my life.

But I see it in a new way now.

My youngest daughter Cecily started skating a few years ago, chose to participate in the Learn to Play Hockey class for kids at the Kraken Community Iceplex in Northgate, and played for one of their 10U teams this year. Yes, they have three 10U teams, and they're just for girls! They play on half ice (although they are about to go full sheet for a tournament in British Columbia), but the quality of play blew me away. The girls are faster than I remember, our high school girls team in the 90's. (I may not have attended a great football or basketball school, but we had an excellent hockey team that plays in one of the elite conferences in the country).

The Kraken may not be doing well with their NHL roster, but in true Tod Leiweke fashion, they are building a fan base in this community for the long term. He knows people are more likely to watch the sport if they understand it, and one of the best ways to not only learn, but appreciate the sport is to play it.

Of course, we have another problem: the cost of equipment (skates, helmet, pads, etc.) that no parent wants to spend, especially if their child does not participate.

With that in mind, the team will purchase your first piece of equipment (at least for kids ages 4 to 9 who sign up for their Try Hockey for Free program). If you hate, no problem; you didn't spend too many resources on it. But if you love it, you're probably hooked and now you'll want to play and watch for a lifetime.

The benefits, at least for Cecily and from what I've seen from her teammates, have been great. There aren't many contact sports options, especially for girls. Football and basketball can be physical, but playing them that way as a kid tends to leave you with a lot of bumps and bruises. Hockey provides even more physicality, but (at least at this age) without injuries thanks to the pads, helmets and face masks. And it's amazing to see how confident the girls are both on the ice and how quickly they are progressing.

Honestly, watching it is quite intoxicating. Cecily has improved immensely in her last three matches, going from hesitant and barely clear of her own crease in game one to scoring seven goals. As a parent, it was incredibly rewarding. I'm rearranging my schedule to go to Vancouver for a weekend tournament and canceling plans so we can attend an outdoor tournament in Winthrop next month.

But it's more than just seeing her succeed. It's about seeing her overcome a challenge and overcome something difficult. Ice hockey is difficult. You have to learn to skate, and then you can learn everything else. And there are many moments along the way when it feels overwhelming.

And I felt a little guilty that she was going through it alone.

I learned to skate as a child, but not with any real ambition. I got to the point where I could skate counterclockwise on an ice rink, but that was about it. As an adult, I've finally figured out how to skate backwards, but transitioning from one to the other is still a big challenge. Don't ask me to stop without the help of the planks. But I played basketball throughout my childhood and enjoyed working with Cecily as she learned that sport, so why not try learning hockey with her too?

This week I dusted off some gear and hit the ice for a drop-in session with one of the other dads who also coaches a youth team. And after an exhausting hour, I can confidently say that I can't do anything better on the ice than my fifth-grade daughter. She's faster than me, shoots better than me, can turn better than me, you name it. And while that's certainly humbling, I'm excited about the challenge of doing something difficult.

This will be the third sport I've tried to learn as an adult, after golf and skiing. I believe that it will be especially challenging to learn all three later in life, but it is this difficulty that has kept me hooked on golf in particular.

There is no doubt that hockey will be just as tough. I spent an hour trying to convince my body to follow the brain as it was told to turn its skates and come to a stop. But to no avail, my body has suffered too many falls and is simply not willing to comply with this direct command, at least not yet. Hopefully it will eventually listen, because I would love to play with other adults in the Seattle League, but more importantly, I would love to play with Cecily. Every sports dad knows that the time spent working and playing together is priceless, and has already brought us closer together.

Like I said, I hope hockey really catches on in this region. A better NHL product will certainly help (and the Kraken may need to make a change in the front office to finally make that happen). We may be in line for a Pro Womens Hockey League team. My family recently attended a barnstorming event for that league at the Climate Pledge Arena, which was packed with passionate fans (many of them young women like my daughters) and the quality and physicality of the play was tremendous.

But nothing can take the place of playing a sport, especially during childhood, and it will take years for this generation to grow into fans who devote their time and money to the product. In the meantime, consider getting your child on the ice or even try it together. At worst, it will be a fun bonding experience that will give you an appreciation for how talented these athletes are. At best, you'll have a new, lifelong obsession. You can't lose!

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