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A Message To
Parents
Dear Parents,
As a former NHL player and Stanley Cup Champion I often try
and think back to what I did that allowed me to continue improving my game
year after year, eventually achieving what many told me was unachievable.
There were certainly many factors, some of which I may never be aware.
But understand this, I had no special gifts or talents…and in fact as a
youngster there were many players better than I. So what happened to
those kids along the way? The answer is … lots of things happened. I
could write a book on the many possibilities of why they, for lack of a
better word, failed. Not the least of which was what many call
“burn-out”. They played a lot of hockey and naturally they improved more
quickly. However, several years later they got tired and lost ambition.
The game wasn’t as much fun, their improvement slowed and in many cases
stopped. Too much, too soon! There is a fine line and there is no
universal answer for parents as to how much hockey is too much for their kids.. We know that kids need to play to get better but how can we do that
without risking this “burn-out” factor? My answer is Cross Ice Hockey
games. The player benefits are many and the game is far different
than traditional hockey games. There are no coaches, no on-ice
referee’s, no stoppage of play and no formal scoring…the kids track the
score themselves. The kids just play! It is what I call
organized “shinny” hockey.
The cross ice game is not an innovative concept and is used
today by many coaches at all levels. When I played at Boston University
and in the NHL it was a common form of training and practice. I, as do
many other knowledgeable hockey people, believe cross ice hockey games
need to become more widespread among our youth. The founding of The
National Cross-Ice Hockey League (The XHL), a non-profit organization,
hopes to make cross-ice hockey a more common child development tool. It
is fast, fun and exciting! Give it a try.
Sincerely,
Ed Ronan
President The XHL
Stanley Cup Champion 1993
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