Last week, the Goalie Magazine was born. The inaugural article was entitled, “Passion”. In it, I talked about a bit about ups and downs.
There is no greater “up” in sport than winning a Championship and no greater “down” than losing one. Winning a Championship is a mark of greatness. Greatness is a pursuit that motivates every athlete and captures the imagination and speaks to the emotions of every fan. Achieving greatness results in exhilaration beyond most other experiences. Contrarily, losing a Championship when it is within one’s grasp, elicits a feeling of numbness that is so pervasive that it permeates the soul.
The wonderful thing about sport is anything can happen. One can never be certain of a game’s outcome. The battle that wages between one opponent and another for the right to be called a champion is usually fierce; with the emotional stakes so high it is naturally so. This week we hear first hand from a player who this time last season experienced what being a champion is like, but suffered the harshest of blows Sunday in defeat.
Michael Ouzas, a senior, is in his final season with the University of New Brunswick men’s hockey team. On Sunday, UNB competed for the title of Canadian University National Champion. It is the Canadian equivalent of winning the NCAA Frozen Four Men’s Hockey Championship. A year ago they were victorious setting off a weeklong celebration. This time they lost in the final game by one goal.
I have asked Mike to talk about the experience of winning and losing. It is something everyone must deal with during his or her life and therefore, I thought it would be an interesting and educational topic to explore. His article follows this one below.
At this point, however, I will digress and expand upon the theme of dealing with ups and downs. In doing so, I will take you on a journey that has been Michael Ouzas’s hockey career thus far. I am sure you will find it inspiring.
Ups and Downs
Mike has experienced ups and downs in his hockey career no different than many others. The first goalie chosen in his OHL draft year, Mike was considered a top prospect. He arrived at his first OHL camp prepared as always and ready to compete for a place on the team.
The coach was immediately critical of Mike’s style and banished him to the stands for the season as the third string goalie. It was only years later that the incompetence of the coach and his inadequate leadership abilities came to light - no consolation to Mike at the time. The circumstance was beyond his control and he lost a key development year. He played only a handful of games, all for an affiliated squad that competed in a league below the OHL.
Mike’s passion for the game kept him going. He remained determined to prove that he could play. Returning next season and trying to make the team under the same coach was like walking into the snake pit for the second time. He had no choice as the megalomaniac coach inexplicably refused to trade him in the off-season.
Faced with being a victim of a coach who had no interest in the development of a young player, Mike could have succumbed to the odds that were stacked against him. Instead he hung in there. After being the odd man out for the first part of his second season and watching the action once again from the stands, Ouzas was finally traded to another team.
Normally being traded would give a player new life. However, in this case, only barely did it do so. He was traded to a team that had a second round NHL draft pick as its first string goalie. Mike started a mere nineteen games that season, bringing his total OHL game experience over two years to nineteen games out of roughly one hundred and thirty.
Although what he went through was trying and he felt frustrated and discouraged at times, Ouzas’s resolve remained steadfast. He kept a positive attitude and his work ethic was second to none. Mike would consistently be the first player on the ice and the last off. After practice, he would head to the gym religiously to get into top physical condition. When he wasn’t playing he would cheer on his teammates. He steadily improved as the season progressed and performed well in the games that he started.
The off-seasons for Ouzas are a time to get into incredible physical condition. For five days a week over three to four months, “Ouzie” outworks everyone. He arrived at training camp for his third OHL season prepared and ready, only to be faced with the prospect of being a back-up once again - last season’s excellent first string goalie was still ahead on the depth chart.
Mike persevered, never complained and always made sure to remain on top of his game and ready for any opportunity at any time. The coach, realizing that his second string goalie deserved a chance to play more and knowing he would not get that opportunity with the team, traded Mike so that he could get a new start.
Now the kid is going to get the break he deserves right? Wrong. Ouzas was traded to a team that rode another second round NHL draft pick to the previous season’s OHL finals. Once again he was faced with being a backup to another stud goaltending prospect. That would have been enough to make most individuals all but pack it in. Mike, however, approached the trade with the attitude that he was going to prove that he was better than the incumbent goaltender.
For whatever reason the first-string goalie struggled that season and every time Mike was given a start he excelled. After about a month of watching the starter perform poorly and Ouzas play well whenever he got the net, the coach made the decision to make Ouzas his go to guy. “Ouzie” played almost every game over the final two thirds of the season and was sensational. He performed so magnificently that he was named the OHL Goalie of the Year. It is an extremely prestigious award that has been won in the past by Hall of Famers, Stanley Cup Champions, Vezina Trophy and NHL Rookie of the Year winners.
His is a story of perseverance through odds that at one time seemed insurmountable. Not only did an incompetent and ruthless coach bury him, he had to play successively behind two top NHL draft picks. For those of you who are considered small, you can be encouraged that Mike stands only 5’10” (max). He not only had to deal with negative circumstances that were beyond his control, but he had to deal with the prejudice of being a small goalie as well.
Mike finished his fourth and final season in the OHL as a highly regarded first string goalie who knocked off one of the powerhouse teams in the first round of the playoffs largely due to his leadership between the pipes. Considered too small to play professionally, he was bypassed by the NHL and has been forced to play College hockey.
Last year his College team won the national championship and this season his squad was runner up. He was named an All-Star in both seasons. Mike will graduate with a University degree this spring after two years. The normal time it takes to earn a degree is four years. Consistent with Mike’s approach, he took extra courses during the summers and an extra course load during the school year so that he could graduate well ahead of schedule. He has done this while maintaining a full-time job and strenuous workout regimen during the summer months.
The twenty-two year old from Hamilton, Ontario will attempt to pursue a professional career next season. Whatever happens in regards to hockey, one can be sure that “Ouzie” will be successful in whatever field he chooses to focus on. His passion for hockey, for life, for success and for fulfillment can never be discounted. Character such as his endures and prevails. Winston Churchill once said, “Victory is never final, defeat is never fatal. All that counts is courage”. Mike has plenty of courage. One can add passion to that as well.
I hope you are inspired by his approach to situations that many of you may have faced in one way or another. His article on winning and losing appears below.
Jon Elkin
