Plano DSYHL mini-mite shootout at the AAC 03/12/10

My son Josh participating in the Mini-Mite Shoot Out at the AAC during the 1st period break of the Stars vs Kings game on March 13, 2010. These kids are 5 to 7 yr olds in the Dallas Stars Youth Hockey League and the Dallas Stars were so gracious to allow these little players to experience a shootout in front of thousands of NHL fans. It is one of the unique benefits of playing in the DSYHL league. My little one is the #23 goalie in green jersey. He is only 5yrs old and had just one practice session on ice with the pads. I had him remember just 3 important points:

1) Stay on the crease - challenge the shooter and make them shoot wide and too early
2) Keep the paddle in front of the 5-hole and the catcher high, keeping the stick-elbow up high so the paddle rests flat on the ice.
3) Face the puck where ever its at (he was tested on this when facing the second skater and did well!)

The pads and stick were a bit big, but then he borrowed them from his older brother (8yr old) who played a season as goalie. He had a real hard time with butterfly drops (pads too wide) so opted to play "stand-up" style.

Josh is a huge fan of Steve Ott, Marty Turco, and Mike Modano but wants to play for either the Mighty Ducks or the Penguins (Mostly since he thinks their jerseys look pretty cool). Although he loves to shoot on net and practices just about every day after school perfecting his roofing shots, he jumped all over the chance to play as goalie for this shoot-out. Go figure!

Many thanks to the Dallas Stars organization and DSYHL for giving these kids a life-long memorable experience. They are doing a great job of promoting youth hockey in Texas and making hockey a growing popular sport in the South!

Category:

Sports

Tags:

• DSYHL
• plano
• mini
• mite
• hockey
• texas

[MTLElitedMTL]

Look the goalie pads...

[tivo999999999]

I was at this game.

[7820chris]

look at the girls!