Behind the Bench

GBHA E-News | N.41
On Saturday night I was seated behind the Bears’ bench in Saskatoon during their Canada West 3-2 overtime quarter-final loss to the U of Saskatchewan Huskies. What I saw during that game, and afterwards, reminded me of how so very proud I am to be a Golden Bear Hockey Alumni member. It also made it abundantly clear to me why I’m so very much looking forward to seeing how we can further support the Bears as we approach a new season that brings with it some amazing opportunities to make our program stronger. And why you should be excited about next year, too. Saturday night’s game was a thriller. The Bears outshot and largely outplayed the Huskies in a gritty, scrappy game, blocking shots, taking and giving hard hits, killing penalties, driving to the net and doing everything they could to win the game. They came from behind twice – once in the last minute of the second period and again with less than a minute left in the third. The pics below show action as seen from behind the bench in the second period, Coach Herbers addressing the team during a time-out in the final minute of regulation time when they pulled the goalie with a man-advantage before scoring the final goal, sending it to overtime. The third pic shows the aftermath of the tying goal. The Huskies won it in OT, taking the best-of-three series after a 5-0 win over the Bears on Friday night.
It’s easy to be a supporter and a fan when you win, but the true mark of a program is how its members and supporters act after a loss. And in the face of adversity. This goes not only for the players, but also for all 600 of us GBHA members. In the hallway of the rink in Saskatoon after the game, outside the Bears’ dressing room, a number of the Bears players came up to me. They were disappointed in the outcome, for sure, but to a man, each and every one of them told me how proud they were of their team members. How each and every one of them was so sorry they couldn’t finish it off for the team. For each other. For the program. I met four parents of current Bears players after the game as well. And do you know what was the first thing that came up when they found out I represented the Golden Bears Hockey Alumni? To quote the mother of one of the players: “I want to tell you that our son so totally has bought into what it takes to be a Golden Bear. This program means so much to him, and I can’t thank everyone enough for what they are doing here. He has loved every minute of being a Golden Bear.” A father of a different player came over, shook my hand, and said this: “When our son started playing with the Bears, I had no idea how good this program is. The hockey’s great – we knew it would be. What’s amazing is how proud he is to be a part of it, and how tight these guys are together. That’s the biggest thing me and my wife take away from here. Thank you so much.” Wow. And all of this was after a loss that ended the season. To hear that, to see that, to feel that and to truly grasp that this is coming from young men who have chosen to play for us and represent our program, is so very rich. This is the outcome at the end of the year that counts. This is why we support our program the way we do. This is what we’re all about. Championships are what we all want, for sure. And again, nobody has more than our 16 national championships and 56 Canada West titles. But GM/Ass’t Coach Stan Marple and Coach Ian Herbers and their staff truly should be applauded and appreciated for the work they put in to recruit, train and guide these young men at a truly impactful stage of their lives. Focus on what we can control We all know about the challenges our program is facing with NCAA recruiting, with the Clare Drake Arena shutting down for at least a year, and with the move out to Silent Ice in Nisku for next year. I can assure you that the your current GBHA Board and Advisory Council are aware of all of these issues. What the NCAA does and what happens at The Drake is beyond our control. So let’s put that behind us, and instead of dwelling on the negatives, we’re going to focus on things we can control. And there are many, many things we in fact can control, and help make this upcoming year one of the most successful ever. The GBHA Board and Advisory council have already started to put into place the outline a program that will highlight all the very many positives of the move to Silent Ice. We’ve found a lead corporate sponsor already who will help underwrite the cost of a bus shuttle that will take U of A students from the North Campus out to the games. We have a full-time volunteer coordinator who will turn this into a “party bus” shuttle that will help attract the student fan base that is so key to the atmosphere at Silent Ice. FYI – the rink at the brand new Merlis Belsher Place that we hear so much about on the U of S campus in Saskatoon was quiet, dull and dark, compared to the atmosphere at The Drake. Barely half of the 2,700 seats were filled for a Saturday night playoff game. The student population was less than a quarter of that, by the looks of it. There is absolutely no doubt that the energy, ambiance and fun we’re going to have at Silent Ice next year will generate sell-out games and ton of fun next year. Believe me, we’re going to turn that rink into a place that everyone will want to go out and experience. Just last week a number of us went out to Silent Ice again, our third visit in less than a month. The management team there is so very open and helpful in supporting our ideas. There are dozens of things we’re going to be able to do for our fans, our corporate sponsors and our fellow Alumni that we’re going to roll out for you very soon. We’ll have more for you following our next Board meeting on Monday of next week. One of the things that gives me confidence that we’ll have a remarkable year next year is the strong support and leadership we’ve had from the GBHA group this past year. Your Board and Advisory Council together is the strongest GBHA leadership group that’s ever been put into place. They have an ambitious and doable agenda. They are results-focused, and represent multiple generations of Bears’ players, including national champions and Academic All-Canadians. This past season has seen enormous contributions for so very many individual GBHA members. Support for the casino, golf tournaments, scholarship donations, corporate sponsorship recruiting, and Bear Necessities Fund donations are all tangible, real and powerful. By our count, all of these together were the result of more than 385 individual Golden Bear Alumni members. Two former national championship teams have also shown exceptional leadership: the 1974-75 team, with Dale Henwood, Brian Middleton, Craig Styles and Bruce Crawford; and the 1985-86 team led by Jeff Helland, Dennis Cranston and Howie Draper. Both of these teams raised $10,000 each for the Bears’ scholarship effort this year, and both hosted successful team reunions over the past two years. As I drove back home from Saskatoon on Sunday morning, I couldn’t help but think of how fun this year ahead is going to be, and how important our work at the GBHA will be to continue the tradition of excellence that we’ve all contributed to the Golden Bears Hockey program. Next year, with your help, we’ll all be behind the bench, bigger and stronger than every before. Thank you for your interest and support. “Once a Bear, Always a Bear”