What Did NHLers have to do to make it

[start_today 770]

Gene pool and DNA do matter!!

Along with hardwork and dedication you just need to be a genetic freak. Not just size, but stamina and muscle twitch speed and other stuff I don't know what is. There's a reason so many guys who go pro in any sport also got scouted for other sports when they were younger. Their bodies are just better formed for given physical activity.

The same way good race horses come from good breeding lines, good athletes come from good "breeding lines" of parents who are probably athletic in someway.

[Slapshot 0]

I agree with Wolverine.

Also, Total Time on ICE - local rinks, back-yard rinks, ponds, etc....

[QandA 0]

BUT NOT IN HOCKEY! Not in a game where you have to learn a different form of locomotion.... skating.

- you can't pay for ice time, on your own

- you can't pay for the power skating, on your own

- you cant' haul yourself to the rink (5 days a week), on your own

It takes parental sacrifice (time, money & support) BEFORE anything else. Without it, the rest crumbles.

Every young athlete in every sport should be thanking their parents more often....... but none more than ice hockey players!!!!!!!!!

I call BS. I worked on my farm to pay for everything I had as a kid. I can remember being 6 years old and cleaning the cow stalls to pay for powerskating lessons. I would get out and shovel manure for new equipment too. Thats not to say my parents didn't do anything, but there was a lot I did on my end. I actually think farm work makes a player better. You're just naturally stronger, have a harder work ethic, and appreciate what you've got more.

They did however, drive me most of the time. Other times I'd walk about 2 kms with gear to get to the rink (mostly summer sessions)...

Thanks Dad!

It was your farm? I assume you mean your family farm. If so, who was paying you, your parents? Just because they made you earn the money doesn't mean it wasn't coming out of their pockets.

Just curious if you've ever worked on a farm chad? Most farms are family things, and most of the time when you refer to something like that you say mine. And instead of him doing the work, it could probably be a hired hand doing it, therefore the money is leaving the family. If he's working it might be coming out of his parents pockets, but it's staying in the family. My friend's father owns a 2000 acre potatoe farm, and he, my friend, has never earned a cent from a pay cheque, and puts in 70 hour weeks. Often times if he wants something reasonable, he gets it, but not nearly enough to be the equivalent of his pay cheque.

[LkptTiger 1]

Read the article about Patrick Kane in The Hockey News and the sacrifices his parents made for him.

Too bad his father is a huge tool. Pat is a great guy, but I remember not liking his father back when we were 7-8 years old - and it only got worse as we got older...and I don't think I'm the only one of Pat's former teammates who felt that way about him.

There was athing in the hockey news about how Pat Kane's parents spent over $200,000 in his career before the pro life.

Don't worry - they could afford it.

[cmvondran 0]

I'd have to throw in luck to the mix and being at the right place at the right time. Self dedication and being driven to push yourself.