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Monthly Archives: July 2015

Jamaica’s jammin’ in Rogers Sportsnet hockey profile

14 Tuesday Jul 2015

Posted by William Douglas in Uncategorized

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Graeme Townshend, Jamaica hockey

When it comes to ice hockey, Jamaica is Hotter Than July – at least interest in the effort to build a Jamaican Olympic hockey team is.

Years after hiring coaches and management and months after holding player tryouts, Jamaica debuted an exhibition team of mostly Canadian-Caribbean players that almost won a tournament in Ontario earlier this month.

 Jamaica was jammin' at a tournament in Nottawasaga, Ont., earlier this month but lost by a goal in championship game (Photo/@GameDayPhoto).

Jamaica was jammin’ at a tournament in Nottawasaga, Ont., earlier this month but lost by a goal in championship game (Photo/@GameDayPhoto).

The team played well and looked gaudy good in Jamaican green, yellow, and black jerseys (I want one!).  Rogers Sportsnet Producer Jason Thom and his crew recently did an excellent piece on the Jamaican drive and the team’s head coach, retired National Hockey League forward  Graeme Townshend, who was the league’s first Jamaican-born player. Below is the segment, courtesy of the good folks at Sportsnet.

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There’s no “off” in off-season for NHL prospects, undrafted players

13 Monday Jul 2015

Posted by William Douglas in Uncategorized

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Bowling Green State University, Dajon Mingo, Kenoi Texeira, Portland Winterhawks, Washington Capitals

In summertime, ice hockey rinks become lands of hopes and dreams.

While it’s lazy, hazy days outside, can’t-miss prospects and undrafted players are hard at work at training facilities throughout the National Hockey League, hoping to catch a coach’s eye and dreaming of earning a spot on an NHL club or a place in its minor league system.

Keoni Texeira, a defenseman last season for the Western Hockey League’s  Portland Winterhawks, was ranked the 143rd-best North American prospect by the NHL’s Central Scouting Service but wasn’t chosen by any team at the 2015 NHL Draft last month.

Portland defenseman Keoni Texeira.

Portland defenseman Keoni Texeira.

The 18-year-old California native’s disappointment from being passed over quickly turned to elation when he received a telephone call from the Washington Capitals inviting him to the team’s development camp as an undrafted free agent.

“The draft obviously didn’t go the way I was hoping for but I’m happy I get a chance to come here. It’s a great opportunity and a Class-A organization,” Texeira said after a vigorous practice session last week at the Capitals’ practice rink in Virginia. “They called me a few hours after the draft. I wanted to come to the Capitals camp because I like their system and I think I would fit great in their system.”

Texeira sored eight goals, 18 assists and had a plus/minus rating of plus-32 in 71 regular season games in 2014-15 for Portland. He tallied two goals, three assists and was a plus-two in 17 playoff games for the Winterhawks.

Not bad for a Fontana, Calif., kid who started out in roller hockey but switched to ice at age six. He got the hockey bug from his Hawaiian father and Canadian mother.

Undrafted, Texeira, left, tried to make a good impression as a Washington Capitals development camp invitee.

Undrafted, Texeira, left, tried to make a good impression as a Washington Capitals development camp invitee.

“My grandpa and dad were from the Big Island,” he said. “My dad came over from Hawaii when he was about 10, my mom came over from Canada when she was 14-15 years-old.  My dad played roller hockey at the local ice rink with one of our neighbors who was from Toronto. He loved hockey, so he got my dad involved in roller hockey. My dad and mom both loved hockey so they decided to put me in roller hockey, and I loved it.”

Texeira had a solid season in Portland last year, it wasn’t enough to keep the Winterhawks from being ousted from the WHL’s Western Conference Final by the Kelowna Rockets and defenseman Madison Bowey, a top Capitals prospect.

Bowey attended Washington’s development camp and Texeira stayed close to him on the ice, hoping to pick up some tips from the organization’s 2013 second-round draft pick.

“He’s been here for a while, knows all the ropes and tricks and he gives out some good advice,” Texeira said with a smile. “Coming into camp, I’m just trying to make a great  impression, a good first impression, so it’s great to follow a guy like that.”

Bowling Green's Dajon Mingo.

Bowling Green’s Dajon Mingo.

While Texeira was thrilled to be at the Capitals’ camp, defenseman Dajon Mingo looked like the happiest man at the Kettler Capitals Iceplex whenever he was on the ice. The diminutive Bowling Green State University player, another undrafted invitee, had a perpetual smile on his face, no matter how difficult the drill or strenuous the workout.

“I like to smile, I like to have fun out there,” said Mingo, a Canton, Mich., native. “Without fun, I’m not playing at my best. So I’m always smiling. Even if I mess up, I’m going to smile because I’m going to learn from my mistakes.”

Mingo, 25, aspires to go pro, but he’s in no rush. With one more season of eligibility left at Bowling Green, he viewed his attendance at the Capitals camp as an investment for the future.

Thanking the @washcaps for. Great development camp and a great experience… Had fun and enjoyed every bit of it pic.twitter.com/OguYfJvqAI

— Dajon Mingo¯_(ツ)_/¯ (@_HoldTheMustard) July 12, 2015

“Obviously, everyone’s dream is to play in the NHL, but I wouldn’t mind going to the AHL (American Hockey League) and working my way up,” he said. “But I want to finish college first. I have one more year at Bowling Green and after that, we’ll see what happens.”

A lot has already happened in Mingo’s hockey career, a path that’s best described as a series of conversions. Mingo was a figure skater as a child, but switched to hockey when it was suggested that he become his sister’s doubles skating partner.

“It was my sister. If it was someone else, that would have been okay with me,” he said with a laugh. “So I tried out hockey. I already had the speed and all that for hockey. All I needed was to learn how to shoot, stop on my left foot. It took me, maybe, a couple of years to get the puck off the ice. But after that, it came easy.”

From figure skater to forward to defenseman. Mingo hopes to make one more switch - to NHL player.

From figure skater to forward to defenseman. Mingo hopes to make one more switch – to NHL player.

Initially, Mingo was a forward, and a pretty good one. He led the United States Hockey League’s Des Moines Buccaneers in goals with 24 in 2010-11 and was tied for second on the team in overall points with 35.

Mingo was Bowling Green’s third-leading scorer in 2012-13, his freshman season, with 22 points – eight goals, 14 assists in 41 games. But despite his scoring touch, Mingo’s coach asked him to switch to defense.

The 5-foot-8 player responded by scoring a goal and nine assists in 39 games last season.  He was tied for fourth on the team in blocked shots with 35. In a weekend series against Northern Michigan, he registered a goal, two assists, a plus-four rating, and seven blocked shots.

“To be honest, our coach wanted a better D-corps because we were running low on D,” Mingo said. “After that, I had a good season, so I’m strictly defense now. I like it, I get to see the ice a lot. When I take the puck up from behind the net, I like to look left, right and center, I can see everything.”

But Mingo admits that he’s still a work in progress on the blue line.

“My positioning, my stick-work and footwork as a defenseman,” he listed as areas that need improvement. “I know I’m good on my feet, but you’re learning in hockey everyday, particularly as a first-year defenseman.”

Mingo was surprised that the Capitals invited him to camp, but never asked anyone in the organization why they did.

“No,” he said with that perpetual smile. “I just came.”

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Everything’s irie – well, almost – for Jamaican ice hockey effort

06 Monday Jul 2015

Posted by William Douglas in Uncategorized

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Jamaica, Winter Olympics

Look out hockey world, a cool breeze is blowing in hot from the Caribbean.

The Jamaican Olympic ice hockey effort put an Under-18 team on ice over the weekend at a tournament at the Nottawasaga Inn Resort & Conference Centre in Alliston, Ont.

Jamaica's exhibition hockey team fell one win short of a tournament championship over the weekend (Photo/@GameDayPhoto).

Jamaica’s exhibition hockey team fell one win short of a tournament championship over the weekend (Photo/@GameDayPhoto).

The team, comprised mostly of Canadian players of Caribbean heritage, won three games but wound up on the short end of a 4-3 score in the championship game. Still, just being in the tourney was a symbolic victory for the Jamaican Olympic Ice Hockey Federation in its drive to form a team to compete in the Winter Olympics in the near future.

Not the final result we wanted (4-3 loss) but these boys won the hearts and imaginations of a whole… https://t.co/r6Oa8Spf11

— Jamaica Ice Hockey (@JOIHT) July 5, 2015

JOIHF entered the exhibition squad in the tourney to show potential players, donors, and Jamaicans on the island nation and throughout North America that it’s serious about its Olympic quest.

There are still obstacles to overcome, mainly funding and the lack of an ice skating rink in Jamaica. International Ice Hockey Federation rules require members to have ice hockey facilities in their countries.

JOIHF officials say they’re working to overcome the hurdles. In the meantime, the organization gets major points for coming up with the most bad-ass home and away hockey jerseys on the planet.

Jamaica's looking good, and playing sharp wearing one of the best international unis around (Photo/@GameDayPhoto).

Jamaica’s looking good, and playing sharp wearing one of the best international unis around (Photo/@GameDayPhoto).

The showing by Jamaica comes on the heels of Haiti capturing the Gold Medal in the B Pool of the International Street and Ball Hockey world championship last month in Zug, Switzerland. The team was made up of mostly Haitian-Canadians players from the Montreal area. Its assistant coach and lead fund-raiser was former NHL enforcer Georges Laraque.

Kyle Bollers scores the first goal for Jamaica U16 Team in their first game. More images http://t.co/wlamhysNfi pic.twitter.com/IyACGcwor1

— Game Day Photography (@GameDayPhoto) July 4, 2015

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Hockey sends Jalen Smereck from one Motown to another

05 Sunday Jul 2015

Posted by William Douglas in Uncategorized

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Cameron Burt, Detroit Hockey Association, Hockey is for Everyone, Oshawa Generals, Tarasai Karega

Jalen Smereck hopes to move from one Motor City to another.

The Detroit native has committed to the defending Memorial Cup champion Oshawa Generals this coming season. A left-shooting defenseman, Smereck was drafted by the Ontario Hockey League Generals in 2013 with the 299th overall pick.

He played for the Bloomington Thunder after that team selected him in the first round with the 18th overall pick of the 2014 United States Hockey League Phase II Draft. He scored three goals and 15 assists in 51 games for the Thunder in 2014-15. He also played two games for the Odessa Jackalopes of the North American Hockey League and tallied one assist.

“Jalen was a draft pick of ours a couple of years ago and he has continued to develop as a player over the past couple of years,” Oshawa General Manager Ron Hunt said. “Mike Kelly (the Generals’ director of hockey operations) and I watched him play for the Bloomington Thunder this past year and feel he is ready to make the jump to the OHL.”

Jalen Smereck hopes to crack the Oshawa Generals lineup in 2015-16.

Jalen Smereck hopes to crack the Oshawa Generals lineup in 2015-16.

Smereck reports to Oshawa’s training camp at Oshawa’s General Motors Centre at the end of the summer. If his makes the roster, he will move 260 miles from America’s Motor City to the self-proclaimed automotive capital of Canada.

Smereck, 18, is an alum of the Detroit Hockey Association, a program affiliated with the National Hockey League’s “Hockey is for Everyone” initiative which provides kids of all backgrounds the opportunity to learn and play hockey at little or no cost. In return, program participants must stay in school and maintain good grades.

The DHA has produced several hockey players of color who’ve gone on to play in college and professional leagues.

Tarasai Karega, one of the first black women to win an NCAA hockey championship, and Cameron Burt, a defenseman for the ECHL’s Florida Everblades and former Rochester Institute of Technology star, are among the program’s graduates.

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