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Hockey diversity advocates express dismay, disappointment over Vanbiesbrouck hiring

29 Tuesday May 2018

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Several supporters of diversity and inclusion in hockey are expressing dismay and disappointment over USA Hockey’s decision to make retired NHL goaltender John Vanbiesbrouck its assistant executive director for hockey operations.

Anson Carter, who played in the National Hockey League for 11 seasons and now analyzes NHL and U.S. college hockey for NBC Sports Network, didn’t mince words about USA Hockey’s selection of Vanbiesbrouck, who called Detroit Red Wings defenseman Trevor Daley the N-word when he played Canadian major junior hockey 15 years ago.

Former NHLer Anson Carter questions USA Hockey’s hiring of John Vanbiesbrouck.

“I understand people make mistakes and eventually they should be forgiven. However, I find it very hard to believe that USA Hockey couldn’t find anyone else that was a suitable candidate without that kind of baggage who was eligible to hold such an important position,” said Carter, who  also hosts “The MSG Hockey Show” in New York.

“Hockey is moving forward not going backwards.”

John Paris Jr., the first black head coach to win a professional ice hockey championship, wrote on the sports website Boxscore  that “John Vanbiesbrouck should not be branded a die-hard racist” for uttering a racial slur at Daley in 2003.

Daley was captain of the Sault. Ste. Marie Greyhounds and Vanbiesbrouck was coach and general manager of the Ontario Hockey League team at the time.

“However, his nomination by USA Hockey as an assistant director of hockey operations has created some confusion which has multiple ethnic groups questioning the why,” Paris wrote. “Could this be privilege or a poorly handled situation?”

Lexi LaFleur Brown, wife of forward J.T. Brown, who played for the Anaheim Ducks and Tampa Bay Lightning last season, tweeted “I buy @usahockey membership every year to play. I hope one day our kids will play.”

“But right now I am extremely disappointed,” she wrote in the May 25 tweet. “Does this new hire promote growth and the best experience? Shouldn’t growth include taking steps to assure no one is ever called a racial slur again?”

USA Hockey officials formally introduced Vanbiesbrouck as its new assistant executive director for hockey operations on Friday. He succeeds Jim Johannson, who passed away in January at the age of 53.

Detroit Red Wings defenseman Trevor Daley.

Vanbiesbrouck addressed the Daley incident in a teleconference with reporters on Friday, saying “I was absolutely, 100 percent wrong” for using the slur against a then-19-year-old Daley.

“There’s not a lot of days that go by that I don’t feel remorse for that,” he added. “I’m extremely sorry for it. It’s not who I am, it doesn’t define me as a person and I have no prejudices in me, and it will never happen again.”

Vanbiesbrouck and USA Hockey officials said they’re committed to making hockey more diverse and inclusive in the United States.

“I’m proud to say that USA Hockey has a long-standing way forward and a really great slogan… and that is hockey is for everybody and for everyone,” Vanbiesbrouck told reporters Friday. “And we’re going to continue to build on that work and further diversity and inclusion, and I look forward to being a big part of those efforts.”

Still, Vanbiesbrouck’s appointment has received heavy criticism on social media. The 20-season NHL veteran has also received support from people who believe in the power of forgiveness and point out that the incident occurred 15 years ago.

Since then, Vanbiesbrouck and Daley have climbed hockey’s ladder. Vanbiesbrouck was general manager of the Muskegon Lumberjacks of the USHL before taking the USA Hockey job.

Daley has developed into a solid NHL defenseman, playing for the Dallas Stars, Chicago Blackhawks, Pittsburgh Penguins and Red Wings. He won two Stanley Cups with the Penguins before signing with the Red Wings last season.

Val James, the NHL’s first U.S.-born black player, thinks it’s fine for John Vanbiesbrouck to hold a high-level position with USA Hockey – if he’s personally apologized to Trevor Daley for calling him the N-word in 2003.

Val James, who became the NHL’s first American-born black player when he joined the Buffalo Sabres in 1981-82 believes that Vanbiesbrouck needs to personally apologize to Daley and his family for the slur – if he hasn’t already –  as he assumes the USA Hockey post.

“I think John should personally apologize to Trevor for calling him that demeaning word,” James told me. “John now being in that position should wipe the slate clean.”

Vanbiesbrouck said he’s “a big fan” of Daley’s but added that their “paths have not crossed” over the years.

“I’m not in a lot of the big buildings where he’s been at the pro level,” Vanbiesbrouck told me. “I’ve been mostly in minor hockey buildings…he’s been far removed from that.”

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USA Hockey hiring of Vanbiesbrouck, stirs memories of Daley racial incident

24 Thursday May 2018

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USA Hockey hired NHL goaltender John Vanbiesbrouck  as its  assistant director for hockey operations Wednesday, prompting outrage from some hockey fans who remember that he called Detroit Red Wings defenseman Trevor Daley the N-word in 2003.

Pat Kelleher, USA Hockey’s executive director said  in a written statement that “We are beyond thrilled to have John join our staff.”

“Through his exceptional playing career, what he has done since retiring and his history with USA Hockey, John is well positioned to lead a very important part of our organization and I know he is excited to get started.”

Vanbiesbrouck, who had been serving as general manager of the Muskegon Lumberjacks of the USHL, said on the team’s website that he’s “humbled and honored” about taking a top position at the nation’s hockey governing body.

“I’m really excited about the opportunity USA Hockey has given me and the future of hockey in our country.”

He was hired to succeed Assistant Executive Director Jim Johannson, who passed away on Jan. 21 at the age of 53.

USA Hockey told me that the Daley incident “definitely was a topic of conversation in the interview process.”  An official said that the incident “was a mistake which John acknowledged, apologized for and in the end has been an isolated incident.”

The official said Vanbeisbrouck is “in lock step with USA Hockey’s way forward that hockey is for everyone.”

But many hockey fans blasted Vanbiesbrouck’s hiring on social media.

But the former goalie known as “Beezer” also had his supporters.

Vanbiesbrouck called Daley the N-word in 2003 in front of teammates when Daley was captain of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds and Vanbiesbrouck was the team’s coach and general manager.

The incident prompted the Ontario Hockey League to level its harshest fine ever – $50,000 – against the Greyhounds. Vanbiesbrouck resigned from his positions and sold his shares in the team.

“I think there was an understanding on our part that what occurred was damaging to us in terms of a league and what we try to be,” OHL Commissioner David Branch said in 2003. “We had to respond in a strong, clear fashion to make sure everyone understands we do not stand for this and this is not part of our value system.”

Vanbiesbrouck confirmed to The Toronto Star in 2003 that he used the slur against Daley and acknowledged he had used the N-word  “more than once.”

“My comments were inappropriate and out of character, and I deeply regret my actions,” Vanbiesbrouck said in 2003.

Detroit Red Wings defenseman Trevor Daley.

The episode prompted Daley to temporarily quit the Greyhounds. He returned to the major junior team, saying “While I am deeply disturbed by the hurtful and careless comments that were directed at me, I am proud and honored to be a member of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds.”

The incident didn’t hinder Daley’s hockey career. The Dallas Stars selected him in the second round of the 2002 NHL Draft – a year before the N-word incident. He’s a two-time Stanley Cup champion who has seen action for the Stars, Chicago Blackhawks, Pittsburgh Penguins and Red Wings.

Ironically, the Greyhounds and the OHL found themselves dealing with another racial incident last month after Kitchener Rangers forward Givani Smith, who is black, received a death threat and was subjected to racial slurs via social media following the Rangers 4-3 win against the Soo.

A Michigan native, Vaniesbrouck played  parts of 20 NHL seasons backstopping the New York Rangers, Florida Panthers, Philadelphia Flyers, New York Islanders and New Jersey Devils.

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He’s a five-time NHL All-Star who won 374 games, the most by an American-born NHL goaltender. He won the Vezina Trophy as the league’s best goaltender in 1986 as a member of the Rangers.

Vanbiesbrouck led the Panthers to the Stanley Cup Final against the Colorado Avalanche in 1996.  He was inducted into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 2007.

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With taunts hurled at NHL draftee Givani Smith, racism rears its ugly head again

06 Sunday May 2018

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Again.

Once again the racist underbelly in hockey has exposed itself – this time in the OntarioHockey League, this time to Kitchener Rangers right wing Givani Smith.

Right wing Givani Smith is a 2016 Detroit Red Wings second round draft pick.

 Smith, 20, received a death threat and was subjected to racial slurs from so-called hockey “fans” via social media following  the Rangers 4-3 overtime win on April 29 against the Sault St. Marie Greyhounds in Game Six of  the OHL Playoffs.

Smith, a 2016 Detroit Red Wings second round draft pick and the younger brother of Dallas Stars center Gemel Smith, flipped a middle finger toward the Greyhounds bench after he assisted on the game-winning goal. Smith’s gesture earned him a Game 7 suspension by the OHL.

He also received something else that no one deserves – racist vitriol.

Some knuckle-dragger  sent a photo of Smith to his Facebook account with the caption “Hockey N*****,”  according to The Waterloo Region Record, which first reportedon the incident.

The venom on social media was bad enough that the Rangers needed a police escort from Sault Ste. Marie Airport to their hotel and to the Greyhound’s’ arena for Game 7. Smith served his suspension in the press box with a security guard posted outside.

Kitchener Rangers right wing Givani Smith apparently endured racially-tinged incidents during the 2017-18 Ontrario Hockey League season and playoffs (Photo/Aaron Bell/OHL Images).

“Before we went up to the Soo there were racial things in his inbox on social media,” Rangers General Manager Mike McKenzie told The Record’s Josh Brown. “It was pretty disgusting to see some the stuff that he had to deal with.”

Bad enough that OHL Commissioner David Branch told The Record that “We took the step to provide security over and above what we would normally do for a game.”

“We wanted to make sure Givani was comfortable and certainly hopefully free from any challenge or issue,” Branch added.

But the disturbing part about the episode is apparently Smith had been racially-targeted well before his Game 6 finger gesture.

Following a regular season game against the OHL’s Sarnia Sting in Sarnia, a man poked his head in the tunnel used by the visiting team “and yelled a racial slur down the hall,” McKenzie told the Record.

And apparently there were things said toward Smith during the Rangers semifinal series against the Sting.

The Record also reported that the Rangers heard “derogatory comments” from behind their bench in Sault Ste. Marie during their series with the Greyhounds and that “there were allegations that some players may have crossed the line as well.”

No so-called “fans” or players have been punished for actions toward Smith. Branch told The Record that the OHL works “to make sure that everyone respects one another’s diversities whether its race, sex, where a person is born, their sexual orientation or their way of life.”

“We have zero tolerance with language or conduct which evidences a lack or respect or disregard for the differences that exist among our players,” Branch added.

But the league hasn’t  issued a formal statement on what it’s doing regarding the Smith matter. The only notice regarding Smith on the OHL’s website is his Game 7 suspension.

And it’s not like Branch and the OHL haven’t dealt with something like this before. In 2003 then-Greyhounds Coach and General Manager John Vanbiesbrouck called defenseman and team captain Trevor Daley the N-word in front of several players.

The OHL fined the team $50,000 which was, at the time, the stiffest penalty in league history. Vanbiesbrouck, a former goaltender who played in the NHL for 19 years, resigned from the team prior to the fine. He also sold his stake in the Greyhounds.

Ironically Daley now plays for the Red Wings, the team that drafted Smith.

The Smith incident is the latest episode of racial hostility toward hockey players of color at almost every level of the game – from pee wee to the pros.

In March, Mark Connors, a black 12-year-old pee wee goaltender from Halifax Nova Scotia, Canada, was called the N-word  during a game.

The opposing player who used the epithet  received a 45-day suspension and Mark received a groundswell of support from the Nova Scotia government to Chicago Blackhawks forward Anthony Duclair.

Right wing Givani Smith tallied 17 goals and 13 assists in 46 games playing for the OHL’s Kitchener Storm and Guelph Storm (Photo/Aaron Bell/OHL Images).

But Mark’s story also revealed that it wasn’t the first time the boy was racially taunted. His father, Wayne Connors, told the CBC that his son had endured racial slurs while playing hockey for six years.

In February, so-called “fans” racially taunted Washington Capitals forward DevanteSmith-Pelly as he sat in the penalty box  inside Chicago’s United Center during a gameagainst the Blackhawks.

The verbal assailants were removed from the arena and banned from all Blackhawks home games.

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5-4 win over Russia brings Gold Medal to Canada, honors to Darnell Nurse

06 Tuesday Jan 2015

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Good night, Nurse!

After being snubbed by Hockey Canada last year for a slot on its junior national team, Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds defenseman Darnell Nurse achieved a “How You Like Me Now” moment Monday night at the 2015 International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship.

Nurse, a 2013 Edmonton Oilers first-round draft pick, was named Canada’s player of the game in Monday night’s 5-4 victory over Russia in the tournament’s Gold Medal game in Toronto.

Defenseman Darnell Nurse has a monster IIHF tournament for Canada (Matthew Murnaghan/Hockey Canada Images).

Defenseman Darnell Nurse has a monster IIHF tournament for Canada (Matthew Murnaghan/Hockey Canada Images).

In addition, he was named one of Canada’s best three players in the tournament along with Max Domi, a forward for the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League and a 2013 Arizona Coyotes first-round draft pick, and Sam Reinhart, a forward for the Western Hockey League’s Kootenay Ice and a 2014 Buffalo Sabres first-rounder.

Monday’s win ended a five-year gold medal drought for Canada at the tourney for players under 20 years old, and the 19-year-old Nurse was a key component in the team winning the gold without a loss.

Monday night represented Mission Accomplished for Nurse. The nephew of retired Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb vowed to make Team Canada after not being named to the 2014 squad, a move that even stunned “Hockey Night in Canada” commentator Don Cherry.

Nurse is captain of the OHL's Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds.

Nurse is captain of the OHL’s Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds.

The 2014 Canadian team finished fourth at the tournament played in Malmo, Sweden, and failed to medal.

“That is an absolute joke not to have Darnell Nurse out there,” the bombastic Cherry

Nurse appeared in two games for Edmonton in 2014-15.

Nurse appeared in two games for Edmonton in 2014-15.

said last year.

As for Nurse, he took the snub and being cut in training camp by Edmonton in 2013 hard. He used those experiences and being sent back to Sault Ste. Marie after playing two games for the Oilers this season as fuel to make Team Canada this year.

“Not being (in Edmonton) opens up opportunities like this, which I have been looking

forward to all year,” he told reporters at Team Canada’s training camp last month. “I am going to develop playing junior and hope to play in this tournament.”

And play he did. Nurse had one goal, no assists, and a plus-minus of +8 in seven games. He also got off 10 shots, several of them missiles fired while rushing the puck up ice.  Opponents didn’t score while he was on the ice.

Apparently, there’s something about playing Russia that brings the best out of the Nurse family. Sarah Nurse, Darnell’s cousin and a forward for the University of Wisconsin women’s hockey team, scored a goal for Canada’s National Women’s Development Team in a 5-1 win against Russia Sunday at the 2015 Nation’s Cup tournament in Germany.

With Winter Classic, IIHF World Junior tourney, holiday hockey heads into overdrive

24 Wednesday Dec 2014

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This is the best time of year, full of good friends, good food, and great hockey.

The Christmas-New Years’ window is like a bonus round for hockey. Not only is there the usual slate of National Hockey League games to watch but also the Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic.

This year’s outdoor spectacle is in my stomping grounds, Washington, D.C., at Nationals Park baseball stadium, in the shadow of the U.S. Capitol building. While the Nation’s Capital’s weather isn’t likely to provide the winter wonderland snow-globe scene that was last year’s outdoor game at massive Michigan Stadium or the frozen tundra feel of the 2008 contest at Buffalo’s Ralph Wilson Stadium, the D.C. event should be picturesque nonetheless.

Forget a White Christmas. The NHL is dreaming of a white 2015 Winter Classic in this artist's rendering.

Forget a White Christmas. The NHL is dreaming of a white 2015 Winter Classic in this artist’s rendering.

And the game should be good. The Washington Capitals and the Chicago Blackhawks are two weather-tested teams – the ‘Hawks played the Detroit Red Wings at Wrigley Field in 2009 and the Caps skated in a slightly rainy affair against the Pittsburgh Penguins at Heinz Field in 2011. And both are jockeying to improve their positions within their NHL divisions.

Chicago leads the NHL’s Central Division but is looking to create distance for itself from the surprisingly strong second-place Nashville Predators. After a shaky start to the 2014-15 season, the Capitals are tied with the New York Rangers in the Metropolitan Division and trying to climb the Eastern Conference ladder for better playoff position.

If the Winter Classic and the rest of the NHL schedule isn’t enough to cure your holiday hockey jones, there’s the International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship.

It’s a 10-nation tournament that kicks off Dec. 26 at the Bell Centre in Montreal and the Air Canada Centre in Toronto. The NHL Network will televise 28 games between Dec. 26 and the Gold Medal game on Jan. 5.

Consider the tournament the holiday Ghost of NHL Future. A healthy number of players in the tournament will likely be chosen in the 2015 NHL Draft. Team Canada’s Connor McDavid, a forward for the Erie Otters on the Ontario Hockey League, is the presumptive No.1 pick at the June 26-27 draft at the BB&T Center in Sunrise, Fla.

The World Junior teams will also feature several players who are under 20 years old who are alums of the 2014 and 2013 drafts. Three players on Team Canada are graduates of the 2013 draft: Forward Anthony Duclair and defensemen Madison Bowey and Darnell Nurse.

Canada's 2015 IIHF World Junior team. Defenseman Madison Bowey, front row left. Forward Anthony Duclair, back row left, and defenseman Darnell Nurse, back row center (Hockey Canada Images/Matthew Murnaghan)

Canada’s 2015 IIHF World Junior team. Defenseman Madison Bowey, front row left. Forward Anthony Duclair, back row left, and defenseman Darnell Nurse, back row center (Hockey Canada Images/Matthew Murnaghan)

Duclair, a speedy sniper who played for the Quebec Remparts of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, was a third-round pick of the New York Rangers. He began the 2014-15 season on Broadway, making the NHL as a 19-year-old and earning the nickname “The Duke” from the Madison Square Garden faithful.

Team USA looks to crash Canada's party at IIHF tourney in Montreal and Toronto (Richard Wolowicz/HHOF-IIHF Images).

Team USA looks to crash Canada’s party at IIHF tourney in Montreal and Toronto (Richard Wolowicz/HHOF-IIHF Images).

Bowey, the only right-hand shot on Team Canada’s defense, plays for the Kelowna Rockets of the Western Hockey League. He was drafted in the second round by the Capitals in 2013.

Team Canada defenseman Darnell Nurse (Matthew Murnaghan/Hockey Canada Images).

Team Canada defenseman Darnell Nurse (Matthew Murnaghan/Hockey Canada Images).

Nurse, captain of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the OHL, was the Edmonton Oilers’ first round pick in 2013, the seventh player chosen overall in that draft. Nurse hails from a sports family: his father played in the Canadian Football League, mother played college hoops in Canada, younger sister plays basketball for the University of Connecticut, and a cousin is a standout on the University of Wisconsin’s women’s hockey team. He’s also the nephew of retired National Football League star quarterback Donovan McNabb.

If the world junior championship isn’t enough, catch the Spengler Cup in Davos, Switzerland. Six teams will compete in the world’s oldest invitational hockey tournament beginning Dec. 26: Team Canada, host HC Davos, KHL Medvescak Zagreb of Croatia,  HC Salavant Yulaev Ufa of Russia’s Kontinental Hockey League, Jokerit Helsinki of Finland, and  Geneve Servette HC of Switzerland, the defending cup champion. Canada’s TSN and TSN2 are broadcasting the tournament live.

Besides seeing some of the most colorful hockey jerseys on the planet – European players are skating billboards with advertising on their jerseys and gear – you’ll see some familiar NHL faces on some of the teams.

Team Canada is coached by Guy Boucher, the former head coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning. Members of his squad includes former Philadelphia Flyers/Chicago Blackhawks/Phoenix Coyotes/Calgary Flames/San Jose Sharks/Edmonton Oilers defenseman Jim Vandermeer;  former Flyers defenseman Ryan Parent; former New York Islanders/Vancouver Canucks forward Jeff Tambellini; and former Edmonton Oilers forward Marc-Antoine Pouliot.

The Zagreb team features former Flyers and 2013 Team USA goalie Cal Heeter; former Flyers/Buffalo Sabres forward Ville Leino; and former Toronto Maple Leafs goalie prospect Mark Oyuwa.

Several players of color will participate in the tournament including Zagreb’s Oyuwa and forward Edwin Hedberg.

And  if the Spengler Cup doesn’t quench the hockey thirst, head to the rink, lace up the skates, put the gear on, and play yourself.

Family competitiveness fuels hockey success for the Nurses

25 Friday Jul 2014

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When it comes to competition, it’s hard to beat the Nurse family.

Athletic excellence seems to be on every branch of the family tree: Roger Nurse was a stellar Lacrosse player in Canada. Brother Richard was a wide receiver for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League. His wife, Cathy, was a basketball standout at Canada’s McMaster University. Their daughter, Tamika, played hoops for the University of Oregon and Bowling Green State University in Ohio. Another daughter, Kia, is a point guard for Canada’s national women’s basketball team and will play for the University of Connecticut this Fall.

Even extended family members have strong sports ties: Richard and Roger’s sister, Raquel, a former Syracuse University basketball standout, is married to former Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb. Athletic competition fuels competition in the family.

 “Our whole family, we compete all the  time,” Richard Nurse told me. “My kids compete, me and my wife compete. Everybody competes. There’s not a day that goes by that we’re not competing.”

In recent years, a new competitive branch has sprouted on the Nurse family sports tree – a hockey branch.

Darnell Nurse wants to make the Oilers' roster and Team Canada's, too.

Darnell Nurse wants to make the Oilers’ roster and Team Canada’s, too.

Darnell Nurse, a defenseman for the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the Ontario Hockey League, will be vying for a spot on the Edmonton Oilers roster when the National Hockey League team opens training camp in September. Next month, the Oilers’ 2013 first round draft pick will attend Hockey Canada’s National Junior Team’s summer development camp in Quebec, an audition of sorts for a slot on Team Canada for the 2015 International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship in Montreal and Toronto this winter.

Darnell, 19, captained the Greyhounds last season and tallied 13 goals, 37 assists in 64 games. He played four regular season games for the Oklahoma City Barons, Edmonton’s American Hockey League farm team, and registered one assist. He also notched an assist in three playoff games for the Barons.

http://kfor.com/2014/04/25/barons-nurse-continuing-family-athletic-tradition/

Not bad for a kid who initially wanted to follow dad and Uncle Donovan and play football.

“He wanted to play football because he was surrounded by guys who played football,” Richard said. “When you’re a young kid and you’re athletic, they make you a running back. You end up getting hit 1,000 times before it truly ever counts. I told Darnell, ‘You’re a lanky kid, you’ve got a little bit of athleticism, they’re going to make you a running back, you’re going to get hit, you’re going to be on your knees all the time. If you want to play football, you can pick football later.’ He never did because the hockey thing obviously worked out for him.”

These days, it’s Darnell who dishes out the hits on the ice as a physical defenseman with skating skill and some offensive tools. He was one of the final cuts the Oilers made at last season’s training camp and he’s determined to make Head Coach Dallas Eakins’ decision whether to keep him or send him back to Sault Ste. Marie for another season of seasoning a hard one. When he was cut last year, Darnell said “it sucks.” This season, he’s taking a more measured approach.

 “Playing [in the NHL] last year probably wouldn’t have been the best for my development, and you probably take it a little harder when you first get sent down but for me I’m just going to put myself in a position where I’m in the best shape possible and as strong as I can be when September rolls around,” Darnell told the Edmonton Journal earlier this month.

Hockey runs in threes in Roger and Michelle Nurse’s home. Daughter Sarah, 19, begins her sophomore season with the University of Wisconsin’s NCAA Division I women’s hockey team. A forward, she scored 11 goals – including three game-winners – and 10 assists for the Badgers in 38 games. Her performance earned her a spot on the Western Collegiate Hockey Association’s 2013-14 All Rookie Team.

Sarah Nurse, earned IIHF gold for Canada, seeks NCAA title with Badgers (Photo/David Stluka)

Sarah Nurse, earned IIHF gold for Canada, seeks NCAA title with Badgers (Photo/David Stluka)

“She’s the cerebral one,” Roger said. “If I have to do a scouting report, I’d say she’s got a very high hockey IQ; does nothing fancy but just gets to the net;  she gets to the open space. She’s always put pucks in the net.”

She was a member of Canada’s gold medal-winning team at the 2013 IIHF Under-18 Women’s World Championship in Finland. She’s among 42 players invited by Hockey Canada earlier this month to participate in its National Women’s Development Team selection camp next month in Calgary.

“The first thing that comes to mind with Sarah is speed,” Badgers Head Coach Mark Johnson said last year. “She is a great skater, very quick and very fast. She also combines her speed with great stick skills and the ability to score. She comes from an athletic family.”

Sarah’s younger brother, Elijah, was a 13th-round pick of the Greyhounds in last April’s OHL draft. A left wing, he scored 6 goals and 4 assists last season for the Hamilton Huskies in Canada’s Alliance Hockey Minor Midget Pavilion League.

Elijah Nurse hopes to follow Cousin Darnell with Greyhounds.

Elijah Nurse hopes to follow Cousin Darnell with Greyhounds.

“He’s undersized, but tough, tough as nails,” Roger Nurse said of his 16-year-old son. “He can go in a corner and get hit by three guys bigger than him and you think he’s dead. Doesn’t miss a shift.”

Then there’s baby brother Issac,  a 15-year-old forward who played last season for the Huskies. Some hockey experts believe that he could be a future OHL first round draft pick.

“I tell him ‘The harder you work, the harder you work on the ice, it’s up you. You can go anywhere from the first round to the 10th round, it all depends how hard you work,'” Roger said. “He’s got the tools. He’s just got to make sure the toolbox is intact, and this is the year to prove it.”

With a house full of high-caliber athlete-children and being athletes themselves, the Nurse adults combine loving understanding with tough love in preaching and teaching  accountability, toughness, and commitment to their offspring. Those were lessons taught to Richard and Roger by their parents, who moved to Canada from Trinidad.

“You play when you’re hurt, you play through injury, you go hard, and don’t show weaknesses,” Roger said. “You don’t sit off. It’s just a mentality we have.”

Asked if all their kids understand the mentality, Richard Nurse, ever the competitor, let out a laugh.

“I think mine have figured it out,” he said. “Roger’s are still working on it.”