Building respect leads to success

Transcona

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 28/02/2024 (625 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

There’s a popular adage that “no news is good news,” meaning that if you haven’t been hearing a lot about something, that’s probably a good sign. Following that logic, it’s likely that unless you’re heavily involved in youth sports, you haven’t heard that this hockey season has been full of good news for the Transcona Regents.

Under the dutiful coaching of Chris Berthelette, Trent Wall, Shaun Smith, and Dale Kemp, the A3 U13 Regents have earned their place in the playoffs, which began Saturday and run through March 10. The Regents, having won 15 of their 18 regular season games and after wrapping up the regular season with a tie against the Winnipeg Jets Hockey Academy are ranked fourth in their division. During the regular season, the Regents were the third-most-dominant offensive team, scoring 113 goals and boasted the second-best defence in their division, allowing only 30 goals across 18 games.

This year’s team includes five returning players and 13 new faces, some coming to the Regents from U11, others returning to hockey after an extended break, and some experiencing league play for the first time. Of the coaches, Berthelette has some previous experience coaching his daughter’s team, the U11 3A Stars, who were divisional champions last year, and stands as a veteran among Wall, Smith, and Kemp, who are making their debuts as minor league coaches with the Regents.

“We’ve come a long way since the start of the season,” Berthelette said proudly. “I’m so amazed at what these young men have been able to accomplish and the people that they’re becoming.”

When asked what it takes to build their way to the playoffs, Berthelette said “it’s about building a system” with a tactical focus on positioning , developing player competencies, and a philosophical focus on promoting respect in sport.

“It’s important to us that we model respect,“ he said. “You’ll never hear us call the players ‘kids’ – we call them young men (because) we want these young men to know that’s who they are becoming.”

Each of the young men on the Regents are given equal ice time during their games, amounting to three minutes each period, during which time “they’re expected to put 110 per cent of their effort into making that time count.”

Having seen them play, I can confirm they do so with near-surgical efficiency.