Page 47 - Sports Energy News, Cornwall, Issue No_122

www.sportsenergynews.com Issue #122 March 2023 47

Where Have All The Canadian Goalies Gone?

happened to all the great Canadian of GAA are four Russian goalies, goalies plying their trade in the
By Peter Collins
goalies! If you look at the two three from the USA, two from NHL. Twenty years after the
metrics that goalies are measured Sweden, and one from the Czech Summit Series, we started to see
on, GAA (goals against average), Republic. If you look back fifty names like Hasek, Kolzig, Gerber
and SVPCT (save percentage), years ago, in 1973, 39 of the top 40 and Khabibulin on NHL teams.
n the late 1960’s, Simon and its alarming to see how Canadian goalies, were from Canada, with a Now the leading NHL goalies
IGarfunkel wrote the celebrated goalies stack up. The two standout lone representative from the USA. have monikers like, Vasilevskiy,
song, “Mrs. Robinson”. From this Canadian goalies are Darcy What happened to our goalies? The Shesterkin and Sorokin, which
tune came the famous line, “Where Keumper and Tristan Jarry. Those answer probably has something to could be mistaken for a Russian law
have you gone, Joe DiMaggio”? The two names hardly invoke images do with Vladislav Tretiak. Even firm. In future Olympics and World
2023 version of this song might be of Ken Dryden and Tony Esposito though his team lost the 1972 Cup competitions it’s likely that
include the line, ” Where have you in their heyday. In fact, neither Summit Series, he was the primary the goalie position will be Canadas
gone, Eddie Giacomin”? In turn we Keumper or Jarry are even in the reason the Series was so close. His weakest link in international
Canadians must be wondering what top ten in GAA, and Jarry comes popularization of the goalie position competition. Fifty years ago, that
in the name of “Jacques Plante” has in at fifth in SVPCT. In the top ten in Europe, led to many international would have been unthinkable.

KARATE KOMMENTS then they could participate in other seminars afterward by accessing the
recordings. Each of these 100 seminars would be available to students for
the next six months - all they needed to do was log in and choose one. This
event went live to dojos and their members in forty-one countries and was
By Jim Riddell, a huge success.
World Martial Arts Live was a learning experience for instructors as well.
Seaway Karate Club Sensei Ron Wattie of Merrickville Karate and I conducted a self-defense

seminar together, with our time slot being from 10 -11PM. Unable to secure
any indoor space at the time, we broadcasted our seminar from my carport
Martial Arts Seminars and Conferences at home, complete with 4 floodlights illuminating our area. Our slot was
called “Live from Long Sault” by the people in our club, and with the help
There is no such thing as “one size fits all” in the world of martial arts, no of a very tech savvy Seaway Karate member, everything went smoothly.
one style or discipline that is a perfect fit for all students. Martial artists
FPO
come in many shapes and sizes, with different physical abilities, goals, and With COVID now seemingly under control, we returned to in-person seminar
dedication levels. Conferences and seminars allow practitioners from the training at Capital Conquest in November 2022 in Gatineau, Quebec. After
various arts to train together and learn from each other in friendship. They three years without conferences, it was great to see several old friends again
are an enjoyable part of training, opportunities for students to enhance and and to have the opportunity to meet and train those attending for the first FPO
time. In early May, several of our club members will be attending Rendez-
expand upon the training they receive at their regular classes. They are
vous Levi, a three-day World Kobudo Federation International Convention
not mandatory but are recommended because they broaden the students’
being held in Levis, Quebec. A large number participants from many
knowledge and help to shape and develop them as they progress through
the belt ranks. countries will be training with a wide variety of master instructors from
around the world. Among these instructors will be champions from a variety
In the late 1980s, I attended a four-hour Pressure Point Control Tactics
(PPCT) seminar in Ottawa, conducted by well-known martial artist and of the combative arts, including Karate, Kickboxing, Muay Thai, and Sport
police trainer, Professor George Sylvain. The simplicity and effectiveness Jiu-jitsu. This type of training will help to develop the next generation of
instructors as our members get the opportunity to be exposed to different
of these techniques sparked my interest, leading to additional seminars and
philosophies, principals, concepts, and methodologies of teaching.
eventual instructor certification. The knowledge gained from this experience
formed the foundation of the self-defense program that we now offer at When attending these types of events, the amount of material coming your
Seaway Karate, more than thirty years following the seminar. way in such a short period of time can be somewhat overwhelming and
difficult to retain. The best way to cope with information overload is to
The martial arts world is constantly evolving and, because of the COVID
Pandemic, that evolution added a new dimension to martial arts seminars. take notes, lots of notes. Document the date and location, the name of the
To keep its members engaged and motivated, the World Kobudo Federation instructor, the material that was covered, and what you got from it. Try to
bring at least one thing from each seminar back to your home dojo so you
created World Martial Arts Live. This event featured 100 senior instructors
can adapt, practice, and develop it to fit your style and interests. If you are
teaching via Zoom from their individual locations. Students were able to
able to accomplish this, you have met your goal of attending a successful
choose one of four live seminars each hour over a 25-hour period, and
seminar.