Page 30 - Sports Energy News, Cornwall, Issue No 86

30 Issue #86 January 2020 www.sportsenergynews.com

Catching Up With the Char-Lan Rebels

in sixth place, three points Hunter MacPherson and regarding the Kent MacDonell
By Molly Kett
behind the Winchester Hawks Lochlan MacDonald were night: since the event was
ince we last checked for the final playoff spot. acquired from the Glens and postponed due to weather,
Sin with the Char-Lan Griffin Patterson was acquired it will now take place on
“The Rebels went 4 and 2 in
Rebels, they’ve made some from Westport Rideaus. The January 25th at 8 p.m. Be
December, gaining ground on
headway in their season. Rebels will be looking to sure to pick up your tickets. If
the Hawks, and we will play
According to Jeff Carter, the them on January 4th in Char- Joe Samson, Noah Konick, you’re a fan, you won’t want
battle for playoff positioning Lan to start the second half of and new goaltender Summy to miss this evening!
will be in full swing when the the season,” says Carter. Mughal to lead the way in the Stay tuned for further season

Rebels come back in January. second half of the season. updates - “Go Rebs Go,” says
The Rebels have also
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Currently, the team is sitting recently made a few trades. An important notice Carter.

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Sports Panel
Sports Energy presents

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Sports Energy
Past practices of mental and physical abuse by coaches have been in the headlines since the firing of Mike Babcock
by the Toronto Maple Leafs. Why do you think much of this abuse was considered acceptable behavior by coaches,

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and what is your opinion of the current movement of accountability of coaches?
Gilles Gaudet - Sports Enthusiast - There are certain parallels that can be drawn by the recent hockey coach abuse headlines and the worldwide “Me Too”
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movement. In both cases, the questionable behavior was never acceptable, but it was tolerated by society at that time. The “Me Too” movement has exposed
many men and their heinous acts against women, and thankfully these men are finally being taken to task for their crimes. To a much lesser extent, hockey
coaches have operated on a level of impunity for their actions of bullying, harassment, and other abuses. The firing of Mike Babcock opened a floodgate of
comments and feedback about the past and present tactics of hockey coaches, and how they used these tactics to motivate and humiliate certain players. Today,
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this behavior is being called out, and leaders at all levels of society now must answer the call to treat people with respect. Hopefully, this will create a more
harmonious workplace, where all people are valued and respected as the individuals they are. As Bob Dylan sang, “The times they are a-changin’” - now it’s
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time for today’s leaders to follow suit.
Jake Lapierre - Conditioning Coach - The #MeToo movement appears to have pierced through the NHL hockey world, garnering a lot of
media attention and causing the NHL front office to scramble with how best to handle surfaced allegations without causing immediate
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collateral damage. The movement has begun a major cultural shift in North American society - it has provided victims of abuse a
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supportive voice and has rightfully called out those in positions of power (abusers) to make them accountable for their actions.
For several years now, Hockey Canada has been providing programs and education to coaches, trainers, and organizational staff
regarding code of conduct, acceptable practices, and recognizing abuse; mental or physical abuse from hockey coaches was never an
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acceptable behavior, especially in minor sports. I’m not saying abusive actions didn’t occur because they have; however, it wasn’t
acceptable. Abusive behavior from coaches had to be called out and often was by other coaches, trainers, or parents and handled with
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the coaches one way or another.
At the professional level, Petr Klima, (former Oilers and Red Wings star), in an interview December 24th, 2019 with iSports.ca stated
“I’m rather amazed at the fragility of modern hockey players. We were [grown] men. If some [coach] kicked me, it would have been
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his last kick.” Klima also recalls, “I was in Tampa when Roman Hamrlik was just starting his career. A coach started yelling at him on
the bench. I got up and said, ‘if you’re gonna yell at someone, yell at me.’ Roman was 18, 19, made a mistake. We were all there trying
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to win. The coach let his emotions get the better of him and that’s where it stopped.”
Inevitably a cultural change is happening; organizations must figure out how to play the long game amidst social change in the
direction of human rights and gender equality. As the pendulum of change shifts, organizations will be responsible for conforming to
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the social changes to come.
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Jim Riddell - Seaway Karate Club -Coaches at every level hold a considerable amount of power over their players, determining the amount
of ice time that they get, their line mates, and practice conditions. At higher levels of play, coaches may also have some influence
with the GM regarding who gets extended, demoted, traded, or placed on waivers. Filing a complaint against a coach over any form
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of abuse could be a career ending move as there are a limited number of jobs available and no shortage of players willing to take that
spot. The NHL has traditionally lagged behind other employers when it comes to workplace harassment and other social issues; but
Commissioner Gary Bettman has been saying all the right things, stating that the league needs to set an example and that they are
launching initiatives to ensure prevention of future abuse. It’s a needed step in the right direction and time will tell where it goes from
here.