It often bewilders me how people claim that every professional athlete is in it for the money, sure the perks are good and you live life like a rock star (in some cases) but most of these players have spent there entire lives dreaming of one day scoring that overtime goal, nailing that last second fade-away, or scoring the game winning touchdown. I don’t argue the fact that there are undoubtedly a lot of athletes who are in it for the money (*cough cough A-Rod*) and more often then not it is these select individuals who take it upon themselves to become the center of attention and worst of all hold the guy down who is playing because he loves the game.

A lot of this to me falls back on the media, often times we find ourselves reading press releases of players and coaches on how great they are when in fact most times these so called “saints” are in reality big douche bags. Lately it seems that to much money is a bad thing, here we have numerous players, coaches, and athletes all in the news for all the wrong reasons. Dog fighting, underground gambling, fixing games, drugs, drinking and driving, murder, the list could go on and on. It makes one wonder if professional athletes should even be considered role models.

I thought about that for the longest time, having played hockey for a good 20 or so years and seeing the media portray hockey players in the light they have been I cant help but laugh a little. I dont know the football, basketball, or baseball culture but I can assure you I know the hockey lifestyle fairly well, hell anyone who’s ever played knows it well. While I’m probably no expert of it on the grand stage (ala NHL) I tend to hear stories through friends and family who have or are there and know about what really goes on behind closed doors outside of the public eye. I suppose thats why I find it so amusing, after all here we have the biggest celebrities (arguably) in Canada doing exactly what some people would deem wrong for role-models…getting drunk, cheating on there wives, man whoring, doing drugs, etc. Don’t get me wrong I think its the way it should be and there is no doubt I would be doing the same thing if I were in that position but a lot of so called “good guys” portrayed in the media are exactly the opposite.

However, with all the negative always comes positive. The other day a certain organization traded away one of its players in what I thought was completely out of the blue, I suppose thats the business of hockey. Upon hearing the news he was told to head to the press box or begin finding his way to his new location. The trade was a real blow (morale wise) to the team as he has been a leader and was one of the most liked guys in the lockeroom, yet after taking less money to play and stating he loved the city and the organization he was shown the door before Christmas leaving him and his family with a lot of questions.

Disappointed to say the least but after hearing what happened I have to say I have a newfound respect for him and it made me wonder how often stuff like this happens. Upon leaving he had a meeting and made mention to the GM and Staff of how they are treating some of it’s players and in one case he made mention of a player in particular claiming the way he’s being treated is “criminal”. This player is someone who just wants to play hockey because he enjoys the game yet the organization and staff continue to push him further and further into the ground with lies and broken promises.

Hearing something like that makes you appreciate what kind of a teammate this guy actually was and despite not even knowing him on a personal level it shows what kind of character he has. Needless to say I have to give major props to this person as you dont often hear good stories like that portrayed in the media. As a fan watching all these seasons I cant remember one time this guy has done something in a negative light (that I’ve seen), but as in most cases you rarely get to hear some of the positive stories that makes the media portray these people on such a high pedastol.

But of course you will never here about this because chances are the organization doesn’t want to be portrayed in a negative light.

Walks
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