Rangers fan hockey fever on Vannie ice
The Van Cortlandt Park Ice Skating Rink was bustling on a recent Sunday with some young students learning how to dig the edge of their skates into the ice and control a puck with the blade of a hockey stick while gliding down the ice and dodging opponents.
The students, who were 10-years-old and younger, were learning basic ice hockey skills from a few highly skilled and legendary players who are part of the “Try Hockey for Free” program, a community outreach initiative of the New York Rangers in coordination with USA Hockey.
The players leading the clinic included National Hockley League (NHL) great Dave Maloney, who played nearly 11 seasons with the New York Rangers as a defenseman. He was the youngest player ever named captain of the iconic New York hockey team founded in 1926 — one of the original six teams of the NHL.
Mr. Maloney said the outdoor rink at Van Cortlandt Park reminded him of his childhood growing up in Ontario, where he learned to skate and play hockey outdoors on frozen Canadian ponds.
“It’s sort of a throwback, kind of old school,” said Mr. Maloney, who works as a commentator this season on Ranger radio broadcasts, after leading his young charges through their drills. “We had a great time with the kids and it is great to play outdoors.”
NHL Hall of Fame forward Glenn Anderson, who won five Stanley Cup championships with the Edmonton Oilers and another with the Rangers in 1994, joined Mr. Maloney to help conduct the clinic.
Three 45-minute sessions were offered at no cost with equipment provided. The young players learned how to keep their balance on the ice using the blade edges on their skates, basic stick handling skills, how to evade opponents and how to fall to the ice and get back up on their skates.
Van Cortlandt Park Ice Skating Rink Hockey Director Sean Prince said between 180 and 200 children attended the event, which was designed for students with little or no hockey experience.
Rabbi Leonard Guttman said his son Eathan, 8, attended an event and wants to continue playing hockey.
“He loved it,” Rabbi Guttman said. “He is already a very good skater. Now, if he would only learn Torah as quickly as he learned to skate, that would be nice.”
The clinic at Van Cortlandt Park was one of 12 such events in community ice rinks throughout the tri-state area since September sponsored by the Rangers along with USA Hockey.
In the days following their clinic with the former Ranger greats, five of the young skaters continued their hockey instruction. This time, the boys were displaying their varying degrees of aptitude on the ice as Mr. Prince looked on.
Mr. Prince, who learned to skate at age 2 and honed his skating and hockey skills on ponds in Rochester, N.Y., near Lake Ontario, said he appreciates that it is difficult for children with little or no experience on the ice to learn how to play hockey.
“It’s a completely different sport, almost a foreign concept,” Mr. Prince said. “It’s not like anything they’ve done before.”
However, Mr. Prince said it was easier for the 7 and 8-year-olds he was instructing to pick up the basics of the game, especially skating. “They are at an age when they catch on quickly,” he said. “They wear a lot of padding which minimizes the risk of injury.”
Jed Assaily, 7, a resident of Van Cortlandt Village, said he was learning how to quickly stop on his skates and stick handle, while his mother Shanti said the entire family enjoyed the open-air skating at Van Cortlandt Park.
Rey Cabrera, whose six-year-old son Evan was starting his third session, said the boy has improved since he began playing the game. Evan, wearing glasses behind his protective headgear, showed off his skills stopping and starting on the ice and facing up with the puck at the end of his stick.
