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SCORE Boston Seeks to Build Well-Rounded People Through Hockey

By Greg Bates, 05/21/18, 3:30PM MDT

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Kids from all walks of life learn hockey skills and life skills

Having been part of SCORE Boston Hockey for half of the organization’s 22 years, Wendell Taylor has witnessed the ups and downs of the program.

Right now, SCORE Boston is on an upswing. Taylor, the organization’s president, is striving to keep it that way.

The program is attracting underprivileged inner-city youth who are interested in giving hockey a try. Add in educational components and the organization is making a difference in one of the biggest hockey markets in the United States.

“The program has taken off. The past couple of years in particular, we’ve made some pretty big strides,” said John Resnick, SCORE Boston vice president of hockey operations. “I think a lot of it has to do with USA Hockey and the Hockey is for Everyone grant and program. That along with the Boston Bruins Foundation, run by [Executive Director] Bob Sweeney and his crew, has pretty much been the sole financial backing of the program.”

SCORE (Sportsmanship, Character, Opportunity, Respect and Education) Boston has 94 kids participating — 60 boys and 34 girls — from all walks of life.

The biggest obstacle at this point for the organization is getting enough ice time for the players. The kids are only able to skate once per week, on Saturdays, from October to April at the Max Ulin Ice Rink in Milton.

SCORE Boston fields four teams: one group each for 8U, 10U, 12U and 14U.  

“A lot of kids, even for a house team in Boston, they’re just so far above us it’s ridiculous,” Taylor said. “But teams come, their kids are fantastic. They try to play down to our level whenever possible, they help our kids around the ice. Our kids, they don’t care about the number of goals scored on them or winning or losing.”

SCORE Boston, which is completely run by volunteers, has 24 coaches teaching the kids. Some of the coaches include top-notch college players at Boston College and Brown University. Taylor is amazed by the talented folks who want to dedicate their time to helping mold young hockey players.

But it’s challenging for the organization to attract new skaters every year. A typical player jumping into the program is around 10 years old and doesn’t have a skating background. Some of the kids will experience hockey for the first time playing floor hockey at school and get the urge to want to test out getting on the ice, noted Taylor.

“Every year we have to go out there into the community and into the boys and girls clubs and into some of the schools and some of those neighborhoods to try and convince these kids that this is an incredible opportunity to give hockey a try,” Resnick said. “You get geared up head to toe, you’re on the ice at least once a week, we’ve got a classroom component. It’s just a really great opportunity, but it’s a continual battle to find the right kids.”

Once a player first tries the sport, the retention rate is high. Of the first-year players coming out, Taylor figures about half return for a second season. It’s all about getting over the hump of learning how to skate after possibly falling on the ice.

“Typically, we have good athletes, so they’re playing basketball, football, and they want to try hockey,” Taylor said. “So, I have a lot of kids that have amazing hands, unbelievably great athletes. But the tough item is the skating. So, coming in at 10 and trying to get them up and standing and making them realize that practice makes perfect is tough.”

The on-ice goal is simple for SCORE Boston: Give the kids a chance to try a different sport than they’re used to playing.

“Try something new to the extent that you take to it and you want to be a part of it,” Taylor said. “I think it’s a growth opportunity. It’s easy to go and do something you know, it’s hard to get out of your comfort zone. They realize trying really hard and failing and trying again is an important aspect to grow.”

The program also adds an educational component for the players. After their one-hour weekly skate, the kids have one hour of classroom time. Coaches address several types of message ranging from bullying in class to nutrition to rules of hockey.

The educational emphasis focuses on three main aspects.

“No. 1, self-esteem, building self-esteem as a kid of color or a kid of need in society,” Taylor said. “No. 2, making sure that the kids feel like they have the resources for academic achievements, so if the kids need extra help, we’ll provide it for them. And finally, making sure that they recognize what they receive, they have to give back. So, making sure that every kid is involved in some type of charitable activity to give back for the things they’ve received in the program.”

Once the players put the hockey and educational pieces together, hopefully they can move on to compete at the high school level while continuing to do well as a student. Over the last few years, several kids in the program have gotten the opportunity to play hockey at storied Boston-area schools such as Milton Academy. Once in school, a couple of the players actually dropped out of hockey to concentrate on their academics.

“The goal is not to have a kid playing in high school or playing in college, the goal is to give the kids access to something different,” Taylor said. “If hockey’s a conduit to doing that, it’s a win.”

Story from Red Line Editorial, Inc.

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From the Bench to the Booth, Mleczko Makes a Difference

By Pat Sullivan 03/19/2014, 10:45am MDT

While there have been plenty of United States Olympians who’ve embodied the “Got Milk?”-like wholesome symbolism of success over the years, A.J. (Mleczko) Griswold, gold medalist in 1998 and silver medalist in 2002, may top them all. The Nantucket, Mass., native’s credentials border on unassailable.

In 1999 alone, she won a national championship with the Harvard University women’s hockey team, she was selected First Team All-America, she earned the second-ever Patty Kazmaier Award and she claimed Bob Allen Women's Player of the Year honors. She is also a member of two halls of fame: The New England Women's Sports Hall of Fame (2002) and the Women's Beanpot Hall of Fame (2011).

One could convincingly argue that the self-actualization box has been checked.

USA Hockey caught up with Griswold at her Concord, Mass., home recently, where she had just returned from her third Olympics as a hockey broadcaster for NBC Sports. Reflecting on her transition to the media, she said, “It was very different. I had played in two Olympics, retired and started a family. Like anyone entering the field, I had to audition, which was scary, and then take on a steep learning curve. I was seven months pregnant when I first went on the air for the network in Torino.”

As for the contrast between playing a game and communicating a game’s happenings to viewers, Griswold said, “Initially, it was hard to watch and not be involved. It was a new challenge though, to look at hockey in an analytical way, and entirely different to watch a game and form opinions. Furthermore, you have to be impartial. In spite of playing with many of the (Team USA) women on the ice, I noticed it was not as hard to be unbiased.”

She also added, perhaps surprisingly, that “you have more free time as an athlete.” As a broadcaster (at any Olympics), Griswold regularly preps for, and calls, two to three games a day.

When it came to the alleged, Twitter-fueled mishaps in Sochi, Griswold was quick to debunk them.

“I didn’t have the experience (as an employee of NBC Sports) of a typical attendee, but I can tell you my hotel was great and the weather was great. While the four previous host sites spread the Olympics around the respective cities, there was an Olympic Park with beautiful, state-of-the art facilities in Sochi. I ate my meals at the NBC Commissary, where American food was served.”

The byproduct of such a layout, however, was that “I didn’t feel like I was in Russia.”

When asked how she stays close to the game and USA Hockey, the mother of four with husband, Jason, was excited to mention that she is an athlete director with USA Hockey and also a board member with the USA Hockey Foundation.

It’s in coaching though, often times with Jason, a hockey player himself and a lacrosse player in college at Colgate University, that she feels is the best way to stay involved and keep learning.

“Coaching kids, including our own, is the best way to give back, to share your expertise,” she said. “It’s at the grassroots level where you make a real difference.”

20 Years of NTDP Hockey

By Jessi Pierce 08/16/2016, 9:30am MDT

USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program celebrates success

Things these days are different for 1976 U.S. Olympian Jim Warden. As a netminder turned assistant coach, he lived the game. Now, he admits he’s not a regular watcher of hockey – though he finds time to tune in during the Olympics and to watch his alma mater, Michigan Tech. 

Yes, Warden admits, he’s easily found a life outside of the crease; but still there, strong as ever, are the memories that area created for him.

“Hockey was my life for many years and makes up the fabric of who I am now,” he writes. “I cherish every memory as I grow older.”

Warden could write a book on his time with USA Hockey and the bonds and memories formed. He graciously crafted this letter to share with our community.

To USA Hockey Alumni and Friends,

I rarely get to talk hockey, living in the mountains of North Carolina. Right now I feel like a retired preacher who is asked to give a sermon after 25 years of rocking on the porch, but I am excited to talk hockey once again.

I call Wilkesboro, N.C., home, nestled in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. My time is spent working sales with Champion Buildings. If not there, I am playing golf with my dear friends at Oakwoods Country Club. Beyond that, most of my time is spent being a father, husband and caretaker of our family. I am blessed with good health and a wonderful wife, and I enjoy all that life is about.

For me, a large part of that life was hockey.

I am honored to have been an Olympic goaltender with the 1976 U.S. team, and I am proud to be a member of the 1972 U.S. World Cup team. In addition I’ve had the privilege to wear the red, white and blue for the 1975, 1978 and 1979 U.S. National Teams.

All of it was a good run for a kid from southern California. 

Putting that USA jersey on for the first time is something that I’ll never forget. Bob Johnson was leading the U.S. team into the World Cup of Hockey and was looking for a solid netminder. At the time, I was playing regularly as a freshman at Michigan Tech. Badger Bob asked coach John MacInnes if I was available to play. I am so grateful he never gave me an option. Coach MacInnes told me that I was going to represent my country, and reminded me what an honor it was to do so, not only for me, but for Michigan Tech, too. 

That was that. 

That was also the beginning of my relationship with Bob Johnson. I could go on forever and tell a million stories about that man. I am eternally grateful for whatever it was that he saw in me. Bob was a bit quirky, but he was so passionate about the game. He breathed it dawn to dusk and I’m sure in his sleep. I played for him on the 1975 U.S. National Team, which led to the 1976 U.S. Olympic squad.

Playing in those ’76 Olympics is where I learned some of the most valuable lessons that this game has ever taught me. I learned that sometimes it is your day in the sun, sometimes it’s your opponents’. Not too many people realize that we were one period away from winning the bronze medal after defeating Finland, 5-4 – a game where we were heavy underdogs. We were down 1-0 going into the third period against West Germany, the “home” team with the Olympics being held in Innsbruck, Austria. In those days, the tournament was designed where all we had to do was earn a tie to capture bronze. On that day it was Germany’s day in the sun – we lost 4-1 and it was truly agonizing.

I went on to play for John Mariucci on the 1978 U.S. National Team in the World Championship – the first year that they were open to professional players. 

My last time putting on the jersey for Team USA was in 1979 for the World Championship. I was chosen by Herb Brooks as the “professional” goalie to help prepare his team for the 1980 Olympics in Lake Placid. The other goalie was some kid from Boston University named Jim Craig. Herb got what he was looking for during those World Championships as Jimmy Craig played exceptional in his baptism of international hockey, and Herb’s system worked. We were competitive in every game and the college kids were instrumental and an integral part of our success – they won gold one year later after all.

I guess, in summary, it’s the players that I played with that I look back fondly on. My fellow Americans fighting and clawing during that era of NHL and Canadian dominance and the rise of the Russians – my teammates and coaches are what I remember most. 

It was an honor to play with them and for them, and being an Olympian is truly a lifetime honor.