LC Championship, Mar. 15, 2008

Well the championship game was played and once again the Blizzard team won for the second straight year. It was a tough game, 0-0 after two periods before the boys stepped it up a notch and scored three goals. Devin got a shutout, stopping 24 shots to win the game. And though goalies are not usually the captain of the team, Devin wore the "C" again as he did in last years championship game. It was a great ending for him, should he advance to AAA, which is the next step in his evolution to realize his dream. This past week Devin attended a practise with the Belle Tire AAA team and he did very well, holding his own at that level without difficulty. Following the practise, the coach pulled him aside and told him he really liked what he saw, thought Devin had alot of potential and asked him to come back to their practises the rest of the month to see how he looks. Though this isnt a shoo in, Devin felt the coach was very excited about him. And though we have questioned Devin about making this move, driving to Detroit several times a week, leaving his pals on the Blizzard and going up to a more intense level, he claims he is ready. He states that he needs to make this move if he wants to reach his Junior Olympics goal.

Pee Wee AA 2007-08

This year Devin was again the #1 goalie for the BC Blizzard. Goalie coach Mike was on board and the team was again in the #2 ranked division. Though they started out great, they ended the season in third place in their division of LC, though they took runner up to Flint again in the MAHA district finals. When the LC quarterfinals came around it was a must win situation if the team wanted to continue. The game went into 4 on 4 overtime and then 3 on 3 overtime before the Blizzards scored a goal and the team moved to the semi finals. This game was also close and went into 4 on 4 and then 3 on 3 overtime. When that ended in a tie the game went into a shootout and once again "The Dominator II" did not allow a single goal. The Blizzard scored two and are now on their way to their third championship game in as many years, which will be held on March 15. Also during this year there has been great discussion on whether he should go AAA. It has been recommended by many, including his goalie coach that he is ready and should try out. He has been asked to come down to a practise from the Belle Tire AAA coach and this will take place next month. He is also going to try out for Victory Honda, should he not make the BT roster. His goaltending abilities continue to be discussed by many, it is now a matter of getting him seen by the AAA people that matter, according to coach Mike. Keep in mind that Devins long term goal is to play in the NHL; however, his short term goal is to try out and make the 2010 14 and under Junior Olympics and to do that he will need to have AAA experience under his belt.

His Own Goalie Coach

In the spring of 2007, while watching a Blizzard game, a goalie coach was extremely impressed with Devin's play and asked if he could work with him. Having been a goalie himself since the age of 6 and Devin never having "formal" training, adding coach Mike was a great asset to an already strong coaching staff, not only for the goalie but the entire team. With coach Mike's instruction (his dad continued to work with him along side coach Mike), Devin was now learning the finer points of goal tending. According to his coach, Devin only required fine tuning as his athletic ability and talent were already way above most goalies at the Pee Wee level. For quite some time Devin was getting noticed by many of the 95 coaches around the state and was asked by several of them to try out for their teams. Though there were teams that were better than the BC Blizzard, it was decided that a lateral move for Devin would not be to his benefit and until he made the move to AAA would remain with this team. It was during this time that Devin was invited by the Honeybaked AAA team to come down to a practise. During this practise session the Honeybaked team did mock scrimmages by rotating the players to level the playing field. Of the five scrimmages played that day, Devins team won four of the scrimmages. This gave us an indication that with practise, he could hold his own at the AAA level. A second practise visit, to include dryland training, was requested by the Honeybaked coach; however, Devin did not have a good day and became frustrated at the amount of pucks he was letting in. When he did not dress for dryland, the Honeybaked coach did not invite him back. Though this was a disapointment to Devin, it was a good lesson for him to learn................

Pee Wee A Travel Hockey

The following season Devin became a Pee Wee A netminder and the #1 goalie for the Blizzard. The original goalie left and the backup goalie only lasted a month before changing teams, leaving Devin as the only netminder for the team. They had also progressed to a #2 division ranking, playing higher level teams throughout the season. It was a stellar year for the Blizzard and they won the Glass City Tournament, the South Bend Indiana tournament, MAHA District 5 runner ups and the LC Howe Division Championship in Lansing. To get to the championship required winning the quarterfinals and semifinals, all of which went into shootouts. Devin did not allow a single goal in the quarter and semi's and when the championship game went to a shootout his record remained clean and he again did not allow a single goal. He was awarded the MVP award at the championship game for his stellar performance.

Squirt AA Travel Hockey

In the fall of 2005, "The Dominator II" was asked to try out for the 95 Squirt AA travel team. Having had some issues with the previous travel team it was decided to play him in his own age bracket and he became one of the goalies for the 95 BC Blizzard team. With new goalie pads and a regulation goalie mask (this time the dog face was a paint job), Devin was ready to give the existing goalie a run for his money, which he did in quick fashion. Though most of the parents on this new team considered him the backup goalie, it wasnt long before his skills and netminding ability surpassed the #1 goalie in G.A and Save %. Devin's father continued to coach him on the ice during this time. His second year as a Squirt, Devin went to his first goalie camp and also attended a two day camp for the Saginaw Spirit. It was at this camp that the Spirit goalie coach first saw him and determined that he was "phenomenal" in his goal tending abilities. He felt Devin was good enough to be in AAA hockey and recommended that this be pursued. Given the fact that Devin was only 11 years old and the AAA teams were so far away it was decided that he would continue to play AA travel hockey. That year the team took MAHA district runner up and first place in LC Division 5 with both netminders. They went all the way to the Division 5 Championship game at Joe Louis Arena; however, with the other goalie in net ended up losing to the opposing team.

House hockey to Travel

After playing in house hockey for a year and a half, with his goalie skills improving through the coaching of his father, Devin was asked to try out for the 94 travel team in BC. Having been told by his hockey aunty that you only go travel when invited, the decision was made to join the team and, though he would be playing up a year , this also allowed him to be on the same team as his brother. This was also the first time he had to share the net with a second goalie, so from the very start, he worked very hard to be #1. With used equipment and an old fashioned goalie mask (that had a taped on picture of a dog face), Devin's travel career had begun. Though the team did not fare well through that first season, the amount of shots on goal were extremely high and Devin's goalie skills continued to improve. He became known as "the dominator II" after his idol Dominic Hasek. Through his natural talent and athletisism and with his father coaching him on the ice, he became one of the best goalies in the BC area at the Squirt level. Following the winter season, he also played spring travel and 3 on 3 in the summer, so it became a year round endeavor and his passion for the sport continued to grow.

Devin becomes a goalie!

The purpose of rotating players in the net was to give all the kids a chance to try netminding as well as improving all the kids skating ability, including future goalies. This also allowed the little kids to determine where they may eventually want to play. But once Devin discovered the equipment the goalie is required to wear, he decided then and there that was the position he wanted to play. With borrowed equipment, regular skates and a players helmet, he got his wish when the team went to a tournament in Mt. Pleasant in 2002 and he was able to netmind two of the three periods. It was the beginning of his goalie career at the age of 6 and interestingly enough, he seemed to have a knack for it.