Sled hockey: I think I'm going to like this

A week ago I didn’t know what sled hockey was.

After watching a few teams play for two hours, I am looking forward to getting into a sled Sunday.

“It has been a best-kept secret worldwide forever,” said Gary Smith, coach and event director for the Colorado Springs Sled Hockey Association on Wednesday between games among soldiers in the Warrior Transition Battalion at Sertich Ice Center.

Sled hockey uses the same general rules as hockey, with the exception that is a noncontact sport. Instead of skating, participants sit in a bucket seat on a sled with their legs extended in front of them and skate blades underneath.

A player has two short sticks with ice picks at one end to propel themselves. The other end is curved, like any hockey stick, and used for controlling the puck. The player has to flip the stick and keep their balance while handling the puck.

The most common technique was a two-handed method that reminded me of rowing a one-man canoe.

It can be an intense upper-body workout, but the soldiers touted the mental benefits.

“It’s physically demanding, but it is fun,” said David Rosencrans, who described himself as a Wounded Warrior in Alpha Company. “You have not only cognitive therapies strategies, your physical therapy increases. It just helps you rebuild, and it is a positive thing.”

Rosencrans, who was in a wheelchair for four months after being hit by a drunk driver in 2009, said his love for hockey gave him no choice but to try the sled.

“I have been playing for years, so either I don’t skate or I get in a sled,” he said. “Whether I was in a sled or standing up, I was going to play hockey again.”

While encouraging me to play, Rosencrans said he enjoys seeing others try the sport.
“It’s all about the camaraderie,” he said.

Sabastian Munevar, who was wounded in combat in Afghanistan in 2009, agreed on the benefits of being on a team.

“It’s incredibly significant for your well-being,” said Munevar, who is preparing to return to duty. “It (playing) helps build camaraderie and spirit of the corps.”

Munevar said he hadn’t played sled hockey before Wednesday and Jackie King, one the few women who played, said, “This is my first time ever being on ice. This was fun.”

King said she would encourage others to participate in the coed sport.

Sled hockey is often featured in Paralympic festivals that are geared to benefit injured soldiers. Anywhere from 300-400 soldiers are given the chance to play during a festival.

“We always try to do sled hockey,” Smith said. “And every time we do it — it is the most popular sport.”

One thing that CSSHA stresses is that most anyone over 7 years old can play.

CSSHA’s brochure encourages people with cerebral palsy, amputations, paraplegia, club feet, multiple sclerosis and hip and knee problems to play but “there are no rules against able-body teams playing,” according to Smith. There are sleds and pushers to accommodate almost anyone’s needs.

The participants in the CSSHA, which works in conjunction with USA Hockey, are mostly children.

“If a parent wants to bring a child or if there’s an adult who wants to play, we have sleds, we have elbow pads, shoulder pads, gloves, helmets — all the basic protective gear they need,” Smith said.

I will be using that equipment Sunday when I try this sport. If you are interested in playing, please see the box with this story.