When you're a 15 year old AAA hockey player, you look up to all types of junior hockey and obviously NHL players. Most minor midget kids that I knew and still know, will tell you all they want is to get drafted into the OHL; obviously I was no different. Our lives revolve around hockey and we all want to make a life out of it, but one thing I will share is that there is most certainly no one way to make a life in hockey. We all dream about playing in the OHL and then getting drafted to the NHL and playing there until you can’t anymore, and for some people thats how it works, and good for them. Now that would be the ideal scenario, but life just doesn't work like that for most of us. So many kids don’t get drafted into the OHL, and so many do. The biggest thing you can take from the draft, whether you do or don’t get picked, is that it does not define you. 

    After not getting drafted it just made me feel as if I was invisible, and all the work I had done up to that point was a waste, quickly I changed my mindset and tried to use it as motivation. First of all you really have to think about why you play, and you might think it’s different for everybody, but we all love the game and that is why we play. After I didn't get drafted, I knew I wasn't done playing hockey, no matter what level, because I love the game. Eventually I was lucky enough to join the Elmira Sugar Kings Jr. B team as a 17 year old, and that was one of the most satisfying feelings because it seemed so unrealistic to be playing in that league with those guys. Currently, I am in my fourth year with the Sugar Kings and I’ve won a Sutherland Cup and a Cherrey Cup, something I would have never imagined as a 16 year old playing major midget. Playing in Elmira has really helped me mature and develop as a hockey player, but more importantly it has taught me countless life lessons and skills. 

    As much as hockey may seem like just a game, there is plenty of things you can get out of it off the ice. As a 17 year old I started learning from all the older players as soon as I came, being around guys who were in university and 3 years older than me, really taught me lots of lessons on life and what to expect moving forward. To this day I continue to learn from coaches, staff, and even people around the community about how to handle certain situations and how much we mean to the town, and the kids living in it. Just like the day where I looked up to these guys playing junior hockey. Hockey is more than just a hobby, it is a way of life. There are so many things you can take out of it, aside from the stuff on the ice, but you have to want to excel as a person more than anything. You learn lifelong lessons on how to deal with pressure and situations, you learn lifelong lessons on teamwork and camaraderie, and you most certainly make friendships that will last forever. 

    Being a part of a team is something special, and Elmira is one of the most special teams to be apart of. Obviously I’ve been more than blessed winning 2 out of 3 years, and playing with guys like Jonathan Reinhart; who is one of the most unbelievable athletes and people I have ever met, Zac Coulter; who was my line mate for 2 years and one of my best friends, and Jake Brown; probably the only guy that will ever win 4 Sutherland cups. Obviously I could write all day about the guys I have played with (Jeff Jordan, Tyler Biles, Klayton Hoelscher, Rob Kohli) because they have all been unbelievable. I think most hockey players will tell you the thing they enjoyed the most was being with the guys and having 21 or 22 best friends that you see everyday. 

    My first year was definitely an eye opener and I felt so lucky to be playing in Elmira and winning a Cherrey Cup, but as much as you hear it, you never realize how much time flies. Seems like within the blink of an eye, I am now in my last year of Junior hockey. I remember like it was yesterday I did my first interview with Darren Stevenson for the news, in the middle of the Stratford series, and now he's making sure that kids all around the Waterloo region will get that same feeling of being recognized for doing something they love. He makes continuous efforts to make local sports coverage available for everyone, and makes high school kids, junior hockey players, CIS sports, minor hockey teams and everyone feel important. 
No matter what level of hockey you play, you will always make memories, hopefully ones that last a lifetime.  Although not winning the Cherrey Cup last year, it was an amazing experience to play against my brother in the finals.  But for me, being able to hoist the Sutherland Cup last year will be at the top of my list.  Not only because we had won it, but the things we had to go through to get there.  Everyone on the team believed we could do it if we put in the effort.  For that, I would like to give a big thanks to our coaches for the last few years Ty Canal and Trent Brown for getting us there and giving us that opportunity and that memory.  As well as everyone else on the Sugar Kings staff, from Jeff Snyder to the booster club, a huge thanks for everything they do, they could never get enough recognition.  As well as my 2 billet families in the organization, we appreciate everything you do to help.  One last special shoutout to my parents and my family for always supporting me (and my brother) and giving us the opportunities throughout all our years of hockey.

Ethan Skinner - November 2017