Why Hockey's Incredible

By now you guys realize that I am a hockey maniac and a sport fanatic. Here are some interesting hockey stories if you care to read.

I like the story about the family of Jean-Sebastien Giguere, the goalie of the Anaheim Ducks. When 'Jiggy' was growing up in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, his father worked as prison warden and his mother worked as a school bus driver. When the cost of hockey equipment grew too expensive, Dad asked JS, the youngest child in the family, whether JS wanted to continue to play hockey. When JS said yes, his parents took out a mortgage from their home to pay for the expenses. Whether it was 100% pure parental love or faith in their 12 years old child that one day he will become one of the skilled goalies in National Hockey League. Pretty remarkable story to have this little kid who barely got pads to play hockey became an NHL great.

Pavel Datsyuk skating hard

Next story is about a player who was "diamond in the rough", Pavel Datsyuk, Detroit Red Wings center. Datsyuk has been one of my favorite hockey players. The 28-year old native of Sverdlovsk, Russia, was overlooked for many years by scouts who thought he was too small and would not be fast enough to be in the NHL. At 5'11", 185 lbs, Datsyuk would be small compared to most of the other players over 6'1" and more than 200 lbs. That is the whole point - Datsyuk is not an enforcer, he is a hockey player with magical hands. He moves the puck as if it was on a string, invisible string from his stick, release at the right moment to a teammate or shoot the puck on the moves that others could only dream of. Datsyuk shoots when you thought he could not and when the goalie thought he would pass the puck. I enjoy watching Datsyuk because of his natural skills, balance on his skates, the speed and strength from his legs and the "silky-smooth" passes that kept opponents guessing.

These two stories are interesting to say the least. And of course you hear things like this all the time in any and every sport, but it remains important to me to show the heart and dedication of players who have made it to the bigs in hockey.