Cool As Ice

February 28, 2008

Ian Dmytriw is playing hockey on ice – just like his two brothers – for the first time, thanks to a new sledge hockey program organized by the Society for
Manitobans with Disabilities (SMD).

Ian is 13 years old, a paraplegic since infancy. He underwent open heart surgery days after his birth. During the surgery, a blood clot traveled to Ian’s spine, partially paralyzing his legs. His disability is unique – most kids in wheelchairs have a disease like muscular dystrophy, while most paraplegics are adults, injured in vehicle or work accidents.

The players in the newly-formed Sledge Hockey Manitoba only have a few practices under their belts, but Ian has already discovered he has unique advantages. “I’m young and I’ve been in a wheelchair since birth. A lot of the other guys have been in a car or work accident, and they don’t have as much upper body strength. It’s easy to get by them.”

Ian’s fellow players are a co-ed group of about 15 individuals, ranging in age from 13 to late 40s. “Our mission is to be inclusive for all age groups and all abilities,” says Bill Muloin, Supervisor for Children’s Leisure Recreation and Life Skills at SMD and one of the organizers of Sledge Hockey Manitoba.

Muloin is excited about the new sledge hockey program because, he says, “I don’t think we had enough options for people with disabilities in terms of a team sport opportunity on the ice except for curling. This is a new niche for the province.”

For Ian, sledge hockey isn’t just another sport – it’s the family game. His father, Gord, worked for the Manitoba Moose for three years and his two brothers both play hockey. For the past four years, Gord has coached Ian’s brothers’ hockey teams; now he’s coaching Ian’s hockey team. “It’s always been hockey hockey hockey,” Gord explains, “and Ian hasn’t had an opportunity to participate in the same way as the other boys. Now, all of this stuff he’s watched his brothers go through, he’s doing it and there’s absolutely no difference.”

Sledge hockey is played by the same rules, on the same ice as regular hockey. In fact, the sledge hockey team is currently practicing and playing at the MTS Centre through the Community Use and Access Program, which makes the Centre available to community groups free of charge. Ian says, “It’s fun going on the ice and skating around, going really fast.”

Bill Muloin wants all the players to have as much fun as Ian, and that means upgrading their equipment. SMD has 16 sledges left over from a discontinued sledge hockey program in the 1980s, but they are difficult to use. “The new sledges are compact and easy to manoeuvre,” Muloin explains. “The old sledges are harder to move along the ice, so if an individual doesn’t have the greatest upper body strength they can get turned off from the sport.” With the support of Hockey Canada, Muloin has obtained 12 new sledges.

As Muloin is planning for a sustainable sledge hockey program, Ian is making plans of his own. “If by some miracle I get really good, I could try out for the Canadian team and play in the 2020 Olympics.”

Read More News Stories