Dec 18, 2019

Okanagan Hockey’s top 10 Christmas Gifts for your young hockey player

Hi folks, Dixon Ward here. Well, it’s that time of year again. The Christmas season is upon us and I figured it would be fun to share with you our favorite Christmas gifts for young hockey players. I thought about what direction I wanted to go with this and I decided to stay away from the obvious choices of equipment related gifts such as skates and sticks.  Instead, I have compiled a list of non-traditional ideas that you may find interesting, and more importantly, things parents can share with their kids.   Most are easily affordable, with a couple higher priced items.

1. Tickets to a local Junior Hockey game - It’s always fun to share an experience and support your local team alongside your young player.
2. Massage – There is nothing quite like a quality sports massage after a tough tournament weekend. Resets the body and more importantly, the mind.
3. Trip to Las Vegas to watch the Las Vegas Golden Knights – This is truly an experience of a lifetime for a young player.  The overall production and show that they put on is incredible.
4. “No Days Off” book by Max Domi – This is truly an inspiring story for any young player that chronicles Max’s journey to the NHL after being diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes.  A portion of the proceeds of this book are donated to the JDRF, the leading global organization funding type 1 diabetes research.
5. Okanagan Hockey Summer Camp – Always exciting to look forward to a week of hockey at the world’s best hockey camps.
6. A promise to get up in the middle of the night to watch a World Junior game from Europe – I always enjoyed doing this with my son and I know he really appreciated it.
7. NHL Center Ice TV package – Watching hockey is the best way to learn the game. The access to all of the games may just keep then away from the video games for a bit.
8. Road Hockey nets – I still remember my first net that I got for Christmas.  To this day, one of my fondest memories. Spent the majority of my free time on the street loving the game.
9. Golf Lessons – Golf is so much more fun when you are good at it and it’s a great way to spend the off-season with your buddies.
10. Foam Roller – The sooner any young player appreciates post-hockey recovery the better.  Foam rollers are a great way to enhance muscle recovery and prevent injury.

Whatever you may choose for your young player, the greatest gift that we can all give as parents is our time and attention. No matter how young or old your player is, spending time together enjoying your passion for the game is priceless. Okanagan Hockey sincerely hopes you all have an amazing Holiday Season and stay tuned for World Junior Blog right after Christmas.