Not All of Us Will Be Lifers

By John Doolan

For some, we enjoyed a long career in our hockey occupation and left on our own terms.  For others, the team informed us that the ride was over.  I always spoke to younger members the need to be prepared for that day and not to pigeonhole ourselves into not thinking we can do anything else.  I unfortunately did not heed my own advice and after my time in the NHL moved down and not up the ladder.  I do and don’t regret it, I met so many great people while in the minors, but now wonder “what if” I had gone in another direction at age 44 and recognized my attributes that other industries would embrace.

For this article I reached out to a few alumni to ask several questions that I feel will give insight into their transition of being in the arena to life after hockey.  The gentlemen who replied to my request were Pat Karns who began his athletic career at USA Hockey and St. Cloud State with a stop with the IHL Denver Grizzles before spending 9 years with the Avalanche.  Dan Delvecchio also lent his 2 cents.  Dan had a long tenure in the ECHL & IHL before getting his shot with the LA Kings equipment staff.  Ed Georgica started as an assistant with the Canucks and was the first equipment manager for the Senators spanning 16 seasons.  Morris Boyer spent time with Hockey Canada and the Calgary Flames in his trainer’s capacity.  Peter Friesen 21-year veteran of the Hurricanes started his career in the WHL before moving on to University of Alberta and Hockey Canada.

A question I asked was “What do you miss”.  Replies were what I thought they would be, meeting great comrades and others, the culture, the urgency and quick responses, following careers of young players, competition, and the locker room atmosphere.

Going in the other direction “What don’t you miss”.  The responses were also what many of you would expect.  Travel, late-night load ins, dealing with remote player rehab during the off-season, being on call 24/7, self-wellness, but lost family time was a unanimous answer from all.

The next question was how did you transition into your present occupation?  For Ed Georgica he consulted on sports movies, Owner of Fruits & Passion, a body care franchise and a sports medical supply company.  Ed has settled in as Director of Team Operations and Facilities with the MSL Vancouver Whitecaps.  Dan Delvecchio was hired on as a rep by Sherwood before entering the media sales force and now is sales manager with Fox TV in Charlotte NC.  Morris Boyer went right into a sports medicine clinic.  Peter Friesen transitioned to working at NC State and a PT clinic.  He is now an Adjunct Professor at Duke and Elon University in the PT school along with teaching professional courses to PT’s, trainers and strength coaches.  Pat Karns may have had the roughest transition.  He owned a distillery and lost his savings and his wife in that venture.  Pat sorry about the distillery!  He is now a medical device rep but like my short sales career does not like asking for the sale.  He also is attempting to get a medical referral network up and going for retired professional athletes.

Finally, I asked what advice would you give to present PHATS/SPHEM members?  Their comments ranged from:  You are not defined by your job.  You’re in your position because you do a great job, keep learning, and don’t take your position for granted.  Be sure to look after your future (education/business) and something to fall back on.  You’re only as good as your last day!!  Try to do other jobs in the off-season to build your resume. And finally, treasure the time you have at the rink with the guys.

I would like to thank the alum who contributed and made this article easy for me.

The alum will be in attendance again this year and we encourage you to interact with us on this article’s insight and anything else you would like to engage us in.