NHL Alumnus Curtis Sanford Works With Bear Creek HCSA Students
- edgaringer
- Dec 5, 2016
- 2 min read
On December 5th, NHL Alumnus and current Grey-Bruce Highlanders AAA Coach, Curtis Sanford visited the Bear Creek Hockey Canada Skills Academy to work with Academy students and share his experiences playing in the OHL, Minor Pro, the NHL, and in the KHL. Sanford led all students through several skills activities in the on-ice session and also was able to work with the student goaltender on-on-one for an extended time.
Edward Garinger, the Program Coordinator and Instructor of the Bear Creek Hockey Canada Skills Academy shared that “Curtis is an excellent coach and instructor. I’m really fortunate to have counted Curtis as a teammate (many years ago). Being familiar with his character and abilities - both as an elite goaltender and as an elite coach - it was a natural fit to ask him to share his knowledge with us.”
In observing the on-ice session, Sanford expressed: “The drills and instruction that were incorporated into the practice plan were challenging and geared towards the skill levels of the students. The ice-time was well planned from warm-up to the cool-down. The students were very involved and respectful towards the leaders.”
After the on-ice session, Sanford participated in a question-and-answer session with Bear Creek’s Academy students. Each student had previously researched Sanford’s background, and had questions prepared which Sanford answered. In response to student questions, he shared some of his favourite memories in the sport, his experiences playing in Russia, his thoughts on today’s NHL game, and advice on how to reach ones’ goals an athlete. Regarding the question-and-answer session, Sanford shared that: “[t]he post practice Q-and-A was a great experience personally, as I was able to reflect on my own career and answer well-thought out questions from the students.”
Following his experience with the Bear Creek Hockey Canada Skills Academy, Sanford, who was an All-Star in the ECHL, AHL, and KHL, relayed that he was impressed with Bear Creek’s Skills Academy program, relaying that “it was great, I had a good time. The students were very receptive and worked pretty hard. Ed Garinger and Bear Creek have done a great job integrating academics with our great game.”
In summation of the Sanford’s visit, Garinger articulated that “Both the students and I are very thankful Curtis took the time to share his knowledge and experiences. Having an athlete and instructor of Curtis’s caliber share his experiences is invaluable to the improvement of our students, and I’m glad we are able to continue to provide opportunities such as this for them.”
Watch some Curtis Sanford highlights below.
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