A young Stratford hockey player is lacing up his skates, heading to Toronto and then Alberta for a huge, international tournament.
Max Mari, 9, has been invited to join the Toronto Bulldogs spring hockey team for 2024, a spot reserved for some of the best young hockey players in the province.
“It's going to be really fun to play some of the tournaments,” Max told StratfordToday. “And it’s gonna be a chance to meet some new friends.”
Max started playing hockey when he was four years old, and loves the sport because he can play with his friends and have fun skating.
Shawn Walker, who coaches Max on the U10 AAA Huron Perth Lakers, said Max scores many of the team’s collective goals, but it is his natural ability as a leader on and off the ice that the team relies upon.
“He’s a hard worker, first and foremost,” Walker said. “He plays the game both ways … doesn’t just play offence, doesn’t just score goals. He plays defence … and then promotes the players that play with him. He makes people around him better.”
This is Walker’s first year coaching and expectations weren’t necessarily high, he said, but the team started to do well, with the help of Max.
“We kept beating teams we weren’t supposed to beat,” he said.
After a certain point, other teams, other players, and other parents started to take notice of Max. It was then that Max was noticed by other Bulldog kids and their parents and coaches.
Max was invited to a training camp shortly after. He had missed the first one but made enough of an impression to make the team.
Max said that it was “extremely hard” work to make the cut, involving hours and hours of work practicing shooting and stickhandling.
In terms of his abilities, Max doesn’t think he has any particular “secret skill", he is a good player overall.
Max’s father James, however, pointed to his son’s shot speed. His average is around 60 km/h, but Max said he once got up to 85 km/h.
More than anything, Max’s parents and coach thought that his work ethic is a huge asset that sets him apart.
“He’s respectful and kind to everyone,” James said. “And he’s always working really hard.”
James and Melissa said he has an amazing work ethic. Even at a young age when they take him to tournaments, Max would put himself to bed at 7:30 p.m. so that he was ready to play in the morning.
“A lot of kids in hotel rooms are playing mini-sticks and having fun, but Max wanted to make sure he was ready,” Melissa said. “He’s always been a dedicated, hard worker.”
Only the top players from the province make it onto the team, which is invited to play at some big tournaments. Among them is the Brick Invitational Hockey Tournament, featuring some of the top teams from across North America.
Many current CHL, AHL, and even some NHL players have played in past tournaments, Walker said.
“If I could make the NHL and get paid to do what I love most, that’d be pretty cool,” Max said. “I've just got to keep working hard.”
This year, the 2024 tournament takes place in Edmonton, Alberta, slated for the end of June or early July.
