Coaches
Glenn Collins (resume)
Since the age of four, my life has revolved around hockey. Winters
playing hockey on Windsors Pond, Honeoye Lake, and the barge canal with
neighbors and family led to the neighborhood getting together to build
an outdoor rink in our family’s backyard…”The Rollingwood Forum”.
Summers switched to the driveway where intense road hockey was played
all summer. High School Hockey in Pittsford, College Hockey at RIT, and
over 30 years of coaching at all levels from beginners to college, was
just the beginning. My wife played on the Oswego State Women’s Ice
Hockey Team, and was recently inducted into their athletic hall of fame.
One of my high school coaches, Don Cherry, also coached the Rochester
Americans, and remains a close family friend to this day. My first son
was born with a knee hockey stick and a knitted pair of skates from Don
in his bassinette in the nursery. Youth Hockey has taken our family all
over Canada and the United States, where we have met many fantastic
people. My two sons have had the privilege of playing college hockey
(Chris at Boston College and Greg at UNH), and Chris had his dream come
true when he signed with the Boston Bruins this summer.
People have called us crazy for years (and I guess they are probably
right), but I wouldn’t change a thing. Hockey has been good to our
family. It has given my kids great opportunities, and allowed us to meet
many amazing (and also crazy) people while spending quality time as a
family. Over the last couple years, I have been looking for a way to
pass on what I have learned, and allow other families to experience what
we have been so lucky to have been a part of. I helped start the
Rochester Monarchs hoping it would be the vehicle to accomplish this,
but although the Monarchs have been a success, they are able to serve
only a small group of hockey families. The birth of the Rochester
Grizzlies Youth Hockey Development Program comes from my desire to bring
the enjoyment of hockey to a larger number of players and their
families.
Chris Collins
For me it all started when I was born...the great hockey legend Don
Cherry stood over my cradle and gave me a hockey stick and a pair of
skates, and from that point on hockey has been the passion of my life.
Growing up I had a big advantage, I had a brother only 1 year younger
than I was. We constantly played, fought and battled growing up
together. Greg and I had another big advantage, as we grew up in a
hockey family. My mom and dad both played college hockey. We were given
every chance to play hockey and were provided the facilities necessary
to do so. My Grandfather built a rink in my dad's backyard for him and
his brothers while he was growing up, and in carrying on the tradition,
my dad did the same for us. We played countless hours on our backyard
rink. It wasn't huge, but for Greg and me it was all we needed. On top
of the backyard rink my parents owned a fun center named "Adventure
Quest". This was a place with many rooms perfect for hosting the
countless floor hockey battles we had with each other and our friends.
We always went to summer hockey camps and played in multiple tournaments
throughout the year, but honestly nothing was more fun, and I now
realize nothing was more developmental for our skill than these games we
played both in our backyard and in our parents place. We were always
having fun and never wanted to stop, we would play deep into the night
and never get tired of it. It was the fun we had that developed our
passion for the game of hockey as well as developing our skills. To this
day even as a pro hockey player I consistently attribute parts of my
game back to when we were playing and having fun as kids. The battling
in the corners and knack for scoring the goal when I get the chance
relates directly back to when I was battling with Greg in the backyard
or in "Adventure Quest." If I didn't score that one chance I got I would
have to hear it from the little brother all night long. You can go to
all the camps and tournaments you want and practice for hours on end but
if you are not having fun it is impossible to develop the passion it
takes to move on to the next level.
Hockey has been very important for our family. We have spent many
weekends away from home, but those weekends were almost always spent
together. I had a very close relationship with my late grandfather and
we shared many great hockey experiences. He loved the sport and taught
Greg and I to love it as well. He rarely missed a game and almost never
missed a trip to a tournament. It was those experiences that bonded me
to my grandfather and they are something I will take with me the rest of
my life. No one in my family ever felt playing hockey was a sacrifice;
we saw it as an opportunity. Not only was it fun and it kept us busy,
but we spent countless hours on the road together or in hotels in many
fun cities. These experiences have made our family extremely close and
provided us many great memories. The older I get the more I realize what
my parents have done for my brother and I. People were always
questioning why they were constantly traveling and sending us to
different places for hockey, but no one could have understood that
except us. That is what Greg and I wanted, and there was no way we would
have settled for anything less.
Because of the fun we had and passion we gained for the sport of hockey
through out our childhood, hockey continues to be an important part of
our life today. And the best part about it is that our entire family
feels the same way. My sister Kelly has become quite the player, and my
youngest sister Courtney is our biggest fan! (You should see the hockey
wall in our living room, it’s awesome!)
The Rochester Grizzlies program is based on the concept of fun and
passion for the game of hockey. My dad, my brother and I have talked
about starting a program like the Grizzlies for a while, and I was most
excited about the idea of sharing our own family’s passion and love for
the game of hockey with other players and their families.
This game is not just about practice and drills and systems, although
these all play important roles. The game is about passion and fun.
Having fun brings passion and with passion for the game, and a
commitment to be your best…a player can make all his hockey dreams come
true...
villagesportsice@gmail.com