Happy World Poetry Day

I’m sitting here inside my home,

Thinking I should write a poem.

I’ve turned my brain inside and out,

But I can think of nothing to write about.

I could write about my failing health,

Or of my woeful lack of wealth.

I could write of missing all my friends,

But that is a sadness that never ends.

I could write about a long lost love,

But it’s too depressing even to think of.

I could write of all my hopes and dreams,

But I really have none left, it seems.

I’ve nothing left to write, I think.

I just might go and have a drink.

Oceanside Ice Arena

Today is a very sad day for many Valley residents, especially those who are familiar with Oceanside Ice Arena. As somebody who grew up in central Phoenix, I didn’t spend an awful lot of time at Oceanside, which is in the East Valley. But as a Hockey fan, I am definitely familiar with it. 

Oceanside Ice Arena sits in a sparse, industrial area between Tempe and Scottsdale. Its name derives from its proximity to the former site of Big Surf water park, a miniature, man-made ocean in the desert (the first of its kind in the U.S.). 

For nearly fifty years the Arena has housed Hockey in one form or another. I remember as a kid going to watch Phoenix Roadrunners Old-Timer teams play exhibition games at Oceanside. The Oceanside Sharks were a Junior Hockey team that played out of Oceanside way back when and I played with and against some of those guys in various adult leagues later on. In the 1980s I watched the Edmonton Oilers practice there on their way to somewhere. When I worked for the Phoenix Roadrunners IHL team we would occasionally practice there when the ice at AVMC was unavailable. I myself played in their adult league for a season or two and played in a regular pick-up game there many times.

In more recent times, the ASU Hockey program called Oceanside home for many years before moving to the new Mullett Arena.

Today is a sad day because it will be the last day of skating at Oceanside Arena. As I write this, they are hosting an event to say goodbye to the old rink. I haven’t skated there in probably at least 20 years, but somehow it feels like losing a part of me, of my life. I still have my memories, some good and some not so good, but somehow knowing it’s gone has me feeling melancholy. Due to health issues I was not up to attending, but maybe it’s just as well. It would have been too sad, like losing an old friend.

Good bye, Oceanside. You were a treasure and you will be missed.

Me and the Bee

Requiem

I am at a loss. I still can’t believe the news I heard yesterday. I am getting used to hearing about old friends and acquaintances passing away. But when you hear about three in one day, it hits so much harder. It’s overwhelming.

Yesterday, while skimming over my social media feeds, I came across a familiar face. Somebody had posted a picture of Todd Gillingham, a former professional Hockey player with whom I was acquainted many years ago, when we were both much younger and still active in the game. The picture was accompanied by the caption, “1970-2023.” I was shocked. I remembered Gilly as such a happy-go-lucky guy…he always brightened my day every time I saw him. I didn’t know him well. We were never on the same team together. The closest we came was when he played for the Phoenix Roadrunners the year after I had left the team. I always knew him as a visiting player, mostly with the San Diego Gulls and Salt Lake City Golden Eagles. Nevertheless, he greeted me with a big smile and a hearty hello every time I saw him. He was one of those guys who just always seemed happy to be doing what he was doing, like he never had a bad day. And that was infectious. I don’t recall ever interacting with him where I didn’t end up smiling. He was a really good dude.

I don’t know how he died. No details were given and I hadn’t heard anything about him being sick, so I have no idea. What I do know is that the world is a darker place without him. I will miss him. But I thought about him yesterday and it made me smile. Cheers, Gilly.

Moments later, I saw a post about Ryan Pisiak. Again, I never worked with Pisiak and knew him only as a visiting player. But I remember him as a well-respected tough guy with the Louisiana Ice Gators of the ECHL and the Austin Ice Bats of the WPHL. I didn’t know him much at all, mostly just by reputation. But I know he was well-regarded by those who knew him. Again, I don’t know what caused his death; only that he was much too young. Rest in Peace, Ryan.

The last gut punch came with the news of Gino Odjick’s passing. I never met Gino, but of course I knew who he was. Everybody who followed Hockey in the '90s knew who he was. He was a bit of a legend. He played 12 years in the NHL, most of it with the Vancouver Canucks. Like Gillingham and Pisiak, he was a tough guy and those guys tend to be well-liked. They also tend to be really personable guys. Some of the nicest men I’ve met have been some of the toughest Hockey players I’ve known. 

Unlike the others, I knew that Gino had been sick for a while. His diagnosis for amyloidosis had been made public, and it has been known for some time that he probably did not have much longer to live. That being said, I think he hung in there longer than a lot of people expected. In the end, he died of a heart attack, his heart having been weakened by his condition. 

It’s tough enough to keep hearing about people we respect and admire passing away, despite the knowledge that we all will eventually come to the end of our time on Earth. But it seems exceptionally cruel to have three fall in one day. It just doesn’t seem real. It can’t be real. But…somehow it is. I am at a loss. I don’t know what else to say. 

Rest in Peace, Gentlemen. You will be missed.