Geraldine Brophy/The Western Star
The 11-year-old Corner Brook native is one of the goalies expected to protect the cage for the host Royals at the 2015 Hockey Newfoundland and Labrador Mega Atom Tournament being staged in Corner Brook this week.
Park got involved with minor hockey as a forward in the Timbits division, but after a couple of seasons she decided to try her luck at ringette, which was resurrected in the city for a brief stint. When the opportunity to play hockey with girls came about three years ago, she decided to register for minor hockey again.
Strapping the pads on was something she wanted to try and once she got her feet wet there was no turning back.
The four-foot-11 goalie, with her pink bandana peaking through the side of her mask, approaches the crease with a smile and never puts any pressure on herself.
She only wants to stop as many shots as she can to give her a team a chance to win and never lets the scoreboard change her demeanour. She finds it challenging to learn the different things she must perfect to be a quality puckstopper, but she’s been finding her groove after being a sponge at so many goaltending sessions over the past couple of seasons.
Goalies can steal games for their teams, but they can also let in a soft one from time to time, but she figures the way a goalie responds to it is what really counts.
“I just shake it off and pretend it didn’t even happen,” she said.
She had her first taste of playing in a provincial championship last year when she played for the Corner Brook Under-12 female tournament, so this is her second shot at trying to win a medal and she’s the only female on the team, which is just fine with her.
A total of 20 teams are in the hunt for gold at this year’s mega event, so she knows it will take a lot of hard work and a few bounces to achieve success.
“We just have to play hard and try our best,” she said.
No matter what unfolds, her smile will always give a good indication that she’s doing something she really loves.
Her coach Jason Rowsell is quite familiar with the contentment the young girl gets from playing the game.
“Jessica is always smiling and enjoys every minute of her time as a member of this team,” Rowsell said.
Having somebody shooting rubber discs at you isn’t for everybody, but that’s not the case for this young multi-sport athlete.
A big smile flashes at the thought of it, so why would she be doing anything else during the cold winter months.
