Who Did You Draw?

A certain thought came across my mind as I was taking in 5 hockey games over this past Thanksgiving weekend (4 of which were NCAA Div. 1 games, and 1 Bantam A game)...

Out of the 8 hockey officials working the Subway Classic in Grand Forks, ND at The Ralph , 6 of them were from Minnesota.  If you include the UND Women's series that was going on that weekend, too, of the 12 hockey referees, 9 of them were from Minnesota (and 6 of those 9 are from the Minneapolis/St. Paul area).

And that led me to think -- "Who is your competition?"

If you are striving for a spot in a league, or for playoffs, or for the postseason, you need to have a good idea who your competition is out there.  You don't need to dwell on it too long, but have an idea what you are up against.

I remember a conversation I had with former Fargo South High School Coach, Dean Wilson.  He was one of the first one's to really point out to me that it can always depend on who you draw whether or not you get a job.  Back in 1989, he applied for the vacant coaching job in Roseau, MN.  He felt he was fully qualified (and knowing his coaching ability AND his stellar record at Fargo South, I'd agree), but he didn't get the job.  Dean Blais got the job.  "So, Wils, who did you draw?"  He drew Dean Blais (two-time national championship coach at University of North Dakota -- future Gopher coach...hehehe).

So who did you draw?  Getting back to the referees from this weekend, the cold hard facts are that 6 out of 12 officials were from the Twin Cities (tough row to hoe, if you're from the Twin Cities).  In fact, out of the referees (not linesman) in the WCHA on the Men's side, 11 of the 22 on staff are from the Twin Cities.  So, the fact is...if you are from the Twin Cities, and you want to ref the WCHA...well...it's a long line.

How can we best sum this up?  Sometimes you are the "Right Guy in the Right Place at the Wrong Time."  There are a lot of factors that come into play on whether you get the opportunities you want:

• is there an opening (to get into the WCHA, one of these guys needs to quit/retire)?
• who else is waiting with you?
• are you in your prime, past your prime, or not quite 'prime time'
• AND, MOST IMPORTANTLY, HAVE YOU DONE EVERYTHING TO PREPARE YOURSELF FOR THE TIME THE OPPORTUNITY PRESENTS ITSELF? (Luck = when preparation meets opportunity).

To best prepare yourself. [go here], register ASAP (because others are getting in line ahead of you! hehehe).