NJ man uses hockey to fight prostate cancer

MORRIS TOWNSHIP, NJ – In its simplest form, hockey is a game that is played by kids. Even as adults, lacing up a pair of skates and stepping onto the ice takes people back to those winter days of youth on a frozen pond surrounded by friends who enjoyed the same passion. No worries, no cares, just fun.
Morris Township resident John Carlin never forgot those days on the pond and how much fun it was. On Saturday, August 27, Carlin will relive his youth while using hockey to raise both money for research and awareness in the fight against a deadly disease.
The day-long “Summer on the Pond” event at the Rock Ice Center in Dunellen will combine teaching for kids and old fashioned pond hockey for adults with proceeds going to the “Fans for the Cure in the Fight Against Prostate Cancer” charity.
“It’s going to be getting back to when you were a kid enjoying yourself out on the pond,” Carlin said.
Carlin, who played both collegiate and semi-pro hockey, first got involved with the Morris County Youth Hockey program when his son began to skate. He saw how the coaches worked with every kid regardless of ability and felt compelled to do the same. Carlin chose to work with those beginning skaters, which was where he met Brian.
Brian arrived at the second Saturday morning session that Carlin was involved with accompanied by his parents. He had never been on skates before but was eager to give it a try. Each week, Brian would come to the rink and skate, most of the time not leaving Carlin’s side, and got better and better every time.
It wasn’t until the youngster’s fourth week that Carlin found out what those Saturdays on the ice meant to little Brian.
“He (Brian) was making great progress. He would never quit, just kept going, going, going. We were getting off the ice and I said see you next week Brian and his mom came up to me and she was crying and saying thank you so much,” Carlin said. “She said that every Saturday Brian looked forward to coming to skate and that it was the only thing the family was trying to keep normal in his life at the time.”
As it turned out, Brian’s father had a very serious and aggressive form of cancer. The family had moved to the area to be closer to the Sloan-Kettering Clinic in nearby Basking Ridge but the doctors there had given up on treatment because of how quickly the cancer was spreading. According to what his mother told Carlin, little Brian knew something was wrong with his dad but had no idea how serious it was.
What Brian did know, however, was how much he loved being on the ice and being with Coach Carlin.
“Out on the ice, he didn’t really take part in the drills and the scrimmages. He just wanted to skate with me and pass the puck around. We’d play games to teach him how to skate. I’d do different drills with him to get him skating better. By the end he was flying around,” Carlin said. “At the last session, he gave me a card that said thank you for teaching me hockey (and signed it) love Brian.”
Months later, Carlin was with his son Jack at a three-on-three spring league. As he watched the youngsters on the ice, it took him back to those days on the pond and wishing he could do it again. Thanks to social media, he was able to wish out loud and a short time later he found out people were listening.
“I was watching his (Jack’s) game and I put on Facebook that I was watching my son Jack’s three-on-three game and wouldn’t it be great if there was three-on-three for adults,” he said. “Immediately my wife (Maureen) posted back and two of my sister-in-laws said you can make it happen, you can do it.”
As he was mulling over how to make the adult three-on-three happen, he received a message from little Brian’s mother letting him know that Brian’s dad had lost his battle with cancer. At that moment, Carlin’s dream of the pond hockey tournament now had a purpose.
“When I got the email from his mother that Brian‘s father had passed away, it hit me (hard),” he said. “I decided that if I could do something with the three-on-three, I was going to make it worth while, for a cause.”
Carlin just happened to be an acquaintance of Ed Randall, longtime sports radio personality in New York and ESPN contributor and host of “Ed Randall’s Talking Baseball” on WFAN-AM and Sirius XM Radio. Randall himself survived a battle with prostate cancer; in fact he was classified as “in remission” by doctors in 2010. His health scare was the impetus for the founding of the “Fans for the Cure” foundation that raises awareness of prostate cancer and funds for research.
In March of 2011, Randall teamed up with Northwestern Medicine to do a “Save of a Lifetime” event at the United Center in Chicago at a Chicago Blackhawks game. Medical personnel were on hand with information about prostate cancer as well as to perform free screenings for men in attendance that night.
During the summer months, Randall did a “Bats for the Cure” tour of minor league baseball cities across the country, spreading the word about early detection through a simple blood test.
When Carlin approached Randall about his idea and the wish to make “Fans for the Cure” the sole beneficiary of any monies raised, Randall was excited and offered his assistance. With Randall’s connections, he was able to secure an appearance at Carlin’s event from New Jersey Devils legend Ken Daneyko as well as autographed items from both the Devils and the New York Rangers that will be among the raffle prizes and giveaways.
Another pro team, the expansion New Jersey Outlaws of the Federal Hockey League, will also have a presence at “Summer on the Pond”. Jed Weisberger, who had been the Outlaws’ public relations director before joining the newly formed ECHL Trenton Titans, saw a notice about the event on Facebook and contacted Carlin. Weisberger saw an opportunity to get the Outlaws out into and involved in the community by making an appearance. He also had a personal interest in that like Randall, he has faced off against prostate cancer and won.
Carlin’s original idea of just having an adult three-on-three tournament eventually morphed into an all-day family affair. From 9-11 am, the kids came come and take part in an instructional clinic and scrimmages with John Puskar of the John Puskar Hockey School along with coaches from the Morris County Youth Hockey League (parents will need to have their kids in full equipment to participate).
Then at 11 am, the big kids will take to the ice. The rink will be sectioned off to make smaller sideboard-to-sideboard areas and 32 teams of up to six players will battle in a round robin tournament. The goals will be makeshift. There won’t be a referee calling penalties – the players call their own. No slap shots or pucks above the knees will be allowed
“It’s going to be pond hockey rules,” Carlin said.
Proceeds from the registrations for the youth clinic and the three-on-three tournament will be sent to the “Fans for the Cure” organization. In an effort to maximize the donation, Carlin has been soliciting corporate sponsors to help defray the cost of the ice rental. He did have one sponsor who has recently pulled out, leaving Carlin to scramble to find others.
Through the entire process, Carlin said he has learned quite a bit about cancer and specifically prostate cancer – much more than he ever thought he would – and is happy to be a part of the fight.
“I have learned more and more about cancer and in particular prostate cancer. One out of six men will come down with it which is an alarming number,” he said. “Groups like ‘Fans for the Cure’ are bringing more and more awareness to it and helping in early detection through traveling PSA screens and events like ‘Summer on the Pond.’”
For more information on “Summer on the Pond” or to register to play (tournament registration is open until August 25th), please go to www.summeronthepond.com .
Contact the author at don.money@prohockeynews.com