Hockey players skate into town for training camp

By Kevin Woster, Journal staff | Tuesday, October 07, 2008

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Rapid City? Never heard of it.

That was Brady Olsen’s reaction when the 25-year-old forward from Enterprise, Ontario, first learned that he might play hockey somewhere in western South Dakota.

“South Dakota, yes, I’d heard of it. But not Rapid City,” Olsen said Monday, moments after a scrimmage with the Rapid City Rush at the Roosevelt Park ice arena.

But if Rapid City was an unfamiliar name in a barely recognizable state, Olsen headed for the Black Hills with one clear point of reference: Mount Rushmore.

“Oh, for sure,” he said when asked if he knew about the storied granite monument. “That was the main thing when people asked where Rapid City was. I told them it was close to Mount Rushmore.”

It’s close enough in miles and mind that it provided four letters – Rush – to the name of the newest expansion team in the Central Hockey League, a collection of 16 AA minor-league teams mostly in the south-central United States. The Rapid City Rush opened training camp Monday at the city ice center with 26 of the 28 players who will compete for 19 spots on the roster.

Most are from hockey-obsessed Canada. And most, like Olsen, are now getting acquainted with a small city previously unknown to them and the North American hockey world.

Stephen Cooke, 25, of Stirling, Ontario, and Chris Diubaldo, 26, of Winnipeg, Manitoba, also came to western South Dakota with only the massive mountain carving as a reference point.

“Mostly, I’d heard of Mount Rushmore,” Cooke said.

Diubaldo immediately looked up Rapid City and South Dakota on the Internet, where he made the Rushmore connection. He was also reminded by his family that this wouldn’t be his first trip to the state.

“I was at Mount Rushmore when I was 6 years old, but I can’t remember it,” he said.

Olsen won’t soon forget his recent drive down from Canada, particularly the last long leg.

“I drove for the last 10 hours across the prairie,” he said. “I was very happy to get to Rapid City and see the hills and all the trees.”

Cooke and Diubaldo were happy to arrive as well, and celebrated with some outdoor stick work at the Red Rock Golf Club.

“It’s a beautiful course, one of the nicest courses I’ve ever played,” Cooke said, rating his golf skills well below his hockey ability. “I wouldn’t call myself a golfer. But I like to play.”

Cooke’s affection for hockey, which he started playing when he was 3 years old, goes well beyond the golf level.

“I love it,” he said.

He predicted Rapid City area fans will come to love it too, and said those who have only watched the game on TV will have a much different experience.

“I think TV doesn’t always do justice to the speed of the game,” Cooke said. “Especially at ice level, you really see how fast it is.”

It was plenty fast during the scrimmage Monday afternoon. Plenty rough, too. At one point, two players squared off following a collision and landed more punches in 30 seconds than you’ll see connect in a dozen wild-swinging bar brawls.

As other players watched with mild interest, they soon broke up and headed for the penalty box, allowing play to resume.

That, too, is part of what Rapid City hockey fans will get from the Rush.

“There will be a little bit of that,” Olson said with a grin. “There’s a lot of contact. But I think it’s the speed, and the skill and the precision. I think people will really appreciate that.”

All three players praised the friendly treatment they’ve received during their first few days in town. They said they expect to get to know their new hockey home through connections with local schools and community clubs. Diubaldo, who delayed his entry into the professional hockey system to get his college business degree, said he looks forward to the school visits.

“We’ll go into school and talk to them about hockey and the team,” he said. “And we’ll talk about working hard and following your dream.”

That’s an especially appropriate subject these days, because there’s a whole new team full of dream-followers in town.

And when these guys follow a dream, they do it really fast.

Contact Kevin Woster at 394-8413 or kevin.woster@rapidcityjournal.com