A young Gitxsan-Heiltsuk defenceman from Kispiox has been selected to play for the Canada Peewee Cowboys on a European tour this summer.
Deicon Russell, 12, has been playing hockey basically since he could walk and dreams of some day playing for Team Canada.
His mom, Dustie Russell, said that dream was born when, along with his uncle Bruce Wilson, he watched Sidney Crosbie on TV net the gold medal goal for Canada at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver when Deicon was just two-years-old.
“When Deicon first started talking, he would say ‘skate, skate’ to his dad (Wade),” Dustie said.
Deicon said he has never been to Europe and is very excited about going over there this summer. But the thing he is most looking forward to just playing hockey. The best thing about the game, he said, is the speed.
“You can skate fast and pass [the puck] around; it’s just really fun for me,” he said.
Fun, but also hard work work and commitment. Deicon played minor hockey in Hazelton for six years before the old arena shut down. For the past two years he had to travel to Smithers and Kitimat to play. He’s very happy to be playing for the Hazelton Bulldogs again now that the brand new Upper Skeena Recreation Centre is open.
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In addition to playing minor hockey, Deicon has attended hockey schools around the province. For the past four years, it has been the all defence program at Glenn Wheeler’s Pacific Elite Hockey School (PEHS) in Richmond.
Wheeler is a nationally certified coach with 20 years of experience who played junior hockey in Belleville, ON.
Deicon, Grade 7, attends the Kispiox Community School where he says his favourite class is Gitxsan.
He also loves and plays soccer, but hockey is number one.
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The Cowboys are part of the Calgary-based Top Guns Hockey Development program that scouts and selects the best young players from western Canada and gives them an opportunity to play against their European counterparts.
The tour, scheduled for July 30 – Aug. 11, will take Deicon to Austria, Italy and the Czech Republic.
“It’s a pretty amazing opportunity for this First Nations northern B.C. kid,” Dustie said.
Prior to the tour he will attend training camp in Alberta during the last week of July.
Although an honour to be selected, the trip comes as a cost to the players’ families. To aid the Russells, Kaili Clay, a friend of the family who Deicon calls ‘aunty,’ has set up a GoFundMe campaign. In the first couple of weeks it raised $515 of a $7,000 goal.
“Since finding out the great news, the surrounding communities have shown great support towards fundraising and we are very grateful,” Dustie said.
Deicon echoed the gratitude, saying he is confident they will reach their goal.
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