CAYUGA—While hockey has wrapped up for many, it’s a year-round commitment for 14-year-old Xavier Slotuik of Cayuga. This June, ball hockey will see Xavier in Austria as a goalie for Team Canada at the United World Games (UWG).
Xavier has played ice hockey in Cayuga since 2014. By 2016 he was a full-time goalie. He says, “I fell in love with playing goalie.”
Four years later he started ball hockey, playing in Brantford with the Ball Hockey International (BHI) organization. BHI runs four seasons through the year: winter season is played indoors in Hamilton with the other seasons played at the Lions Park in Brantford.
Xavier began ball hockey intending to play out front and build his endurance. He explains how that plan changed: “The goalie got sick so I filled in and was asked to stay on.”
His goaltending skills have earned him the nickname “X-Save-ier”. A teammate in Cayuga first came up with the name, and years later ball hockey parents began using it as well.
Xavier’s enthusiasm for ball hockey is clear. He says, “It’s such a fast paced sport – that’s my favourite part.”
It uses similar equipment to ice hockey, except the skates. The addition of plastic sliders on goalie pads help with movement off ice. The skills are transferable between them, with Xavier’s dad, Ron, noticing how ball hockey has refined Xavier’s glove work on the ice too. His mom, Krystal, adds, “He has a really incredible goalie coach, Ryan Marks, at Cayuga who has been very instrumental and encouraging in fine tuning his skills, both physically and mentally.”
Xavier has learned visualization from his ice hockey coach and now uses it for ball hockey as well.
To manage both sports, Krystal says, “We made an agreement; if he played local league for ice hockey, he could play ball hockey all year.” There are 10 teams based in Brantford and Krystal says, “It’s a really good league.”
His parents appreciate how Xavier has developed in ball hockey. He is becoming known in the sport, in part due to his “vibrant personality”. Krystal shares, “He was on the shy side when he started but has come out of his shell.”
That personality, combined with his skill, made it natural for Xavier to try out for the U15 Team Canada ball hockey team. With a big smile he says, “A bunch of tryout dates were sent to my mother – at least 10 people sent her the flyer.”
Xavier made the team in March, and he is excited for the opportunity: “I’m looking forward to playing against people all over the world and meeting them. I want to see if their style of ball hockey is different.”
Xavier and his mom will leave for the UWG June 17-24. Twelve different sports are featured at the event with a vision of “igniting the fire of friendship and uniting the world through sports”. The young athletes will make new friends while experiencing the culture of Klangenfurt, Austria.
A dart tournament in support of Xavier is being held on Saturday, April 20 at the Cayuga Legion with registration at noon. The tournament is a blind draw format with cash prizes. The event includes a penny sale and food for purchase.
Raffle tickets for a barbecue and other prizes will also be available at the tournament, with the draw taking place on June 1. All the money raised will support the team.
As Xavier prepares for the UWG, the Grade 9 student at Holy Trinity Catholic High School in Simcoe says, “I’m looking forward to the whole thing!” He is grateful for his “whole family” who help get him to games and support his ball hockey ambitions.
The experience is teaching him a valuable lesson for all athletes. He says, “Doing this takes a lot of hard work and dedication in the sport you play. If you put your mind to it, you can do it!”
For dart tournament information or raffle tickets, email KrystalSlotuik@hotmail.com.
For more information on the UWG, visit unitedworldgames.com.
