Hockey Parents are Crazy

[Dion]

My late father was a coach for many years before he quit. He got tired of parents yelling at him about their kid not getting enough ice time, should be playing on the top line or more on the PP.

[united]

The ultimate crazy hockey parent has to be Patrick O'Sullivan's father. Real sad story.

http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=399650
"I just don't want to rehash something from my past that I've tried and tried to forget," he reasoned, citing a night when he was just 8 and his father made him get out of the car a mile from home and run the rest of the way carrying his gear. The reason? Punishment for a sub-par game.

http://www.cbc.ca/fifth/whoselifeisit/story.html
One night Patrick refused to get out of his uniform after a game. He hadn't played well and Patrick told him that he was scared to walk outside and face his father.
...
He wasn't having a good night and assistant coach Washkurak could hear his father's wrath in the stands. John was pounding on the glass shouting to his son that his hockey career was over.
...
CATHIE MARTIN: John stated kicking and beating up on Patrick at that point. Then he told me to get the girls and get in the van and I said, 'We're not going."
...
The next day Patrick filed assault charges against his father. John O'Sullivan was arrested, plead guilty and spent a month in jail. The court granted Patrick a restraining order prohibiting his father from coming within a kilometre of him or any hockey game in which he played.
...
But despite the restraining order, John O'Sullivan continued to show up at Patrick's games. Several times the police were called and John was issued another arrest. At every game, Patrick wondered if his dad would show up in the stands.

[Byrns]

I never played hockey, and after reading these stories, I'm glad I have a baby girl!

[expo2428]

I remember a basketball game in grade eight, there was a blizzard that day and the refs couldnt make it to the game, so I believe it was the gym teacher who reffed the game instead. So during the game some 30-35 year old guy kept yelling at this ref calling him a ####ing idiot, ####ing blown call, over and over and this was grade eight with younger siblings in the crowd watching the game. So after awhile of getting yelled at and being called a ####ing idiot the gym teacher hands the whistle to the 30-35 year old guy and walks out of the gym.

Its not like our schools are basketball crazy or anything, we won one out of twelve games will I believe the other team won like three out twelve. Not like the game meant much to us, it was just a time to have fun.

Still amazes me to this day that some guy would get so angry over some sub referee not even that just some guy trying to ref a game because so some grade eights could play a basketball game.