October is normally the start of beer league season. But as there is no men's league hockey in Riyadh, I will be missing out on it this year. It has otherwise been a tradition for me the past 15 years. For someone who grew up in Canada, I was a late bloomer when it came to (ice) hockey. Coming from a poor immigrant family, sports was not a priority. Also, being from a demographic not generally associated with hockey, as well as being undersized, the stars did not naturally align to push me towards the sport. But I loved hockey anyhow, and even started my own league to play floor hockey at the gym of a local church when I was a teen, since ice hockey was out of reach. I learned to skate at age 13. I then played (pick-up) hockey occasionally -- mostly off rather than on – until I was in my thirties. My first experience with organised hockey was in Manhattan. I joined a beer league there by happenstance at age 34. Since then, I have played regularly and been on several beer league championship teams. I have been fortunate to have shared the ice with…
