Claimed:The Legend That Never Was: Verner Reinholdt

[Devise 4,475]

The Legend That Never Was: Verner Reinholdt

 

 

The story of Verner Reinholdt starts as most hockey stories do. A young boy of four years fascinated by the speed, rhythm, and spectacle of the game. He sits with his parents in the nose bleeds of a local hockey arena in his hometown of Landskrona, Sweden. At that time Verner had no idea of what was to come. He had no idea then, that he would go on to be one of the most unheralded hockey names of all time. That he would pass up opportunities to play in the NHL, to be a star, yet his entire life would be consumed by this game. Instead he just watched, unable to look away. To him even at that early age there was something harmonious about the game of hockey. It just made sense, and it is that exact essence that carried him through the rest of his hockey life and career. It carried him to join his first midget hockey team at age six. It took than six months for playing at that level for Reinholdt to outgrow most of his peers. His biggest advantage on that front was always his skating. When people talk about a player who can skate they often talk about speed but for Verner his skating prowess has always been more than that. Even in midgets coaches were amazed by his ability to stop on a dime, to use his positioning to protect the puck, and then setting up plays or taking it to the net. He has always been the type of skater that you never had to encourage to keep his legs moving. 

 

As for his actual childhood, growing up Verner would tell you that almost nothing of note really happened while he was young. He was a rather typical child in other fronts of his life. He grew up in a middle class home with his family. While nobody could call his childhood perfect, it wasn't filled with any extra turmoil than most family homes. His parents both had stable jobs, so there was no strife or fighting about money or other familial issues. And with the exception of spending much of his free time studying and practicing hockey Verner would often spend social time hanging out with his older brother Tomas. Tomas was 3 years older than Verner and was not an athlete. Although Tomas often accused Verner of spending more time practicing on the rink than hanging with him, they still were relatively close siblings. And so life went, Verner would do his best to micro manage as much of his free time as possible, and continued to rapidly excel his hockey prowess. 

 

As Verner's hockey skill grew, so did interest in getting him overseas, away from Europe. Verner had turned down offers to join various teams in the CHL, citing that he didn't want to leave home at such an early age. But on his sixteenth birthday his family had a serious talk with him about his future, and it was decided that the best bet for him would be to leave home and head to Canada. So that is exactly what Verner did. He played 26 games with the Moose Jaw Warriors in the Western Hockey League and all things looked well. He was showing up on scouts radar, and his hockey future seemed bright. His early WHL career was filled with it's share of highlights, including a six point first game that his entire family was in attendance for. Then everything changed. Verner's brother Tomas, now 19 and working on his engineering degree in University was sadly killed while Verner was away playing hockey in Canada. Tomas was travelling with friends when his vehicle was collided into head on by a drunk driver. The day he got the news was the last day Verner played hockey in North America. While most assumed it was the quick and devastating loss of his brother, especially while he was still younger that caused him to abandon his North American hockey career, Verner recently opened up about the subject while interviewing with the VHL Magazine. 

 

Quote

It wasn't just that I lost my brother, I think y'know a lot of people say that is what caused me to stay home. And initially it was. But I think a lot of people who hear my story assume that it was just a tragedy that caused me to turn my back on the North American side of the game. I never wanted to come over in the first place. I have no ill will towards the game on that side of the pond. The NHL is a great league and players who aspire to get there have nothing to be ashamed of. But for me as a foreigner, I look at it from the perspective of what I have to give up. Y'know Sidney Crosby never had to give up as much did he? The leagues that they primarily scout from, the CHL that is in his home country. In some cases it's a few hours drive for games for their family and friends, if not it's only a few hours on plane. For me, for my family to come out and to see me play as a kid would be thousands of miles. For them to be with me they would have to uproot their lives. My decision to stay in Europe, more local while it was influenced by the loss of my brother I think it just cemented the points I already had in my head. I care about the game, the people in it, the people who grow it, and where I"m from there is a lot of people who love hockey. So my focus was on my family, my home country, and all the people who are working to make hockey their lives. I knew I was good enough to play hockey the rest of my life, and I knew one day, when I was ready, I'd come back across the pond and test my skills. But hockey is just as much about the people as it is about the game, and I just didn't think it was right that so many of us foreigners have to abandon our entire lives to play in the league that most people consider the "top" league. But that is the landscape of hockey, so I made the decision I made and I don't regret it one bit. 

 

Following his departure from the WHL, Verner's hockey career continued to blossom, although without much spotlight. He played in various Swedish Elite leagues, a brief stint in the KHL, and of course beer leagues. He enjoyed spending holidays with his family, and eventually even settled down himself. Now at 43 years old Verner finds himself 10 years married, with 3 of his own kids, although he likes to keep his personal life rather private. And before he declared for the VHL Verner was spending the last several years of his life as a hockey instructor, helping to teach kids and even helping out with the Sweden National team in a training capacity. Verner maintains that one of the reasons he joined the VHL was because of his brother. 

 

 

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It was always important to Tomas that I achieved something larger in this sport. He was the big reason I went overseas in the first place, and I think the spirit of his ideas has always stuck with me. I'm happy I did it this way though. I have a family that I love, I've gotten to see my kids first words, first steps, engagement parties, weddings, the list goes on. My decision to stay home for as long a I have has allowed to me to experience aspects of life that I didn't want to miss because I was overseas playing hockey. But something Tomas told me just before I went to Moose Jaw when I was younger has always stuck with me. If your this talented at something, especially naturally, you owe it to yourself to try to make something great out of it. I may have missed my window for the NHL, but I feel like here in the VHL is my time to make that something great. So I'm here to do this for all the players who knew they were talented enough but decided that life was more than just hockey. And I'm also here to make my brother proud. 

 

 

[Corco 1,237]

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