Now, at 15 years of age, one of Rowter’s favourite things is to help and coach those tiny hockey players.
“I love it, it’s really nice to know that was you,” says Rowter. “I’ve always wanted to coach the younger kids so to have that opportunity is really nice.”
Rowter is a goalie and an enthusiastic coach. He plays for the South Shore Ice Sharks Midget AA team, and, for several years, was on the Western Hurricanes major bantam team. He’s also an affiliate player for the South Shore Mustangs.
“I was the first local player on the Western Hurricanes,” says Rowter.
Every Monday night, goalies from the age of five to 13 come to a training session with the Queens Minor Hockey Association. Rowter volunteers as a coach there.
Rowter became a goalie at the age of eight and made the decision to stay in that position the following year. Becoming a goalie can be a difficult choice for some because it requires different gear and different training.
“I wanted to play goalie when I was young just because I liked their gear, they had cool helmets and their pads looked nice,” laughs Rowter.
Rowter says that he tried the position when his team was without a goalie and they used to rotate players to play nets.
“I just loved it,” says Rowter. “I loved being goalie so I stuck with it.”
Playing different positions helped make him realize what he liked doing best.
Rowter says he’d like to continue playing hockey into university and play at a junior level as well.
“I just want to go as far as I can, play at the highest level I can make,” says Rowter.
Rowter is only 15 and because of that, he can’t drive. He relies on his parents a lot to get him where he needs to be, whether that is Halifax or beyond.
“It’s really great to have such dedicated parents,” says Rowter.
Training
Training is a big aspect of Rowter’s every day life. To keep himself in shape, he bicycles a lot and he also does yoga. Goalies are required to be pretty flexible, so Rowter says doing yoga improves both his flexibility and balance.
Rowter says he is in the gym a lot.
“I do off season programs and I do physical training with a personal trainer,” says Rowter.
He also does camps dedicated to goalie training and he spends time training with David Alexander, a NHL affiliate.
Because he’s now on an AA team, he says his practice schedule is a little more relaxed. That’s enabled him to join other high school sports teams, including soccer and volleyball.
Rowter says right now, although he trains hard, he feels like he has a good balance between school and sports. He’s enjoying that for now.
“School work always has to come first, it’s not that difficult yet but I’m sure it will be pretty soon,” says Rowter.
Love of the game
Rowter says he enjoys the camaraderie that comes with hockey.
“It’s amazing,” says Rowter.
Surprisingly, his favourite part about being a goalie is the pressure.
“Making big saves when it’s a close game, having all the pressure on you, I really like those situations,” says Rowter.
His most memorable experience in hockey came from the Esso Cup tournament, where he played with the Western Hurricanes.
Rowter says the teams tied and went to sudden death. They ended up playing three on three on the ice after their third overtime.
During that three on three, his team scored.
“It was crazy because we were playing in a really small rink and the game after us was already supposed to start and the game after that was already supposed to start,” says Rowter.
That meant that the rink was packed and every move played made the audience erupt in cheers and gasps.
“There was so much hype in that game it was surreal,” says Rowter.
Now, at 15 years of age, one of Rowter’s favourite things is to help and coach those tiny hockey players.
“I love it, it’s really nice to know that was you,” says Rowter. “I’ve always wanted to coach the younger kids so to have that opportunity is really nice.”
Rowter is a goalie and an enthusiastic coach. He plays for the South Shore Ice Sharks Midget AA team, and, for several years, was on the Western Hurricanes major bantam team. He’s also an affiliate player for the South Shore Mustangs.
“I was the first local player on the Western Hurricanes,” says Rowter.
Every Monday night, goalies from the age of five to 13 come to a training session with the Queens Minor Hockey Association. Rowter volunteers as a coach there.
Rowter became a goalie at the age of eight and made the decision to stay in that position the following year. Becoming a goalie can be a difficult choice for some because it requires different gear and different training.
“I wanted to play goalie when I was young just because I liked their gear, they had cool helmets and their pads looked nice,” laughs Rowter.
Rowter says that he tried the position when his team was without a goalie and they used to rotate players to play nets.
“I just loved it,” says Rowter. “I loved being goalie so I stuck with it.”
Playing different positions helped make him realize what he liked doing best.
Rowter says he’d like to continue playing hockey into university and play at a junior level as well.
“I just want to go as far as I can, play at the highest level I can make,” says Rowter.
Rowter is only 15 and because of that, he can’t drive. He relies on his parents a lot to get him where he needs to be, whether that is Halifax or beyond.
“It’s really great to have such dedicated parents,” says Rowter.
Training
Training is a big aspect of Rowter’s every day life. To keep himself in shape, he bicycles a lot and he also does yoga. Goalies are required to be pretty flexible, so Rowter says doing yoga improves both his flexibility and balance.
Rowter says he is in the gym a lot.
“I do off season programs and I do physical training with a personal trainer,” says Rowter.
He also does camps dedicated to goalie training and he spends time training with David Alexander, a NHL affiliate.
Because he’s now on an AA team, he says his practice schedule is a little more relaxed. That’s enabled him to join other high school sports teams, including soccer and volleyball.
Rowter says right now, although he trains hard, he feels like he has a good balance between school and sports. He’s enjoying that for now.
“School work always has to come first, it’s not that difficult yet but I’m sure it will be pretty soon,” says Rowter.
Love of the game
Rowter says he enjoys the camaraderie that comes with hockey.
“It’s amazing,” says Rowter.
Surprisingly, his favourite part about being a goalie is the pressure.
“Making big saves when it’s a close game, having all the pressure on you, I really like those situations,” says Rowter.
His most memorable experience in hockey came from the Esso Cup tournament, where he played with the Western Hurricanes.
Rowter says the teams tied and went to sudden death. They ended up playing three on three on the ice after their third overtime.
During that three on three, his team scored.
“It was crazy because we were playing in a really small rink and the game after us was already supposed to start and the game after that was already supposed to start,” says Rowter.
That meant that the rink was packed and every move played made the audience erupt in cheers and gasps.
“There was so much hype in that game it was surreal,” says Rowter.
