Self-employment
Hockey instructor now owns his own hockey schoolTurning passion into a careerLike countless children across Canada, Rob Desveaux grew up playing our national sport. A Canadian Hardy Cup champion, he played professional hockey in Europe before working in sales and construction. Eventually, he turned his passion into a career as a hockey instructor. LINDA WHITE |
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 [ 2006-04-05 ] |
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"It was a hard road," Rob Desveaux says of his journey to creating his own business, the 3 Zones Hockey School in Ajax.
Photo by Linda White
Like countless children across Canada, Rob Desveaux grew up playing our national sport. A Canadian Hardy Cup champion, he played professional hockey in Europe before working in sales and construction. Eventually, he turned his passion into a career as a hockey instructor.
"It took a long time for me to do what I love," says Desveaux, owner of 3 Zones Hockey School in Ajax. "I have a passion for the game. I love to play. I love to skate. I love to push the kids and see them get better."
Desveaux developed a passion for the game at a young age -- just like the many boys and girls who attend his school. "My dad had me on a backyard rink when I was four. He was a Walter Gretsky. He'd come home from work and flood the ice so I could get up at 7 a.m. and skate an hour before going to school. I was one of those kids who couldn't get enough."
Hockey remains a favourite pastime among Canadians. Hockey Canada boasts a registration of more than half a million players who hit the ice in any of more than 3,000 arenas across the country.
Desveaux played junior hockey in Orillia but was sent home when he refused to give in to his coach's demands to cut his hair. He hop-ped on his motorcycle and headed to Vancouver, where he played hockey with the Burnaby Lakers.
The senior intermediate team competed in places like Alaska and Idaho. After winning the Canadian Hardy Cup, the team travelled to Czechoslovakia. Desveaux went on to play in Germany and England.
He always loved playing hockey, but it wasn't until he played in a men's tournament that he considered instructing. "I got seven goals in one game and this awesome player on my line, Brian Sproxton, set me up for every goal. We got together after the game and he told me he ran a hockey school and asked if I'd like to instruct."
Desveaux taught in the evenings while holding down his full-time job. He began instructing full time after a large hockey school bought the school he had been teaching with. He spent four months of the year in Connecticut, but didn't like being separated from his young son and left with hopes of starting his own school.
At the urging of parents and wife Michele, Desveaux established 3 Zones. "People kept pushing me. I started getting ice and offered private and team lessons. It was a hard road. 'No way are people going to come to a hockey school,' I thought."
Desveaux is a certified power skating instructor and completed Level 3 of the National Coaching Certification Program. He now offers instruction year-round and spends six hours a day on the ice during peak times like March Break and summer instructional camps.
"There are some dads and moms who dream about their kids earning a scholarship or playing in the NHL, but most just want their kids to get the discipline and work ethics and be the best they can be. If I see their kids burning out and coming to too many camps, I'll tell them."
He believes hockey teaches important lessons. "The secret to a successful hockey school is someone who knows how to skate and play hockey and can demonstrate it," Desveaux says. "It's rewarding when you get a weak kid and in a month they're flying down the ice. The most important thing at my school is discipline, followed by work ethics and fun. These are stepping stones for life skills."
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