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American Hockey Magazine Article, December 2003

Desert Oasis, Ozzie Ice Rocks Around the Clock
By Cameron Eickmeyer

Thinking back on his pond hockey days in Minnesota, Dwayne Osadchuk dreamed of opening a hockey rink where children of all ages could play for fun.

The problem was, he lived in the middle of a desert.

Osadchuk soon realized that if he wanted pond hockey in Arizona, he was going to have to build the pond himself.

Perhaps it was a mirage brought on by the desert heat, but when he came upon an abandoned furniture store in downtown Phoenix, Osadchuk suddenly saw the structure that would house the rink of his dreams. 

The building wasn't big enough for a full sheet of ice, but that didn't matter. After all, USA Hockey was advocating cross-ice programs for Mite hockey players. Smaller ice surface, fewer players, more opportunities to play with the puck, more goals … more fun.

Cross-ice sounded exactly like pond hockey to Osadchuk. So, he poured one sheet of ice, one-third the size of a regulation rink, and two shooting lanes. In 2001, he opened the doors on his frozen oasis and watched as the kids skated in. 

"We knew about the cross-ice program because everybody was talking about it," says Osadchuk, who holds an advanced-level coaching degree from USA Hockey, "What it does is it allows the younger kids to watch the older kids and lets them mimic them."

The kids loved the cross-ice play, which also utilized lightweight blue pucks and smaller nets. The youngsters like playing with the puck and scoring goals, and Osadchuk likes that they're improving their skills.

He began to wonder why this type of play was reserved for the smallest players. Why should they, alone, have all the fun? Osadchuk expanded his mission. He wanted to bring the gospel of cross-ice to the entire hockey scene in the Valley of the Sun.

So, Ozzie, as his friends call him, built a second pond inside his old furniture store. He also added a training area, complete with a workout room and video lounge. Local hockey players of all ages (and their coaches) began to flock to "Ozzie Ice."

"We actually train hockey players here," says Osadchuk. "We develop their skills." The use of small games to hone basic hockey skills is something that Sean Whyte, the director of hockey operations at "Ozzie Ice," has great faith in.
"We take a lot of pride in what we do, and the product in the end speaks for itself," says Whyte, who added that word-of-mouth has helped spread the message of small-ice training through the Phoenix area.

Kenny Moffatt, coach of a Peewee travel team in the Desert Youth Hockey Association, agrees. He's seen first-hand the improvement that "Ozzie Ice" brought to his 10-year-old son, Luke.

"He has better stickhandling and shooting skills because we're able to do a lot of that [work] in the smaller rink," says Moffat, who takes his team to 'Ozzie Ice' for weekly practices. "In a game situation, when he's playing the puck in the corners, he's already used to playing in a small confined area."

Just as Ozzie had predicted, adults wanted in on the fun. There were college students looking for fast-paced games, working professionals dropping by to play pick-up and adult beginners eager to learn the game.

Steve Elliott, 21, a junior at Arizona State University, used "Ozzie Ice" to develop his skills so that he could join a competitive league.

"It gives me an opportunity to play and practice without hindering more advanced players," Elliott says. "Since I'm a beginner, I need to refine some of the techniques and "Ozzie Ice" gives me the opportunity to do this."

Soon the demand for Ozzie's pond was so high that there were literally not enough hours in the day to accommodate everyone.

Once again, the hot desert air gave Osadchuk an idea. In reality, because of cleanup and setup crews, the rink had staff members around 24 hours a day. He might as well leave the ice open 24 hours, too. "The ice is here so let's make it available to the public," thought Ozzie.

His only concern was the security of the rink during the wee hours of the morning. That problem solved itself. As soon as Ozzie made his rink an all-night establishment, he found that police officers and firemen became his leading late-night customers. Coming off of long shifts, the officers use hockey leagues to unwind and in return, they watch out for "Ozzie Ice."

Don Malone, 35, a patrolman with the Phoenix Police Department, plays in one of the late-night leagues, and is happy to help keep the rink safe.

"It comes from our training and our everyday work that we are aware of our surroundings. I always look at the cars and look for anyone suspicious in the area, especially at night," says Malone, who played college club hockey at ASU.

"I think multiple officers coming in throughout the night it is a benefit that comes with just having us in the arena."

Officers are not the only group that benefits from the 24-hour schedule. Osadchuk says that local parents often thank him for keeping their teen-agers out of trouble.

"It gives the older kids something to do in the summer and gets them off of the streets," he says. "It's a good babysitting service."

 More often than not, these older players find their skills improving almost as much as those of their younger counterparts.  Tom Hilton, 20, plays in leagues both at Ozzie and on full-size sheets. He feels the games he plays on the small surface make him a better player on the big ice.

"It helps you develop your skills a lot quicker because you have to react quite a bit faster," Hilton says. "It forces you to hone those skills."