Brody Roybal, Leyden’s sled hockey hero

In 2006 Brody Roybal was a bright and ambitious seven-year old kid who embodied a classic desire to develop his personality and interests through athletic competition.

“I was trying different sports, but then kids I was playing with started getting better,” Roybal said.

Roybal was determined to find a suitable sport that transcended his disability. He was born a congenital bilateral amputee, meaning he had no femur in either leg.

“I needed to find some disabled sports I could play,” Roybal said.

The sport he latched onto nine years ago was sled hockey. It proved the perfect match of need, desire and skill level. The 16-year old from Northfield who’s a junior at Leyden is not content simply to participate. He is one of the best players in the country.

He earned a gold medal at the 2014 Paralympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia.

“I fell in love with sled hockey as soon as I got onto the ice,” Roybal said from Buffalo, where he is training with the US National Team that began play Sunday in the eight-team International Paralympic Committee Ice Sledge Hockey World Championships.

Sled hockey, or “sledge,” as it is known outside the US, was developed in 1960, by a group of Swedish physical rehabilitation specialists and hockey enthusiasts who wanted to help empower disabled athletes to fulfill their desire to continue playing hockey regardless of their disabilities.

The players are positioned on specially customized sleds attached atop two hockey skates. Position players have specially designed sticks that enable them to shoot with either hand or propel themselves forward with specially inserted metal pics.

“Sled hockey is pretty much the same as hockey, except we can’t skate backwards and we have the advantage of shooting with either hand,” Roybal said.

Roybal is a forward on the national team, and the formations and style of play is identical to that of traditional hockey.

His attraction to the sport was immediate and visceral. Sled hockey allowed what all athletes, to draw on the particulars of the sport and achieve his own special skill and grace in the process.

“I really liked the physical aspect of sled hockey because with most disabled sports, you feel like you’re restricted,” Roybal said.

“But with sled you truly feel like you can do anything and it’s really fun to be part of a team and go out and play hockey.”

Roybal subjects himself to grueling workout and training schedule to prepare himself for the physical demands of the sport. He skates for an hour every day before school, and he often puts in two or three additional hours a day riding his bike or doing strength and conditioning training.

Roybal emerged on the international stage last year at Sochi, where he registered two goals in five games. He scored three goals and recorded three assists in five games at the World Sled Hockey Challenge last year.

His play has drawn compliments from the national coaching staff.

“Brody’s play has certainly improved, but the biggest improvement I’ve seen this season has been his maturity,” US national sled hockey coach Jeff Sauer said. “His confidence is over the top right now, and it’s great to see.”

Since 2011, Roybal has also played locally for the RIC Blackhawks, a club program sponsored by flagship NHL franchise. RIC Blackhawks plays a traveling schedule against other top club programs, whose year-end national tournaments provide a crucial opportunity for Roybal to develop and refine his game.

Roybal said he wants to study finance in college. His sport has grown substantially in the time he has been involved in the sport. According to USA Hockey, the number of rinks fitted to accommodate sled hockey is on the rise. One college, University of New Hampshire, offers college scholarships.

He has a 13-year-old brother and when he is not skating, playing or working out, Roybal said he is immersed in the typical teenage culture of playing video games and hanging out with friends. The Leyden community has been deeply supportive of his efforts.

“They let me miss all of this school in order to go on all of these trips,” Roybal said.

“When I came back from the Olympics almost the whole school was at my house.”

The opportunity to showcase his sport for a world championship on his home turf is especially gratifying, he said. The tournament runs through Sunday, May 3rd. The moment distills the very essence of why he got involved in the first place.

“I’m free when I’m out there,” Roybal said. “I feel as though I can do anything out on the ice and there are no restrictions. It’s just me, the sled and the ice and I can do anything.

“I play hockey just like anybody else would.”