USA Hockey Adult Hockey

John Turner’s love for hockey started at the same time it did for a lot of Americans: on Feb. 22, 1980.

That’s the day the U.S. men’s hockey team upset the Soviet Union in what was dubbed the “Miracle on Ice.”

Turner, who was in seventh grade when the U.S. went on to win the gold medal in those 1980 Olympic Winter Games, hadn’t played hockey before and waited for about 26 more years until lacing up his own skates. But in 2007, Turner, a firefighter in Wichita, Kan., was a founding member of the Flying Monkeys, an adult hockey team comprised of emergency service professionals.

When Turner rounded some fellow firefighters together to play on the team, it was a learning experience for everyone.

“We probably put together the worst team in hockey history, at any level,” Turner joked. “We were so bad, a lot of the guys didn’t understand the offsides rule. They were offsides eight or nine times a game. I had one player show up in knee guards and soccer shin guards, and [he] was going to play with that. That’s how much we knew about hockey.”

Darren Mullen, a captain for the Wichita Fire Department, joined the team in 2010.

“We are guys who grew up in the middle of the country playing baseball, football and basketball, so ice hockey’s fairly new to us,” Mullen said. “Up north and back east where kids learn to skate at 4, 5 years old, we learn to skate much later in life. We’re not very talented at the sport, but we do love it and enjoy it.”

Times have changed. The Flying Monkeys are still made up of emergency personnel — 13 firefighters and two paramedics — but the on-ice ability has greatly improved in the past eight years.

“The guys have really progressed,” Turner said. “In fact, we’ve got a couple guys that can play Level 1 from where they started. I’m really proud of those guys. They’re really good skaters, and they’ve put a lot of time and effort into it over the years.”

The Flying Monkeys play in the Wichita Ice Center Adult Hockey League in the Level 4 division, which is a recreational level. The team’s average age is in the mid-30s, with the veterans Mullen and Turner in their 40s.

The guys know playing on the Flying Monkeys is special because they get to be with their fellow firefighters.

“We rely on each other when we go out on a call or a car wreck or a building fire to know what everybody is going to do,” Mullen said. “Sometimes we don’t have time to communicate and you’ve got to know what each other is going to do, much like you do on the ice. That translates over, I’ve found.”

The players are like family to one another, through the good times and the bad, noted Turner.

“I think the refs like reffing our games, because we’re more after each other than the other team,” Turner said. “It’s a pretty good time.”

A Release from their Jobs

The Flying Monkeys players use their ice time each week as a nice release from their high-stress jobs. A big part of being a firefighter is staying fit, so getting cardio on the ice makes each game that much more productive.

“Running is not fun, but you get out onto the ice and fly up and down and get your heart rate up for 45 minutes, an hour, it’s a great workout and a big stress reliever,” Mullen said.

The guys don’t take their games too seriously, but they certainly like to win. The past two fall/winter seasons, which run from October to March, the Flying Monkeys have made it to the championship game but fell just short of winning the title each year.

However, the Flying Monkeys can lay claim to winning a different annual event. Since 2012, the firefighters on the Flying Monkeys have taken on members of the hockey team the Force, a group made up of Wichita-area police officers. The Flying Monkeys, who have more hockey experience, have downed the cops all four years.

The teams compete for charity to benefit a local children’s home in Wichita. The game takes place at Intrust Bank Arena, home of the minor league team Wichita Thunder, so the players get to compete on a professional ice surface.

The firefighters-police showdowns are always competitive, but the Wichita firefighters retain bragging rights heading into the 2016 game.

“We’ve got our name on the trophy at least one more time,” said Mullen, whose brother is a police officer and plays for the Force.

Story from Red Line Editorial, Inc.