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| Elation in the Garden |
When our Bulldog teams win this ultimate prize, there are usually things that stick out as indicators of how they achieved such greatness. This year's Bulldog Boys Hockey team is no exception. To me, the thing that made this team excellent- more excellent than any other team in the state- was easy to see- JOY.
Yes, Joy. Not the joy of winning it all, which was incredibly apparent by watching our boys on the ice after the final buzzer on the biggest stage- the Garden. The joy I'm referring to is more permanent and powerful. It's the love of each other and the joy of the journey.
This team clearly loved each other and played for each other. They not only supported each other- they truly rooted for each other. On a team that could have been destroyed by egos, the opposite happened. It is so easy and even natural for teammates to envy each other and thus chip away at a strong team culture. That is NOT what happened with this amazingly talented group. The team was ONE.
None of this is a new, foreign concept. Many of the best coaches in the world have recognized over the past 20 years that LOVE/JOY and strong relationships are as important/more important than other key ingredients of team success like talent, discipline, hard work, resilience, desire, and mental toughness.
Some of these amazing coaches include Steve Kerr of the Golden State Warriors, Patrick Roy of the New York Islanders, Jurgen Klopp of Liverpool FC, Sean McVeigh of the LA Rams, Pete Carroll (let's focus on his time in Seattle!)....and clearly Canton's own Brian Shuman (despite the photo of him in the Citizen on the bench in the Garden looking like he is Darth Vader scanning over the destruction of the Rebel Alliance!)
Don't get me wrong, legendary Notre Dame Football Coach Lou Holtz (note- Lou Holtz was NOT a "Joy" coach!) was not wrong when he said something like this (paraphrase): "You can't win without talent, but you can certainly lose with it."
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| Teddy and Matt soaking in the state championship moment |
A state championship does not happen without talent, discipline, and hard work, but add the secret sauce of JOY, and a championship becomes a whole lot more attainable. Coach Shuman knew that. His leaders on this team knew that. And they all leaned in heavily to the idea that Love will lead to a championship.
Warriors Coach Steve Kerr said this- “When you have joy, you play better. You share the ball, you defend better, you connect.”
Islander Coach Patrick Roy said this- “Hockey is a game. We want the guys to enjoy it again. When you have joy, you’re going to perform better.”
Signs of this joy and team love were evident throughout the entire 2025-26 championship season- particularly during the playoff run. Microphones were put in the faces of many of these boys as the games got bigger and bigger each round. If you heard what they each talked about when asked "Why" it all happened, the common thread was- We love each other, and we love working together to win. They credit each other and deflect praise away from themselves. They throw the love on their coaches and teammates.
Ryan Elrick, after the title game- "I think it's just sticking together. We are a brotherhood. We have never been on a team this close- any of us."
Cam Guerschuny, after the title game in which he scored the game-winner- "I definitely credit our coaching. Coach Shuman prepares us every day. He knows what he needs to do and Coach Ford and the other coaches. Also, just the upperclassmen- our seniors and captains- we wouldn't be able to do it without them. I mean, we are a brotherhood, and that's what older brothers do."
Teddy Shuman after the Semi-Final- "It's a Canton High School Hockey brotherhood in there. We are all playing for each other. And we love each other, so we are going to give it all we got, and that's what wins championships."
So- Bulldogs of our future teams...those starting their spring seasons now, those who will get going in August or next December, and those who are still in elementary school, take note of the 2026 Boys Hockey Championship team. The "secret sauce" is no longer a secret. We all need to learn from this team if we want to experience success of our own.
They loved each other.
They rooted for each other.
They found joy in all parts of the journey.
They were Champions.
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| MIAA STATE CHAMPIONS- The Canton Bulldogs ALL photos by Caitlin Tureski |
