Interview with Michael Kobylansky

Partial Transcript: Sounds good. Yeah, I’m Mike Kobylansky. I'll be 38 next month. I was born in St. Catharines Hospital, but I grew up in Thorold mostly…

Segment Synopsis: Mike introduces himself.

Keywords: Firefighting; Hockey; Junior B Hockey; Ottawa; St. Catharines; St. Catharines Falcons; Thorold; Thorold Blackhawks; Welland Cougars

Subjects: Introduction; Playing hockey at the Garden City Arena

Partial Transcript: Yeah, prior to that I played All-Star hockey, so…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about playing All-Star hockey in St. Catharines and Thorold, playing Junior B hockey, and fighting in hockey.

Keywords: Hockey; Hockey Fighting; Junior B Hockey; St. Catharines; St. Catharines Falcons; Thorold; Thorold Blackhawks; Welland Cougars

Subjects: Childhood; Playing hockey at the Garden City Arena

Partial Transcript: I’d say it was a small circuit…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about what it was like playing hockey in Niagara when he was growing up, playing CYO hockey, meeting his wife, and proposing at the Garden City Arena.

Keywords: CYO; Hockey; Marriage; Rex Stimers; St. Catharines; Thorold

Subjects: Childhood; Playing hockey at the Garden City Arena; Proposing at the Garden City Arena; Relationships

Partial Transcript: Not a clue. At Rex Stimers? I don't know, I think people have considered us a Happy Gilmore move or something…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about proposing and volleyball at the Garden City Arena.

Keywords: Rex Stimers; Volleyball

Subjects: Proposing at the Garden City Arena

Partial Transcript: It's a lot of responsibility in regards to such little kids, you know…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about what it was like to start coaching during COVID and the lights going out during a hockey practice at the Garden City Arena.

Keywords: COVID; CYO; Coaching; Hockey

Subjects: Childhood; Coaching at the Garden City Arena

Partial Transcript: You know, big, big thing and, like you know, like I said, for firefighting, it's all about the team, team stuff, right…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks how he brought his past hockey experience into coaching, sportsmanship, and life values.

Keywords: Coaching; Hockey; Sportsmanship

Subjects: Coaching hockey at the Garden City Arena; Life Lessons; Playing hockey at the Garden City Arena

Partial Transcript: You know, to think that's where I started off, and apparently I met my wife there, so I was kind of cool, I guess. Thank you, CYO…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about joining CYO when he was younger, the impacts of COVID on CYO, and how CYO is a feeder league to the All-Stars.

Keywords: COVID; CYO; Community; Hockey; St. Catharines; Thorold

Subjects: Childhood; Community; Growing up

Partial Transcript: So, yeah, that was one of the things I actually wrote down. And my timeline on that is, I wrote it down as 2014-15, somewhere in there. I coached my first ever practice…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about his first ever coaching experience with an all-girls team, going to see John Tavares play against the Niagara Ice Dogs, and watching the Buffalo Sabres and Dominik Hasek practice.

Keywords: Buffalo Sabres; Coaching; Cyclones; Dominik Hasek; Girls Hockey; Hockey; John Tavares; Junior Badgers; Niagara Ice Dogs; OHL; St. Catharines; Toronto Maple Leafs

Subjects: Coaching hockey; Hockey Heroes; Women and Gender

Partial Transcript: Yeah, like anybody that came through the OHL and would have stepped on the ice against the Ice Dogs…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about his hockey heroes, his father hitchhiking to go watch the St. Catharines Blackhawks and Marcel Dionne, meeting Marcel Dionne, and signing autographs as a member of the St. Catharines Falcons.

Keywords: Hockey; John Tavares; Marcel Dionne; NHL; Niagara Ice Dogs; OHL; St. Catharines; St. Catharines Blackhawks; St. Catharines Falcons

Subjects: Francophone; Hockey Heroes

Partial Transcript: Just yeah, tons of people, just all expecting, you know, they come for that, you know, for that one person, you know, as much as the regulars came to see the Ice Dogs…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about seeing John Tavares play at the Garden City Arena.

Keywords: Hockey; John Tavares; Niagara Ice Dogs; OHL

Subjects: Hockey Heroes; Playing hockey at the Garden City Arena

Partial Transcript: So, it's funny, my dad, like he mentioned— Another thing I was gonna say is like, you know, my dad used to play old timer's hockey…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about his father playing old timers hockey and the ice quality in the Garden City Arena.

Keywords: Hockey; Hockey Fighting; Ice; Old Timers

Subjects: Hockey Fighting; Playing hockey at the Garden City Arena

Partial Transcript: How does that happen? Yeah. Lots of time. I think it's built into you. I think it's— There's a bunch of different ways of answering that question…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about becoming an enforcer, protecting his teammates, and the repercussions of fighting in hockey.

Keywords: Boogaard; Don Cherry; Enforcer; Hockey; Hockey Fighting; Probert; Substance Abuse

Subjects: Hockey Fighting; Playing hockey at the Garden City Arena

Partial Transcript: I don't know how much a different is towards the States, probably a lot more towards Europe…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about fighting in hockey in the United States, hockey culture in Canada, and the role fighting plays in hockey. 

Keywords: AHL; ECHL; Hockey; Hockey Fighting

Subjects: Hockey Fighting

Partial Transcript: It's gotten a lot smaller cuz I've gotten a lot bigger I think is the main thing…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about the renovations at the Garden City Arena and the Thorold Arena.

Keywords: Renovations; Thorold; Thorold Arena

Subjects: Facilities

Partial Transcript: Like, I'm not dogging it at all. I love it. I think it's classic…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about the legacy of the Garden City Arena, the community role of old arenas, and how dark it could get in the Garden City Arena.

Keywords: Arena; Hockey; Marcel Dionne; St. Catharines Falcons

Subjects: Facilities; Playing hockey at the Garden City Arena

Partial Transcript: History. Yeah, history. I think that's also why we're here…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about the legacy of the Garden City Arena, the seating in arenas, and the championship banners that hang in the rafters.

Keywords: Banners; Hockey; Meridian Centre; the Queen

Subjects: Community; Facilities

Partial Transcript: Somewhere, you know, to go to catch all this stuff, right? You know, a Friday night, or like my dad said, I guess back then it was a Sunday night…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about Junior B hockey, his mother going to see the Ice Capades, taking his son to the circus, and family moments at the Garden City Arena.

Keywords: Circus; Father-son relationship; Hockey; Ice Capades; Junior B; Meridian Centre; St. Catharines; St. Catharines Falcons; Thorold; Welland

Subjects: Community; Family; Father-son relationship

Partial Transcript: You know, my parents were there with us and, you know, I have pictures of my little guy, my poor guy, he got his, yeah— He broke his arm at 14-months…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about taking his 14-month-old son to the circus.

Keywords: Circus; Dance

Subjects: Family; Father-son relationship

Partial Transcript: Yeah, I think it's just a moving on from being a player…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about his son starting organized hockey and watching his son play on the same ice as he did with his wife.

Keywords: Hockey

Subjects: Family; Father-son relationship

Partial Transcript: Yeah, I guess mostly just like, yeah, well, the family times…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about family time at the Garden City Arena.

Keywords: Circus; Family; Hockey

Subjects: Community; Family

Partial Transcript: Yeah, just a classic arena for all the hockey that's been played there…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about hockey and memories of the Garden City Arena.

Keywords: Hockey

Subjects: Playing hockey at the Garden City Arena

Partial Transcript: Yeah, just try to see what, what I've missed here…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about his first hockey goal, winning a league championship, being a counselor for Bruce Boudreau’s hockey school, playing with Ben Boudreau, meeting Johnny Bower, father-son relationships at the Garden City Arena, his stick boy with the St. Catharines Falcons, his first hockey practice, and his son’s first hockey practice.

Keywords: Ben Boudreau; Bruce Boudreau; CYO; Coaching; Haig Bowl; Hockey; Johnny Bower; Rex Stimers; St. Catharines Falcons; Toronto Maple Leafs

Subjects: Father-son relationship; Playing hockey at the Garden City Arena

Partial Transcript: So that's the funny question I always get why, when people say it like, you know, she walked into my grandpa's nursing room…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about playing hockey with his wife growing up and girls in boys hockey leagues.

Keywords: Girls Hockey; Hockey

Subjects: Playing hockey at the Garden City Arena; Women and Gender

Partial Transcript: Yeah, she went up— She played house league, or sorry high school, I mean…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about playing hockey with his wife and his wife being defense-person of the year as the only girl on a boys team.

Keywords: Girls Hockey; Hockey; Ringette

Subjects: Women and Gender

Partial Transcript: That's such a good question, but I don't really remember myself as I'm thinking about it…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about going to Buffalo Sabres games and playing on the ice during intermission, and his son playing during intermissions of Niagara Ice Dogs games.

Keywords: Buffalo Sabres; CYO; Craig Simpson; Fundraising; Hockey; NHL; Niagara Ice Dogs; OHL

Subjects: Fundraising; Hockey

Partial Transcript: Oh no, God no, no. He's a Toronto Maple Leafs fan. Diehard and…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about his father playing old timers hockey, growing up in a “Leafs house,” and wanting the Toronto Maple Leafs to win a Stanley Cup for his father.

Keywords: Hockey; Old Timers; Stanley Cup; Toronto Maple Leafs

Subjects: Hockey

Partial Transcript: Like I said, he used to play old timers…

Segment Synopsis: Mike talks about his father playing old timers, personal fitness, and preparing to be a firefighter.

Keywords: Firefighting; Fitness; Hockey; Old Timers

Subjects: Hockey