Keesler hockey enthusiasts hit the ice Published Nov. 18, 2009 By Susan Griggs Keesler News editor KEESLER AFB, Miss -- Steamy south Mississippi seems like an unlikely haven for ice hockey, but the Mississippi Gulf Coast Hockey League claims at least four active-duty Keesler Airmen among its most avid players. Many of the adults who hit the ice at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum in Biloxi on Sundays and select weeknights from October through March are military members. The ice rink at the coliseum, the only one on the coast, is only available when the Mississippi Surge of the Southern Professional Hockey League is playing. On a recent weekend, Keesler's Paul Braun, Jerome Dyer, Donald Killian and Oscar Gonzales hit the ice with the league's other hockey enthusiasts of varying ages and skill levels. Braun has been a paralegal in the base legal office for three years. Dyer is a network management infrastructure instructor in the 333rd Training Squadron, and Killian and Gonzales are assigned to the 335th TRS. "I've been playing here since 2007," said Braun, who hails from Chicago. "I was very surprised when I heard they had a minor league ice hockey team and a men's adult ice hockey league down here." Because of a lack of ice rinks, Braun played pond hockey when he was growing up. The 16-year Air Force member played in roller hockey leagues when he was stationed at Holloman Air Force Base, N.M. and Royal Air Force Mildenhall, England. He also played in a floor hockey league when he was stationed at Nellis AFB, Nev. Braun, who came to Keesler three years ago, plays defense and enjoys the toughness of the sport. "Hockey demands good hand and eye coordination," the Chicago Blackhawks fan explained. "It definitely benefits my physical training program. It's a great conditioning sport and works a lot of different muscles." During the off-season, Braun rollerblades and practices skating and stick handling. "Just watching hockey in person and watching it on TV are great ways to learn the game," he added. Dyer, who's been on active duty for nearly 10 years, grew up about 30 minutes north of Philadelphia. He began playing ice hockey about 22 years ago and has played off and on for the past 10 years. He plays all forward positions -- center, left wing and right wing. "I like everything about the sport other than the cost to play it," Dyer said. "I've played since I was about 10 years old in various leagues all the way through high school and played couple of years in college in Binghamton, N.Y. I was also an assistant coach for a couple of years for another school's junior varsity hockey teams." When Dyer arrived at Keesler three years ago, he was surprised to find out there was a recreational hockey league, "but I didn't have time to play my first two years here." Dyer, a Detroit Redwings fan, agrees with Braun that ice hockey requires many skills, including "speed, quickness, agility, upper and lower body, endurance, and at least above average hand-eye coordination for shooting, passing and stick handling -- not to forget skating, which may be the most important." As far as the Air Force's physical fitness requirements, "hockey has always felt like a much better workout than running," Dyer pointed out. The only thing a person might need to do is lift some weights or do some pushups for upper body strength ... playing hockey will take care of the rest." Dyer, who has three children, encourages parents with children interested in ice hockey to give them a chance to play if they can afford it. The Gulf Coast Youth Hockey Association offers hockey for beginning skaters up to 18-year-olds. For more information, visit http:// www.gcyha.org. "The younger they learn, the better and easier it will be for them," he remarked. "Hockey can be violent and a little dangerous, but much less than football -- I've played both sports. In hockey, the physical contact is not as constant and the injuries are usually less severe. If most kids played hockey at a younger age, it would become a much more popular sport here in the United States. "Every sports fan should try and get tickets to see a National Hockey League game live at least once," he added. "Games are much better live than on TV." Gonzales, who grew up in Odessa, Texas, has played ice hockey for 12 years. He played high school hockey, recreation department leagues and at every base's he's been assigned in 7½ years in the Air Force. He plays all position except goalie, both offense and defense. "I love the complication of the game -- it isn't a game you can just pick up a stick and slap some skates on and play," he observed. "It takes multiple years to learn how to play -- it took me almost a year just to develop a functional 'hockey stop.' "You name it, hockey requires it -- you have a lot to think about if you're slapping around a heavy round piece of rubber that goes really fast around the ice," Gonzales continued. "First and foremost, you have to have the ability to stay up on skates -- you also need situational awareness for balance and a lot of coordination." He said an intense sport like hockey is a great physical fitness tool. "You have to use a lot of lower body muscles just to stay up on your skates, then you have to have upper body strength for puck handling and shooting," Gonzales stated. "It's a great full body workout. Every time I play, I'm sore the next day. Even though I play a lot, it still hurts." His favorite pro hockey team is the Dallas Stars. "If they hadn't moved from Minnesota to Texas back in the late '80s or early '90s, I wouldn't have had the chance to play hockey being from west Texas," he commented. For more information, log on to http//www.mississippi gulfcoasthockey.com; call John Goul, 313-0035, or get in touch with any of the Keesler players.