Coincidence, luck, karma? Whatever it was, it lead to a great scoop for this week’s column. I am a great sports fan and ever since starting this weekly column some six months ago, I was hoping to cover ‘live’ local organized sports events; but just as I thought the stars weren’t lining up for me, I was referred to a local young man who chose to make his ‘hockey’ dream come true.  Let me introduce Braeden Pearl, the son of Johnny and Lise Pearl from Cassburn Road, L’Orignal, ON.

Braeden has been playing hockey since he was 7, reluctantly at first he admits as his parents ‘kinda forced me to get at it’ (his words!);  but he eventually ended up loving it. ‘I played pretty much all the way from house league to AAA, then to prep hockey and junior level and finally NCAA.’ Braeden is now 26 and decided to tackle a new project while being faithful to his hockey roots, passion and ambition. It goes by the acronym of AHA, Advancement Hockey Advising.

‘As great as the game of hockey is, it is a very complex world, especially as you get towards major junior draft year… My parents and I learned of our mistakes along the way; and that’s pretty much why I started AHA: to help hockey players have the right information and to guide them through the process so that they get to the next level.’ Those are very noble objectives that Braeden and his partners have set; and to help them reach those goals, they have created a YouTube channel as a mean of reaching everyone that needs answers, information, tips so as to plan and achieve the best career decisions possible.

As to what specifically Braeden and his team do, he goes on to say: ‘Well, there are two sides to our services: the mentoring side and the marketing side; the mentoring is similar to coaching players and their family and ensuring they stay on the right track; the marketing includes promoting those players to prospective teams, to help reach the next level; in fact, we are ‘family advisors’. Braeden adds that other complementary services are also available such as on and off ice skill development, mindset coaching sessions, video editing to market players’ skills to prospective coaches and teams, SAT and ACT Test Prep and personal tutoring. In other words, a full range of services normally offered by a professional agent.

Essentially, the agency’s two main goals are to EDUCATE and to HELP young players develop effectively their hockey career. Should you be interested in learning more about AHA’s services and to virtually meet Braeden and his team, please consult the following medias. Best of luck with your enterprise Braeden and keep your hockey dream alive!

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0zPb70UkjkLPfQWbRUjEDA

https://www.facebook.com/ahadvising

This ‘virtual interview’ with Braeden was based on a Facebook online presentation available on AHA’s site and through direct email contacts.