Patrick Williams, TheAHL.com Features Writer
Life is fast. And stressful. Challenges fly toward people from all different directions. Some of those trials are minor, short-lived annoyances. Other moments mark the beginning of long-lasting, life-altering events that reshape us whether or not we want them to.
Even hockey, just a game that is an escape for many, can bring its own stress. After all, it is a business for many people, and with that comes all of the pressure that accompanies any profession. Contracts and job security are on the line, merging what is a game with very real, very consequential life changes for players, coaches, management and more.
But mental health goes far beyond the game as well. Health issues. Job loss. Financial pain. Living paycheck to paycheck. Relationships going or gone sour. Sudden tragedies. Family strife. Life experiences that can lead to post-traumatic stress disorder. The loss of loved ones and friends. Societal ills. On and on the problems can go, and they are not going away. So how do we cope with life’s inevitable difficulties? How do we avoid having a mental-health challenge spawn other issues like addiction? How can we support each other?
“Nowadays, more than ever, we’re faced with tremendous societal challenges, and it’s just really hard,” says Vinny Lobdell, an entrepreneur and philanthropist who works to bring awareness to mental wellness, an issue that affects all segments of society. “The tremendous economic pressures on people all across the board, it’s really tough out there.”
Tonight, the Syracuse Crunch host Mental Wellness Night at Upstate Medical University Arena. It is the latest collaboration since Crunch owner and president Howard Dolgon teamed up with the Pulaski, N.Y., native Lobdell to launch a season-long initiative in 2023.
The goal is to put a spotlight on mental wellness, an issue that Lobdell and the Crunch believe has not received nearly enough attention, and the resources that are available both to address existing issues and to act as a preventive measure. Ulrika Eriksson, a life coach and certified yoga instructor, joined the Crunch organization last year to bring mindfulness and meditation techniques to the front office.
Lobdell says his own personal challenges have shaped his perspective; his older brother Rusty died by suicide in 1995. In honor of Rusty, the Lobdell family has made significant contributions to Oswego Health, a nonprofit healthcare system, to ensure people in their community can access the care they need. The Lobdell Center for Mental Health & Wellness at Lakeview provides services for people throughout the Central New York region.
Sports is always a vehicle to direct attention toward causes that may otherwise be overshadowed. Lobdell’s family is sports-oriented; his son, Noah, is a walk-on freshman with the Syracuse University men’s basketball team. The Crunch have been a fixture since 1994, and Dolgon and his staff know their market and how to create a buzz.
Specialty jerseys have long been a key part of the team’s marketing efforts and identity, so tonight’s game will feature special warm-up jerseys with a mental wellness theme; the team will auction them live after the game. Those jerseys will complement related messaging on the building’s scoreboard. A pair of local groups, Safe Space and Right Mind Syracuse, will have tables on the arena concourse, and will also pair up with the Crunch to present a “Mocktails for Mental Health” event earlier in the day. It’s something different, another way that the Crunch are trying to bring the message and reach people in different ways. It will feature non-alcoholic drinks, including a Crunch-themed one, as well as craft activity.
And it’s also a lighter way to address a much more serious and prevalent issue that extends through society. Life’s stresses can accumulate – and worsen – quickly, aggravating underlying issues that may already be there. Lobdell does not view addressing mental health as a nice-to-have or something that is optional.
“We send our automobiles in for check-ups,” Lobdell said, “and we have to do the same with our body and our mind. And the problem is, again with the societal challenges raising kids nowadays, the extreme financial pressures, all the pressures that we’re faced with, we tend to put our mental well-being last. And it really should be first.”
So what Eriksson does is a sort of day-to-day maintenance for the mind.
“Self-awareness and self-acceptance is really taking a good look at yourself and seeing where you are without judgment,” Eriksson said. “It’s knowing, understanding ourselves and what’s important to us, and from there seeing where we want to be. As we are changing ourselves, it’s very much about enjoying the moment but strengthening ourselves.
“There’s a saying that I truly love. ‘What you think, you become. What you feel, you attract. What you imagine, you create.’ And it’s so true because really everything we put out there, it usually comes back to us.”
Those principles apply to how we treat ourselves and others. We affect our own mental health. We can also impact someone else’s mental health.
“The saying we always use is,” Lobdell said, “‘Life is messy,’ right? Any time you’re trying to do something that’s important or bigger than yourself, you’re going to get negativity around it. You just keep being who you are, and let your success speak for itself.”
With his son Noah only being a little younger than some Crunch players, Lodbell can relate to what they go through as they navigate the early stages of both professional hockey and adult life.
“They’re young men,” Lobdell points out. “They’re just still figuring life out. How do you really want to see someone shine? Whether you’re running a business or you’re a general manager for a hockey team, it all comes down to focusing on people’s strengths and letting them know their value. When you do that, it brings out the best of people.
“Howard is a special guy,” Lobdell continued. “He’s got a tremendous human element. Howard really is focused not on just winning, but giving [people] a foundation to grow on. And he’s been super important in the local community. There’s a great responsibility that comes with success, and that responsibility is to whom much is given, much is expected. I believe Howard lives by that.”
So whether you’re a player, coach, staff member, fan, or someone with no connection to hockey whatsoever, mental health is an issue that links everyone.
“It doesn’t matter what socioeconomic level you’re at,” Lobdell said. “It doesn’t matter how good-looking you are. It doesn’t matter how great of an athlete you are. It is hard. Life is hard. And part of our goal is to let people know that when life is hard, there are ways to talk about it. It’s OK to not be OK. It’s about having an outlet and to make sure that when you talk about it, you don’t feel isolated.
“Your vulnerability can become strength.”
On the American Hockey League beat for two decades, TheAHL.com features writer Patrick Williams also currently covers the league for NHL.com and FloSports and is a regular contributor on SiriusXM NHL Network Radio. He was the recipient of the AHL’s James H. Ellery Memorial Award for his outstanding coverage of the league in 2016.