By: Al Lesar
Link:
High school sports: Turnock equipped for success - southbendtribune.com
MISHAWAKA -- It could have been the personal challenge involved that convinced Josh Turnock he'd rather stop pucks than shoot them.
It could have been a thriving on the pressure that comes with being the last line of defense.
Nah, in the beginning, it really came down to the helmet.
"Josh has always had a fetish for a fancy helmet," said his dad and Marian High hockey coach Joe Turnock.
He's not kidding. Josh thought back to his first year of hockey. His "mite" team, a bunch of little guys about 6 years old in the Irish Youth Hockey League, didn't have a goalie.
"They told me if I was the goalie, I'd be able to wear a really cool helmet," Josh said. "We went shopping for the gear. My dad must have asked me 10 times: 'Are you sure you want to be a goalie?' "
Josh got the gear, a really snazzy helmet and he's developed into quite a netminder for the Knights. In this, his second year as Marian's starter, his goals-against average is less than 2.0 a game, while stopping about 93 percent of the shots fired at him.
Last week, he hit a crescendo moment. While staked out between the pipes against a high-quality unit from Culver Military, the sophomore stopped an amazing 63 shots, though the Knights fell, 3-1.
That's a lot of rubber heading in one guy's direction. Conditions have to be right for that sort of game: The opposition has to be really good; and, the goalie has to be on his game.
"The ultimate goal for everyone on our team is winning," Josh said. "I was bummed that we played such a good game and didn't win. It was a big achievement to play that well against such a quality team."
Shots came from every direction. Marian's defense did a good job of keeping Josh's line of sight in front of the net clear, for the most part. He commanded everyone's attention with a glove save after he had done the splits.
"I try to break up each period into three five-minute segments," said Josh, a sturdy 5-foot-10 and 180 pounds. "All I try to do is win each segment. It's all mental."
"Josh tracks the puck well and is a student of the game," Joe said. "He reads the options the shooter has."
After several years of travel hockey on local teams, Josh spent his eighth grade year commuting to Chicago several times a week to play on an elite level Class AAA team. But an opportunity to play two years with his brother Joey, now a senior forward for the Knights, was too good to pass up.
"Joey will be the first one to get on Josh if he felt there was something to correct," Joe said. "But, if anyone bumps Josh, Joey's the first one there to make sure it doesn't happen again."
Josh, though, isn't consumed by hockey. In addition to a 3.4 GPA, Josh is also the starting catcher for a Marian baseball team that went to the Class 3-A state championship game last year -- and has the horses to make another run this season.
Catcher. Goalie. Aren't the pads and protective devices at both positions called the tools of ignorance?
Josh wouldn't have it any other way.
"If you can stop a slapshot, stopping a baseball isn't that big of a challenge," Josh said. "We had veteran pitchers (Taylor Krugh, John Leszczynski and Drew Hasler). They made it easy for me. If I needed to work on something, they helped."
A Taylor Krugh fastball in the forearm can hurt more than any puck. A goalie has a lot more padding than a catcher.
"Hockey was always my first love growing up," Josh said. "But after going to the (baseball) state championship game, the day after we got beat, I woke up and I said I couldn't wait until next spring. Once you get a taste of that, and you've got a good team coming back, you want more."
It's not quite time to change helmets yet. Josh has got a lot more rubber to stop before he turns to leather.
No matter the sport, he's looking really good.
To learn more about Bandits Goalie School, go to:
Bandits Goaltending | Learn to rob the shooters blind!
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