David is Founder, President, and Majority Owner of Saskatchewan’s newest goaltender-specific training and equipment retailer, Game Ready Goaltending (GRG). David and GRG are based out of Regina, SK, and provide services throughout the province. David and his team of professional coaches service Saskatchewan, Alberta, Manitoba; as well as both Northern and Mid-Western USA.
GRG is your one-stop-shop for all your goaltender needs, with highly specialized professionals to provide all-levels of goaltender training, advising, and mentoring; as well as sell ALL brands and areas of goaltending protection equipment and accessories to meet your needs. GRG’s store front, ‘THE SHOP’, houses two state-of-the-art training rinks, as well as Saskatchewan’s largest selection of equipment and hockey apparel.
David’s path to creating Game Ready Goaltending started well before its inauguration in 2020. David grew up learning and loving the game of hockey from the age of 7-years-old in his hometown of Saskatoon, SK. Goaltending quickly became his passion and focus in Major Novice after being asked to play with the Hustlin’ Huskies and to be the SK representative for the prestigious Brick Invitational Tournament. From there, goaltending and hockey engulfed the lives of not only himself, but also his younger brother, Evan, his father, Tom, and his late mother, Margo.
David’s passion for hockey took him through the Saskatoon Minor Hockey system with the Saskatoon Bobcat’s Program until Midget age. After affiliate stints with both Saskatoon AAA Midget teams, David played for the Saskatoon Blazers at just 16-years-old. David was then drafted 10th Round to the Kamloops Blazers in the WHL Bantam Draft and signed a WHL Player Commitment that same year. David was dealt the first day of his 17-year-old season from Kamloops to his now hometown team, Regina Pats. After just under 3 seasons in the Queen City, he finished his WHL career with the Everett Silvertips. Topping off his Junior Career, David had a ‘cup of coffee’ in Windsor, ONT, with the Spitfires before ending up in Lincoln, Nebraska, with the Stars of the USHL. David received his biggest accolades with the Stars when he was named Top Goaltender in the USHL and received his first pro tryout and exhibition games with the Columbus Blue Jackets Organization.
Again, just a ‘cup of coffee’ up-top. Following this, David made the important decision to further his academic career by attending the University of Saskatchewan, where he obtained a bachelor’s degree in business from the Edward School of Business – all while maintaining and honing his goaltending skills by competing and performing 4 seasons with his varsity team, the UofS Huskies.
Before his move to Regina, David has largely worn a suit working professionally in financial positions since his graduation, which reinforced his commitment to service excellence. David is first and foremost a people person. He loves interacting and engaging with people, and he doesn’t mix messages. His fondness for dealing directly with people has never diminished. He’s only modified his mode of delivery.
David’s number one goal is to help people achieve their potential by relaying and repeating the importance of pushing ones’ self. He has realized through extensive experience that being ‘comfortable’ creates limits, complacencies, and barriers. Honesty, attention to detail, and work ethic are the three values he preaches wholeheartedly. Following through and exhibiting these values may be tough…. but only if you allow them to be.
Goaltending is just an extension of your life and day-to-day habits. If you allow expectations and excuses in your daily routine, this will surely reflect in the crease. It is simply a mindset, yet simply, is sure not simple. I say all of this from learning the right way, experiencing it first hand. Hockey has molded the individual I am today, good, bad or ugly. What it has allowed me to understand at an early age is that reality is reality. We can hope, dream, expect, but in the end, what happens happens and you decide if you actually did as much as you could to manipulate that specific outcome.
David, aka Reeks, is proud to be surrounded by a community – a family – of goaltenders, parents, and fans that have allowed GRG to become a reality.