Sam the Hockey Player

Eleven-year-old Sam Parker is a hockey player entering the first year in which body checking is allowed. His natural fear of getting hit is temporarily overshadowed by finding out his parents are getting divorced. Determined to keep them together by being a hockey superstar, Sam instead suffers a bone-crunching check from the school bully in his first game of the season. The resulting pain and fear brings out the worst in Sam. Sam has to learn how to get up after life knocks you down—both on and off the ice.

Eleven-year-old Sam Parker is a hockey player who has always had fun playing the game. But that was before a bully at school starts hounding him. To make matters worse, even the refs seem to have it in for him, making a series of bad calls that costs his team a game.

Everything should be great for young hockey player Sam Parker. He has just turned twelve. He plays center on The Rockets, the team he’s been on since Mites. His best friend, Jill, is the goal tender. And he just had his birthday. So why isn’t he happy? It’s simple–because his parents are still getting a divorce. The bombshell news that landed last fall has a daily impact on Sam. His life is changing–in more ways than just this–and he struggles to keep on top of everything.

Sam was a born hockey player. Twelve-year-old Sam Parker has dealt with a lot over the past two seasons of hockey—a concussion, a bully, and a divorce. He has overcome all of those challenges, not to mention keeping his grades up at school. Plus, he and his best friend Jill have discovered they have feelings for each other. Things are going well for him. Then, his divorced parents both start dating again, which is weird and makes him a little angry for reasons he can’t entirely explain.