Michael and Christopher Downey, brothers on the HSE/Fishers Varsity hockey B team have played hockey together from a young age. It all started from one brother getting into it and the other following. Michael said, “It began with skating lessons, mini sticks in the house, and local youth leagues”. From then on, hockey became something both of them connected with.
From an early age to playing together on the same team now the brothers have grown up a lot together. Christopher touched on the reality of playing on a team with your brother; “We understand each other’s tendencies, what we like to do with the puck, and even our body language.
Team chemistry is a huge part of any sport and having your brother on the same team enhances the chemistry a significant amount.
A lot of advantages come with playing with your brother but the main thing the Downey brothers touched on was chemistry. “We almost know what the other person is going to do before they do it”, Christopher explained.
It’s almost like telepathy that helps the team stay on the same page. When one brother knows what the other is going to do it helps a lot out on the ice.
One semi-disadvantage on playing together is being harder on each other and “having a little more competitiveness or frustration against each other”, but at the end of the day, this is only a catalyst to push each brother to become a better version of themselves.
A little friendly competition in practice and some other competitive events may arise, but at the end of the day they compete for each other.
This hockey season Michael and Christopher along with the entire team have major aspirations for the rest of the season. They touched on “wanting to compete at a high level, make a deep postseason run, and get better as a team overall”. Every day in practice the team brings unmatched energy, push each other to the max, and stay focused on helping to improve one another.
At the end of the day to accomplish some of these goals the team needs to have consistency, communication, and a positive mindset going into every game.
Practice for the brothers looks very competitive day in and day out. Christopher explained “Whether it’s battling in the corner, racing in drills, or trying to outscore each other, we push each other hard”, showing that the dynamic between the two isn’t laid back.
They go hard and do what it takes to positively impact one another and the team. Once game time comes around, the brothers “turn competition into teamwork”, doing whatever it takes to help the team come out on top with a win.
When looking back on it all someday Michael and Christopher know that the connection, they have is special and that “not everyone gets the chance to play a sport they love with their sibling on the same team” they highlighted. Playing together for so long has created a string of memories, wins, losses, bus rides, and inside jokes between the two. These are things the two will talk about for years and years to come and “it’s a pretty special chapter in our lives” they remarked.
