MEDICINE HAT, AB — It was obvious who’s father stood near the entrance to the Medicine Hat Tigers dressing room.
Standing north of 6’5″, slender in stature, and bringing a calming air to the room familiar in every way to his son.
No one can deny the similarities between Mads Sogaard and his father.
“Just the way that he keeps me down to earth and he always tells me to be not too high, not to low,” said the Tigers rookie goaltender, born and raised in the small Danish city of Aalborg. “It’s great to have him here.”
Brian Sogaard flew in from Denmark last week to watch his son dawn the Tigers logo. He took in last Friday’s contest against Prince Albert at the Canalta Centre, then drove up to Red Deer to watch him start between the pipes against the Rebels.
“I’m happy to see that he’s doing well and he’s actually getting to play,” he said. “We didn’t see that coming from the start that he would get to play this much already. But he’s obviously doing good.”
Sogaard was on the winning end last Saturday; his sixth victory of his rookie campaign. The 17-year-old’s save percentage (0.928) and goals against average (2.50) are both among the best of any WHL goaltender.
Regardless of Sogaard’s elite level of play, Brian simply wanted to catch a glimpse of what his son has been up to for the last three months.
“He’s doing good, and I’m very proud as a dad to see he’s doing well, and the way he’s staying grounded and calm,” he continued.
Brian has never played hockey, but has been fascinated by the sport for more than 40 years. His knowledge of the game has helped steer his son onto the correct path.
There’s just one problem, however.
“I was not encouraging him to be a goaltender,” he said with a smile. “I liked to see him go out and score some goals, but he was meant to be a goaltender. He was sticking to that every time, even though I would say ‘hey, leave the other kids in there, they need to try it as well.’ He knew where he wanted to be.”
Sogaard will start between the pipes Wednesday night, when the Tigers host the Rebels in a rematch of last Saturday’s contest.
Brian will be watching closely from the Canalta Centre stands. He’ll also have a stuffed animal ready to be thrown in Saturday’s Teddy Bear Toss game against the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Saturday before departing back home after this weekend.
He says he’s extremely thankful for the Tigers hospitality over the last several days, and says his son is in good hands.
“They have been tremendous hosts,” Brian added, noting they’ve provided him with tickets to both games he’s watched so far.
For the younger Sogaard, introducing a familiar face to his new life in North America is rewarding and encouraging.
“It’s great to have him over here and show him my ‘everyday’ and what I do,” Mads added. “He’s seen it on FaceTime and stuff like that but to actually see it, I think it’s kinda good for both me and him. I think it’s going to help me out for the rest of the season.”
