Building Brotherhood

Members of the Boston Bruins launched a Bible study in 2015 which was open to anyone on the team, a rare occurrence in the NHL. It caught on, grew, and represented the Christ-centered community many players longed for. Now, those who have moved on via trade or free agency aim to establish similar fellowship in their new cities. BY JOSHUA PEASE

AP Photo/Mary Altaffer randon Carlo never thought it would happen so fast. When he signed a three-year entrylevel contract with the Boston Bruins in 2015, he assumed he’d spend at least a year or two in the minors. Instead, six weeks before his 20th birthday, Carlo started opening night as a defenseman for a Bruins team that would end up making the playoffs for the first time in three years.

Carlo quickly realized that achieving a goal he’d dreamed about since he was 5 years old — playing for an NHL team — was more complicated than he’d thought. Athletes are hesitant to talk about the pressure they face; they know they’re paid ludicrous amounts of money, and that they’re incredibly fortunate. But the dizzying amounts of expectation placed on young professional athletes is hard for anyone outside pro sports to understand, especially in a notoriously cutthroat sports market like Boston, which can turn on its most beloved athletes in a heartbeat.

Starting bottom left: Torey Krug, David Backes, Chris Wagner, Charlie McAvoy, Danton Heinen, Ryan Donato, Anders Bjork, Brandon Carlo, Dave Ripper, Kevan Miller

“It’s the ability to just check in with each other, to know the intimate parts or struggles that are going on outside the ice — personal family issues, an illness in the family, other things that are going on that without that setting, without that openness and that safe space, you don’t get to share those things.” — DAVID BACKES

“[Making an NHL team] is something that you think would be the most fulfilling thing that you could possibly achieve,” Carlo recently told Sports Spectrum. “And then when you get there, it is fantastic, and it’s such a blessing, but it’s not as fulfilling as you thought it would be. There’s a lot of days where you’re grinding and you’re having a tough time, and things aren’t going your way. And it’s like, ‘What do you have to lean on?’”

Moments like this are crucial turning points for many young, successful athletes. Some crumble under the pressure, while others let their ascendant fame go to their heads. Carlo, however, just so happened to play on one of the only NHL teams with a thriving Bible study. Outspoken Christian faith is still rare in NHL team cultures, and yet the Boston Bruins have quietly had Bible studies where 10-12 players regularly attend. And when members of this Bible study are traded to other teams, they bring with them a passion not just for hockey, but to replicate this fellowship in their new city.

In a 2015 article in the Boston Globe, Adam McQuaid, a Bruins defenseman at the time, opened up about his journey of being more public with his Christian faith, and how stand-offish or directly hostile the hockey world can be to religion. The article caught the attention of leaders at Hockey Ministries International (HMI), who told McQuaid they’d long wanted to start a chapel with the Bruins, but never had a good point of contact.

“We had a chapel [when I was playing] in the minor league in Providence and that was the first time I’d even heard of having a chapel in sports,” McQuaid recalls. “There were quite a few guys that went, and it just was something that I missed when I moved up to play in the NHL. So when HMI reached out to me I jumped on board.”

McQuaid contacted the pastor of his church, David Ripper, and together the two of them waded into unfamiliar waters: McQuaid actively reaching out to his teammates, and Ripper going behind the scenes of a professional sports environment for the first time.

“I remember the first time I did chapel,” says Ripper, lead pastor of Crossway Christian Church in New Hampshire. “The Bruins used to be at this really rinky-dink, old practice facility … and it’s like, I have to knock on this back door. And this big and burly security guard kinda looks at me like, ‘Who the heck are you?’ And I said, ‘I’m here to be with McQuaid,’ and he says ‘Yeah, you’re on the list.’

“There’s a lot of loneliness and isolation [among professional athletes], and I really hope that these players will be able to take what God has done here with them, if they go elsewhere, to be able to bring this to their next teams.” — PASTOR DAVE RIPPER

“I walk in and it’s all these big dudes skating around, and I’m just like, ‘What in the world am I doing here?’ And I felt God just telling me, ‘Dave, just so you know, it’s not gonna be about you.’”

The first year of the chapel consisted of just McQuaid and Ripper, and maybe one or two other players who would occasionally attend. Then, the following year, forward David Backes signed as a free agent with Boston.

One of the first things Backes wanted to do when he moved to town was meet up with McQuaid. In Backes’ previous three years with the St. Louis Blues, he’d tried to get a chapel program up and running, but it was always sparsely attended. Now that he had signed a five-year deal with the Bruins, Backes dreamed of something better. Ripper said that Backes joining was the catalyst for the group’s growth, calling Backes “one of the best leaders I’ve ever been around.”

“It started with McQuaid and [Boston defenseman Kevan Miller], and myself,” Backes says. “And then all of a sudden it was like … next thing you know it’s eight to 10 guys at breakfast with a couple coming in and out based on whether they had treatment that morning; one of the trainers was getting involved. So it was just one of those things that I wanted to [pursue] ... I was being intentional with trying to make an impact in the Kingdom while I had this new group of men to influence with Adam’s and Kevan’s assistance.”

Ripper focused on creating a safe environment where a bunch of high-achieving, competitive athletes could let down their guard and be honest about their struggles. Many meetings would happen over breakfast, where Ripper would cut past superficialities and routinely ask players, “How’s your soul?” Ripper is quick to say there was no magic formula to the Bible study’s success, certainly not any brilliance on his part. Rather, he feels like God placed him in the right place, at the right time.

“[These players] are no different than anyone else,” he says. “Some of them will make more money in one season than I’ll make in a lifetime, but they’re not any happier … and I think there was a solidarity that was found amidst that. There’s a human hunger that we all have for that type of connectivity, and I think I was fortunate enough to be blessed to be in the role to help facilitate how the Lord wanted to build a solidarity amongst the guys. And I think that’s why more players joined, because they saw this connection that some of the players share together that was something more profound than even the best connection you can have on the ice.”

McQuaid also notes there wasn’t a magic formula. While he is quick to compliment Ripper’s job, he also says there was an influx of players to the team who kept showing interest in the chapel. “It wasn’t anything any one of us was doing,” McQuaid says, “it just grew.”

And as it grew, the players noticed how it improved team chemistry on the ice. McQuaid says that every team he has played for wants players to have characteristics that mesh with what it means to be a follower of Jesus, and having a chapel program only helps facilitate that. Backes believes the trust and camaraderie a Bible study builds is absolutely integral to how a player performs on the ice, and with his teammates. He acknowledges it’s easy for locker rooms to become very competitive places, where players are always wondering if someone is out to get their job, or has an angle they’re playing in their interactions with other players. But the trust built in the Bible study created a safe space to both love and challenge each other, on and off the ice.

“It’s the ability to just check in with each other, to know the intimate parts or struggles that are going on outside the ice — personal family issues, an illness in the family, other things that are going on that without that setting, without that openness and that safe space, you don’t get to share those things,” Backes says. “To me, that’s such a great bond builder that does translate on the ice, but gives you some real familial relationships, especially when you’re in a town that’s 1,500 miles away from your blood family. So to me, that sort of impact on your day-to-day life and your professional life shows up, I

think, in the success that that group has because they’re willing to be open.

“There are times maybe during the game where you see that a guy, I don’t wanna say ‘checked out,’ but maybe is not as focused on the game, but you know what’s going on in his life. And you go wrap your arm around him and be like, ‘Hey, I know you got that going on, if you can just focus for another half hour or one more period, let’s grab a drink after and we can talk about it.’”

As the Bible study continued, it caught the attention of the Boston Globe and Christian media outlets. By year three of the group’s existence, the Bruins had officially established the most dynamic gathering of Christ-following players of any NHL team. When a member of HMI heard what was happening, he told Ripper, “You need to enjoy this, ‘cause this has never happened before, and it probably won’t last.” The Bruins Bible study was able to last, in a way, throughout COVID. While players moved back to their homes to ride out the NHL’s shutdown, the study continued to meet over Zoom, helping players stay connected and engaged with God even in the middle of isolation. But

“You wanna do the right things, especially as a young guy looking up to these older guys. But right away, I felt similar connections in Anaheim with a few very comfortable just being who I was guys that I have identified as going to a chapel … It was great to have that group to be regularly there,” Backes says. “So I’m trying to able to go to.” — BRANDON CARLO build those same bonds on a new team.” This is Ripper’s vision of the future as well. While the Bruins’ group will continue going the life of a professional athlete means rarely having deep roots in one place, and over time many of the players at the core of the Bruins’ Bible study moved strong, he hopes that the players in their community who experienced something special and then moved on to other teams will take that vision with them. on. “There’s an old Frederick Buechner line that says that

After nine years with the Bruins, McQuaid was traded to the New York Rangers heading into the 2018-2019 campaign, and ended that season with the Columbus Blue Jackets after another trade. He speculates that his hockey career might be at an end, though he isn’t closing that door yet. people might not remember what you say, they might not remember what you did, but they will remember how you made them feel. ... And I wanted to create an environment for these players to feel known and loved by God as best as possible,” Ripper says. “There’s a lot of loneliness and isolation [among professional athletes], and I really hope that these players will be able to take what God has done

This past February, Backes was traded to the here with them, if they go elsewhere, to be able to bring

Anaheim Ducks. And in October, defenseman Torey this to their next teams.”

Krug, a regular Bible study member, signed as a free agent with the St. Louis Blues. While the relationships these players built with each other continues, the The hope being that more NHL players will get to experience a safe place to cement their faith as a Christian athlete. tight-knit community of believers that was formed has “I mean, when you’re coming into the league as fundamentally changed. a rookie, it can be difficult at times to be completely

When asked about whether they’ll try to keep Zoom Bible study meetings going, Backes says that might happen every once in a while, but that’s not what he’s focused on. yourself,” Carlo says. “You wanna fit in, you wanna do the right things, especially as a young guy looking up to these older guys. But right away, I felt very comfortable just being who I was … It was great to have that group to be able to go to, and I would say after the first season, I felt

“I think now I’m more focused on trying to create completely comfortable.”

TOTALLY New Concept

Stephanie McQuaid (top-center) and Kelly Backes (bottom-center) with their Bible study group on a Zoom call.

As a Bible study among Bruins teammates took off in Boston, the wives and girlfriends of those men thought, “What about us?” So they launched a women’s group, which, like the men’s, could potentially lead to other women’s studies around the NHL as players and families switch teams and cities. BY JON ACKERMAN

“There are so many things that connect us, whether it’s being mothers or having husbands that are playing or were active athletes. But [it’s great to] just to dive deeper and connect with one another and continue to grow that vertical relationship.” — KELLY BACKES

“Girls have opened up about what they’re going through personally or what’s going on in their family, bringing forth prayer requests. The fact that we’re able to pray for one another and follow up on those things, I think it’s just deepened a lot of relationships.”

Kelly Backes first learned of women’s fellowship in the pro sports world in the spring of 2015, when her husband, NHL forward David Backes, played for the St. Louis Blues. She was invited to the home of Leslee Holliday, wife of then-St. Louis Cardinals star Matt Holliday, for a women’s Bible study. Holliday had invited Cardinals wives and girlfriends, as well as significant others from the Rams (the NFL franchise was still in town) and Blues.

“We would go to her home and we would meet, which was kind of my first taste of a women’s study with the commonality of the sports world,” Backes recalled recently. “Then landing in Boston (where David signed as a free agent in 2016), we didn’t have that until the guys started getting it going.”

“The guys” were her husband and other Bruins who met as one of the few, if not only, Christian fellowship communities in the NHL (see page 16). David was thrilled to join a men’s Bible study group with his teammates, and soon, the wives and girlfriends of those men desired something similar.

“Several of our husbands and boyfriends were doing [a group], but it was kind of like, ‘Why haven’t we?’” Kelly said.

The wheels on a women’s group started moving in the