Nelson Rego is 100% blind: and by filling in as goalie for an acquaintance’s team, he became the first ever blind player to play in a sighted team in the province’s history.
Rego plays blind ice hockey for the Edmonton “SeeHawks” and met another goaltender, John Hunter, inquiring online about gear modifications and a chest protector. Later Hunter got injured, and trying to help his team find a goalie for a league game, he reached out on the Edmonton Goalies Facebook page.
The team was “all in” and so Nelson strapped on his kit and got ready for his first-ever sighted league match.
The game was by no means a washout, and even though Rego’s team lost 9-8, he hung in there and earned the respect and admiration of the team.
“They made no accommodations for me,” Rego said. “It was just like being one of the guys on the team and that whole comradery thing that you get with a team that’s the thing that I really love the most.”
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