David DelGrosso

Growing up in the late 1960s on a dead-end street in Scituate held a number of advantages for an eight year-old boy trying to burn off the energy that ran naturally through his system.  There were countless street hockey games that went on for hours due to the lack of cars traveling down Old Colony Way.  Then there were football and baseball games and anything else the older kids in the neighborhood could think of to fill time on weekends and weekday afternoons after school got out.  The obvious advantage is that time spent outdoors playing sports contributed to a healthy childhood and encouraged young kids to stay physically fit.  The other advantage is that it nurtured a competitive mindset that set its hooks at a young age and never let go.

 

Horace and Elba DelGrosso bought a house in Scituate in the late 1950s to put down roots and raise a family.  Their oldest son, Stephen, was born in 1959.  David came along nineteen months later.  Horace was not particularly athletic, but his sons had other ideas in mind.  David remembers his father bringing Stephen and him down to Greenbush pond when he was eight or nine.  He had someone’s hand-me-down skates and an old stick.  There were always plenty of kids on the pond and David was eager to see if could skate with them.  He had fast feet and good, strong legs and eventually took to skating with ease.  But the game of hockey required creativity, vision, and playmaking skills in addition to good balance and strong legs.  Dave DelGrosso was fundamentally on his way to becoming a good skater, but he realized that to become a hockey player he would have to spend the next several years working on those skills that didn’t come naturally to him.

 

Like dozens of other Scituate kids in the late 1960s, Dave was taken by his dad to the Cohasset Winter Garden to sign up for Ed Taylor’s instructional hockey school.  Bobby Orr was emerging as a superstar for the Bruins and the Scituate kids took notice.  They watched Orr on television and then did exactly what you would expect – they signed up to play hockey as soon as they got their parents’ approval.  In the blink of an eye, Ed Taylor had dozens of kids from Scituate banging down the door of the only ice skating rink in the area, demanding to be taught the game of hockey.

 

Dave remembers it like this: “My father never pushed me to play a sport, but one day he suggested that Steve and I go up to the Winter Garden and sign up if we really wanted to learn how to skate and play hockey.  He saw that we really liked playing pond hockey and must’ve figured that we should get proper instruction if we wanted to play the sport properly.  So we went up there and signed up to skate.

 

“From the very beginning, there were kids that were bigger, stronger, and faster than me.  I watched these kids skate – they had started before me – and tried to copy them.  I wanted more than anything to be able to skate like them.  I watched them do crossovers, stop and starts, and then pivot and reverse direction.  I really wanted to learn to do that.  Ed Taylor was great at teaching basic skating skills.  It was his instruction that really helped me improve my skating.  I can remember my mother driving me to the rink at five am to get on the ice for those early morning skating lessons.  I watched all these other guys – the way they skated, the way they checked, the way they stickhandled - and I just tried to copy them.  It seemed logical to me that if I paid close attention to what the older kids were doing on the ice, I could improve by working on the things that I just saw them doing.  That was my goal – to keep improving.  Keep working at it, keep getting better.”

 

David continues: “I was never overwhelmed by any of the kids who were better or older than me.  I challenged myself to be as good as them.  I had a competitive mindset about it.  From my earliest days up at the Winter Garden with Mr. Taylor, I never wanted to be the last one to finish a sprint or a race around the ice.  I didn’t necessarily have to be first, but I sure wasn’t going to be last.  Somebody had to be last, but it wasn’t going to be me.  I didn’t care if I wiped out hustling through a turn, I just wasn’t going to lose for lack of effort.  My goal, very early on, was to prove that I was as good as the other kids.  That’s what drove me.  I had that competitiveness in me.

 

“From those early days of skating and hockey instructions right through peewees and bantams, I just always wanted to be out there.  I didn’t necessarily need the puck all the time, but I had to be out there.  I had to be competing.  I don’t know exactly where that comes from, but it’s down deep.  When I played football and ran track, I had to win.  I hated losing.  I was never a sore loser, but I hated it just the same.  Even when I was away at summer camp, when they put those foot races on, I ran as hard as I could.  I just couldn’t stand to lose.  Other kids didn’t seem to care.  But for me, I had to put all I had into it.  I couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t try as hard as I could.”

 

After one year in Ed Taylor’s skating instruction class and one year as a Scituate Brave squirt, David DelGrosso moved up to peewees.  This was the twelve- and thirteen-year olds.  He remembers two things about this time – how quickly his hockey skills developed and how good most of the other kids were.  Dave was a first year peewee playing on the “A” team.  He played with guys like Joe Sullivan, Alan Litchfield, Joe Duffey, Joe Connors, Garry Hebert, Sean Mahoney, Danny Higgins, Chris Smith, and Stephen and Bobby Breen.  Dave remembers: “Drew Higgins was our coach that year and he was tough but fair.  We had to give a good effort or he would let us have it.  It was a very competitive group of guys.  More than anything, they wanted to win.  And they were very talented.  The first line on that peewee team – Garry Hebert, Joe Duffey, Sean Mahoney, Joe Sullivan, and Alan Litchfield – was incredibly talented.  They were probably the best peewee line in the state – that’s how good they were.

 

“We traveled everywhere that year - all over the state.  Looking back on it now, it seems like we were in a rink four or five times a week.  It was an incredible period of time – that whole year was a lot to take in for a twelve year-old kid.  We were so good and we played so much hockey that’s it’s a bit of a blur now.  My dad told me that we played more than one hundred hockey games that year.  We went up to Canada; we hosted Canadian kids for a tournament at the Winter Garden; we played in an outdoor rink a couple of times.  We went to Framingham, Fitchburg, Burlington, Winchendon…towns all over the North Shore, Rhode Island…seems like we went everywhere to play everyone.  And I think we beat almost all of them.

 

“I played right wing.  My job was to dig the puck out of the corner and get it to my center.  That’s what I tried to do.  Sometimes it was Stephen Breen, sometimes Chris Smith.  Coach Higgins juggled the second and third lines a lot.  Garry Hebert was our first line center.  He was a very talented hockey player, even at that age.  And he was solid.  One time I had my head down and skated right into him.  I couldn’t avoid him.  It knocked the wind right out of me.  He was an absolutely great skater…possibly the best skater I ever played with.  And he could stickhandle.  He would come through the neutral zone pushing the puck in front of him and just make these crazy moves around the opposing defense.  I saw him pivot once, skate backwards a bit, and then go full speed through a defenseman.  He had awesome puck control and vision.  And Alan Litchfield had a shot you wouldn’t believe for a thirteen year-old.  I saw him score once on a slapshot from center ice in a game and that puck was rising the last thirty feet. 

 

“Marshall Litchfield, Alan’s father, was a real hockey guy.  I didn’t have him for a coach, but he was around a lot because Alan was such an important part of the team.  Marshall had a certain presence about him that was unmistakable.  I really liked him because he was easy to talk and listen to.  He never raised his voice or got angry.  He just wanted to share what he knew about hockey, probably hoping some of it would get through to us.”

 

The 1973 Scituate Braves peewee “A” team had one of the best win-loss records of any hockey team in the state, building on the success of the teams from the prior three years.  [The 1971 Braves peewees went 53-4-2 playing for Ed Taylor].  David remembers: “This team was something else talent-wise.  I played on this team, of course, but I couldn’t help watching that first line in games and practices.  It left an impression on me.  They had an incredible work ethic.  When that line was on the ice in a game, they just clicked.  Alan and Joe Sullivan were the top defensemen and no one got around them.  They just took care of everyone that came at them.  They were big and strong and tough.  No one got near our net.  And if Alan broke up the play and took the puck away from them, look out.  He was gone.  And Joe Sullivan was solid.  He took care of his side and Alan took care of the other. 

 

“Garry Hebert centered Joe Duffey and Sean Mahoney on that first line.  Chris Smith was a second or third line center.  What does that tell you?  Chris Smith is a first line center on any other team in the state, but not with Garry in front of him.  I didn’t get as much ice time as the guys on the first line, but that didn’t bother me too much.  Chris made me a better hockey player just by being on the ice with him.  My job was to get the puck on his stick.  He took care of it from there.  Chris had great hands and could shoot.  He was able to release the puck in an instant.  Chris Smith was a pure goal scorer.  You could just tell.

 

“I look back at it now and I’m just grateful that I was a member of a hockey team that was one of the best ever.  It was a fun and exciting time.  I think we were together so much because we played so many games, it was like a family.  I was a year younger than Alan and Garry and Joe but I really felt like I was an important part of that team.  We all felt a little blessed.  We worked hard of course, but it clicked in a way that I had not experienced before.  I was part of a team playing a sport that I loved and, as a team, we succeeded.  That’s important at any age.  Hockey’s a team effort.  We succeeded because we were talented and because we worked well together as a unit with a common goal.  It was a special time and those guys meant a lot to me, then and now.  Being on a Scituate Braves team made me very proud.  Wearing that team jacket around with the old Braves logo just felt great.”

 

The 1973 Scituate Braves peewees made it to the Massachusetts Peewee Hockey tournament in Fitchburg in March.  They beat Fitchburg, Hudson, and Brookline before meeting Natick in the final state tournament game.  Scituate beat Natick and was crowned State Champions, a spectacular feat for a program established fewer than five years prior.  They went on to the New England regional games in Rhode Island where they would meet Natick again.  The top two teams from each New England state were invited.  This time, Scituate again made it to the final round of the tournament and again faced Natick.  This time, their opponent triumphed.  There was no blame to go around.  Natick just played a little better than the Scituate Braves in that one game.  Natick's reward was a trip to the National Peewee Hockey Tournament in Detroit. 

 

Dave played another year of peewee hockey before moving up to the bantam level.  He had Garrett Reagan for a year in bantams before Coach Reagan moved to Hingham High School.  He was thankful for the year he had with Coach Reagan.  “He was my favorite coach.  He spoke to you, not at you or through you.  He was a teacher of hockey, which is what coaching is.  He kept it a little looser than we were used to, not as regimented.  I felt like I was learning more and getting better at the game.  I was disappointed when he moved on.  I’m sure I could have been a better all-around hockey player if I had Coach Reagan for another year or two,” he remembers.

 

He continues: “In eight and ninth grade, I just kept plugging away.  Chris Smith and I got to the point where I knew where he’d be and he’d get open so I could get the puck to him.  We played together for so long that it became second nature.  I dug the puck out and found a way to get it to Smitty and he did what he was good at – burying the puck in the back of the net with those quick hands.  We played together through bantams and into high school.  But the rest of those guys scattered.  Some of the guys from that 1973 peewee team went to Archbishop Williams High School.  Alan, Garry, Joe Duffey and Joe Sullivan went to Thayer Academy.  So it was over by 1975.  I went to Scituate High School along with Chris Smith, the Breens, Sean Mahoney, Paul Blanchard, John Reidy, and Danny Higgins.  Paul Johnson was the head hockey coach in 1975.  He was also the head football coach.”

 

David DelGrosso continued playing other sports in eight and ninth grade, mostly football.  He explains: “I never stopped playing football because of my interest in hockey.  I loved both sports and played both every year of high school.  But the experiences were very different.  I had hockey friends and football friends.  Some of them crossed over, like Brad Warren, but not many.  Football was much more popular in high school.  We had a freshman team, a sophomore team, junior varsity, and varsity. 

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Turning back to hockey, Dave continues: “As a freshman and sophomore, speed was pretty much all I had.  I kept it simple.  I worked the boards and corners and dug the puck out for my center.  I didn’t try to reinvent the wheel.  I hustled, I backchecked, and I always put my best effort into it.  I think my coaches appreciated that and I eventually got rewarded with more ice time.  I started out playing j.v. hockey as a freshman.  It was me, Brad Warren on the left wing, and Smitty at center.  And we were good.  We scored a ton of points and we had fun.  It was easily the best year I had as a player.  There were a couple times that year when Brad and I played for the varsity, or at least dressed for the varsity.”

 

Dave explains: “There were always guys on varsity hurt or suspended, and you had to have an effective third line to eat minutes and rest your two best lines.  On two occasions that I remember, Brad and I started our junior varsity game at the Hobomock Rink in Pembroke and then hopped in Mr. Warren’s car after the first period and zipped up to the Cohasset Winter Gardens to play with the varsity.  It sounds crazy today, but that really happened.  I think some of the kids on the j.v. team resented that, and if I had my way I wouldn’t have done it, but that’s what happened.  They needed bodies and they brought us up.

 

“When I got up to varsity as a freshman, I tried hard not to be intimidated or overwhelmed.  I just put my head down and hustled.  I left it all out there.  I wanted Coach Johnson to have confidence in me.  And I think he did.  That varsity team won the O.C.L. that year and was invited to the Boston Garden for the Eastern Massachusetts High School Hockey tournament.  When I got the call that I was added to the roster for that game, it was the thrill of a lifetime.  I was a freshman and a bit of an outsider.  To get the opportunity to play with these older guys was just awesome.  These guys were big and they had talent.  Guys like Mike Breen, Paul Croke, John Kilcoyne, Sean Mahoney, Paul Devlin, and Bernie Durkin.  And I was going to dress for a game in the Boston Garden with them.  It just seemed unbelievable.  I remember we got outplayed pretty badly in that game, but Coach Johnson made sure I got some ice time. 

 

“Coach Johnson looked down the bench halfway through the second period and said ‘Del, get out there.’  And I did.  Quickly.  I just jumped over those boards and hit that ice.  I skated as hard and fast as I ever did.  I probably had five or six shifts that game and I made them count.  I looked at it like an opportunity that I might never have again.  I had one shot on net.  There were a lot of Scituate fans there and I was very happy with the way I played in that game.  I played on a line with Gerry Duggan and maybe Sean Mahoney.  In the third period I can remember Mike Breen looking down the bench and saying, ‘Nice shift Del, keep it going.’  We were down a few goals but we weren’t feeling any pressure.  Mike was a leader on that team.  That was his team really.  He had a very positive influence on me, as did Bernie Durkin.”

 

Dave continues: “Paul Johnson was the head coach again my sophomore and junior years, but we didn’t come close to that level of success again.  I played with Chris Smith and Brad Warren again for those two years, and we were good.  Coach Johnson kept us together and we really played some good hockey.  Bill McKeever came in my senior year.  Michael Galvin and Andy Marhoffer were co-captains that year and they both were outstanding.  But the O.C.L. made a change that year that ended up working against me and my real strength as a hockey player.  The league experimented with a new rule – no checking in the offensive zone.  It was ridiculous.  They were trying to eliminate fighting and that was the way they figured they’d do it.  You couldn’t hit an opposing player in your offensive zone.  Needless to say, it didn’t work and they dropped it after that year.”

 

David finished high school with ten varsity letters – four each in hockey and track and field and two in football.  After attending the University of Maine he came back to Scituate, married his wife Renata, and started a family.  His oldest son Dan got into youth hockey with the Seahawks as a mite and the coach of the team, Dave's former linemate Brad Warren, persuaded Dave to get behind the bench. 

 

He recalls: “I helped out on the ice with this group of kids for a year or so and when they moved up to peewees, I took on the job as head coach with them.  I took a team to the state championship one year and really started to gain confidence as a coach.  I made a determined effort to communicate with my kids.  Teaching, communication, and encouragement were the keys to my effort to succeed as a coach.  Those three things are the most important attributes of a good coach in any sport.  I turned all of the shortcomings that I experienced as a player at that age around and made it a point to coach my kids the way I thought best.  I put the focus on the kids, not their parents.  They responded to that, as I expected them to.  Importantly, they had fun playing the sport of hockey the way it should be played.  There are many ways to approach the role of coaching young kids and I’m most proud of what those kids learned about the game of hockey and the enjoyment they each got out of the experience.”

 

Dave spent thirteen years coaching youth hockey and six years on the board of directors of the South Shore Seahawks, culminating with the position of president.  For those half dozen years he was heavily involved in all levels of coaching and the administration of the organization.  He coached for several more years in the Scituate High School junior varsity program.  To this day, he is certain that the time and effort he spent on getting kids into the game of hockey and keeping them engaged in their development as hockey players had paid dividends that are immeasurable.  As these kids have gotten older, they never fail to thank him for both the time and guidance he has invested in them. 

 

David DelGrosso has spent nearly fifty years either playing or coaching the game of hockey.  His enthusiasm for the game, especially at the youth hockey level, has never waned.  The competitiveness he exhibited as an eight year-old boy growing up in the old neighborhood has been channeled and refined.  Like his old teammates Mike Breen and Brad Warren, Dave remains firmly connected to the game and to the kids who turn out to play it.  And he’s never forgotten what he’s known since he first stepped onto the ice at the Cohasset Winter Gardens: parents want to win; kids just want to play.

 

David DelGrosso lives in Scituate with his wife Renata and their three sons, Dan, Matt, and Evan.

 

Edited July 8, 2019