No hazing allowed in RoughRiders locker room

CEDAR RAPIDS - It's called the “Rookie Dinner,” and it's part of the initiation process for a being Cedar Rapids RoughRiders player. Actually, the only part.

There are no pranks allowed against first-year members of the team. They load and unload the team bus before road trips and get hurt in the pocket book during the once-a-season dinner. That's it.

“We went to Granite City,” RoughRiders rookie defenseman John Gilmoursaid. “All the rookies paid $90 apiece. That's a pretty good expense.”

Hazing in athletics is obviously a hot-button topic, with an alleged recent incident regarding the Lisbon High School wrestling team and criminal charges being filed on wrestlers at two other Iowa high schools. Hockey always has had a reputation for high jinx that has sometimes crossed the proverbial line (remember the old Rob Lowe hockey movie “Youngblood”).

Earlier this month, a Michigan prep coach was fired after photographs surfaced of some of his players dancing in a bar wearing nothing but women's underwear as part of a team prank during a road trip. In Canada, a 15-year-old hockey player was forced to walk around his team's locker room with water bottles tied to his testicles after losing a strip dancing contest with teammates.

None of that kind of stuff is tolerated here.

“The world has changed a lot in a lot of different areas,” RoughRiders Coach Mark Carlson said. “Hazing is looked a lot differently upon today. With our team, we talk about it immediately, right away at the beginning of the year. There is no initiation whatsoever.”

Carlson said the United States Hockey League does a good job making sure its 16 clubs address hazing.

“It is absolutely something we don't tolerate,” said Brian Werger, the league's director of communication and public relations. “We feel like the teams, coaches and staff monitor the situation and always look out for the best interests of every kid who plays in our league.”

Gilmour said he has heard stories of players being hazed in his native Canada but has never been a victim. He concurred that the topic was something Carlson immediately addressed at the start of the season.

“I've been fortunate enough to be in organizations that don't care for that kind of stuff,” he said. “There's a fine line between having fun and doing too much. You cross that line, and it's unacceptable. It could get bad.”

Former RoughRider Kevin Brooks was asked if he saw hazing back when he played in town from 2001 to 2003. Not wanting to be publicly specific, he said rookies had to face some form of team initiation from veterans, but it was nothing mean spirited.

“When I was here, it was just for fun. Just fun stuff,” Brooks said. “Now there is nothing. It's been made clear. That stuff happens, and you're out of here. Back when I played, I don't think I would even consider it hazing. It was just a bunch of guys busting each other's (humps). It brought people together if it was done the right way. People have taken advantage of it now. You get some kids who are on power trips. Some of the stuff you are hearing about is just wrong.”

“We would never tolerate anything that wasn't appropriate,” Carlson said. “But it is kind of a shame in some ways because the guys used to do some funny type of stuff that I can't mention in the media. It was funny and it was good. But you can't even do that anymore.”