Origins of the Kondos Ice Hockey League
Fifteen years ago, Chris Kondos started running his own scrimmage and, just for a little fun, named it the Kondos Hockey League.
“We started with scrimmages. We gave these young kids somewhere to go on a Friday night instead of going out drinking or taking drugs. We provided a healthy outlet and environment for these kids on Friday nights. We started scrimmages at 10:30 on Friday nights at the Olympic Ice Skating Centre in Oakleigh, Victoria, Australia. We were given keys to the rink and we would sometimes scrimmage for four hours, just locking the front door when we were done. Sometimes we'd get off the rink at 3am. We fell in love with hockey. And not just hockey, but fun hockey. It took the competitive spirit out of it and allowed people of any skill level to go out and enjoy the sport.”
Fast forward to 2023, Kondos acquired ice time from rink owner and Australian ice hockey legend Joey Hughes, who played for the Melbourne Mustangs, Melbourne Ice and CBR Brave in the AIHL. Joey was impressed with Kondos' work and wanted to help grow the league by providing more ice time to participants.
Chris Kondos explained, “In 2023 we started practicing on Tuesday nights at 9:45pm for 90 minutes. It was hard with work the next day, but it was never hard to cut the numbers. Every Tuesday before the game we got changed in the dressing room and did a mini draft. We randomly selected two captains each week and they picked their teams.”
After a few months of playing, Kondos gained more fans, more participants signed up and helped his dream vision come true, he set out to officially launch the Kondos Ice Hockey League.
The evolution of the Kondos Ice Hockey League
Chris Kondos started with four teams. “I picked four captains – four players who wouldn't be called up in any other league in Melbourne, so this was a good opportunity for them to lead a team and take on the challenge. We held a draft night in the cafe at the Olympic Ice Skating Centre, a roulette style draft, almost like a draft lottery, and that's where the teams were born. The first four teams were selected and off we went. Season one consisted of 35 players, umpires and a passion for the sport.”
After a few games, Kondos bought a DSLR camera because he wanted to make the league more visible around town, and he had a cameraman at every game and streamed the games directly to YouTube. At first, the product didn't look sexy, but it was a step in the right direction. It ignited something in Kondos, and he pushed the league forward in an effort to offer a fresh perspective compared to other hockey leagues operating around the area.
When the NHL came to Australia, Chris explained how he saw it as an opportunity to help develop the league: “A group of us went to the La Kings vs Arizona Coyotes game here in Melbourne and I happened to run into my long-time friend Sean Figgers at the game. I pitched him the idea of streaming and commentating on our games. I was inspired by the NHL coming to Australia and wanted to do something bigger. He was excited and said, 'Let's talk'.”
It took us two months to discuss the idea again, but he immediately agreed. I paid for it myself and he participated. His commentary was very professional and without him we would not have made it this far.
My passion started to heat up once I ditched my lonely DSLR camera and started streaming my games. My wife has been my biggest supporter and never got in the way. In fact, she has been my biggest encourager.”
Chris Kondos has partnered with Blackmagic Design, who makes some amazing streaming products and cameras, and helped set it up. As the league continues to grow, they now have two amazing studio cameras streaming the games, as well as a camera in the scorebox capturing all of Figgers' (commentator Sean Figgers) exciting moments. Every game is streamed live on YouTube and the league has an active social media presence.
The league is currently at 40 players for the start of Season 4. The initial four teams have expanded to seven, and the passion all the players have for the game continues to open the eyes of newcomers. The locker room is filled with excitement for the upcoming season.
Kondos explains, “We try to keep all our teams well balanced by having two experienced players on each team, five or six intermediate level players, and four or five beginner level players or players who are most eager to learn.
The balance is in favor of the less experienced players because the more experienced players will play alongside them and keep them in the game as much as possible, while the top level players have limitations so they pass the puck more and choose to pass to other players on their team.
We are strict with the rules of the game. We do not tolerate any rough behavior such as tripping, slashing, hooking, etc. We have zero tolerance for such behavior and have a strict two-strike policy in the game. Our approach is that we do not want to risk injury because everyone has a job and has to work the next day. We try to teach our players that if they are struggling to take the puck, they should try harder to take it cleanly. When you lose, do not get carried away with emotions and start swinging your stick around or trying to beat your opponent. Instead of using your stick as a weapon, try to use your feet to catch up. We are trying to eliminate dirty plays from hockey, where people can play with confidence.
Tuesday night was the most exciting time of the week for everyone. The league's Facebook page is chock full of comments from players saying they had the most fun they've ever had playing hockey. Some of them have been playing for over 10 years and can't remember the last time they had so much fun. Some of the newbies improve so quickly that they seem like a different person after one season in the league. Instead of icing the puck, they try to pass and make plays, taking on better players and winning battles and scoring against the league's great goalies.
“We also have some great goalies who have been a little lost in the hockey community here, and their love for the sport has come back, their passion has been reignited and they've been able to rediscover themselves with us. The goalies make the game the toughest challenge because some weeks you just can't get through them at all.”
The hockey community we’ve built here is something special and I think the whole world should know about it, because it makes hockey so much fun and sometimes players show up three hours before a game just because they’re genuinely excited to be playing in this great league.
Olympic Ice Skating Centre, Oakleigh, Melbourne, Australia:
They are, Condos “They are involved with the ice hockey league and have always been accommodating to our league. It's a family run rink and the staff are great. The owner, Joey Hughes, is a great guy for Australian ice hockey and does so much for not only ice hockey but all ice sports. It's the oldest rink in the state so it's packed with so many memories. It's also where my wife and I met 20 years ago and got engaged two years later, so it's a precious memory for everyone who skates here.”
