Vikingstød hockey school and Knutsen's retirement

The offseason started too early for Pål Vikingstød. The St. Louis Scarecrows were eliminated in the semi-final for the second time in a row. After the bitter loss, Pal did what he usually does, go back to Norway. But for the past couple of season, Pål is helping the sport grow with his hockey school. Building a hockey culture is an uphill battle in a land of skiing and fishing. The Vikingskool Hockey Camp is very popular and growing well. It is becoming a main stay in Mo I Rana (Pål’s Hometown). The popularity of the camp is such that they added a new location in Trondheim where Bjorn Knutsen was the main teacher.

We reached PÃ¥l in in Mo I Rana.

PÃ¥l, how is the hockey school going?

It’s great, lots of people are coming over and we are having a blast. Hockey is certainly getting much more popular.

I’ve heard that you are reaching out to troubled child to help them out, is that true?

Yes, one of the goal of the school is to give very energetic kids a way to express themselves and let their anger and rage out. It’s better than bullying or fighting…well, at least they are fighting willing participant.

Huh! Are you saying the kids are fighting? Are you teaching them that?

Well, fighting is part of the game. So they learn that has well, but we mostly practice takedown. Too many parents were getting angry because their kids were getting beat up, in my opinion it’s their fault for raising dainty child.

I heard you ran in some trouble when you started to play hockey in high school?

Yeah, I did. I fell in love with hockey when I saw Chesty (Chester Cunningham) fight during a game and the crowd went wild. I knew I had found my calling. So I brought that attitude the first time I played and it didn’t go down smoothly. We were playing during the sport class and I started to pummel another guy. The teacher was appalled, if not unsurprised, by my behavior. So in essence, I was ejected from the game the first time I played. That’s how love begins.

Is Knutsen teaching the same brand of hockey Trondheim that you are teaching here?

No, of course not, he couldn’t. He’s a very talented forward, so he is teaching the kids more about skill like puck handling and shooting. Some people prefer that aspect of hockey, so I think it’s nice that we use a balanced approach to assure that we reach the highest number of kids.

Last week, Knutsen announced his retirement, do you mind elaborating on the circumstance surrounding his decision and were you surprise?

I’d prefer to answer all your hockey related questions before talking about more personal matters.

Alright, no problem… Mitchell Dambach is one of Norway’s up and coming forward, can you tell us more about him?

Of course, Dambach is younger than me, but I’ve played against him on multiple occasion in Norway’s system before playing with him in St. Louis. I still remember one game in Junior I tried to nail him in the board but he did a spin move and then score. I looked foolish and hHe was so smug about it all game long. But he wouldn’t drop the glove, to settle the matter. So I had to find another way to shut him up. In the second period, a similar play developed and Dambach tried his spin move again, but this time I squared him off right in the numbers and he went crashing head first in the board. I got ejected, he got a broken nose. He never tried that spin move against me Hahaha.

You fought with Big Manius in the playoffs and won. But after the fight you too were seen yelling to each other in Norwegian, what was said?

I’m not sure I can repeat it, but it was along the line of “Du runknisse, dra meg baklengs inn i fuglekassa!! Dæven blautfisk!! » Which would translate to “You wanking gnome, how dare you! You Damn soft fish!” Hahaha . But don’t feel bad for him, his tongue wasn’t tie either. It’s all fun though, if I wasn’t so dashing, people could think we are brother!

Now can we discuss the surprising decision of Bjorn?

First of all, Bjorn is a good friend of mine and I respect his decision to move forward with his life away from hockey. It was not an easy decision for him, but it was the right one for him since his mind is not into hockey anymore.
You might not be aware, but a couple of years back there was a significant archeological discovery near Trondheim. Researchers found a pre-christian Norse temple and sacrifice site that was buried to prevent Christians from destroying it. Knutsen went to see it and it changed him. I can’t fault him for that. I went there has well and I felt… surge of… let’s just say it can change you. You need to canalize these urges somewhere. Bjorn decided to dedicate himself to the restoration of part of the Norse traditions and to teach Norse culture to the Norwegian population. It’s a very noble effort, but a sad loss for Norwegian hockey. I wish him all the best in his endeavour.

Thank you for your time PÃ¥l.

My pleasure.


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