Zach Bratina left the game much earlier than he had hoped.
In the fall of 2015, Zach Bratina, a former first-round selection of the Plymouth Whalers, started his year with the North Bay Battalion on fire with 12 goals in his first 12 games. That hot start led to an invitation to play for Team OHL as part of the Canada-Russia Series in Owen Sound.
Bratina had attended the New York Rangers rookie camp that summer, and his hot start was catching the attention of numerous NHL teams. However, multiple concussions during his hockey career forced him to make the incredibly tough decision to retire from the game of hockey at the young age of 20.
"I was at the peak of my career when I had to stop," said Bratina, who attended the Toronto Maple Leafs training camp in 2014.
"I was about a week away from deciding between about three or four teams who I wanted to sign with, in the NHL. I was named CHL player of the month and had to retire three days later and it was completely because of concussions."
See related: Battalion sniper retiring from hockey
Bratina spent parts of three seasons with the Battalion after coming over in a trade for then highly touted prospect Blake Clarke in December of 2013 in a deal with the Saginaw Spirit.
While one of the most disappointing decisions in his life happened here in North Bay, the Lindsay, Ontario product still grew to love the area. And his love for hockey never stopped.
After finishing his business degree at Nipissing University, Bratina is still in North Bay where his family has relocated too.
With all that passion, Bratina is hoping to use his experience training with the likes of Connor McDavid and skating instructor Barb Underhill to help North Bay area players develop through his new hockey camp.
"Since I stopped playing hockey it is still all I really think about - it is still my passion. I can't be a player so I thought what better way to be a part of the game than to develop these young players and be a part of their journeys," he said.
Bratina, who helped coach U12 AAA Trappers last year, is offering on-ice sessions for young hockey players in August.
He is confident that his innovative approach to training is something North Bay area hockey players will appreciate and embrace.
"I will be taking a lot of the things that I have been taught from the absolute highest level coaching," said Bratina, who now works for a company owned by his former billet family in North Bay.
"I will be working on a lot of technical skating stuff at the start of my sessions, and I am going to add a big component of live video analysis.
"There are some things that really worked for me when I was growing up in the sense of how to learn a skill and I am just hoping to relate that on a much higher level than what is out there right now."
Bratina says he is motivated to get another chapter of his hockey career going.
"After settling in, I am super excited to announce that I am now ready to get back on the ice and help youth hockey players across northern Ontario reach their true potential by imparting my skills, experience & knowledge gained through my hockey career," he said.
Dates: August 15th - 19th (Max 20 kids on the ice per session)
Contact for small group sessions and/or 1on1 personalized training sessions.
For more information, contact Zach at [email protected] or call (705) 464-0106.