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In early March, Hollister High junior Dominic Rosales learned he had made Team USA’s junior inline hockey team for the World Skate Games in Paraguay, but only after his coach convinced him he had been cut.
Dominic’s father, Diego Rosales, and Tour Labeda Mayhem President and coach Jim West devised the prank to deliver the news in a memorable way. West first told Dominic he hadn’t made the team and even outlined what he should work on before the next tryout.
Unable to keep up the ruse any longer, West finally revealed the truth, bringing instant relief to the 16-year-old goaltender.
“He told me I didn’t make it and what to focus on for the next few years, and toward the end of the call he told me I made it, but I was scared at first,” Rosales said. “There were a lot of people at the tryout, so I didn’t think I was going to make it.”
Disappointment followed by relief quickly became excitement as Rosales began preparing for the tournament.
Rosales recently traveled to Indianapolis to compete in his first professional inline hockey tournament as part of the Tour Mudcats Jr. roster, which included several future Team USA players, as well as ones from the Labeda Freez 24U team. The Mudcats advanced to the tournament championship game before falling in the final.
“It was really cool,” Rosales said. “I got to hang out with a lot of friends and I made good memories.”
Rosales also trains at The Plex in San Jose at least once a week, sometimes more if his family’s schedule allows. Practice sessions can start as late as 10 p.m. and go until 1 a.m. in preparation for the World Skate Games.
“At the end of the day it’s worth it,” Diego Rosales said. “Once you really do see him in the jersey and everything he’s doing, putting his part in the game makes it all worth it.”
The elder Rosales, a former inline hockey goaltender himself, said he realized his son had something special when Dominic was 12, playing in a goalie skills competition.
“As the goalies got eliminated, he was still in there and I was like, ‘What the heck is this? He’s doing a good job,’” Diego Rosales said. “Next thing I know they announced the winner and they said his name, and I was in shock. Since then I realized he’s got it and he loves the game.”
He said it has been special to watch his son compete at a high level and that representing the U.S. on the international stage is an honor.
“It’s a big accomplishment for him and all these years he’s been doing it and all the effort he’s put in, it’s super awesome,” he said.
The younger Rosales and his family will fly to Asunción, Paraguay, on Sept. 30. It will be his first time in Latin America.
“I’m looking forward to competing on a world stage and spending time with my teammates,” Rosales said. “It’s going to be fun.”
While Rosales is eager to create new memories in Paraguay, his father’s favorite memory is his son’s first skating tournament at age 6.
“When he first started skating, he scored a goal and skated to center ice before looking up at his mom and me in the stands and giving us a thumbs-up,” Rosales said. “One of the photographers there captured that moment, and we still have the picture.”
The World Skate Games are scheduled for Oct. 2-18. Fans can follow Dominic Rosales’s journey on Instagram at @d_rosales1. Team USA Inline Hockey will share livestream information and tournament updates on Instagram at @usarsinlinehockey.
The BenitoLink Internship Program is a paid, skill-building program that prepares local youth for a professional career. This program is supported by Monterey Peninsula Foundation AT&T Golf Tour and Taylor Farms.
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