THE GOALIE CONSULTANT FROM TRINIDAD
The hockey life of Sudarshan “Sudsie” Maharaj
When you’ve had your car torched because someone doesn’t like the color of your skin, you can deal with the occasional “Who the %$@# is Sudarshan Maharaj and what qualifies him to coach Rick DiPietro and Joey MacDonald”?
The Islanders goaltending consultant, Maharaj has heard it all but never complains, not even when a trio of racists in Sweden set his car on fire 20 years ago during his pro playing career. Born in Trinidad and raised there for the first six years of his life, Maharaj has refused to let anything distract his focus on making a name in the game of hockey.
And that’s what Maharaj (pronounced “mirage”) has done, to major acclaim from his students. “Sudsie’s played a huge part in turning my game around over the last year,” said MacDonald on Saturday night after his second straight win over Ottawa. “We talk after just about every game and go over every detail. I’ve had a few goalie coaches, but it’s fair to say he’s one of the best in the game.”
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There are plenty of NHLers who moved to Canada for hockey reasons. Sharma Maharaj, Sudsie’s father, left his family behind for a year in Couva, Trinidad for life reasons – and entirely on a hunch. Sharma’s wife’s great uncle (true story) said he “heard some nice things” about Canada being a land of opportunity, so Mr. Maharaj left on an advance scouting mission. While Sudsie spent most of 1969 living with his grandmother and great-grandmother in a Trinidadian village called California, his dad cleaned cars for a Toronto auto dealership. A year later, he sent for his wife Dhanni and their three boys: Sudarshan and his older brothers Deen and Dave.
“In Trinidad,” says Sudsie, “the word ‘hockey’ was never uttered. Everything was cricket and soccer. Once we got to Toronto, you couldn’t escape hockey.”
Not even his Hindu parents, who were immediately smitten with “Hockey Night in Canada” and a dashing defenseman named Bobby Orr. When Orr scored his iconic flying goal in 1970 against the St. Louis Blues, seven-year old Sudsie was asleep in his mother’s arms.
In 1972 Sharma Maharaj was promoted from cleaning cars to selling them, so the family moved into their first house and Sudsie became immersed in the national pastime. A door was opened when one of the boys on the block knocked on it and invited the different-looking kid into their daily game of ball hockey. Despite only having been on ice skates a few times, Maharaj soon joined a house league. Deen had become a major Bernie Parent fan, so he told his little brother he should become a goaltender. He did, a pretty good one. More than that – and even more than having a place where he fit in – “I loved the game and the position right away,” Maharaj says 35 years later.
Success in the house leagues led to low-level junior hockey. “I spent most of my days as a teenager on a bus to Etobicoke,” says Maharaj, “because it was the highest level of hockey I could aspire to without parental involvement.”
(MacDonald says Maharaj has been a major influence in turning his game around this season)
Despite not playing junior A, Maharaj caught his first potential big break with an opening for a backup goalie at the University of Wisconsin. The Badgers’ No. 1 goaltender, Terry Kleisinger, was named to the Canadian Olympic team. Wisconsin hosted a cattle-call audition and gave the kid from Toronto via Trinidad a long look, but he wasn’t ready. Living on what he calls “the Kraft Mac and Cheese diet” and losing weight daily didn’t help.
Maharaj became the backup goalie for York, which won a Canadian university championship. He knew playing in the NHL was a dream he would never realize, but a career in Europe was not out of the question. He aced a tryout for a team in Gislaved and played in the Swedish League for six years.
Sweden from 1985-1991 changed his life. “Before then, I had a pretty conservative upbringing,” he says. “Sweden opened my eyes to a different way of looking at things – politically, culturally, philosophically. I’ve been there to work with (Islanders goalie prospect) Stefan Ridderwall and it brings back incredible memories.”
He can even look back with a sense of humor at having his car torched by three Swedes in their 20s who were not typical of the many wonderful people he met while playing in Hallefors. “At least they had the good grace to light up the thing when they knew I wasn’t in it,” Maharaj says. “They had their eye on me, didn’t like the color of my skin and that I was hanging out with people of their color. They saw me go in to a friend’s apartment and then they set my car on fire.” He laughs. “I still remember trying to throw snow on it – as if the car had a chance.”
Maharaj handled it the same way he approached any racism he encountered on the ice - by ignoring it. “Goalie helmets changed from masks to cages,” he says, “so once everyone saw my face, the comments started from the other team. Big deal. It almost always was from the bench, where I couldn’t get to them anyway. I couldn’t do anything about it and I couldn’t let that stuff get in the way of winning.
“My parents instilled in me that if I wanted something badly, I was going to have to work twice as hard. Nothing was going to get handed to me.”
Especially not work as an NHL goalie coach.
In part 2: Maharaj’s road from teaching at an inner-city Toronto school to coaching in the NHL
35 Responses to “THE GOALIE CONSULTANT FROM TRINIDAD
The hockey life of Sudarshan “Sudsie” Maharaj”
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sounds like an awsome guy. wonder what type of car he had. at least he can joke with it though.i wonder if he can teach DP to stay healthy =]
This kind of stuff is so interesting. Thank you so much, Chris! Im looking forward to the next part!
Thanks Chris, I’ve been wondering about this guy! Looking forward to Part II! Let’s Go ISLES!
Fantastic story CB. I always wondered what the deal was with him. He sounds like a stand-up guy.
By the way, when you’re born with a name like Sudarshan (not that there’s anything wrong with that), how do you end up with a brother named Dave?
Question Botta, why doesn’t the Isles website post more content like you do here at Point Blank?
Also, Is Suds again the primary goalie coach and Dunham the consultant or is Dunham out all together?
good read. whatever takes me away from the horrid reality of Dunham as a “coach”
That was inspiring to read, much like everyone else I had no idea, looking forward to reading part 2.
chris - thx for shedding some light on who this guy is. you continue to bring quality reading to us fans. we appreciate it.
Great piece, CB. It’s stuff like this that’s quickly making this one of the best hockey reads on the web. Keep it up! Would love to see some in depth pieces on some of the other coaches, etc.
Looking forward to part two.
Excellent story…I’ve often wondered who he is and where he came from…thanks for taking the time to let us know.
CB, I know you keep saying how the success of this site has exceeded expectations, but it’s pieces like this that make islanderspointblank a must read for all Islanders fans.
good stuff
great story. love seeing blogs like this. keep em comin
Terrific stuff Chris, very interesting read.
Hearing the word “Islanders” and “contraction/movement” in the same sentence is disturbing, and its the existance of columns like this - and how its received by rabid Isles fans - which convince me that this team DOES have a big future on Long Island. Impressive story on “Sudsie” and its just impressive that a lot of innovation ( such as this column, ITV, and other ways that this team generates interest in new and various medias and ways - interesting for a team that has not won a playoff series since 1993.
Keep up the good work. I know its going to be a long year - but after the past few games - we seem to have a bit of a peek into the future. I like this coach and his system, as its finally kicking in.
This column by CB is a must read every day - and that’s all I have to say for now
What an opportunity for you to share interesting stories with us, and what an opportunity for us to have a chance to see more about the team than conventional media has usually shown us ( noting the good work of Greg Logan and Mike Fornabio and other scribes who blog about the team)
Pat
Pat
Dare I label him the “Goalie Guru”?
More kudos for this piece. Sudsie’s story reminds me of an African-American goalie friend who was beaten up by a fan (during warmups, yet) in central Pennsylvania in the 1970s when his Philadelphia travel team played there.
I have to echo what everyone else is saying. Top quality stuff as usual.
Chris, Thanks so much I always wondered who the h_ll is this guy?!?!?!?! But now I know and can appreciate it. Glad he’s a part of our team.
http://www.islanderspointsblank.com > http://www.newyorkislanders.com
period… I’m just saying
CB great read as usual, you’re the man! Keep up the great work.
lol@Dunham, I really really forgot about that guy, damn
Good sunday FYI CB….
knew about Sudsie, Your professionalism,
added a nice touch of heart & soul to his lifelong dedication to the Sport of Hockey!
just goes to show the Youth with hard work & dedication anything is possible
Nice story, good man!
Lets go Isles!
Awesome story, Chris. Two points: 1. Thanks for answering the question many people have had and 2. I look forward to reading Part 2……
Fellow Readers: Have a wonderful week and don’t wax too nostalgic watching LUONGO post another shutout tomorrow night in our house.
Thanks for the insight.
Chris,
Great story so far. Always wanted to know more about the guy they Sudsie.
Hey C.B,
For the sake of the fans, if you look at IslandersMania.com we are dying for answers on the Lighthouse. Is there any way you can help organize or support a rally to bring this to everyone’s attention. Also, could you get a 1 on 1 with someone who has say in this project in Nassau County to see what is going on here?
Thanks for the help!
Mike
Once again Chris great story. I to have been questioning who this consultant to the Isles has been and now finally a face to the name (life story).Thank you Sudsie for your obvouis great work in helping keep our kids in the real world state of mind. Money can change people all to often for the worse. Our young core of goalies have never been in any problem as well as our other players. You were probably not around for Darius ” look out for the pole” Kasperitus,to bad. These kids will need as much help staying focused as possible, this year. Don`t worry about the car ,if it was a Saab it need to burn.
Claude
Mike - you can email the people from the Lighthouse to ask.
I will say this - don’t assume no news is bad news.
i always wondered who the mysterious sudsie was. he’s always been one of those guys that would get mentioned in a lot of press releases w/o any real explanation of who he was or what he was doing. he sounds like an interesting guy. good article chris.
Great job as always. Amazing the way macondald is playing. Hes a pretty darn good #2 goalie. Also how about the isles trading some vets any chance we trade someone soon>
Excellent stuff Chris. It serves as a reminder that there are countless individuals in all walks of life who may not be “mega stars” yet in their own way inspire us. Looking forward to your follow up.
Chris- great job in posting the piece on Sudsie! I’ve wondered about his qualifications for years…no more need for me to question whether or not he has the chops for the gig based solely on his last name. Shallow, yes, but a goalie coach with a last name of “Vachon” or “Melanson” SOUNDS a bit more acceptable. Can’t wait for part 2.
Thanks CB for a great story. Now I know who the hell Sudsie is and why he has been here for so long. I thought he was some crazy associate of Wang who was brought in to give someone a job. I stand corrected.
Keep up the great work. As you can probably tell from the feedback, the Isles fans really love your website and truly appreciate your efforts to provide timely, accurate information about our hapless, yet beloved,team.
Thanks CB for the article. Good info. As I see, a lot of your readers were wondering who is this guy. It is actualy amaizing that guys from Asia would dedicate themselves to the sport they never knew was existed when they were groving up. Usualy most of kids would pick their fan base sport’s priorities based on their parent’s sport orientation.
Tnanks again, and keep up great work.
Go Isles!
I’m a bit confused on one thing. Sudsie has been shunted around the organization, they’ve had goal tending coach changes so much of the time…Where was Sudsie during the Nolan era, Why did we get rid of Lefebre, and what was in the decision to bring Sudsie back?
CB,
Just wanted to say thanks for shedding some light on a subject that has been in the dark for so long. This has answered a lot of questions.
Nick, I think Sudsie has been a “consultant” and working with DP since DP was with Stirling in the AHL. Sudsie may have been the best contribution from Stirling as I believe he was the one who initiated contact.
It looks like he’s done a fine job with the current new england goaltenders, I wonder if he can do the same with PAST GOALIES…
Great article, CB, very interesting. Look forward to the next part.
This is the most thorough and informative information I have found. I really enjoyed it.