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Mae Batherson didn’t understand anyone during her first hockey practices in Germany. Her older brother Drake would relay everything to her in English throughout practice, as German was technically his first language, Batherson said.

More often than not, Batherson and Drake were the only two English-speaking people in their German town, only speaking English at home. But their mother Deeann said they picked up German after attending school there until the family moved back to Canada in 2006.

“Whenever you wanted to stop speaking German to people, you’d just find your sister,” Drake said.

Drake was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and Batherson was born in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. The Bathersons moved around frequently, including the move to Germany and a few moves within Nova Scotia, where they currently reside.

Now, Drake plays right wing for the Ottawa Senators. Meanwhile, Batherson is a senior defenseman at SU and played for the Canadian national team last summer. Growing up, Drake described Batherson as his “best friend.” The two are still extremely close, but their relationship has matured over the years, respecting each other’s game and communicating regularly about their performances on the ice, Batherson said.

Batherson and Drake did everything together as kids, mostly playing hockey. They were constantly competing, whether it was in the street, on the pond or with mini sticks in the living room. Even now, if they’re ever home at the same time, the first thing they do is run to the backyard with sticks in hand.

They love to go one-on-one because it helps them sharpen each other’s skills. Drake helped Batherson with the mental game, teaching her to know what to expect on certain plays from a forward’s perspective.

“It’s a good challenge for her and for me too,” Drake said. “It makes for a good battle and it’s just fun to get out on the same ice and have some fun like we used to.”

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When they were young, Batherson played street hockey with Drake and his friends. Drake made sure he and his sister were always teammates since she was significantly smaller than the older guys.

“He would kind of protect me if the boys were being too rough with me,” Batherson said. “But he’d always encourage me to give it back to them. He brought me up to fight on my own.”

The one consistency through all the Bathersons’ moves was hockey. In Germany, their father Norm had access to free public skating every day at the rink where he played. He would come home from morning practice around 1 p.m. By 1:30 p.m., Batherson and Drake would be begging to skate at that same rink once they got out of school, so Deeann would take them. In Germany, schools dismiss at noon to give kids the option to engage with their interests.

“Over there, kids are going to have those opportunities to explore whatever their passions are,” Deeann said. “It’s a lot better than here… There isn’t enough time after school to explore extra activities.”

Norm said they skated three-to-four times a week, and that extra time in the rink allowed Batherson and her brother to progress further than most of their competitors in Germany.

“We were always one of the better players at a young age because we were just really good skaters,” Batherson said.

After the family left Germany, when Norm coached at St. Francis Xavier in Nova Scotia, where he had constant access to the ice. The three of them got up early in the morning to work on different individual skills.

“The two of them love to practice,” Norm said. “They really wanted to be there and they always wanted to get better, so it was easy for them and a lot of fun.”

Drake continued to help his sister progress her skills. He taught her the slapshot. He taught her stickhandling. He taught her everything that he could, and she listened.

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Now, they try to watch all of each other’s games. But with school and a packed NHL schedule, time doesn’t always permit. So, they send each other clips over text, picking each other’s brains for advice about performance and technique.

“He’s always encouraging me and looking to help me out,” Batherson said. “Now he’ll ask what I think too.”

Norm and Deeann don’t miss a second of the action, watching all of their kids’ games. Even if the two are playing simultaneously, they’ll set the computer on the table right in front of the TV, keeping their eyes peeled for a jersey with “Batherson” on the back.

“It’s really funny how Mae and Drake’s schedules [coincide] so often,” Deeann said. “So, I’ve got it down to a science now to watch from home.”

At just 24 years old, Drake already has some notable accomplishments in professional hockey. He was selected to the 2019 AHL All-Star game at 20 years old and won MVP after scoring a whopping five goals for the North Division. He said it was something he “never thought he’d get to experience,” especially so early in his career.

Batherson, meanwhile, wasn’t surprised.

“I mean, he’s always played well in big moments like that,” Batherson said. “But to see him excel around the best players in the league, being MVP, was just really something to see.”

Before that, and just after his NHL debut, Drake set the Belleville Senators’ season record for most assists by a rookie with 40. After moving to and from the minor leagues early on, Drake has played the entirety of his past three seasons for Ottawa.

In his action-packed NHL debut, the whole Batherson family had a front-row seat to see Drake sink a game-winning goal against the Red Wings in the second period, sitting right behind the net.

Tied 1-1, the Senators won the faceoff with 45 seconds left on the power play, and Drake tore from the boards to the puck. He collected and then skated to the middle before firing a shot right through the armpit of Detroit’s goalie. The Bathersons then hugged and celebrated in the stands. Batherson said the goal was, by far, her favorite memory from Drake’s career thus far.

“Part of that reason I got there was Mae being a good defenseman and making me push myself,” Drake said.

Published on December 8, 2022 at 12:42 am

Contact Wyatt: wbmiller@syr.edu