Matt Moulson
Instilling grit in children is a high priority for parents but can feel like one of the more elusive goals of parenting. A new dad-founded publisher, Grit Pile Kidz, is sharing stories that instill passion and help kids find and build that all-important grit.
Greg Presseau is a longtime hockey coach in addition to this day job in finance, and cofounded Grit Pile Kidz with illustrator Anika Charron. Their first subject and athlete contributor? Former NHL star Matt Moulson, who played 650 games in the league, including for the New York Islanders, Los Angeles Kings, Buffalo Sabres and Minnesota Wild. Now a dad of two, Matt is sharing his story with “Coach Greg” in MattyMo’s Grit Pile, now also available in paperback.
For this week’s Meet a Dad interview, we are sharing our conversation with both Coach Greg and Matt Moulson:
Matt, can you please tell us a bit about yourself and your hockey journey?
Matt: I still remember the exact moment I fell in love with hockey. It was a sunny day and I was just returning home from a game at the age of 4. A bunch of kids were playing ball hockey on my street and my dad urged me to go play with them. I scored a goal on one of the older kids and had an absolute blast playing for hours. Over the next couple of years this spark that was lit inside me turned into a giant flame and I made it my goal to play in the NHL.
The road to get there was not an easy one. I still remember the day my dad came into the dressing room after a parents meeting before one of my youth hockey games, telling me that one of the moms said I was the worst player in the league. People doubting me only fueled me to a new level. I was never the best skater, the most skilled, or the smartest, but I was determined to work hard and figure out a way to prove these people wrong. Through grit, determination and resilience, I worked my way to the NHL with the Los Angeles Kings, New York Islanders, Buffalo Sabres and Minnesota Wild.
Since retiring, I’ve continued to stay in the game of hockey. I worked as a pro scout for the Toronto Maple Leafs and I currently coach the 2013 Mid-Fairfield AAA team (which my son and Greg’s son are on) with my brother-in-law Brett Backman and Greg, as well as providing hockey camps, video analysis and mentorship for youth, junior and college hockey players through The Moulson Mindset. We aim to empower hockey players with the knowledge, guidance, and tools they need to reach their full potential.
From a personal standpoint, I live in Cos Cob, CT with my beautiful wife Alicia and our two children, Mila and George.
Greg Presseau
And Greg, can you please share a little bit about yourself and your background?
Greg: I live in Darien, CT, work in finance and coach my son on the 2013 Mid-Fairfield AAA team with Matt and his son. My primary goal is to build strong, confident children by using sports as a vehicle to teach life lessons beyond the game. As a coach and analyst at heart who tries to ‘make sense’ of the world, I’m driven to illustrate the importance of passion and commitment in a child’s life. Often times, children cannot advocate for themselves and I seek to advocate for them through telling stories of passion, commitment, failure and success through individuals who experienced these ups and downs in their lives.
How did the two of you meet, and how did the book come to be?
Matt: Greg and I first met at a skate (NHL player) Max Pacioretty told us to bring our son George to. We had an instant bond over our love for hockey and desire to help children. The book has been a year in the making where Coach Greg [Presseau], the author of the book, and the founder of Grit Pile Kidz, would text me while he was on the train going to work at 4 a.m., trying to pick my brain about what I went through as a kid and everything it took to get to the NHL.
We would literally sit down for hours on the weekend and dissect all my answers to his questions and the experiences I went through. About halfway through the year, he said we should write a book about this. This is a great story to tell and I think it would help kids and help their parents.
Greg: I am a fairly curious person and when I can’t understand something I tend to dig in pretty deep to find an answer. Matt had a long career in the NHL and I was lucky enough to “dissect” his mind. At the heart of my inquiry was this: what makes him tick? Through dialogue, I learned it wasn’t private lessons, it wasn’t the best coaches, it wasn’t his parents forcing him to practice. It came from him. From within. From his passion.
Too many times we see kids forced to earn their 10,000 hours of practice but fall short because it takes passion from within to get there. With this in mind, we wanted to tell Matt’s story to illustrate to kids that hard work is necessary to be great at your passion and to communicate to parents the importance of nurturing their child’s passion, whatever that may be.
What is the main message in this book?
Matt: As Greg mentioned, the book is the first in a series aimed at inspiring kids to discover and pursue their passion and build resilience along the way. There are no easy roads when you are trying to be great at something you love. It requires an exorbitant amount of hard work, determination and focus. Readers follow my journey from humble beginnings as a youth player to a pro hockey career, including setbacks, challenges and moments of self-doubt. The story brings to life how I discovered my passion and the grit it took to accomplish my dreams.
Greg: I think often times kids can feel discouraged if they’re not good at something or complacent if they are good. The book is about taking one day at a time regardless of your level, earn your daily grit and to dream as big as possible. The book utilizes a metaphor of a Grit Pile which is a collection of your hard work, accomplishments, failures, and most importantly, the lessons you have learned through your experiences. By focusing on building a Grit Pile, and earning your grit daily, we hope that kids and parents can enjoy the journey as much as the successes and failures.
Matt Moulson’s story is a perfect example of how dedication and hard work can lead to greatness, and we believe his journey will inspire children to stay committed to their goals despite any setbacks they may face.
What ages is the book aimed at?
Greg: The book is aimed at elementary school kids, ages 5-11. It’s a great time for kids to be identifying and exploring their passion, whether it be hockey, music or art. There are plenty of ups and downs along the way, so it’s an opportunity to help support kids and their parents.
What is your favorite part of the story?
Matt: It’s hard to pick just one moment from the story. For me my favorite parts are: the start of the book when I was carrying my stick everywhere. I honestly did this and would sleep with my stick many nights. It reminds me of just how much I loved and still love the game of hockey. And the other section I love is when MattyMo is going through the tough times of being cut and doubted. The critical lessons for me were around the moments of self-doubt. I had a choice to believe in myself and work even harder or believe what others thought and succumb to the realization I was not that good and would not reach my goal of playing in the NHL. I got cut 7 times in one week at the age of 16 from multiple teams. It was experiences like this that made me stronger and motivated me to be the hardest worker in the room, build my Grit Pile high and successfully overcome these obstacles.
What is a grit pile and why is it such an important concept for kids?
Greg: Today’s society, including parents, peers and social media, pressures young people to pursue one path which they believe will make them successful – especially in sports. This often leads to burnout, low self-esteem, and disappointment due to a lack of inner passion from the individual.
It’s critical for us to help kids unlock their inner passion and through inspiring stories of grit, determination and resilience, to help them reach their full potential.
Anything else you’d like to share?
Greg: Our next Grit Pile Kidz book is coming soon and will feature former pro hockey player Mike Komisarek and his journey of passion. The son of Polish immigrants, he didn’t step on the ice until he was 12, but his passion and the loving support of his family, and coaches led him to the NHL and the Olympic team! These are the first two books in a series, and we hope to explore other sports and other subjects beyond sports like music and the arts to create broad appeal among kids and parents. Stay tuned for more on that front!
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