Hearing Loss Never Kept Max Finley Off the Ice
Max Finley lost his hearing at the age of 5. However, with the help of cochlear implants, Finley has enjoyed a productive ice hockey career, represented his country on the world stage at the Winter Deaflympics and now works as an athletic trainer for the two-time Calder Cup champion Hershey Bears.
“There might be a stigma that some people can’t do things with a disability, but there are a lot of people like myself who have proven those doubters wrong,” Finley said. “It’s opened people’s eyes to what we’re capable of and what we can do.”
Finley, a native of Peoria, Illinois, grew up at the rink watching his father, Brad, play men’s league hockey. Max picked up the sport through learn to skate classes and in-house leagues. During that time, Max lost his hearing following treatment for bacterial meningitis.
“I can’t hear out of either ear,” said Finley. “The cochlear implants help me hear. The side effects of the antibiotics to fight the infection is hearing loss. It’s unfortunate, but fortunate because this has given me a lot of great experiences, but I did lose my hearing.”
In high school, he learned of the American Hearing Impaired Hockey Association, a weeklong hockey school in Chicago, a little more than two hours from his hometown of Peoria.
“That’s where it started on the deaf hockey side for me,” Finley said. “That’s where I was introduced to the USA deaf hockey team, which is underneath the International Committee of Sports for the Deaf. To this day, my dad is still a staff member who helps set up the camp every year and if I can get back and volunteer in some capacity I try to do that.”
Finley has represented the United States twice at the World Deaf Ice Hockey Championships, including in 2017 when the Americans claimed gold on home ice in Buffalo, New York. Finley also twice participated in the Winter Deaflympics, winning a bronze medal in 2015 and gold in 2019.
Last year, Finley won a silver medal at the Jeff Sauer International Deaf Hockey Series, a Four Nations style tournament, which took place in Buffalo.
“It’s an unbelievable honor to be able to represent your country in any capacity on any stage.” Finley said. “It’s not something I take for granted. Every time I get the opportunity, it’s exciting.”
Prior to any international experience, Finley played with his hometown Peoria Mustangs in the NA3HL, the only USA Hockey-sanctioned Tier III junior hockey league. In 2014, Finley began playing in the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) at Northern Illinois University.
“Once I got into school, hockey kind of took a little bit of a back seat just because of my schooling and schedule, but I was still able to play one full season and parts of a second season as well,” Finley said.
On top of hockey, Finley also played baseball and football in high school. His mother, Christine, worked with a local orthopedic clinic in Peoria. The business had a contract at Dunlap High School where Finley went to school.
“I started developing a relationship with some of the trainers and asking questions,” Finley said. “The more I asked, the more I realized I wanted to work in sports medicine in some capacity. I had an interest in sports and sciences, and I wanted to find a pathway to merge the two.”
Finley earned a bachelor’s degree in athletic training at Northern Illinois and master’s in exercise science at Pennsylvania Western University. Finley’s first job as an athletic trainer was with the Peoria Rivermen in the Southern Professional Hockey League under head coach Jean-Guy Trudel, his former coach when he played in the NA3HL in Peoria.
“To this day, he’s one of the best coaches I ever had the privilege of playing for,” Finley said. “It wasn’t easy because he was blunt, but it’s because he cared and wanted what was best for the players on the team. It set the standard of how I wanted to operate and what kind of athletic trainer I wanted to be.”
That guidance has paid off for Finley, who spent two years as head athletic trainer with the ECHL’s South Carolina Stingrays. For the last three seasons, Finley has been an assistant athletic trainer in the AHL with the Hershey Bears, the NHL affiliate of the Washington Capitals.
“I push to keep reaching toward my ultimate goal and it would be nice to work in the NHL, but I know those spots are few and far between,” Finley said. “Right now, I’m truly enjoying the whole experience of athletic training in Hershey. The success we had the last couple years, it’s been fun and demanding, but it’s where I see my most growth as an athletic trainer.”
During the 2019-2020 season, Finley earned SPHL Athletic Trainer of the Year honors. A year later, he was the ECHL Co-Athletic Trainer of the Year, awarded to all athletic trainers for their work during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The last two years, Finley continues to overcome the odds as he played a role in helping Hershey win the last two Calder Cup championships.
“There have always been people out there who might be doubters, or tried to say that things can’t be done, but part of having my hearing loss at a young age is that I grew up not knowing any different,” Finley said. “You always get bullies, but I never let it bother me and always tell people I had a pretty normal childhood. I appreciate my teammates, staff and players for embracing me as another teammate because nobody singled me out or treated me like I had a disability.”
Story from Red Line Editorial, Inc.
Source: usahockey.com