Jory Carrick always had trouble getting his six-year-old son’s attention. Something else was on his mind.



Connor would be picking away at his breakfast and watching a screen. He was glued to highlights from the previous night’s NHL games, on a laptop or TV. Later that night, he would be back on both devices, with multiple NHL games and highlights playing on an endless loop.



“He was a very serious kid,” Jory Carrick said. “The type of kid that liked to watch hockey. A lot.”



It was an obsession, one that continued into his teenage years. Teammates on his Chicago area travel teams picked up on Carrick’s incredible attention to detail so much so that they began to quiz him about the opposition.



The young defenceman could then rattle off minute details on other players, right down to the type of curve on their stick.



“It was uncanny,” his father...