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24 carried that throughout hockey and into my professional life. Yes, this is uncomfortable and it's not fun, but I'm going to keep pushing through to try to get that success. MHJ // You've been in law enforcement since 1983 and recently became Chief in 2016. What other lessons from hockey can you carry over into being a police officer today? JD // Right away you learn very quickly when you start playing hockey that it's not about you as an individual. You're a part of something that's much big- ger; you're a part of a team. And there are other members on that team and a coaching staff that has expectations for each player as individuals to contribute to that team. That was a really big thing that I think played a role for me as I started law enforcement 30 years ago. I started out as a patrol officer, now I'm the Chief of the EP Police Department so I've relied on that [teamwork] my whole career with Eden Prairie. Earlier I talked about dedica- tion and being successful and how it takes hard work. Looking up to those coaches as leaders and coming to practice every day or a game every day, I was watching the coaches and you could see that they were there, they were prepared, they were there to help everybody on the team be successful and it's things like that that I bring here to the Eden Prairie Police Department. I just recently sat down with every one of my employees, 130 people, on one-on-ones when I took over as Chief last July and I told them, I want to be a part of your success and in order for me to be a part of your success I need you to use me as a resource. Those are some of the things that I remember from some of the good coaches I had growing up. MHJ // You mentioned you were no stranger to being cut from teams. How did that help you deal with adversity in life? JD // The one thing that I remember is when I went to tryouts and I'd get the phone call, "You didn't make the team, we're going to put you on the C squad" or whatever it was. I remember being very disappointed but I remember my dad talking to me about how this is a life lesson. You may not realize that right now as you're going through this but there'll come a time when you'll MINNESOTAHOCKEYJOURNAL.COM // FEBRUARY.2017 JIM DEMANN THE HOCKEY EFFECT ABOVE: DeMann has been with the EPPD for 34 years. RIGHT: DeMann chats with his son, Tommy, before a game. You're a part of something that's much bigger; You're a part of a team. HOW YOUTH HOCKEY SHAPES COMMUNITY LEADERS