Hockey (M) 2/17/2022 5:00:00 PM Christina Flores-Chan

Rams hockey goalie Garrett Forrest, on guarding the net and the metaverse

At five years old, Rams men's hockey goalie Garrett Forrest dedicated his time, energy, and brainspace into two passions in particular: puck, and video games.

Puck came naturally to him. Being born and raised in Ashburn, Virginia, along the Atlantic coast of the United States, hockey wasn't as popular as it was north of the border, but Forrest grew up watching and playing with his father, sparking a love for the sport.

"It's weird because I started out as a player," Forrest says, outside the men's locker room after practice. It's 10 a.m., and the team has just finished two hours of their daily ice time.

He recounts how he was first introduced to the pads, when his youth team's goalie didn't show up one night and the coaches asked for someone to take their spot.

"I was like, 'Okay, I'll do it I guess'", he says. "I've been a goalie ever since, which is kind of funny."

Not long after his first game in the net, Forrest realized his affinity for the position, embracing the mindset and alone time that came with it.

"As a goalie, you're really out there on the island by yourself a lot of the time and you get used to it," he says, explaining that he'll spend time with teammates before and after the game, but that he prefers to remain calm and "in the zone" on the ice.

The lone wolf mentality of a goalie isn't new to the athlete, though; it's always been a part of his personality. After a long day of school and hockey, a young Forrest would retreat into his room, turn on a gaming console, and play video games for hours.

The advanced technological concept of virtual reality (VR) was intriguing to him, as well as the gaming world's ability to connect with others online, whether he was playing with his school friends, teammates, or competing against gamers internationally.

"I was a shy kid, and I was happy just being by myself and gaming," he says. "It was a method of relaxation for me then, and it still is now."

Today, at 24 years old, studying in his fourth year and playing hockey in Toronto, Forrest's love for both hockey and gaming technology has only grown since his childhood years.

After high school graduation and two seasons with the Ontario Hockey League's Flint Firebirds, the goalie chose to pursue a degree in Business Technology Management at Ryerson, where he could play hockey and develop his knowledge and interest for virtual reality with a business skill set simultaneously.

One area of the athlete's major that he wants to focus on is cyber security and Blockchain technology, which he spends four to five hours researching everyday.

"The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)'s cyber crime division helps to recover cryptocurrency funds that have been hacked," Forrest says, mentioning the $2.3 million that the FBI seized from ransomware attacks just last year and a few other examples of their work.

While Forrest explains how Bitcoin, other cryptocurrencies and NFTs are connected to the metaverse, an augmented-reality, VR social network (and Facebook's new namesake) that imitates the real world using Blockchain, his eyes light up and his vocal expression grows with excitement.

His passion for business technology is evident in the way that he breaks it down so anybody can follow, and his desire to gain a deeper understanding of the industry is infectious.

Another aspect of virtual reality that Forrest has immersed himself in learning is wearable augmented reality (AR) technology. He distinguishes the difference between AR and VR, and you come to understand that while virtual reality is meant to transport you into a different world, augmented reality simply elevates the world around you.

"Apple is coming out with these glasses where what you see is real life, but you have pop-ups on the screen right on the glasses," Forrest says, and he adds that holograms could be the next added AR feature.

"Say I wanted to watch a football game with my dad," he says. "He lives in Virginia; I pop on these glasses, and I can span a hologram of him sitting right next to me in the same room."

For a young athlete who taught himself independence as a child and when he first moved away from home at age 14 to play hockey in Michigan, a set of augmented reality glasses could really benefit him.

The mention of his father brings Forrest back to his first love, his sport, and he halts himself from continuing on his exciting tangent about business technology for a moment.

"I was born to play hockey," the Rams goalie says. "I've always gravitated towards it, so I definitely want to give myself at least a year or two to play professionally, but depending on how that turns out, I know I have my degree and that's forever."

Last week, Forrest completed an Amazon Web Services cloud certification course.

Last weekend, he was named one of the Rams Stars of the Week for blocking a total of 34 of 38 shots in two games combined.

Whether his future lies in protecting the hockey net or the metaverse with the FBI, it's safe to say that he was born for either one.

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Players Mentioned

#32 Garrett Forrest: G; 5' 11"; 3

Players Mentioned

#32 Garrett Forrest
: 5' 11"; 3
: G

Players Mentioned

#32 Garrett Forrest

Players Mentioned

#32 Garrett Forrest