 While working at the hardware store , Gardiner first played organised sports as a member of the store 's baseball team . Gardiner quickly started playing ice hockey , with the same passion as the children who were born in Canada . As he didn 't learn to skate until he was eight @-@ years @-@ old , he couldn 't skate very fast and was forced to play as the goaltender . He had tried to play as a forward and defenceman , but was too slow for either position . Playing on Winnipeg 's frozen ponds , Gardiner employed an acrobatic style , instead of the nearly @-@ universal stand @-@ up style played in that era , to avoid having his hands and feet frostbitten . He joined the Victorias , a team in the Winnipeg City League , at the age of 13 . He recorded a shutout in his first game , but the team was shut out in their following game , so Gardiner was cut . By the age of 14 , Gardiner made the intermediate team of the Selkirk Fishermen . 
