Former NHL defenseman Brent Sopel never appeared to be a man lacking self-esteem during his 18 years on the ice, where he felt like “it was the only place I was good.”
Sopel, a hard-charging defenseman who played in 659 games for six NHL teams, achieved one of the most sought-after feats in sports when he hoisted the Stanley Cup over his head with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2010.
But today, his name immortalized on The Cup means far less to him than the work he’s doing around the globe with the Brent Sopel Foundation, where he spreads awareness for dyslexia and assures kids with the reading impairment to “never feel the way” he did growing up.
Sopel, 47, viewed school as “8 hours of torture” and “was reading at a grade four level in high school” while growing up in Saskatoon, Canada.
His frustration in the classroom led Sopel to put all of his effort into hockey, and he was selected 144th overall in the 1995 NHL draft by the Vancouver Canucks.
“I lived on that rink just because that was the only place I was good,” Sopel told The Post. “Anytime I could get on that ice, that’s where I got my confidence, my self-esteem from.”
it wasn’t until age 32 that Sopel made a life-changing realization when his young daughter was diagnosed with dyslexia and he “started connecting the dots.”
After taking some tests of his own, the former New York Islander discovered he had spent his whole life unaware he had both dyslexia and dysgraphia.
Dyslexia is a language-based learning disorder that affects a person’s ability to read and recognize words, read aloud, decode written words and spell — while dysgraphia impairs a person’s writing skills.
At the time of his diagnosis, Sopel said his main focus was helping his daughter, who was in first grade at the time, navigate through school while playing hockey.
However, Sopel was forced to face the “real world” for the first time following his retirement in 2015.
“I did something for almost 40 years, and now the only thing that I was good at, you know, where I got my self-esteem, was gone,” Sopel said.
As a result, Sopel struggled with drug and alcohol addiction — but he entered rehab and became sober about a year after retirement.
The NHL veteran’s passion shifted to shedding awareness and helping others better understand the same disorder he suffered from undiagnosed for most of his life.
In 2014, Sopel launched the Brent Sopel Foundation, which has helped more than 40,000 children in over 40 countries receive adequate help in public schools.
“I talk to a dyslexic in a way a dyslexic needs to be heard,” Sopel said. “You’re not alone. That’s all I tell them. And they’re like, ‘Oh, thank goodness there’s somebody else.’”
Dyslexia is often passed on genetically and appears linked to certain genes affecting the brain’s reading and language processing.
Around 20% of the United States population has some degree of dyslexia and between 15% and 20% globally, according to the University of Michigan.
Dyslexia is also the most common cause of reading difficulties in elementary school children.
Since launching his foundation, Sopel has started the podcast “Word Blindness: Dyslexia Exposed” with co-host Juliet Hahn.
The phrase “Word Blindness” was first coined by German professor of Medicine Adolph Kussmaul after he documented the difficulties he observed in adults with reading in 1877 and was regularly used to describe dyslexia until the mid-20th century, according to Oxford University.
Hahn, who was diagnosed with dyslexia during childhood, says Sopel brings a “realest” point of view that is not often heard when discussing the learning impairment.
“He’s talking about the real stuff,” Hahn told The Post, noting that her point of view comes from her understanding through growing up aware of her dyslexia, while Sopel speaks on the struggles he faced being undiagnosed as a child and much of his adulthood.
“Juliet’s the first person I’ve ever connected with,” Sopel said about his dyslexia.
Since releasing the podcast in August 2023, the New Jersey native said listeners have contacted them about how the duo’s openness to their own experiences with dyslexia has helped them notice patterns in their own lives.
“We’ve had quite a few people say, ‘Wait a second. I actually think I’m dyslexic,’ or ‘I need to get my kid diagnosed’ after listening,” Hahn said.
Hahn, who is also on the Brent Sopel Foundation team, said the overall goal for their podcast and the organization is simple.
“We just want people to feel seen, heard, and understood,” she said. “And if we can give that voice where people can be like, ‘okay, these guys get it.’ That’s what we want. As Brent always says, not alone.”