Growing up in the 60s in Toronto, Canada, Sandi was just one of a squad of local kids who would meet after school and on weekends in winter at the local frozen-pond-cum-ice-rink to play ice hockey.

All the kids wore the same outfit - the blue and white jersey of the Toronto Maple Leafs, who won the Stanley Cup the year Sandi moved to Australia.

That was 1967, Sandi was 12.

The former journalist and new author now lives with his wife near the beach in Mystery Bay on the NSW south coast.

Sandi plays old timer's hockey for over 35s with the Canberra Senators.

Living by the beach isn't easy for the self professed hockey addict, he must navigate time zones to watch the games in Canada, and commute hours just to be able to pull on the skates.

"I live and breathe the blue and white," Sandi said. He stays up late to watch every Leafs game: last year he missed just three of the 82-game regular season.

No more is the local frozen pond just down the street. Sandi commutes three hours to the Canberra ice rink - which he calls 'home' - to knock the puck around at weekly training.

"I feel like a little kid when I get out on the ice and play," he said. "You're kind of ageless."

Though he loves the beautiful beaches of the south coast, you will rarely find Sandi swimming in the water.

"There is something very special about the south coast, but I am not a natural beach person," Sandi said.

"I was born with skates on."

When he isn't 'home' on the ice skating, he dons the inline skates and practices along the cycles paths around the Eurobodalla on the South Coast.

Being in a hockey team is similar to being a member of a community woodworking shed, according to Sandi. It is his place for connection, meeting people and sharing life experiences.

His team mates are largely expatriates: Canadians, Finnish, Czechs and Americans, however increasingly, Australians too.

When Sandi arrived in Australia as a teenager he assumed he would join the local ice hockey club - he hadn't conceived of anything else.

He found hockey clubs listed in the phone book and began calling them to inquire about playing. To his dismay, he quickly realised they were all field hockey clubs.

He eventually found an ice rink in Homebush, which he would travel to each weekend, spending hours whizzing around on the ice.

Sandi captain the New South Wales State under 16 team at the national championships in 1972. They won, Sandi was named the most valuable player in the tournament.

However the ice-hockey community was small, and most Australians weren't aware the sport existed domestically at all.

After a detour around the world for work, Sandi returned to Australia determined to change the profile of the game.

Sandi became the Australian Ice Hockey Federation secretary while also playing for the Sydney All Stars in the National Ice Hockey League.

He established a junior program and systems to identify talented young players, working with the Australian Institute of Sport.

"There's no reason why ice hockey can't be a successful sport in Australia," he said.

"Australians love sport.

"It really is Australia's best kept sporting secret."

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However, Sandi has been fighting to get the secret out, and is seeing ice hockey increasingly grow in popularity since he first arrived.

When he took on the secretary role in the 80s, there were 1000 registered ice hockey players in Australia. Now there are more than 5000.

There are 22 ice rinks across Australia, including in Coffs Harbour, Perth and Darwin, with plans for more in the future.

Australia has their first domestically-developed player in the north American National Hockey League: Nathan Walker for the St Louis Blues.

While seeing the development of the sport in Australia brings Sandi great joy, his greatest passion remains gliding around on the ice with a stick in hand.

In October, Sandi will travel with the Senators to Erina on the NSW central coast to play in an Old Timers competition.