Date of Birth
March 26, 2006
Hometown
Summerland, BC, CAN
Current Team
Summerland Steam (KIJHL)
Position
Defensemen
Height
6’2”
Weight
200 lbs
Shoots
Right
GPA
---
NCAA Number 2402215534
What are some of your main goals within the game over the next 5 years?
I would like to be on teams that have a similar mindset as myself and learn from people that believe in winning and in discipline. My main goal overall is to develop myself as a person and be a good role model to whoever I meet. This is a very vague goal but is the number one thing in my mind as I think of my next team I play for. My next goal is to play on a team that believes in player development but also puts winning as the number one priority. I want to play at a level where I am constantly challenged to play my best and if I don’t then I won’t play. I would like to play in a program that’s Junior A such as SJHL AJHL or BCHL by the time I am 19 so that I could experience the expectations put on those players. All day the goal is to become the best hockey player you can be. After my 20 year old season I would like to be a part of a college program so I could continue playing hockey at a high level. I’m not very educated on college programs and am hoping to learn more about them as I further my career.
Why are these your goals? Why are they important to you? What would it mean to achieve them?
The goal of becoming the most developed person I can be is quite simple. One day I will not be a hockey player, the journey ends one day for almost everybody. I want to prepare myself for that day the best I can. My next goal is to be in a position where winning is the most important thing on the team. As I am writing this my team has a record of 9 wins and 25 loses. I believe this is because many people on the team and management don’t believe in the things that make a team win. Discipline, hard work, constant improvement and recognizing mistakes is necessary to develop players and better players result in more wins. I want to play on a team where practice is a constant competition to win the battle, get the puck and become better as a player. I believe that this is where I need to be to reach my goals in hockey.
What separates you as a player and person? What are some areas requiring work? How do you continue to get better?
What separates me as a player and person is that I value mentality and health above all else. I believe that a steady calm and focused mindset allows for consistency and as a defenseman I have found success in the past with this being a priority. As a player I have respect for every aspect of the game such as having proper nutrition, sleep, workout schedule, sufficient time to recover and stretching. All of these are necessary to be a good hockey player. I do think I could work on being more dialed in with my nutrition as well as having a more consistent sleep schedule. I find myself having to catch up on sleep by taking naps a few days a week. I am aware that there are areas of my game that need work and I continue to get better by asking people such as my advisor Bughra and my coaches questions about hockey in video sessions and get feedback on my abilities as a player. Coaches have brought up the speed of my first three steps on the ice and I look to improve this in the offseason.
What do you bring to any team you play for? What could a coach expect from you if they selected you for their roster?
I am a pretty big guy and I use that to my advantage. I hit when the opportunity is there, clear the net front and I’m not afraid to engage in battles. I create scoring opportunities from the point and join the rush offensively while staying in a good defensive position. Breaking out of the D zone is how almost all plays start and I know what options are available to give my team the best chance of getting the puck out. I am also not afraid to skate the puck out myself if that option is open. Offensively I shoot the puck well especially from the point with my favorite shot being slightly above the right pad of the goalie.
What impact are you looking to have in your sports career? (Community, team, success, etc)
I am looking to impact myself. At the end of my sports career I want to look back and really say that I gave it everything I had. Success is a strong motivator for me too because it shows that you have put in the work and many people respect seeing hard work pay off.
What do you believe separates the best players in the world? What attributes/intangibles define them?
I believe that the best players in the world hold themselves to a higher standard than the majority of players in every aspect of the game. They work the hardest, do the little things right and are always trying to improve. Attributes can be different depending on position but for the best defenseman I believe that things like good close gap control, shutting down the rush early, getting shots through traffic, blocking shots, clearing the net front, being hard to play against and being able to break out the puck under pressure are all things that are necessary for any defensemen to have success. I also believe that those players that do these things the best are the best defensemen.
Favorite thing about the game (on or off ice)?
I love the competitiveness of the game of hockey. It’s an all out battle every single shift. Who is more prepared to play that day? You can hit a player, you can outsmart your opponent and you can simply outwork the player you are going against to have success. It’s a mental battle more than anything. You’ll be more exhausted then you’ve ever felt in your life but you need to keep going because you need to win.
The team aspect of the game is also very nice as well. You see one of the boys hit somebody, you see somebody block a shot or your team scores and it makes you inspired to go out on the ice and leave it all out there. The game of hockey is a constant reminder that there are things bigger than yourself.
- 2022-23 – U17 Okanagan Rockets U17AAA -BCEHL U17AAA Champions
- Grade 11 – Fitness education excellence award
