In Part I of "The Beginning," Mariners players discussed how they first started playing hockey, the teams they played on as kids, crossing paths with current teammates in their youth, and their ultimate career goals. Read Part I here.
And now, Part II...
Written by Bryce Aldrich, edited and published by Michael Keeley
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Scott Savage played for the USNTDP from 2011-13.
Photo credit: Getty Images |
Scott Savage had the chance to join the United States National
Team Development Program before taking his talents to college hockey.
“It
was a great opportunity. You play in the [United States Hockey League] against
bigger, older, stronger guys. It was an honor getting to play for USA, but also
playing against the best players in your age group was a good was to see where
you’re at with people your own age. During the second year we played against
colleges in exhibition games. We played against New Hampshire, Notre Dame, Michigan,
Michigan State, and all the big schools. It was a very valuable experience
before going into college. You’re the only college freshmen to have played
against college teams before getting to school. They do a great job at
developing you off the ice with very rigorous off-ice training. You really just
develop all assets of your game.”
Many players look back fondly at their days in the high school, junior, and college ranks, where winning championships created long-lasting bonds, and fueled their love of the game.
“I won the Memorial Cup in Windsor, which was really nice to
show that I could be a part of a winning team and play big minutes on a winning
team. That year rejuvenated me and made me believe that I can still play
high-end hockey. My point total went up that year, my goal total went up that
year. It was just an all-around a really good season.”
-Sean Day
“I played high school hockey with a group of my really good
buddies and we won a high school championship together. I was pretty young, I
was a sophomore at the time, still growing and becoming the player that I am
now. I scored in overtime to win, which was a pretty special time. It is still
something that my buddies from home talk about when we get together.”
-Dillan
Fox
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| "Big Mo" was once Little Mo. Photo credit: ArmadaHockey.ca |
“It was my 19-year-old year with the Blainville-Boisbriand
Armada when we went to the QMJHL finals. Going through the four rounds of
playoffs and living with the boys is probably my greatest achievements in
hockey.”
-Morgan Adams-Moisan
“At [Boston College] we made it to the NCAA Frozen Four
twice, which was a pretty big achievement, but unfortunately we came up short
both times. Winning two Beanpot Tournaments at BC was really special, (one of
which was won with Josh Couturier). It’s a prestigious tournament for all of
the Boston schools and to be able to win that twice was two of my favorite
memories from school.”
-Scott Savage
Every Mariner had a moment that they realized that
professional hockey might be an option. Some didn’t realize until they started
being approached by professional teams, while other had that realization moment
at a younger age.
“When I went and played [NCAA] Division I and when I was at the University
of Massachusetts, I felt like I wanted to give it a try and make a career out
of it. One thing led to another and I was fortunate enough to get picked up by
Wheeling [Nailers] and even more fortunate to get traded to Maine!”
-Josh
Couturier
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Michael McNicholas at UNH
Photo credit: SBNCollegeHockey.com |
“When I was playing college, it was a goal of mine to keep
playing after. During my sophomore and junior years of college is when I
developed a lot.”
-Michael McNicholas
“During my 19-year-old playoffs. That is when I realized
that I could make an impact playing my game and that is when it clicked for
me.”
-Morgan Adams-Moisan
“I never really thought about it. Probably when I started
playing in the Western Hockey League is when I figured I could play
professionally. I didn’t know if I could play in the NHL, but I knew I could
play pro and make a living playing hockey, but it wasn’t a thought growing up.”
-Conner Bleackley
“There were some of my friends that I played with at
SUNY Plattsburgh that were playing in the Southern Professional Hockey League.
I actually didn’t expect to keep playing. One of those friends called me and I
said ‘Yeah, I’ll come check it out’. As that goes on the more success I started
to have and maybe I can keep climbing. I didn’t really expect to be where I am
and get that opportunity with Hartford. It is still kind of surreal. It was all
about knowing where I belong and it was kind of a tough thing for me, but when
I just started to play that is when it took off.”
-Dillan Fox
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Dillan Fox in his DIII days at SUNY Plattsburgh
Photo credit: Gabe Dickens
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“When I was playing in the QMJHL, I was a quite a hitter and an energy guy. I was one of the best at it in the QMJHL. My coaches were telling me that if I keep improving that way of playing that I was be able to play pro one day and I took that very seriously from that moment.”
-Mikael
Robidoux
“I was going to NHL development camps through college for
pro teams who didn’t draft me or anything but had interest. I went to several
development camps over the summers from freshman to senior year. At that point
I knew it was a possibility and I continue to push towards that goal.”
-Scott
Savage
“Even when I was in the Ontario Hockey League, I never thought
about it honestly. Everyone talks about wanting to play in the NHL, but I was
so young back then that I didn’t even think about that. I was just living in
the moment. I think It was my second or third year in the OHL that I was like,
‘Woah, I could really make a career out of this’.”
-Sean Day
Every player grew up watching the game of hockey and still
do to this day. Conner Bleackley’s favorite player was Joe Sakic, who ironically assisted in drafting Bleackley in the first round of the NHL Draft
to the Colorado Avalanche. Morgan Adamas-Moisan’s favorite was a teammate for a
significant amount of Sakic’s career: Peter Forsberg. For Sean
Day, his favorite players were and still are Sidney Crosby and Drew Doughty.
Mikael Robidoux also mentioned Crosby as his favorite player in his younger
years. Since then he had developed a liking for Tom Wilson, who he also
credited as the person that he models his game after. Dillan Fox, who cheered for the Flyers growing up, was a fan of John LeClair.
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| Conner Bleackley was drafted twice - the first time by Colorado Photo credit: NHL.com |
"I loved watching Scott Niedermayer when he played for the [Anaheim] Ducks. The had a lot of success when he was their captain and I got to watch them win a Stanley Cup. He was just such an unbelievable skater and so poised with the puck. I really liked watching him.”
-Scott Savage
“I really liked Pavel Datsuyk. I just thought that he was so
good with the puck and so fun to watch. I also like Nicklas Backstrom. A good
puck moving center that can always find players who are open. If I were to pick
a guy that model my game after, I would say Backstrom.”
-Michael McNicholas
“My favorite player growing up honestly was Kyle McClaren.
He was a defenseman and I loved his game so I took up the number 18 and wore
that number for as long as I can remember. Right now, my favorite player is
John Carlson.”
-Josh Couturier
The players would not have had to opportunity to become
professional hockey players without their parents. Each player credits their
folks to being a significant part of their success.
“First of all, the time and effort that they put in because
they have been following my brothers and I since we were little. There is the
money aspect for sure too. It’s not a secret to anybody, hockey is a very
expensive sport. So, we were very lucky for them to put the time, effort, and
money to put us through it.”
-Morgan Adams-Moisan
“It was a big financial commitment. Travel hockey,
especially in California is not cheap, with all the gear and everything. We had
to manage our money the best we could. That was a big part of it and then there
is the time commitment where we drove 40 minutes each was for practice. We were
practicing two to three times a week and then having games. So honestly, five
to six days out of the week we were commuting at least 40 minutes each way just
for practice or games. So, I am very thankful that my parents were able to
commit to that.”
-Scott Savage
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Sean "back in the" Day
Photo credit: ontariohockeyleague.com
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“Hockey is obviously an expensive sport, but I also have
three other brothers. Both of my parents sacrificed things for me that helped
me out a lot, such as tournaments in Toronto or the Quebec Tournament, I played
a tournament out in Edmonton. Just the traveling like that. I think they spent
a lot more time traveling for me just because I did hockey than they did any of
my brothers. So that was helpful. My dad’s job had him working globally and he
traveled a lot. Later on, before he retired, he stopped traveling as much and
taking meetings in Europe and Asia just so he could watch more of my hockey and
take me places so my mom could relax a bit.”
-Sean Day
“Spending money on travel, especially on those teams in
California. Just the money and the time that they spent driving, making long
road trips every couple weeks. My dad coaching me took a lot of time away from
his work when I was younger too.”
-Michael McNicholas
“Obviously financially, it is a pretty big commitment. The
higher you go, the more expensive it was. There were times that I used to play
street hockey in Calgary. My dad would come straight from work and drive me to
Calgary, which was about an hour. If it weren’t for them, I wouldn’t be playing
pro hockey, because they drove me everywhere and they enjoyed it too.”
-Conner
Bleackley
“When I was young - fifth or sixth grade, playing for the Jr.
Flyers, it was an hour and a half from my house. Think about the practices and
all the driving that they did three to four times a week. I couldn’t just play
in town, I wanted to challenge myself by getting out. It’s not cheap either so
I’m sure it was tough at times, but they always made it work and always made
sure I was where I needed to be.”
-Dillan Fox
“Every year we had a couple tournaments that were a few
hours away from home. They had to take days off of their jobs to come with me
for the weekends.”
-Mikael Robidoux
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| Josh Couturier raises the "Beanpot" in 2015-16 Photo credit: Newburyportnews.com |
“Well, hockey is an expensive sport so obviously money is a factor. They
could have used that for vacations, but gear is so expensive, and they paid for
that. It also took away from them spending time with my siblings. One of them
was always driving me to the rink and my grandfather was driving me to the rink
a lot. The biggest sacrifice was family time.”
-Josh Couturier
And now that they're "all grown up," the Mariners have advice they can pass on to the next generation of hockey players that look to follow in their footsteps.
“Have fun and be a good teammate. Play other sports.
Enjoy hockey because it is supposed be fun, but nowadays it gets a little crazy
with some of the parents. If you just have fun and have a passion for the game
and you work hard, anything can happen!”
-Conner Bleackley
“Have fun and play multiple sports. I think roller hockey
was a big part of why I was successful on ice. I also played soccer growing up.
So, to not be so focused on hockey but to develop yourself as an athlete. Also,
to control what you can control and have fun because everything else can fall
into place from there.”
-Scott Savage
“Don’t try to look too far. Just do your best right now and
it’s going to lead you somewhere. Hard workers are going to get compensated at
one point or another, so just work hard and good things are going to happen.”
-Morgan Adams-Moisan
“Some of my advice would be to just enjoy it. Try other
sports as well. I know for me, I played lacrosse and baseball. Lacrosse has
helped me tremendously and how to think. It’s similar to hockey to and it is
fast paced. I played strictly offense in lacrosse and doing that I was able to
evolve my offensive game for hockey too. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket
and have fun and enjoy it. Don’t get worked up about if you have a bad game. It
is what it is, and it is about what you’re going to do better next game.”
-Josh
Couturier
“Keep playing some other sports. Have a life outside the
game. Some guys move away so early and uproot their lives for the game and some
things don’t work out, so just enjoy it. At the end of the day, we are all
going to have something else going on when it is all said and done. Just enjoy
it, don’t take things to seriously, and have a life outside of the game. You
can get stuck in the mentality of ‘It’s hockey or the end of the world’.”
-Dillan Fox
“Have fun and have good attention to detail. There are so
many important things that you learn when you’re younger and if you’re able to
take those things and apply them to your learning and your development, I feel
like those are the players that really stand out. That’s really an important
asset to have.”
-Michael McNicholas
“Take your time. Learn the game. Don’t rush anything. Get
proper training and the proper diet before moving away from home and playing
juniors or college or anything.”
-Sean Day
“To never stop dreaming. If you have a goal and you have
dream, go and get it. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.”
-Mikael Robidoux
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Mikael Robidoux followed his dream to pro hockey
Photo credit: journaldequebec.com
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