I always loved hockey, but when I was little – even when I was 5 and 6 – I was going to auto races. I didn’t even practice hockey that much. I went to the mechanics shop just down the street from my house just to be able to hand the lead mechanic wrenches while he worked. Being around automobiles was my whole life.
I started to really practice hockey every day around my 12th birthday, before my family moved from my home town. That when I figured out I can live from hockey. It can be my passion and my job at the same time. I knew I could be good – I didn’t know I could play in the SMJHL or the SHL. But maybe a smaller league in Europe.
Growing up, I watched the national teams, because when you’re a kid in Germany, that’s your goal. I didn’t follow the SHL much, the games always came on too late at night but I would always watch replays on Youtube the next day.
But when I was young, I just watched my brothers. They play hockey, too. There were some ponds that would freeze over in the winter. I would sit and watch them even as an infant with my bottle. I am a mix of both my brothers together when I play. One is a really talented and a good skater; one is a great and smart passer. I’m a little bit good at passing and a little bit good at skating.
Our house was really small. Just a kitchen, bathroom, 1 small bedroom, and 1 small living space. It was my mom, dad, me, my two brothers, and my grandfather. It was always a packed house! My brothers – Really my cousins. We grew up really close. – also came over. We were always happy being with one another. Especially the kids. We were crazy. Always running around, causing trouble, and making lots of noise!
We even had a miniature hockey goal my dad built for us that we would set up in the kitchen. One time my stick accidentally caught a pan and some glassware. They fell off the counter with a loud crash and there was glass everywhere! Needless to say, we were not let into the kitchen anymore after that.
When I really started playing I was really fat, and I wasn’t that strong yet. I played defense but I also played center sometimes too. I was just playing for fun, you know? But the year I turned 14. I felt like for the first time, I could really play. That’s the same year my family went from my small hometown to a much larger city, Nürnberg.
That is where I met my best friend. Max. He was on my new team. My first real team, JEC 1976 Nürnberg.
Max was very warm and very passionate. He was determined to introduce me to everyone on my new team.
This is Thomas
This is David
This is Julien
As he said each name, I spelled them in my head so I wouldn’t forget. My mind was racing. Each guy gave me a high five, too, but no one’s was as strong as Max’s.
I was really shy and nervous as a kid and moving from my home town didn’t really help that. But finally I was around other kids who took hockey more seriously like I did. I was just so happy to talk about hockey. The previous few months had been full with so much chaos and speculation of if I was going to be able to make a club team in a big city. I was glad to be talking in a common language again.
I learned a lot from my new team. I learned how to skate. Like, REALLY skate. Forwards. Backwards. Side to side. All of it. Skating was my new love.
I would race to the rink after school got out in the afternoon. It was about a 15 minute walk. Sometimes I would jog the distance to get there and on the ice sooner.
I learned so much from our coach, Steven. He gave me room to make mistakes and to grow. He was a very patient coach and you could really tell he loved the sport of hockey.
One saturday we had to go to the next town over for a game. We won 5-3 and I had two goals and an assist.
After the game, a man approached me and my father. He was speaking English to us and said he was a scout for a SMJHL.
A scout? Talking to me? I was in shock. He told us that he could get me into a bigger and better team here in Germany so I was with professional coaches and seen more by scouts. This also came as a shock to me. I was happy. But mostly, I was sad.
The prospect of playing for a professional team was my main goal but at the same time I was leaving my first real team and all my friends I made since joining them. They were also sad to see me go, but they understood and I still talk to Max every week.
Suddenly everything is different. Everything.
I grew up playing on ponds with my brothers and the neighborhood kids and now I am about to be drafted into the SMJHL. I’ve gone from walking a few hundred metres to play to flying and traveling on buses across Germany and the rest of Europe.
It used to be just my dad and other dads yelling to skate faster! Now there are a lot more coaches at my new and bigger club. Strength coaches. Skating coaches. Conditioning coaches. Powerplay coaches. Penalty kill coaches. There seems like a million coaches!
The style of the game with all these coaches is faster. There is a lot more skating and a lot of better skating. Its faster. If you can skate strong, you’re going to be really good in this league.
My favorite part is always the travel. I get to see a lot of new faces and be witness to a lot of different cultures in Europe because of the club’s ability to travel and I really find that fun.
One thing that hasn’t changed, for me, is the passion.
You’ve probably seen me get slashed a little or tripped up a few times. I love that kind of play. This is how we grew up playing in Germany as kids. Last year, I scored on a break away. I was so excited I just started yelling and shouting and the guy from the other team pushed me and I fell down and did a flip. My teammates rushed over and started fighting the guy for me. That is what I want to do. Not make a lot of fights, but to just get that raw passion and emotion into the game. I don’t want hockey to just be a job for me or any of the other guys. I want it to be a passion.