More and more locals begin to dot NCAA rosters By Matt Mackinder


here are a total of 17 players on men’s NCAA Di- vision I rosters this season that grew up learning the game of hockey in Florida. Names like Brian Ferlin, Trent Ruffalo and Shayne Gostisbehere may not be household names around the casual college observer, but in Florida hockey circles, these players have proven that coming from Florida can mean that playing D-I hockey is very attainable. Former Statewide Amateur Hockey of Florida, Inc.


T


(SAHOF) president Jeff Wood (2006-10) has seen firsthand the increase in talented players coming from Florida and said it’s a tribute to the amateur ranks where teams and organizations have been known to battle over getting certain players to join their respec- tive teams. “There are definitely many challenges in Florida, but I think we’ve been able to see the positive results in that many of these kids are advancing to higher levels of hockey with college being one area we’re extremely proud of,” said Wood. “The parents want their kids to have fun and keep playing the game and that’s definitely very prevalent here.” Ferlin, a Jacksonville native playing at Cornell


University (ECAC), is what Wood calls “the poster boy for Florida hockey.” He narrowly missed making the United States World Junior team last month and also heard his name called last June by the Boston Bruins at the NHL Entry Draft. “Ferlin is one of those kids that came at the end of what I call the golden age of Florida hockey,” Wood


said. “When the Florida Panthers went to the Stanley Cup final in 1996, a lot of these kids playing college and juniors were three, four, or five years old and that’s when interest in hockey was starting to peak in Florida. Ferlin was one of the last cuts by the U.S. and I remember watching one of the U.S. World Junior games this year and one of the broadcasters asked what the U.S. needed to do differently and I think a guy like Ferlin could have helped that team. He’s proven himself on the college stage and I think sooner than later, you’ll see a kid from Florida get drafted in the first round.” Ruffalo skates at Yale University (ECAC) and when his name was mentioned to Wood, praise oozed from Wood’s mouth. “That kid was a great player and is even better


now,” said Wood of the Coral Springs native. “He maybe was never the best player on his team, but I don’t know that I’ve ever seen a prettier skater. He’s just so smooth and makes it look so easy on the ice. With today’s game being so skating-oriented, Ruffalo is excelling and I could easily see him playing pro hockey one day.” Gostisbehere, a Margate native playing at Union


College, also of the ECAC, has a last name Wood said was tough to say, but watching him play was an easier task. “Shayne is another kid that has learned to create time and space with his skating,” said Wood. “He’s playing regularly as a freshman at Union and his work ethic is tremendous. “That’s one thing that all these kids going to play college hockey have in common – they all put in the


work and take a team-first attitude. College teams obviously like the talented kids, but character is also something they look for and I’ve seen that in all 17 of the kids playing D-I.” Wood said seeing Floridians have success on the higher rungs of the hockey ladder lends credibility to the work being done and the hockey being played in the state. “You see a lot of our guys not only moving up,


but they’re moving up, they’re playing and they’re making an impact,” said Wood. “We still have a lot of work to do, but it says a lot when kids from Florida can win roster spots over a kid from traditional places like Detroit, Boston or Minnesota.” For a complete list of Floridians playing NCAA hockey, please reference the Florida Hockey Alumni list on Page 18.


Satellite Beach native Ian Slater is one of 17 Flor- ida-born NCAA Division I college players this


season. Slater, a senior, captains the Western Michigan Bron- cos of the CCHA. Photo/GS Photo


RUBBERHOCKEY.com 11


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20