North American Hockey League


White’s experience in Topeka second to none R


By Matt Mackinder


yan White has options to continue his hockey career;


it’s just a matter of figuring out which is the best to pursue. White, a 21-year-old Parker native, just concluded his third


year in the North American Hockey League (NAHL) with the Topeka RoadRunners and, this season, he led the Tier II Junior A team in scoring with 50 points (18 goals). While those numbers would generally lead to a


college hockey offer, White played Major Junior in the Western Hockey League in 2008-09 with the Ev- erett Silvertips and lost his NCAA eligibility. Regardless, White has no plans of hanging up the


skates. “I can play Division III college hockey, but would


need to sit out a year, or I could play pro hockey in the Central League or maybe somewhere in Europe or at a Canadian university,” said White. He credits the RoadRunners coaching staff, in-


cluding head coach Scott Langer and assistants Harry Mahood and RJ Enga, a former Colorado College standout who’s now a coach with the United States Hockey League’s Chicago Steel, for maximiz- ing his potential. “I think playing for such a great organization in


Topeka really helped elevate my game on the ice and also helped me with my off-ice attitude,” he said. “I realized the past three years that there’s more to life than hockey and that it’s important to be a team player. I’ll be the first to admit that I struggled with that earlier in my career.” And offensive force growing up,


White began his career skating for the Front Range Panthers and then joined the Littleton Hawks for a spell before spending four seasons with the Colorado Thunderbirds. He finished his Midget career with the Colorado Rampage. White credits coaches Bob


Taggart (Front Range) and Kent Murphy (Littleton) for much of his development, as well as the Thun- derbirds’ Angelo Ricci. “I was fortunate to have a lot of good coaches who


saw potential in me and really pushed me and en- couraged me to keep improving,” said White. It was Enga who led the charge to bring White to


Kansas. “I was released by Everett and RJ called me and invited me to come down to Topeka,” White said. “I


NAHL.com


Ryan White, from Parker, finished his third and final NAHL season as the Topeka Road- Runners’ leading scorer. Photo/NAHL


also had a friend on the team and he couldn’t say enough positive things about the organization, so I came to town it couldn’t have worked out any better.” Given his on-ice success with


the RoadRunners, as well as the lasting relationships he’s devel- oped, White said leaving the Kan- sas Expocentre ice one last time was a tear-jerking moment. “It was hard and I struggled


taking a look at the rink at the end of the game,” said White. “It was so much fun in Topeka. “I remember during my rook-


ie year, we played the first few games on the road and there were only a couple hundred fans. Then we came home and we had like 3,000 and they were loud. “The fans and the city support-


ed us so much and that really stands out to me when I reflect back on my three years there.” And to think White nearly gave up hockey for


baseball. “I played both, but hockey became my passion,”


said White. “I just want to keep playing and take hockey as far as I can.”


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