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Hawks Fly Together

Cassidy Pazyniak

With a record of 25 wins, six losses and one hard-fought tie, one could easily believe that the Miami University varsity hockey team must possess a secret pre-game playlist and routine to get the blood pumping.

Whatever it is that lights the fire beneath the skates of the 27-man team, coaches, players and fans agree that the sense of brotherhood inside the locker room-both on and off the ice-is a deadly weapon.

Currently ranked fifth in the nation, the Redhawks have one more weekend of regular season games, with a battle against the Ohio State University this weekend before the first round of playoffs March 7.

However, as the regular season draws to a close, it has become apparent that the team members have a sense of camaraderie that has contributed to their success on the ice. Jeff Blashill, assistant ice hockey coach for the past six years, said his players wrote an official document last year at the beginning of the season on what brotherhood means to the team. According to Blashill, the underlying idea is for each player to be best all-around person, athlete, brother and student he can be.

Steven Cady, senior associate athletic director and namesake for Steve Cady Arena, said whether it's called brotherhood, chemistry or friendship the idea is the same.

"(Head Coach Enrico Blasi) carried over (the brotherhood) from his days as a player," Cady said. "It was started way back in the early 90s."

As the first head coach of Miami hockey, Cady coached the team from 1976 to 1985. Cady said he is extremely familiar with the idea of brotherhood.

"Essentially it is the commitment to one another to try and prepare you to do the best in practice, to take care of yourself, to do the right thing and understand the team is the brotherhood," Cady said. "The team comes first and the individual second, that's why it's so important."

Sophomore Dane Hetland, a center on the team who played for the Bay State Breakers in Rockland, Mass., before the Hawks, said that the bond between the team is special.

"It just comes with spending so much time together and obviously we share a common interest in the sport of hockey and a common goal," Hetland said.

In order to establish this bond, the coaches organize activities to be done early on in the year as a way to welcome new players and bring the team together.

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Hetland said that the team gets together at the beginning of the school year before the official season starts and participates in two three-hour leadership sessions.

"The coaches make a point of having the new guys come in a week before school-it's nice to have spent time with the guys you're going to be playing two to four years with," Hetland said. "It's really important at the beginning of the year. A lot of the freshman come in and aren't sure what guys they're playing with. It helped me a lot to speak openly about the team and the goals for the team."

Cady said the activities all Miami sports teams use for bonding experience range from community service projects, rope courses offered through the Recreational Sports Center, to individual sessions with the team and coaches.

According to Cady, these activities help to encourage brotherhood among the players.

"In many cases, athletes come from diverse backgrounds and different countries," Cady said. "It's important to learn about one another and treat each other with the highest respect and dignity."

Blashill said that the varsity hockey team focuses mostly on leadership development activities. The coaches take the players through a variety of scenarios that the players could encounter during the season.

"The players discussed how they would handle these scenarios (and) be the best brother they could be," Blashill said. "Then, when they are faced with these situations during the year, they have a moral basis of how to properly react."

Nate Davis, a co-captain and senior forward for the team, said that such scenarios are not as much related to hockey as how to handle oneself as a Redhawk athlete in the social scene.

"Most of the time when guys come in, hockey is not an issue, but as a hockey player you have a responsibility," said Davis. "(The scenarios) more so have to do with things you face uptown, things where you need added judgment. It's mostly to help our new guys understand the consequences, where as in high school or juniors the consequences might have been different. They're a little steeper here. We're in a small town and college environment."

Once the season starts in early October, brotherhood is more important than ever, Hetland said.

"Just knowing a lot about the guy you're skating next to helps," Hetland said. "It's a chemistry thing on the ice, but more so it helps off the ice when you talk to somebody or when you need somebody to help pick you up. When you're friends with them, it helps you know what to say. It's more important off the ice than you think. There's a lot that goes into team chemistry."

Cady-with his experience as head coach, the time spent with the athletic administrative offices, and his role as director of the ice arena-said he has seen his fair share of different team dynamics. Cady credits team bonding as a vital ingredient for success.

"I don't care what sport it is, team chemistry is incredibly important," Cady said. "If you have teammates that care and trust (each other) and have that special bond-you don't see championship teams without that. (You can) call it different things, but brotherhood is a commitment to one another and the program needs it to be successful."

It's not always sunshine and #5 rankings

In one of the three off-campus houses that host members of the team, Hetland lives with four of his teammates. He said living with a teammate adds an additional factor in the delicate equation of shared living space.

"A lot of the times the guys can get on each other's nerves," Hetland said. "When you spend three to four hours on the rink, then go home (with the same people), certain habits at the rink don't show up as much as they do as when you're sharing an eight-by-ten room with them. The guys on the team do a good job of letting it slide when on the ice."

Beyond practices, the team has experienced its share of rough patches. During the current 2007-2008 season, the team has faced six losses.

Blashill said the team still keeps the sense of brotherhood through these times.

"First of all, we stick together," Blashill said. "As the saying goes, 'we win together and we lose together.' Each player takes a look in the mirror first and asks themselves, 'How I can be better?' Then we look at how we can be better as a team."

The team also can turn to any of their four captains, senior Ryan Jones and the assistant captains-senior Davis, junior Kevin Roeder and junior Brian Kaufman.

These four leaders were voted in as captains by the returning players last year. The coaches then use the votes as a tool to help choose the individual's best suited to lead the team, Blashill explained.

Blashill said the four captains leading the team this year have similar yet varying qualities that create an effective leading style.

"(The captains) bring similar qualities in. They all prepare to be great every day and they all want to win above personal accomplishments," Blashill said. "They all lead by example as well. They are, however, different personalities which allow them to bring a different element to our leadership table."

Davis explained his own personal leadership style, adding that each of the captains brings something to the table.

"I think any leader will use what they have to the best of their ability," said Davis. "Everyone has different temperaments. I'm not so much of a yelling guy. I'm a little bit quieter. I'll pull a guy aside when he needs it. To have a good leadership, you need a good combination (of qualities). Me personally, I like t o do one-on-one stuff and just deal with guys on a personal basis."

Hetland said the four different leadership styles are beneficial to the team.

"Each of the four attack (leadership) differently, it's good," Hetland said. "It's nice to get leaders who give diverse feedback or styles of leadership because certain people respond differently. Ultimately, the captains act (as) intermediary between what the coaches want of us and expect of us, and what we expect of ourselves. Either way they do it, it's always effective."

Almost pro's, but still average Joe's

As part of the plight of all college sports, teams change every year as players graduate. Despite the changing roster, Blashill said the hockey team is generally a cohesive unit.

"Every team has a different dynamic," Blashill said. "However, our teams have been very close for a number of years. We do not have big egos in our locker room. We have a bunch of guys who want to win for each other. We really work to recruit the right type of person to Miami."

Tim Williams, a Miami University sophomore who camped out and waited 27 hours to watch Miami play the University of Michigan the weekend of Feb. 8, said that there's a sense of friendship between the hockey players and fans. Williams credited this relationship to the players' willingness to socialize despite their "athlete status."

The game between Michigan (ranked No. 2 at the time) and Miami (ranked No. 1 at the time) was the first ever No. 1 vs. No. 2 game played on Miami's campus. Students camped out before the Friday and Saturday night games to ensure the best possible seats.

The night before the opening game, Williams witnessed interactions between the fans and players while trying to stay warm in his tent.

According to Williams, one of the fans thanked the group of players who had come outside to mingle with the camped-out crowd.

Williams said Roeder, who was included in the group, insisted the fans accept the thanks for showing their support for the team.

Hetland said a different kind of friendship exists between the fans and players, but this relationship helps the team.

"I feel like the team doesn't make itself unattainable," Hetland said. "We're just regular students, We don't pretend to be anything other than that. The friendship with a fan and hockey player is no different than one between a person in sorority and frat-we're just people."

Blashill and Cady agreed the personal relationships between players and fans, along with the atmosphere created at every home game, are important and essential to the team.

"(The fans') commitment to waiting in line or camping out, just to see a game, is a heck of responsibility for the player," Cady said. "They understand that folks are making that kind of sacrifice just to come see them play. (It's) a significant responsibility to try and play your best every night just for them."

Williams described the dedication and relationship on behalf of Miami hockey fans.

"When the team is up, the fans are up," Williams said. "The team pumps life into the crowd and creates an atmosphere inside Goggin that's very difficult for opponents to play in. That's what every team longs for and it's great when the team wins. When the team doesn't play well, the fans don't always respond well. It was embarrassing to see our fans booing our own team when they were outplayed by Michigan. Every team loses some games and there's no reason to point the finger at anyone to blame for a loss."

Whether it's the brotherhood between the players that keeps them winning, the fans' dedication, borderline inappropriate cheers, or simply the team's skills, this year's team shares a unique bond.

"Our guys have a genuine care for each other and very much appreciate each other's successes," Blashill said. "Our players love our fans and the energy the fans bring to Coach Cady Arena every game. That is special to our guys, to have people they know and care about cheering them on."


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