Last Updated on Wednesday, 27 March 2013 14:44
By Kevin Hartzell
Let’s Play Hockey Columnist
Congratulations to the four Minnesota natives that have been recognized as final 10 candidates for the 2013 Hobey Baker Award, presented annually to the year’s top college hockey player. No other state or province has more than one, so Minnesota’s four is quite impressive. All four of these Minnesota natives are, in my opinion, serious contenders to win the award and also legitimate candidates to play in the NHL – which makes this a very special group indeed. The four finalists are Quinnipiac goaltender Eric Hartzell (White Bear Lake), North Dakota forward Danny Kristo (Eden Prairie), St. Cloud State forward Drew LeBlanc and Nebraska-Omaha forward Ryan Walters (Rosemount).
I can make the case for each of these lads to win the award. The other very strong candidate in my opinion is Johnny Gaudreau, a New Jersey native who plays at Boston College. Since I first saw Gaudreau playing with Dubuque in the USHL, I have said about him that he is the closest thing to Gretzky since Gretzky. He is undersized and not a great skater; just an amazing player.
These are all excellent candidates indeed. I can also make the case that a couple of the very best candidates not making the final 10 are also Minnesota natives –Ohio State goaltender Brady Hjelle (International Falls) and Notre Dame forward Anders Lee (Edina).
When I looked at the these top Minnesota candidates for college hockey’s most prestigious individual award, I realized they all have something in common, a trait they share with last year’s winner Jack Connolly of Duluth; they all have played in the USHL. I also thought about a couple of Minnesota natives who might have as much or more talent than any of these nominated players but they chose not to play in the USHL nor take on any junior hockey at all. Maybe their unwillingness to take on or embrace unique challenges is in part what holds them back from being even better than they are currently and nominees for the Hobey. Maybe?
I will argue that the USHL was indeed instrumental in the development of these Minnesota players. Eight of the 10 Hobey candidates competed in the USHL and Minnesota’s “top next in line” of Lee and Hjelle did as well. The USHL is imperfect for sure, but what it does is provide a unique challenge for a young elite player. It means moving away from home. It means moving from a team where one is the best player to a team where one likely is not. It means not going directly to college when many will tell you that you are good enough and should make the direct step.
Yet wherever I travel in the state, it seems that the USHL and junior hockey in general is looked upon unfavorably by many and with a lack of respect by others. It is seen by many as a lurking predator that may take an elite player away from the “Minnesota Way” of doing things. The USHL and junior hockey is still not given the respect it deserves as a supplier of a unique and difficult challenge to our elite players. It is time to give junior hockey its due.
My bigger argument, however, is really about how important it is to take on unique challenges as an individual, especially when one has unique talents. My argument is about how important it is that we as a hockey culture nurture this ideal.
Success, in part, is about one’s willingness to embrace something that is hard. Which of us does not believe that our elite math students do not need elite (difficult) math problems? How many of us do not believe that special wants and successes do not come without special challenges and prices to be paid?
The mindset of embracing hard needs to be equally nurtured in our hockey culture as do the skills needed to play the game. I think we have a great word in hockey that describes the kind of person and player who embraces hard, who embraces a challenge; I think we call it GRIT!
Minnesota’s four Hobey Baker nominees have grit. Their nominations say much about the importance of the eagerness and tenacity it takes to succeed at a high level. These are four kids not shy of taking on a challenge. They have all taken on challenges that many others many times are unwilling to do.
I could be wrong, but I think if you go back and look at the many articles written about the up-and-coming elite players in the state of Minnesota over the past several years, one would see fewer articles on our Hobey Baker candidates than they would on many others we have put on pedestals and claimed great futures for. These four took somewhat unconventional paths to get where they are today and they deserve a lot of credit for their courage to take on various challenges along the way.
I have little doubt that this mindset of embracing uncommon challenges is what continues to propel their careers. I congratulate these four and sincerely hope to see one of them holding the Hobey Baker Memorial Award at season’s end.
