Summer Retreat Interviews #2: Rookie Defenseman Hunter Lydon

Thanks to the miracle of modern video technology, rookie defenseman Hunter Lydon will now introduce himself to you:



If it weren't for that other modern miracle we know as Facebook, Lydon says he wouldn't have known Emerson had a hockey team:



His first impressions of the team?



Like most hockey players, he was introduced young and the game never left his heart:



Lydon said he's a bit worried about transitioning his roller hockey skills to the ice, as the mindplay is similar but things like stopping and hitting are vastly different. He'd do well to speak to fellow defenseman Justin DeMarco, who also had to trade his wheels for steel.

As far as his style of play is concerned, Hunter fits into the mold of a classic stay-at-home defenseman, and he acknowledges there are a few areas of his game that need improvement:



Is he ready to "make school his number 1 priority and hockey his number 2," as assistant captain Pete Keeling asked of all his teammates recently?



Sounds like a yes to me.

Interesting fact about Hunter: he is not a fan of any NHL team and finds hockey boring to watch on TV. He'd rather be watching a good movie or working on one. A lot of the guys found it hard to believe.

He was probably one of the first to fall asleep during the late night viewing of Rock 'Em Sock 'Em 6. I'll have everyone know I watched it through to the end.

And rewound it.

Next up: a lengthy and thought-provoking interview on hockey and rap with assistant captain Pete Keeling, due sometime next week. I'll be on vacation until then, but if you have something you'd like to contribute to the blog, email me and I'll make sure it goes up.

Summer Retreat Interviews #1: Goalie Zach Wilson '09

This is the first of three interviews I shot at the summer retreat which took place at defenseman Sean Legnini's home in Avalon, NJ at the end of August.

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Zach Wilson will be a senior this year, and this Fall is his last in Boston, as he'll be spending his Spring at the school's L.A. program, hoping to get a leg up on his career in television. Wilson has been with the team the past two seasons, serving as backup goalie to Greg Cohen and sharing the net with Lance Ning last Spring while Cohen was in the Netherlands.

Off the ice, Wilson is very involved in the EVVYs production team, and is the head of the TRF sports production unit, which puts together award-winning multi-camera coverage of many Emerson athletic events, including hockey.

Here's a highlight reel from an Emerson/Berklee game the EVVY's shot and Zach edited together to some music:

I accidentally hit him in the back with a puck at practice one night last season, but he was gracious enough to forgive me for that. We played 18 holes of miniature golf on the Ocean City boardwalk (don't go to Congo Falls Golf -- sure the large gorilla is alluring, but every hole is an unimaginative par 2) and we sat down for an interview the next day over hamburgers.

Here, Zach talks about how the retreat helped build "teamraderie," as he put it:

Teamraderie is especially beneficial should you fall out of a kayak:

Getting down to brass tacks, Zach appraises the team's ability for TV coverage:

...and talks about how games being shown on the Emerson Channel would bring the team more exposure:

He feels the condensed schedule this year will be a challenge for the team:

But a little later, he added: "I think if the younger guys stick to it and really get committed from the beginning it'll be a lot easier because they'll be used to it as opposed to like trying to add stuff to the schedule."

Finally, let's go back in time a bit. To about... 1991, when Wilson appeared on Sesame Street (he comes in around 1:40):

I think I had the same haircut when I was 4 years old, LOL... He told some of the other guys and I that he was in a couple more episodes, too.

If you want to see more of Zach's work off the ice, visit his YouTube page at: http://www.youtube.com/user/ZWilsonFilms

Hockey hits big at org. fair

Spoke to defenseman Sean Legnini this weekend and he was delighted to inform me that many Emersonians stopped by the team's booth at the organization fair (org. fair) last Friday.

More than 100 hockey fans pledged their support by adding their names to the team's e-mail list, and 8 students approached Legnini, Keeling and other members of the team about playing this Fall.

Two of those students are sophomores who were unaware the school even had a hockey team, and the other six are freshmen.

"One of the freshmen played varsity and his team went to the Flyers Cup, which is a tournament for the best high school team in eastern Pennsylvania," Legnini told me. "So he's probably pretty good."

It is unknown at this point how many or which of the 8 will actually play in games. The team's coach and captains will be assessing the new talent in the three practices leading up to next Sunday's season opener against Bentley.

Both captain Gwizdowski and assistant captain Keeling have indicated to me that anyone who shows enthusiasm and commitment will be given the opportunity to play.

Fall 2008 Schedule

Circle November 8th on your calendar (I know I have) as that's when this year's Boylston Cup will be fought for at Walter Brown Arena. The Lions also face some tough opponents this year in club squads from Bentley and Merrimack, both schools that have NCAA hockey programs.

Thu Sept 18: Practice @ Simoni. 11:00pm-11:50pm.

Tue Sept 23: Practice @ Walter Brown. 11:00pm-11:50pm.

Thu Sept 25: Practice @ Simoni. 11:00pm-11:50pm.

Sun Sept 28: Game vs. Bentley. Simoni. 7:30pm-9:20pm.

Tues Sept 30: Game vs. Merrimack. Simoni. 10:00-11:50pm.

Thu Oct 2: Practice @ Simoni. 11:00pm-11:50pm.

Sat Oct 4: Game vs. TBA . Simoni. 8:50pm-10:40pm.

Tue Oct 7: Game vs. Berklee. Simoni. 8:00pm-9:50pm.

Thu Oct 9: Practice @ Simoni. 11:00pm-11:50pm.

Tue Oct 14: Practice @ Walter Brown. 11:00pm-11:50pm.

Thu Oct 16: Practice @ Simoni. 11:00pm-11:50pm.

Sun Oct 19: Away Game @ RISD. 9:30pm. Brown Rink.

Tues Oct 21: Practice @ Walter Brown. 11:00pm-11:50pm

Thu Oct 23: Practice @ Simoni. 11:00pm-11:50pm.

Fri Oct 24: Away Game @ Berklee. Simoni. 9:00-10:40pm.

Sat Oct 25: Away Game @ Bentley. Waltham, MA. 10:00pm.

Thu Oct. 30: Practice @ Simoni. 11:00pm-11:50pm.

Sat Nov. 1: Game vs. TBA. Simoni. 8:50pm-10:40pm.

Wed Nov. 5: Game vs. Clark. Simoni. 8:00pm-9:50pm.

Thu Nov 6: Practice @ Simoni. 11:00pm-11:50pm.

Sat Nov 8: Boylston Cup vs. Berklee. 5:00pm. Walter Brown.

Sun. Nov 9: Away Game @ Clark. 10:00pm-11:50pm.

Thu Nov 13: Practice @ Simoni. 11:00pm-11:50pm.

Sun Nov 16: Game vs. MCC. Simoni. 7:30pm-9:20pm.

Tue Nov 18: Practice @ Walter Brown. 11:00pm-11:50pm.

Thu Nov. 20: Practice @ Simoni. 11:00pm-11:50pm.

Mon Dec 1: Game vs. Suffolk. Simoni. 8:00-9:50pm.

Tue Dec 2: Game @ MCC. Billerica, MA. 10:20pm-12:00am.

Thu Dec 4: Practice @ Simoni. 11:00pm-11:50pm.

According to Pete Keeling, there are a few away dates to be determined with Suffolk, Merrimack, Brandeis and RISD, so I'll update when he gets those scheduled. And I know that I'm not the only alum who'd like to see an alumni vs. current team game added...

Gwizdowski ready to lead Lions

Alan “Gwiz” Gwizdowski wears many hats. He’s a talented photographer, graphic designer, student, marathon runner and golfer. But the most important piece of headgear he’ll be donning this Fall is his hockey helmet. Gwizdowski has been handed the captaincy of the Emerson hockey team, and he’s not taking the task lightly.

“No matter how busy I am with school, once we step on the ice it becomes all about hockey,” Gwiz said. “I don’t even think about anything else.”

Quiet by nature, Gwizdowski lets his stick and skates do most of the talking, delivering timely offense in critical games and giving 100% at every practice. He has worn the “A” as Emerson’s assistant captain for the past two seasons, earning his honors through skillful play and a fierce commitment to conditioning.

“He does the right thing, all the time, and that’s the epitome of captain material,” said former captain Matt Porter.

Gwiz met all his predecessor’s criteria for someone he’d want captaining the team:

Nearly insane amount of love for the game?

Check. Gwizdowski’s been on skates since he’s been a tot, and still gets excited when the lagoon in the Public Garden freezes over.

Never wavers in dedication to the club?

Check. He’s had to miss a few games and practices for school activities, but how many of those opportunities did he sacrifice because there was a road game and he was one of the few players on the team who had certification to drive an athletics van?

Extreme confidence, intelligence and aware of the people around him, their needs, abilities and possible shortcomings?

Check. When he’s on the bench, he studies his teammates. If he notices something that could help their game, when they hop back over the boards, he gives them tips for improvement.

Believes in the team and is a positive force without losing his realness?

Check. In the darkest moments of last season, Gwiz was the player that kept believing, continuing to go for goals in games that already looked like lost causes and never losing his head or picking a fight.

“If you’re not on your game [as captain] and don’t believe you can win,” he says, “nobody will believe they can win. Even if you as a single player have an off game you have to keep everyone else riled up.”

The team has come to him for offense and inspiration, but they’ve also come to him for help training. Having run the Boston Marathon three times, Gwizdowski is a prime source for fitness and nutrition information, and he’s more than willing to share what he knows. Known to run 60-70 miles in a week, he shared one of his routes with the team — up and down the inclines of Beacon Hill — that left more than a few of his less fit teammates gasping for air.

But lazy Lions of 2008 beware, captain Gwizdowski plans to reward only those who make the effort:

“If they don’t try, they don’t play,” he says. “We have plenty of kids who want to be out on the ice and if they try harder and are more deserving then they will play.”

2008 Season Preview

"Rise like Lions after slumber, in unvanquishable number," Percy Shelley once wrote in The Mask of Anarchy, a poem addressed to his fellow Englishmen after a massacre which took place at Manchester in 1819. Outgoing Emerson hockey captain Matt Porter might as well have delivered the same invocation to his rag tag squad at the end of their 2007-08 season.

The Lions were certainly asleep for the majority of last season, posting an abysmal overall 3-12-0 (1-8-0 NECHL) record, with two of those wins coming against the Rhode Island School of Design (GO NADS!). There were nights the team simply didn't have the unvanquishable numbers they needed to win, as players were in and out of the lineup, tied up with school projects rather than thugs from Berklee College of Music or Tufts University.

"We weren't really able to establish flow and coherence and identity," Porter admitted. "To be frank, I'm sort of left with a bad taste, because we didn't really win a lot."

But 2008 looks to be an exciting year of transition for the Lions. Leadership duties have been handed down to Alan Gwizdowski '09 and Pete Keeling '10, who are looking for more team commitment. Porter has faith the duo will keep the Lions rising -- both in level of skill and in the attention of the Emerson athletics department.

"Once you establish yourself as an actual club, I think, there's not as much wild growth," Porter said. "But the key is to keep moving forward and reaching new goals. And I'm confident Pete and Gwiz will do that."

Captain Gwizdowski (who served as assistant captain the past two seasons) says he plans to make the team stronger by getting them comfortable with each other and building chemistry.

"People get used to playing with certain other players on their lines," said Gwizdowski, who is known as "Gwiz" to friends and teammates. "When people can't make it to a game because of a film shoot, final project, etc. lines start getting switched and players skate at positions and with players they are not necessarily used to."

Newly minted assistant captain Keeling spent his summer taking care of organizational duties, scheduling practices and games and ordering jerseys. Managing a team is nothing new for Keeling, who helped build and run a team -- the Mendham Ice Bats -- in his home state of New Jersey. His experience in fundraising, team conditioning, logistics, and on-ice direction prepared him for his new role, which his former captain believes he earned through hard work and smart play.

"Pete came to me as a enthusiastic young player whose enthusiasm sometimes got the better of him," Porter said of Keeling. "He's grown into the leadership role a bit, but I feel he has a little way to go."

Keeling was one of the driving forces behind this year's condensed schedule, making ice hockey at Emerson a fall-only sport. The team will play a total of 14 league games in 2008; 7 at home (Simoni Rink, Cambridge) and 7 on the road between September and December. They will also participate in an exhibition game against a team to be announced, and square off against Berklee for the 3rd annual Boylston Cup, which the Lions have lost in their two previous bouts.

The condensed schedule comes to the relief of TV/Film students like Gwizdowski and Keeling, who plan to finish their Emerson studies at the school's Los Angeles campus. Had a condensed schedule been in place last season, the team would not have lost players like hard-hitting Jeff Duray or star goalie Greg Cohen, who left in the Spring semester to take classes in Kasteel Well, Netherlands.

Keeling hopes the team coalesces around his enthusiasm for being on the ice, because they'll be skating at least four times a week this Fall.

"More ice time helps us to progress as players and as a team," Keeling said. "We used to be on the ice once maybe twice a week, and we'd get rusty in our off time. This allows us to really hone in on our skills and tune our games to the fullest potential."

To get the team ready for the heavy workload, Keeling organized a pre-season weekend of work outs and team-building activities, which took place near the end of the summer on the Jersey Shore.

More on that in posts to come.