Sweeping the Clarkson Golden Knights. Shutting out the Cornell Big Red at Lynah Rink. Exceeding last year’s win total in January. The Rensselaer men’s hockey team has enjoyed great success this year, and much of it would not have happened were it not for the contributions of the senior class. But for Conrad Barnes, Ben Barr, Scott Basiuk, Mikael Hammarstrom, Kevin Kurk, Nathan Marsters, and Ryan Shields, simply calling them members of a team is not enough.
They are a tight group of friends, and it became evident when they recounted some of their memories from playing hockey and going to school at Rensselaer. The seven seniors spoke highly of the program and what it has given them, from the recruiting process to the lasting friendships they have developed with each other and the school that afforded them the opportunity to do what they love: play hockey.
It speaks volumes about the program when the players praise all aspects of it. Recalling the recruiting process, and why they chose RPI, the seniors listed many reasons.
“I think everybody that comes here wants to play at a great hockey program, and get a really good education at the same time,” said Hammarstrom.
“The quality of people they send out to recruit you had a lot to do with me and Shields coming here,” Basiuk noted, adding that “when they sent BC [Bill Cahill] out, it said a lot.”
The players knew from the start that the hockey program at Rensselaer was different from that of many other Division I schools, mostly due to how tightly-knit the relationships between the players and staff and the players themselves are. Barr, one of the team’s captains, really emphasized how important that was to him.
“You get to meet all sorts of people, and everyone cares, and you can really tell that. It’s unlike other programs where you’ve got 30-35 guys on a team, they’ve got guys coming in and out left and right. Whereas here, everyone’s close ... they tell you up front what’s expected of you, and that’s the way it’s going to be. They don’t pull any moves on you, and it’s a good place to be.”
Marsters echoed this sentiment, and was grateful that the program allowed him to get to know “everything about everybody,” and that “they treat you real well, and the supporters of the program treat you like you’re their son. It’s one big happy family.”
And a happy family wouldn’t be complete without the usual pranks? There is certainly no shortage of those among the seniors, and Basiuk seemed proud in saying that “we’re a little tighter than a bunch of buddies, and nobody’s exempt from the jokes,” which included “shaving cream in the skates and gloves, and the garbage can pails on the doors. You’d fill a trash can up with water, and lean it on the door, and when they open it, they get 10 gallons of water splashed everywhere.”
Barr even remembered an incident involving two seniors from last year that made everyone burst into laughter. “I got all my tires on my car taken off, and put on blocks ... that was Danny [Eberly] and Carson [Butterwick] who graduated last year. But I put a big leaner on their door.”
All fun aside, the seniors always worked hard and reaped the rewards of their work on the ice. Naturally, they all remember the Freakouts as being among their favorite on-ice moments, mostly because, as Basiuk put it, “we always seem to pull it off.” This, of course, refers to the team’s 14-game unbeaten streak in the Big Red Freakout.
These seniors have gone 3-0-1 in the Freakout, including a pair of come-from-behind wins against Clarkson, and an overtime win against Brown last year, in which Shields was the hero, despite his disbelief at the time.
“I couldn’t really believe it. I knew time was running out, so I just threw the puck at the net, and thank God it went in. That’s a memory I’ll have for the rest of my life. Every day, seeing the picture of the celebration here in the Field House reminds me that that was something. I’ll have the memory with me, and always cherish it.”
Barnes believed the same about the Freakouts, that “they’re a lot of fun, and easy to get up for.”
Many of them have memories from this year in particular. Barnes remembered the feeling he had during the season opener, at Boston University. “It’s senior year, the start of something new. It was pretty exciting, and I was ready for that.”
Barr is content with the team’s effort, so far, noting that “we got a couple of wins we don’t usually get,” referring to the 2-0 shutout of Cornell at Ithaca, in particular. “This time we really dominated, and handed it to them. They didn’t even score.”
The atmosphere at Lynah Rink at Cornell is notorious for its effect on opposing teams, but the thought of it didn’t seem to bother these seniors too much. Hammarstrom even referred to it as a “fun place to play. A hard place to win, but a fun place to play.”
Marsters, too, offered another barn than Cornell: “Dartmouth is the worst place. We played them a lot, and we played them in Placid, and we’ve never won there.”
While the comments of the players reflect on how well they think the program has treated them, their attitudes also reflect how well the program has trained them, both mentally and physically.
When asked about their possible future plans they may have for the future, they all responded alike—that they weren’t thinking too much about it. Barnes said that the farthest he is looking “is March ... we’ve worked hard, and we’ll be disappointed if we don’t make a run.”
Marsters was also pretty firm in stating where his focus was. “We can’t look ahead. Nobody’s looking past Friday.”
The senior class will lead the team on the road this weekend against Princeton and Yale, in what will be their final regular season games. They will be hoping to build momentum heading into the playoffs.
Whatever outcome on the ice, win or lose, these seniors will certainly be winners in many respects, having formed strong bonds with their teammates and supporters. The effort and energy they bring to the team, the program, and the school as a whole will certainly be missed in the years to come.
