In 2018 my first mental battle started for me. That year’s hockey season was my draft year to the OHL (Ontario Hockey League). As an Ontario kid, that’s all I ever dreamed of, other than the NHL of course. I moved home to play on a better hockey team, and in the first period of the first game of the season I get my wrist shattered. Completely broken in one spot, fractured in another and completely dislocated my hand from my wrist, brutal. It’s weird what a physical injury does to an athlete. After surgery, the physical recovery was about six months until I got playing again, but mentally, I’m still not back. I was only able to play eight of 52 games that year. Safe to say I didn’t get drafted. It was a very tough time for me in my life. For the next two years, I had zero confidence as a player, honestly thought about completely quitting hockey. But then something happened. I had belief in me, not from myself, but from others. The coach of a team in Greeley, Colorado gave me and my brother an opportunity for a new beginning. The mental and physical drainage of a college athlete is not talked about enough. Don’t get me wrong, anyone can deal with mental and physical health issues, but as a college athlete, there is no such thing as days off. We can’t take breaks and come back to it, or you fall behind and let your teammates down. School has to be our priority, as you not only obviously have to pass to stay eligible to play, but because education leads to a better future. The workload of a college athlete would put anyone physically and mentally in the gutter, but with the proper support behind you like we have here at UD, doesn’t make it breezy, but makes it very manageable. With the help of your generosity, athletes such as myself are able to get the support that we need to perform at our best, and in my case, the ability to go to college. I cannot thank you enough for the mental stability and assistance that you are giving my family and me! In your honor, I aspire to be my very best every day on the ice and in the classroom. Thank you for helping me through my journey and inspiring my story!
