In September of last year, I mentioned that my grad school–DePaul University in Chicago–has an ACHA Division 2 hockey team. Since attending their first game, I have covered the team throughout the season for the school newspaper, The DePaulia.
It’s cool being a hockey writer, even if it was for what one might consider the “minor league” of college hockey (DePaul does not have an NCAA hockey team, just ACHA “club” hockey).
But to me, hockey is hockey. I wrote quite a bit about the Chicago Wolves when I was an undergrad, and put the same effort into it as if I were covering the Blackhawks. Same deal here. When you love a sport, you always want to do your best to “spread the word” and try to win over a few new fans for it.
Speaking of winning, DePaul’s hockey team had a winning season. They won both games at the Regional Tournament, then went 2-1 at the National Championships, finishing 7th. Mind you, only 16 out of 170 Division 2 teams make it to the Nationals, so that places DePaul within the top 5 percent of teams nationwide.
After that, a few of their players were invited to the All-Star tournament, capping off a very successful season for the team.
Of course, it’s always easier to cover or follow a winning team than a losing team. Win or lose, I plan on covering the team next season too.