By Alana Mohan
With the Western New England men’s hockey season coming to an end, it’s time to give a little appreciation to one of their star players. Shane Miller, who started playing hockey at four years old, didn’t know he had such a long, fantastic journey ahead of him. Miller attended Rocksbury High School in New Jersey, playing hockey for all four years there. Once graduated, Miller went on to play two years of junior hockey for the New Jersey Rockets. After playing another year for the Boston Bandits, Miller searched for a college-level team that felt right for him.
When asked why he chose Western New England University, Miller stated it was because of the “absolutely stunning campus with a hockey culture that I wanted to be a part of.” With the COVID-19 pandemic putting a hold on the 2020-2021 season, this was Miller’s first season playing face to face with their competitive competition. This season, Miller had received third-team all-conference, led the conference in defensive points, was third in the league for assists, and even led his team in points. Miller wanted to thank his teammates for being the backbone that allowed him to receive these titles. “They pushed me to my limits every practice and are always there working hard in games, not only to help me but to help the team as a whole.”
Miller describes himself as a “defensive player with an offensive presence who likes to join the rush and create offense.” As a defenseman, Miller has “a pass-first mentality coming into the offensive zone.” This type of mentality made it possible for Miller to accomplish what he has this season. Miller’s way of creating an exciting and successful game is to “take control of the game by having patience with the puck, skating up the ice, and slowing down the game.” This season brought some new changes to the Golden Bears men’s hockey team.
A new coach, Mike Young, has joined the community.“Having a new coach was a fresh beginning; I really liked his style of coaching. He had a lot of trust in me and made my sophomore year unforgettable.” Having a new coach can be a tough adjustment, but it seems as though Young provided the team with a safe and easy transition. Miller described this season as “a little bit of a roller coaster- we had a good start but slowed down toward the end of the year.” For any team, a season off means many adjustments must be made for them to get back into a groove. “We have a young team, and we’re on the up-and-up. Big things to come,” claims Miller.
When asked about next season, Miller expects to “build a winning culture for the team. We gained a lot of experience playing some top-ranked teams in the country, which was bittersweet but will allow us to grow in the years to come.” Miller also gave some insight on the last game of the season. “It was sad that the season had ended, but you have to put that behind you. You have to take away from all the positives and start preparing for next season as we’re coming in hungry. We’ve learned from the negatives.” Although Miller has made it clear that he could not have done this without his amazing teammates, there is one more person that he wanted to thank separately. “Shoutout to my mom for always being there for me. I love you, mommy!”
