Saint Mary's University of Minnesota Athletics

Everyone tells you that saying goodbye to the competitive sport you love will be a challenge, but it never sinks in until the actual day arrives. It feels like just yesterday I was playing on my first hockey team, and that I had many years ahead of me. There are so many memories, friendships, and lessons I have acquired over the years that I will truly treasure forever.

I would like to start off by thanking my dad for being the biggest influence on my hockey career. I thank you for making the switch from coaching boy’s hockey to girls and for molding me into the player I am today. I apologize for you having to put up with all of my crazy antics and the quirks that go along with coaching us girls. You have been a great sport through it all and have been there to help me grow. I will treasure the special bond we developed from spending so much time together on our drives to the rink, our many hours on the ice, and our weekends together at away tournaments. I am so grateful to have been taught by such an amazing person who has the utmost knowledge of the game, and I hope to one day be as wonderful of a coach as you were. You will always be my daddy sweet-boy, and I will always be your favorite daughter.

Mom, I thank you for being the rock throughout my hockey career. You were always there to pick me up when times got hard and to help me grow through the good experiences and the bad. I appreciate you being there to hold me when I needed it the most and for knowing the right thing to say to make everything better. You gave me so much strength and helped instill dedication and commitment into all of my pursuits. You helped shape me into the person I am today and have given me great values to live for. I am so lucky to have a mom who would go out of her way to make it to every game of mine and who did anything to make sure I was in good spirits. I thank you immensely for giving up so much of your time so that I could pursue my passions. You are my biggest fan and it means the world to me to have had you there supporting me for all of these years.

Andy, thank you for putting up with our hockey crazed family, and for being there for me through the years. You dealt with a lot, and I know it wasn’t your passion, but it means a lot that you were still very supportive and intuitive to my dreams. I look up to you so much, and you are the first person I call when I need advice — because you always know exactly what to do. You are an amazing big brother, and I appreciate all that you have done for me.

Tom, thank you for influencing me to be the player I am today. I looked up to you growing up and always wanted to be just like you. Thank you for supporting me and teaching me how to be a great hockey player. You gave me so many skills to follow, and were such a great role model to me. I am thankful for the friendship we have had over the years, and for having such great footsteps to follow in. You are a wonderful father, and your children are very lucky to have such an amazing athlete to teach them the game of hockey.

Jim, thank you for being there for me and for putting up with all of my crap. You are an amazing brother and best friend, and I treasure how close we have become. Having you at school this year has made for one of the best years of my life, and has shown me how hard it will be to be away from you in the years to come. I know we will always stay very close as we continue to grow, and I thank you for always having my back. You inspire me to have the drive to be great, you intrigue me to be competitive, and you never cease to amaze me. You are a very talented person, and I have the utmost confidence that you are destined for great things.

Tim, thank you for supporting me in life and for always being there for me. Thank you for being there to listen, and to help me through the good times and the bad. You are such an amazing person, and I am so grateful to have you in my life. I love that we share the same passion for sports, and I know you will challenge me to continue to be active the rest of my life.

Grandpa, thank you so much for instilling such great hockey values within me and for being supportive. I know you were never able to make it to many games because of the distance, but I appreciate how much you cared about my hockey career. I will never forget having you and Granny visit me in Niagara Falls for my games freshman year and the great memories we shared there, that trip meant everything to me. Thank you for being such a wonderful man, I will always miss you, and you will be cherished forever.

Grandma, thank you for being such a great support to me throughout my hockey career. I loved having you at so many of my games growing up and knowing how much I could count on you. You have always been such a big part of my life, and I treasure all of the times we have had together. We share a very special bond, and I am so grateful for that. It has been hard having you so far away the past few years, but it means everything to me to know that you have found someone very special who makes you so happy. Thank you for everything you do for me.

Aunt Belle and Uncle Marque, thank you for being an amazing fan base at my games. I was so lucky to have such a wonderful family who was so supportive, always rooting me on. I will never forget the sound of the conch shell cheering me on!

To my teammates (past and present) — thank you for always being there for me, and for giving me a wonderful hockey experience. I could have never made it this far without all of you, and I will treasure all of the friends and great memories I have gained over the years. You are amazing people, and I wish you the best of luck in your future endeavors.

Terry Mannor, thank you for helping me to grow into the player I am today. You have been there for the majority of my hockey career, and I thank you for giving me such great knowledge of the game. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to play for you collegiately. You have been a big influence on my life, and I thank you for that.
Thank you to everyone who has supported me over the years, and thank you for all of the wonderful memories you have given me. I will never forget all of my incredible experiences, the places I have traveled to, the people I met along the way, and the knowledge I have acquired. It is so hard to say goodbye to the sport I love, but I look at it as not an end but a knew beginning. Hockey will stay with me for the rest of my life, and will always be a game I love.