By Julia Parmley
The GW ice hockey team gives a new meaning to the expression “keeping it in the family.”
All four of the team’s coaches are former players for the Colonials. Head Coach Tim Schliftman’s brother Matt helped found the team in 1995, and Coach David Baratta’s father was a former coach for the Colonials.
Junior Taylor Guidon, team president, says his teammates are his best friends on campus.
Maybe it’s the intensity of the game—sticks flying, bodies slamming against each other, all in pursuit of a small, black rubber disk. Or maybe it’s the way teammates protect each other on the ice, giving the competition an extra hard hit against the rink walls when there’s unfair play.
Whatever the reason, the GW club team is a close-knit team of all ages and experiences — and they’re pretty darn good too.
In their first year competing in the Atlantic Coast Collegiate Hockey League (ACCHL) within the Southeastern Division II Conference of the American Collegiate Hockey Association, GW hockey is 3-3.
Competition in the ACCHL is stiff, with the likes of the University of Virginia, University of Maryland and Duke University, but Mr. Guidon says the team is prepared. With new team jerseys and rivalries, he says it’s a sort of “rebirth” for the team.
“We hope it brings more fans to the games,” he says.
The 23-member team—coached by Mr. Schliftman, B.A.’05, Dan Pollock, B.A.’09, Coach Baratta, B.A.’09, and Jon Moynihan, B.B.A.’10 —holds practices at Fort Dupont Ice Arena in Southeast and this year will travel as far as North Carolina for games.
Although the team graduated 11 seniors last year, team members are pleased with their new lineup and have high hopes for the upcoming season.
“We had 14 new players make the team, and we were very pleased with their level of play,” said Coach Baratta. “Between all the new and returning talent and the move to a more competitive league, this should be one of the most exciting seasons in recent GW hockey history.”
One of the most exciting match ups will occur when the Colonials face Georgetown University this Saturday, Oct. 16, at 7 p.m. at Kettler Capitals IcePlex, located off the orange line in the Ballston Common Mall in Arlington, Va. The game is free and the team hopes members of the GW community come out to support.
“We look forward to making a mark in the ACCHL this year beginning with one of the biggest games in GW history against Georgetown, one of our fiercest rivals,” says Coach Pollock.
Recent support from Robert Chernak, Ed.D. ’97, senior vice president of student and academic support services, and Director of Recreational Sports Aubre Jones, has allowed the team to increase its recruitment and awareness around the university and city.
And awareness is a big deal for this growing team. Coach Baratta says the potential is there for the hockey program to become a varsity GW sport.
“I enjoy sharing my hockey experiences with the new players to help them compete, and I enjoy working with the school, the league and alumni to build the program and attract new student-athletes,” he says. “GW treated me well, and I see this as my way to give back to a university program that was a major part of my GW experience.”
And for many players, including Mr. Guidon, hockey has been a major part of their lives.
Mr. Guidon began playing in second grade, saying he was drawn to the game’s competitiveness, sportsmanship and intensity.
“I’ve played baseball and soccer, but after playing hockey I thought of hockey as so much more intense and exciting,” he says. “And your hockey team is one of strongest bonds you make, on and off the ice. You create very strong friendships playing.”
At 3 years old, Head Coach Schliftman knew he loved hockey. With an ice rink 10 minutes away from his family’s home and a father with season tickets to the New York Rangers, he says he “lived on the ice.”
“Hockey requires speed, hand-eye coordination, skill, hitting and strategy— it’s not a dumb man’s game,” says Coach Schliftman. “You really need to have some smarts to play the game; you need to see the ice and see what everyone else is doing because it’s crowded out there. It’s a quick, hard-paced, high octane game, and I can’t imagine anyone not loving it.”
Coach Schliftman has a different view of the game now that he’s been the team’s head coach since 2008, but says being behind the bench has been a fun experience.
“It’s another way of looking at the game and I’ve enjoyed it a lot,” he says.
Coach Baratta says the team has grown “leaps and bounds” since he was a player from 2005 to 2009. A former high school and high-level travel hockey player, he says he joined GW’s hockey team because of their level of play and organization.
“The best part about club hockey is that the guys playing aren’t doing it to reach some higher level of hockey,” says Coach Baratta. “They’re doing it for the love of the game, to represent their school, to win, and most importantly to have a good time. It’s especially great when we play games at Kettler or the Verizon Center, because then we get to have fans and they always really get into it.”
For Coach Pollock, a goalie for the Colonials from 2005-08, the all-alumni staff is a testament of their passion for both the game and the development of GW’s program.
“We’ve seen a lot of growth in the last five years and we're not stopping any time soon,” says Coach Pollock. “While hockey fans in D.C. were once a rare breed, with the success of the Washington Capitals and the huge number of expats from northern states, D.C. is transforming into quite a hockey town. We hope GW can play an integral role in that development moving forward.”