Johnnie club hockey sits at the halfway mark in their regular season

The SJU Club Hockey team has played nine games so far this 2025-26 campaign. Starting with a 5-4 record, the team is looking to keep winning going forward during the 20-game season. Senior defenseman Sam Mancino credited all the leaders that the team has and how it is crucial to have them.

“[I] myself [am a leader] at practice to help get things organized. Michael O’Rourke gets the buses for the games and practices. Carter and Noah Hermanson and Jack Lewin are all presidents who help book the hotel rooms, schedule games and help communicate everything that needs to be communicated,” Mancino said.

Each player has their own strengths and Mancino highlighted his own going into the season.

“I would say my hockey IQ and my vision [are my strengths]; being able to find players in good positions too,” Mancino said.

When asked what the goals were for the team this year, Mancino gave a unique response.

“Just to have fun. The whole point of it is to have fun, meet new people and play hockey. Obviously winning games is fun, so winning games makes it more fun,” Macino said.

Macino emphasized the team atmosphere as being an important factor for the team this season.

“We all get along, I would say it is much easier to play with each other when we all get along. We have a lot of really good young guys who are very skilled and can score goals. Also, a lot of old guys who can play and know how to play club hockey. It is a little different from high school hockey and we can set an example for the younger guys and that is our job,” Mancino said.

Senior center Abe Melek said is glad that he made the decision to play club hockey and found out about the team through word of mouth.

“I talked to the hockey coach when I got here and he told me we have a club hockey team. Also, in high school we trained at Velocity Training Center and one of the trainers there went to St. John’s and played club hockey and he recommended it to me,” Melek said.

Melek also highlighted the difference between playing for club hockey as opposed to varsity hockey.

“We don’t cut anybody. Way less time-consuming because we practice twice a week so you do not have to commit very much time to it. We also do not require players to play juniors before playing for the team,” Melek said.

Adding onto the time put in for playing club hockey, the team does not hold mandatory workouts.

“We do not require workouts. We practice Mondays and Wednesdays and a bunch of the guys on the team do lift together, but we do not have a required workout outside of hockey,” Melek said.

Melek reflected on what parts of the club hockey experience have been his favorite.

“Definitely still being able to play competitive hockey. Intramural hockey is really fun but being able to play against other schools, it brings out that competitive edge that you have. The team camaraderie is also really fun to have,” Melek said.

The SJU club hockey team continues its season this Friday, Nov. 21 at Jamestown University in North Dakota for its mid-season match. Beyond the wins and losses, the team looks to make the most out of their season by having fun and being around each other.