When you ask Oregon club hockey player Jesse Leonard what his most vivid memory growing up with new teammates Trevor Shott and Sam Rosenberg is, the answer might surprise you.
“Maybe Sammy’s Bar Mitzvah?” he said. “It was huge and I had never really been to one.”
Of course, Rosenberg remembers the special day, too. He notes that Leonard, Shott and their teammates from their pee-wee hockey team showed up earlier than everyone else and that the after-party included a hockey game at midnight that took place at the local rink.
The trio spent a lot of their time growing up by playing hockey together in their hometown of Portland. While traveling to games and logging many hours of practice at the rink, the three certainly have memories to share and are on the track to make more.
This season, Rosenberg and Shott join Leonard on UO’s club hockey team. Shott, who transferred from Lake Forest College in Illinois and Rosenberg who was the final cut on last year’s roster, are enjoying the fact that they are all sporting the same uniform again.
With their families originating from Canada, they went with what Shott calls “the Canadian stereotype” and began skating at a young age.
However, in Portland, the hockey scene was not as popular compared to other sports and required traveling in order to compete.
“There is not a lot of hockey here. We were the only team from Oregon that I knew of, at the time,” Shott said. “Any of the games we played, we had to go up to Washington, over to Idaho or down to California.”
The grueling travel brought the three boys, and their families, closer.
“When you spend nine hours in a car from San Jose to Portland, you get to know people,” Rosenberg said.
The commitment and passion for the sport also sparked a friendship.
“We were all pretty good friends,” Shott said. “Being the only ones in our area to play hockey, we had that instant one thing that connected us and that we could talk about and bond over.”
That bond has continued into their college years and has made the transition to playing with the Ducks easier for both Shott and Rosenberg.
“Definitely knowing somebody going into it helped me out,” Shott said. “I asked Jesse a bunch of questions over summer just to try to get a feel and what the season was going to be like and how the team was going to be and get an understanding of what this level was like compared to when we were younger. It was very helpful.”
For Rosenberg, he says that already being friends with Shott is helpful when it comes to doing rookie duties and getting rides to practice.
According to Leonard, none of the guys have changed since they were kids.
Rosenberg is still goofy and easy going. Shott is quiet, but funny, once you get to know him. Rosenberg said Leonard is willing to do anything for anyone and is a great guy on and off the ice.
They also have respect for each other’s hockey skills adding that each player brings something different and valuable to the team.
“I never really expected to play with them in college,” Leonard said. “But it’s pretty cool that we are.”