Photo Credit: Charlotte Rush

Hear from Elite Head Coach and Premier Assistant Coach Trevor Kleckner on a great weekend for the Rush that saw some big things for them on and off the ice with Premier Goalie Devin Stevens committing to Bethel University for next year.

“1. Talk about the weekend that both teams had:

ELITE

I’m extremely proud of the efforts of the elite team this past weekend. To take 3 straight wins against a Hampton Roads team that prides themselves in compete and also has one of the best goaltenders in the league, was awesome to see. What I was also proud of was our resiliency to come back in Saturday’s game and win in overtime and also come back in Monday’s game to win in a shootout. Both of those games were against goaltender Jean Berthaudin, who has the best save percentage in this league. On monday we were without our top three goal scorers who had earned premier time as well. All year long we’ve said that we’re always in every game no matter the score and we’ve had some great comebacks that have fallen short. This weekend we turned a corner and proved we can come back in a game and then finish it off with a win. To win games like this at this time of the year is very rewarding to see and should give us all the confidence in the world heading into playoffs.

PREMIER

Premier had a dominant showing all weekend with a total of 16 goals for and only 1 goal against. Saturday and Sunday we had very good showings but as a staff we did not feel the team was dominating enough. Both those days we got off to slow starts and eventually came around to score plenty enough to win. On Monday, they came out with four goals in the first period and that’s the type of start we’ve wanted all season long. Down the stretch in the playoffs you want to put teams down early and you don’t want to be the team chasing a comeback. Monday we also did a great job of sticking up for our teammates which was something that we’ve been waiting to see, as this group has come together more closely than ever.

2. On the elite side talk about how Chuck Norris has developed as a person since he came to your program and his vision.

Chucky was a great addition last season, joining the Elite team late in the year and getting his feet wet in junior hockey. We knew there was a ton of potential and it was only a matter of time before he would start to dominate. More important than his hockey skill, Chuck has grown tremendously as a person who is buying into our process of not only developing hockey players but young men as well. Throughout the year, it didn’t make sense for Chuck to play premier at limited minutes when he could play plenty of minutes on Elite in every situation. Monday we had an opportunity to give him a shot and he took full advantage of it. 

Whether he’s on elite or premier, he works extremely hard and both teams truly enjoy having him around. On elite, he sets the standard and understands that he is expected to perform well and contribute on the scoreboard. On premier, it’s the same expectation but it has to happen at a quicker pace. It’s easy to find the motivation to play fast when you get called up, but more importantly, play at that same pace if you come back down. Chucky has done an excellent job of doing both and this weekend is surely an indication that he, Spencer Barrow, and John Tsatsoulis are the future of this organization.

3. What does the strong weekend mean for elite?

Like I said before, plenty of times this season we’ve mounted comebacks but fell short. This weekend we finally put two comebacks together and won two games that certainly had a playoff-like atmosphere. Moving forward, we have to find ways to get off to better starts. In the playoffs you don’t want to be playing from behind even if you’ve proven you can come back. Either way, the confidence of this group should be through the roof given our success. On top of the comebacks. It’s incredibly hard at any level to win three games in three days against the same opponent. On monday to be in the third game of the weekend, down our top three scorers, against one of the best goaltenders in the league, and be down 3-0 in the 3rd period and still find a way to win shows that this team is more than capable of winning a national title. 

4. For premier talk about how Devin has stepped into Nick Anderson’s role from last year and leads you guys down the stretch.

When Stevie came in last season, he was a goaltender who took a ton of pride in his work ethic. It didn’t matter if it was early in the morning coming to the rink, in between drills at practices, or even on the bench as the backup, he was always working on his game. Even after signing with the Boston Jr. Bruins in the NCDC, Stevie always told us if anything had happened or if he had gotten cut, he would be back in Charlotte immediately ready to lead this team to a national title and earn an NCAA commitment. He’s already checked one of those boxes so far and he’s ready to check the second one here in March.

5. What did Bethel see in Devin?

In recruiting Devin, Bethel was looking for a solid goaltender that could bring success to their program for years to come as well as a great young man who would represent the university well. They obviously saw him play and his stats speak for themselves, but he also would be a great reflection of Bethel’s integrity in the players they bring into the university. We could not be happier for Devin and his commitment. 

7. Talk about the next weekend up for both teams.

As much as we were extremely impressed by both team’s 3-0 performances last weekend, we’ve already turned the page to a very similar, competitive Columbia Infantry team. Both teams are mathematically eliminated from playoffs and are solely playing for pride in their future as individuals and for the pride of the organization. Teams like that can sneak up on teams and catch them overlooking the talent that they have. Our message tomorrow will be that we’ve celebrated the wins, but we’ve now turned the page to Columbia this upcoming weekend.”

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