Ricky Seidel lives and breathes hockey.
He comes from a self-described hockey family, one that includes two cousins who played Division I college hockey and parents who support his dream of playing junior hockey and beyond.
The only thing that has been able to keep him off the competitive ice lately is a rule buried in the Illinois Suburban Hockey League rule book.
“The rule is if you’re not a full-time student, you’re cut off from your team,” Seidel said. “I didn’t know that going in.”
The rule is in place to prevent underhanded tactics by teams in the league, and while a good rule to have in place in order to keep a level playing field it seems that an exception could have been made in Seidel’s case.
See, the South Elgin senior graduated early at the end of the fall semester, and while he doesn’t yet have his diploma, he is also no longer a full-time student in the eyes of the league.
It seems like an unfair way to punish a student who didn’t have a study hall in his three-and-a-half years at South Elgin.
“I don’t understand it,” Seidel said. “I get punished for being a good student and getting out early. I don’t understand it. Kids should be able to keep playing.”
What hurt Seidel and the Storm the most was that the team, which is made up of players from South Elgin, Elgin, Larkin and Streamwood, was finally finding its chemistry after years of bickering and infighting.
“When I first came to the club they definitely needed some work with their camaraderie,” third-year head coach Nick Gatrel said. “There was a lot of animosity. They were fighting on the bench and yelling at each other in the locker room. My job was to establish some cohesiveness.
“It was rough at first, but our objective was not just to win. It was to come together. There was an almost instant turnaround. I tried to get them to know each other outside of hockey. They started hanging out and going to team dinners together.”
Seidel surely had several friends in hockey prior to joining the Storm (he plays travel hockey with the Northwest Chargers). But once his teammates put the animosity aside, he made a few more.
“I didn’t really know many of those kids,” Seidel said of his Storm teammates. “Then we started playing together and seeing each other around school. It was definitely a fun experience. I’d say there’s two or three kids I got really close with who I’ll stay really close with.”
Staying close with his Storm teammates may soon become more difficult for Seidel. He plans on trying his hand at junior hockey. If that doesn’t work out, he will probably attend Elgin Community College or try to land a Division I scholarship.
Earning a college scholarship is never easy, but Seidel can get some advice from family members who have been through the process.
One cousin, Bobby Nardella, earned a Division I scholarship to Ferris State University in Michigan before a stint playing in Europe and eight seasons with the Chicago Wolves.
Another cousin, Mike Seidel, recently earned a college scholarship to Division I Minnesota Duluth.
The work ethic that led to his early graduation will certainly help Seidel as his hockey career progresses.
“I’m working out five days a week to build muscle, and I’m working on my stickhandling and shooting,” Seidel said. “It all starts off the ice. Then when you get better, you take it on the ice.
By the numbers
2 Number of cousins who played Division I college hockey
2 Years spent on Storm varsity team
27 Assists for South Elgin this season
32 Goals this season
