ORONO, Maine — Every youth player dreams of playing Division One college hockey., but few lace up the skates at a primer program and even fewer wear the jersey of their home school.
University of Maine senior defenseman and Bowdoinham native Taylor Leech is one of those few.
“It’s definitely always been a dream to represent your state. It's a fantastic feeling every day to put on that jersey," she said.
After playing hockey at North Yarmouth Academy and Hebron Academy, Leech was invited to the U.S. National Development Camp in Minnesota, an elite recruitment opportunity for some of the nation's best high school players.
UMaine Head Coach Richard Reichenbach happened to be one of Leech's coaches at camp. It didn't take much convincing for Leech to commit to Orono.
Jack Quinlivan's journey to campus was a little different. The Shrewsbury, Massachusetts, native played four years of high school hockey at the local public school. Quinlivan knew that wasn't a successful route to playing big-time college hockey but he wanted to play with his friends, his twin brother, and be part of the community.
After graduating, he played junior hockey and focused on his game as he tried to get noticed by a college coach.
"Sure enough, I got to a point where I was excelling well and doing well at hockey and I was just in the right place at the right time one weekend and Maine saw me and they liked what they saw," Quinlivan said.
The two Black Bears arrived on campus in 2017. Over a Zoom call Friday, the two said their games have improved since that first year in Orono.
As they developed into better players on the ice, their teammates and head coaches realized they had true leadership qualities off the ice.
Leech and Quinlivan were voted captains of their respective teams for the 2020-2021 season.
“I have dreamed of playing for Maine and to be captain for such an amazing group of girls and such a strong program, it’s such an honor to see the 'C' on my jersey every game," Leech said. "The feeling never goes away."
"It was definitely an honor," Quinlivan said.
Both student-athletes knew this year was going to be a challenge. For many weeks, they were unsure whether UMaine's league, Hockey East, would have a season.
Then, more weeks of waiting to see whether university officials would let the teams play against opponents in the new modified schedule.
The good news is both Black Bear squads hit the ice this season. The bad news is that all regular-season games were played on the road, 33 total between the two teams.
The men's team earned a home playoff game under the new Hockey East playoff format.
UMaine played the University of New Hampshire in the first round of the single-elimination tournament but lost 7-2 in the only home game for either program, at Alfond Arena.
The road games, COVID-19 guidelines and protocols, quarantines, and everything in between made this a unique season for the two leaders of UMaine hockey.
“I know in this pandemic so many of us have had so many different challenges and this was the challenge for us," Quinlivan said.
“Everybody was so driven and motivated and so lucky to be playing hockey when so many people weren’t able to," Leech added.
The women's team dubbed itself the 'Road Warriors' after making a push in its postseason.
UMaine defeated Vermont 3-1 in the opening round and took No. 9 ranked Providence College into overtime in the semifinals.
“It was a hard loss, but everybody is already looking forward to next season and what we can do," Leech said.
The team was on the road for 18 games and Leech said she and her teammates used those bus rides to bond with each other especially when COVID protocols limited the student-athletes from being with each other in-person after games or practices.
When a positive case was identified and the team was forced to quarantine, Leech said they would zoom with each other, play virtual games, and FaceTime each other when they'd do apartment workouts.
The men's team also dealt with the harsh reality of positive COVID-19 cases. Quinlivan said he was in quarantine multiple times but all that stress went away when he was clear to lace 'em back up.
“It was tough but as soon as we put the sweaters on, we gave it our all, there’s no doubt about that," he added.
The men only played in 16 games this season which made it tough for many players to develop their skills throughout the year. Especially when the team was benched for weeks at a time, multiple times during the season.
“I had to kind of reboot myself and get myself into hockey shape you know each time I was in quarantine," Quinlivan added.
Now, the two will have a whole summer and fall to reboot and improve their skating, puckhandling, and passing. Due to COVID-19, the NCAA granted an eligibility waiver to all student-athletes in any division who were on a roster this past fall and winter.
Hopefully, Leech and the women's team can play in the Alfond this season. Player's on both programs also hope for those crazed fans to be allowed back in the building next year.
“It is very unique and very special, and I hope I get to do it next year with the 'C' on my chest if that’s what the team wants," Leech said.
"I couldn’t leave on a sour taste like that, it didn’t feel real so I’m excited to come back," Quinlivan said.
Now the two team leaders will go into the offseason knowing that this upcoming season is the last chance they'll have to win a Hockey East championship.