The Deutsche Eishockey Liga has plenty of selling points. Geographically, it puts you in the middle of Europe. Germany is a successful and stable country on the world stage.
The English language is largely based off the Germanic, and a large chunk of the German population can speak the newer, jumbled version of its tongue. Hockey-wise, among the European leagues, the DEL offers one of the most competitive environments. Able to and allowed to recruit numerous import players, the top German league leaves plenty of room for North American talent.
One of the most consistent exporters of such talent is Hockey East. Starting with Maine in 1993, Hockey East has won nine national championships. Sean Sullivan (BU), Maury Edwards (UMass Lowell), Mike Collins (Merrimack) and Tyler Kelleher (UNH) crossed paths little during their days in the conference. Sullivan, the lone member of the group born before the conference even held its first game, missed all of them. Edwards was rounding out his career with the River Hawks when Collins came in to keep Merrimack from being a flash in the pan.
Meanwhile, Kelleher battled against Collins in the latter’s last two regular-season games. Now, they are all united in Ingolstadt, Germany, and working together with one goal.
A standout at St. Sebastian’s School and BU, Boston native Sullivan seemed on track for a solid professional career back home. The Phoenix Coyotes draft pick earned his way onto the AHL squad in his first professional season. In the next, he found his offensive game, leading all San Antonio Rampage defensemen in scoring with 32 points. The next season saw an even bigger leap, as he jumped to 49 points. This prompted the San Jose Sharks to bring him into their system. Despite the AHL success, Sullivan never touched NHL ice. Nearing 30 and coming off of a frustrating season with Lake Erie, in 2013 Sullivan finally decided to take his game to Europe.
It almost ended as quickly. Sullivan joked about his “quick cup of coffee in Sweden.” Sullivan lasted just 10 games with Modo. “It was just not a good situation for the imports,” he recounted. “Five of us went there, and four of us left before Christmas.” Before Sullivan had to come crawling back to North America or resign himself to a lower European league, an offer came in from Straubing. It has been life altering. “It was nice for me to kind of land on my feet in Germany,” he said, thankful, “and I’ve been here ever since.”
Edwards, the member of the quartet not originally from New England, turned a strong Canadian junior career into interest from UMass Lowell. Edwards didn’t hint at any epiphanous moment that brought him across the continent, he just wanted to keep playing. “At the time, it just felt right,” he stated. “I thought that I would fit in there well.” A driving offensive force from the blue line, Edwards fit in marvelously. His 11 goals as a sophomore were more than Sullivan totaled in four years at BU. He would finish his career with 79 points. Although he didn’t get to reap the benefits as a back-to-back Hockey East champion, Edwards was a key part of turning UMass into a consistent, yearly threat.
Professionally, things did not come as easily. Edwards spent the bulk of his time in the ECHL, managing just 13 AHL games in two-plus seasons. He was being shipped around a lot, and it was growing tiresome. Without the kind of deep résumé that Sullivan had, Edwards had to prove himself before ascending to Germany’s top tier. In two seasons in the second league, Edwards led his team’s defensemen in scoring each time. Straubing, the same team that had given Sullivan his chance, signed Edwards for the 2015-16 season.
When Collins, also a Boston native, was looking to enhance his game on the ice, he took himself far from the eyes of Hockey East scouts. Collins put up over a point a game during two seasons in the British Columbia Hockey League, capping his tenure there with a championship. That kind of pedigree was, of course, welcomed in North Andover. With Stephane da Costa putting the finishing touches on his career, Merrimack was going to need to replace some elite scoring. Putting up 30 points as a freshman, Collins showed right away that he was ready to pick up that mantle. He registered at least 10 goals in each of his four seasons, led the team in scoring as a junior and senior, and joined the century club, racking up 118 points in his Warriors career. Collins had helped keep Merrimack’s momentum rolling.
Not surprisingly, those numbers earned Collins the spring tryout following his senior season. However, even just those 10 games (with Providence and Iowa) had painted a grim picture of minor-league life. Not given his normal top-line role, Collins struggled to match his accustomed production. “I just had a sour taste in my mouth, I guess you could say,” he admitted. “It just didn’t go well for me.” So, like Edwards, he made his move to the German second league. “I thought there was decent opportunity for me to come over here and try to play at a high level and make a living off of it.” Collins made it nearly impossible for a DEL team not to sign him. In his one season with Kassel, he led the team across the offensive board, also topping the league in scoring. Krefeld wasted no time in adding him to their roster.
At UNH, Kelleher (Longmeadow, Mass.) conjured memories of Darren Haydar. The diminutive forward had a quieter start (16 points as a freshman), but then exploded into the spotlight. Following his junior season, he already had cracked the century club. In his final go-around, Kelleher tied for the nationwide lead in scoring, adding 63 more points to finish with 167 for his career. Unlike Haydar, though, Kelleher wasn’t prepared to make a career out of chasing AHL records. After splitting last season between Milwaukee and Texas, Kelleher already had sensed he might need a different path. “Last year wasn’t that great a season for me. I didn’t really get to play the way that I’m good at playing, and feel I wasn’t really given much of an opportunity,” Kelleher observed about his first year as a pro. “Over here fits my game style. It’s a more fun and better way for me to develop.”
Having three other Hockey East, as well as DEL, veterans to help him along also has been beneficial. With six years, each, in Germany, Sullivan and Edwards are quite accustomed to the league. Neither has felt much of an urge to find a new country. “It’s kind of a feel like you’re back home,” Sullivan commented. “The German guys are great. It’s all English in the locker room. With the cities and the arenas, it seems a lot like back home.” Edwards, too, struggled to justify a move. “To be honest, I guess it’s maybe a little bit of comfort, just knowing where everything is when you go to the grocery store and things like that.”
Ingolstadt is hoping that touch of familiarity continues to reap benefits. Collins, productive since making the jump, has reached an even higher gear this season. The team’s scoring leader likely will have already topped his DEL highs across the board by the time this magazine gets printed. In his prime, but also a seasoned DEL vet, Collins has a stronger grasp of how to find success. “I definitely have a bigger role on the team,” he said. “I feel like I’m seeing things differently this year, and definitely progressing as a player.” That is a scary thought, considering Edwards has long been sold on his vision. “He’s a player I’ve never seen panic. I can remember when I was at Lowell … I remember (Merrimack’s) power play and just how smooth it was. Maybe, I can see why now.”
Collins had equal praise for Edwards, the team’s leading scorer from the back end. “Mr. Edwards is a very, very sneaky good player,” Collins praised. “He does everything right. He’s got a big-time shot for a skinny, tall guy. He’s probably one of the most underrated guys in this league.” Coming to town with that kind of offense, Edwards’ presence pushed Sullivan into a more defensive role. Sullivan will almost assuredly finish with his lowest output since coming to Germany, but the trophy-hungry veteran has embraced his defensive role. “It’s an adjustment,” he acknowledged. “The itch (to jump) is always there, especially on the big ice. I’m trying to hammer home defense first.” That’s not to say he can’t still contribute. On a night where Sullivan potted a goal, Edwards joked, “I’m sure he’ll be in my ear about that.”
It’s that kind of jocularity that might prove key to Ingolstadt’s success. Ask many former collegians playing in Europe about their careers, and many lament the absence of their collegiate camaraderie. These guys might not have played together, but you can sense a Hockey East unity that has made them fast friends. “Everybody knows where everybody played,” Sullivan stated. “There’s still that rivalry. Everyone’s chirping each other.” The rivalry might still exist, superficially, off the ice, but on it, the Terrier, River Hawk, Wildcat and Warrior are all Panthers. Collins denied having a Merrimack chip on his shoulder as he tries to hold Kelleher and Edwards at bay for the team scoring lead. “You played Hockey East somewhere, that’s always a great accomplishment. You always got to be proud of where you come from. You never forget culture, and it’s kind of what made you who you are,” Collins said.
Kelleher, for his part, also denies any urge to not be outdone by a former conference rival. “We don’t think about that. We’re all really good friends, and we all want to support each other. All we really care about is winning games.”
The winning has come and gone for this team, but they’ve done enough of it to stay in the playoff mix. With those four as a core, it’s hard to believe they would fall out of it. As Collins confessed, “My move over here (from Krefeld) was I wanted to win. I felt Ingolstadt had a better chance.”
“It’s a really good hockey league,” Kelleher confirmed. “Every team’s good. There’s a lot of parity in the league.”
Edwards is well aware of that, but he counts his team among the strongest. “The skill level and the competitive level that this team has … is really strong. We have a good team here. There’s a lot of really good guys to hang out with every day and come to practice every day and work hard for.”
Sullivan is equally as optimistic: “We’re a bit of a more offensive group. We could do some real damage in the playoffs. This team won it four years ago. It’s been done here. The culture’s here.”
Organizations get a lot of credit for culture, but it’s really the players who create or maintain it. These four were essential to the winning cultures at their respective schools. If Ingolstadt does reach the peak of the German league, you can bet these Hockey East alumni will be a major reason why.
