If there’s been one knock on Drew Gibbons' game since he arrived at St. Mark’s last fall, it’s his skating.
One of the ways the 2005 birth-year forward from Wakefield, R.I., is working to improve it is by offsetting his time on the ice with a pair of other cardio-intensive sports.
In the fall leading up to winter hockey season, Gibbons plays varsity soccer at St. Mark's, along with the hockey action he gets in the split season with the Neponset Valley River Rats 16-U. In the spring, he plays lacrosse.
“Everyone can always get better at everything, but for me the main thing is speed,” Gibbons, entering his second season at the Southboro, Mass., prep school, told New England Hockey Journal.
“I’m not the biggest guy, I’m not the tallest -- definitely not the fastest -- so the main focus for me is just getting quicker feet, a harder stride, and becoming a better 200-foot player.”
The improvement from his efforts, which included working with Dena Taylor Skating over the summer, has been increasingly apparent over the past couple of months, opening the door for him to take his game to the next level. Case in point: the River Rats Jamboree, where the 5-foot-9, 180-pound forward shined in front of scouts, posting five goals in three games.
“(Playing the other sports) is a great way for me to relieve stress and just kind of get out there. Again, my big emphasis is getting faster, and I feel like with all the running and cardio, those sports are helping me keep a good figure and hopefully translating to more speed and better endurance on the ice,” Gibbons said.
As fall hockey winds down and winter inches closer by the day, Gibbons is poised to be a key contributor for a Lions team that is intent on challenging for ISL supremacy in 2021-22.
“He’s going to have an impact all over the rink for us,” St. Mark’s head coach Carl Corazzini (Framingham, Mass.) said. “Penalty kill, power play, first line. He’s a high-IQ kid with a high motor, so we’ll expect a lot out of him for sure.
“A guy who wants to play 200-feet, that’s always really important; there’s a real commitment to wanting to play defense. You can’t have too many of those players.”
During his first season at St. Mark’s, the team played roughly 10 games with a handful of intra-squad scrimmages mixed in. Away from prep, Gibbons played 24 games with the River Rats 15-U, scoring 12 goals for 27 points.
While St. Mark’s was able to get some game action during the pandemic-impacted season, the teams spent most of their time in practice, developing. The main thing that Gibbons worked on, aside from his skating, Corazzini said, was adjusting his offensive approach.
“Just wanting to take control when he has the puck and not always looking to give it up," said Corazzini, entering his eighth year at St. Mark’s. “Drew is so good with the puck, so good with making plays, but just understanding that ‘Hey, if I look to shoot and attack the net every once in a while then it’s going to open up plays for my teammates,' is what he’s worked really hard on this fall.”
Now, he’s putting those lessons to use with the River Rats 16-U, alongside several other ‘05s who are poised to be high-impact performers in prep.
“We’re super talented up front,” Gibbons said. “We don’t really have set lines but getting to play with players like Cam Russo (Middleton, Mass./Governor’s), Jonathan Balzarini (Milford, Mass./St. Mark’s), Ty Wood (Gloucester, Mass./Lawrence Academy), Landan Resendes (Marlboro, Mass./Cushing) -- it’s so fun playing with them. They make me feel like a better player but I definitely feel like all the work I’ve put in during the offseason and last year with COVID is starting to come to light a little bit.”
Drew’s older brother, Brendan, played three seasons at St. Mark’s from 2017-20. He is now playing in the NAHL with the Maine Nordiques in search of an NCAA commitment after playing 33 games in the NCDC last season. The elder Gibbons totaled 115 points in 90 games during his Lions tenure.
After spending many a night watching his older brother play for St. Mark’s, the younger Gibbons is looking forward to his time to shine in the Blue and White.
“I’m just excited to get out there, play for my school and for my family. I’ve been watching my brother play here for the past 3-4 years and it just seems like a blast.
“The first game is going to be kind of a big ‘awe moment’ for me just because I’ve been around prep hockey so much but I’ve never actually played. It’s been a long time coming and I’m really looking forward to it.”
Added Corazzini: “Drew used to come to all the games and got a sense for what the community was like and what our program was like, and we understood who he was as a young man.
"I think more than anything, he’s just a good young kid who’s very coachable. He wants to implement all of the suggestions that you’ve made and he just wants to become a better hockey player. So, we’ve been blessed with the Gibbons family in general, but we’re really lucky and excited to have Drew.”
“The team’s always eating together, hanging around each other, so we’re building a good team comradery. We’ll really be able to tell once we get on the ice, but we’ve got a really deep forward group,” Gibbons said. “We’ve got 12-15 guys competing for the top-9 spots, so it should be really interesting."
From the talented cast of other ‘05s who are looking to break into the prep landscape, Gibbons is certainly one of the names to watch for this season as things get underway.
“I feel like I’m most effective when I’m making the players around me better,” he said. “I think one of my best assets is my ability to think the game on the fly -- go back to the bench, tell the guys what I’m seeing, see how we can react and adapt and go back harder at the other team.
“I’m not the biggest, I’m not the fastest, but I feel like my ability to think the game is something I’m looking to bring to the team, and create some offense. Coach Corazzini always talks about having a shot-first mentality and how taking shots is going to open up passing lanes for other players, so I just hope to make the guys around me better.”
Liam Flaherty can be reached at liam.flaherty@hockeyjournal.com and on Twitter @_LiamFlaherty.
