Winterhawks’ Josh Hanson, 16, has Ivy League smarts, promising skills

 

By Scott Sepich, Special to the Oregonian — Josh Hanson is a 16-year-old rookie, but when he steps on the ice at the Portland Winterhawks’ annual training camp, he will bring maturity well beyond his years.

Hanson is among about 85 hopefuls expected for the major junior hockey team’s camp, which kicks off Wednesday at Memorial Coliseum. Most will depart by Sunday, when veterans and rookies with a serious chance to make the team will remain to prepare for the Sept. 25 regular-season opener.

A native of Eagle River, Alaska, Hanson not only is well beyond most hockey players his age, he is ahead of most students as well. He skipped the fifth grade and took extra classes during his summers to graduate from high school two years early — as a National Honor Society member, no less.

Hanson’s hockey skill and educational achievement attracted the attention of Ivy League schools Princeton and Yale, as well as bigger hockey schools such as Michigan State.

But after the Winterhawks chose Hanson in the 2009 bantam draft, he had to make a choice. Players who sign with Western Hockey League teams immediately lose their NCAA eligibility.

For Hanson, the lure of WHL competition and its record of developing professional players was too great to pass up.

“I’m still going to aim to finish one semester of college per hockey season,” Hanson said by phone last week from his home in Alaska. “For every year I’m in the league, I’ll have a year of college paid for. Playing hockey is my dream, but I’ll still be able to get a great education if it doesn’t work out.”

The Hawks are so high on the 6-foot-2, 195-pound defenseman that they’ve decided to have him live in the same billet home as 19-year-old team captain Brett Ponich.

“A big thing for us is role modeling and mentoring,” Hawks coach Mike Johnston said about the pairing. “We stress with our older players how they act and set an example. And with both guys being big defensemen, there will probably be a lot of parallels in how they develop.”

Unlike most WHL rookies, who are leaving their families for the first time, Hanson spent last season away from home, playing midget hockey for the L.A. Selects in California. He played more than 70 games last season against teams from as far away as Detroit, Chicago and New York. Had he stayed in Alaska, his season would have consisted of 15 to 20 games.

Hanson wasn’t even aware of the WHL until he attended a prospects camp in Anaheim, Calif., in April 2009. Soon after, the Hawks selected him and began a dialogue with him and his family.

Said Johnston: “He has a lot of raw ability, and being so disciplined and focused as a student, we knew he could play for us this year.”

While making a decision on his future, Hanson consulted with former Winterhawks standout Brandon Dubinsky, a fellow Alaska native, who plays for the New York Rangers of the NHL. Dubinsky’s father coached Hanson for three years in the Anchorage area.

“Talking to Brandon about his experience in Portland really solidified that this would be my best chance to go far in hockey,” Hanson said.

With regular defenseman Taylor Aronson out at the start of the regular season because of shoulder surgery, the Hawks will be limited to four healthy veterans on the back line, giving Hanson the chance to contribute immediately.

He will be among nearly a dozen players who will see ample ice time in the preseason and have the opportunity to compete for regular playing time right away.

Thirteen Hawks veterans are heading to NHL training camps in September, so there’s an urgency in getting the team’s system and habits worked out quickly in training camp, Johnston said.

“We’re cutting down to a main group of guys on the 29th,” Johnston said. “What we do from the 29th to the eighth (when the NHL training camp players depart) is going to be huge. We have to work fast to get guys ready for how we’re going to play when they get back.”

Of those attending NHL camps, most will return after a few days of training with fellow prospects. A handful are expected to advance to their team’s main camp, and some might play in NHL exhibition games.

At least 10 should return for the Winterhawks’ season, but nothing is guaranteed. Johnston said NHL teams will give him a better idea of their plans with players after the rookie portion of their camps.

Ryan Johansen and Nino Niederreiter, the first-round choices of the Columbus Blue Jackets and New York Islanders, respectively, in this year’s NHL draft, could stick in the pro ranks. But as 18-year-olds, neither is eligible to play for a minor professional team, so if they don’t make an NHL roster, they must be sent back to Portland for the entire season.

That’s not the case for 20-year-old forwards Spencer Bennett, Tayler Jordan and Luke Walker. All three could be sent back to Portland or they could sign contracts to play professionally in leagues such as the American Hockey League or the ECHL.

While having more than half of the team away during the Hawks’ preseason schedule makes it tough to develop chemistry on the ice, Johnston feels it’s a good problem to have.

“Our goal here is to develop players,” he said, “so if guys are away at NHL training camps, we’re doing our job.”

Having more than half of the team absent for exhibition games could affect how the Hawks perform early in the season, which could in turn put pressure on a team widely expected to exceed last season’s 44-win total and advance past the second round of the playoffs.

“It’s a challenge you face when you get to be a better team,” Johnston said. “There’s a mental adjustment for these guys coming back to play juniors. I think they’ll be excited to return knowing that they have a good opportunity here, and they’ll be motivated by what it will take to make it as a pro.”