As the Dallas Stars look for the next generation of hockey talent, they’d do well to start in their own backyard, writes Mike Heika of The Dallas Morning News.
Stars youth hockey programs have already produced major-league talent: Defender Seth Jones of the Columbus Blue Jackets was born in Arlington and is a veteran of the team’s Bantam Major program. Yet, Heika writes, perhaps no player represents the nontraditional path better than Auston Matthews, whose DIY approach put Scottsdale, Arizona on the NHL prospect map:
Matthews' dad, Brian, saw his young son's interest in hockey and started letting him hang out at Ozzie Ice, an indoor rink near their home in Scottsdale, Ariz.