The AHS hockey team is back for the 2017-18 season and are ready to take on Cherry Creek for their first game, on December 2nd. The team has been looking forward to hitting the ice for about a year now. With tryouts just beginning, new freshman try to prove themselves to the coaching staff, returning players try to maintain their spots, and some players will be cut.

This upcoming season offers more than 19 conference games. It gives the team a chance to redeem their heartbreaking overtime loss in playoffs last year against Vail, and for the seniors to hit the ice for one last season. As the regular season starts and things get moving, the AHS team has a strict schedule to follow. Morning practices before school everyday, and workouts on Sundays. They have been getting mentally and physically prepared to play Cherry Creek for the past few weeks.

“It definitely helps that we got to play Creek last year, but I guarantee the roster has changed. Hopefully we can play a little better this time. It was definitely a heartbreaker losing to such a good team 2-1,” senior and varsity team captain Jordan Hornberg said. “I think we have a really good team this year, and it definitely helps that we have a lot of seniors too. It’s good to know that everyone is on the same page and has the same goal before the season gets rolling. Hopefully this can be a year where we have some players getting recruited and getting noticed by colleges.”

College hockey is something that is very hard to pursue, especially because of where we live and the amount of exposure that players get.

“Hockey isn’t something that I can just give up,” sophomore Ethan Hunt said. “I love the game and I have played it too long to bail on it.  I have a lot of time before I need to make decisions about playing hockey in college, but if the opportunity comes up, I’m going to run with it.”

The AHS team has a season to focus on and finish before looking at colleges. The team is set to have a very successful year. They were recently ranked 9th in the state by the CHSAA board.

“Its definitely a game changer for us. Having people know how great of a program we are a part of is really important, especially coming from a place like Aspen, which does not put out as many athletes into a collegiate level as Denver schools would,” senior RJ Peshek said. “I love knowing that Vail wasn’t even ranked. It was truly a confidence booster for our team. I can’t wait for the season to get underway and start proving people right and finishing my last year of hockey at AHS right.”