Tag: Stephen Chen

Stephen Chen’s Remarkable Hockey Journey

Like many high-school hockey players, Stephen Chen is looking forward to the Olympic tournament.

The U.S. men will see their first action of the Olympic Games Thursday morning against China. Game time is set for 8:10 a.m. Eastern Time but Chen, a junior goaltender at The Hun School, is hoping to follow the action in some way, shape, or form.

A native of Beijing, Chen is looking forward to seeing the Chinese national team make history. 

“It’s definitely a special feeling,” he said, “especially considering this is the first time the men’s team has ever competed in the Olympic Games. Even if the Chinese national team can’t squeak out a win, even scoring a goal would be a very special moment.”

Chen started playing hockey at the age of 5 ½. He’s been a goaltender from the start.

“When I started my coaches said ‘This kid’s pretty chubby so he can fill the net,” he recalls “but I fell in love with the position since then.

Chen emigrated to Southern California at age 10 and continued his hockey career there. When it came time for high school he sought a school on the East Coast that was strong academically and would allow him to pursue his hockey ambitions. He applied to a number of schools before being accepted at and enrolling at The Hun School (An older brother is a college graduate and living in California).

Chen has returned to China twice in the years since, most recently in the summer of 2019 to tend goal for a team that represented Beijing and won the 18-and-under division of the Chinese national championship tournament.

“Representing my hometown, it was a special feeling,” he said, “because you’re playing a sport you love, but also getting to represent the people you grew up with in your city and all the ideals your city represents and what you believe your city represents as well. 

“Playing for that was a special feeling and being able to win the tournament at the end was beyond amazing.”

Chen, who is 16, notes that hockey has grown in popularity in his homeland during his lifetime.

“Obviously, it cannot be compared to the very developed systems and teams and whatnot in North America,” he said. “But, I think it’s a definitely growing market. There’s a lot talented young kids that are just getting to the game of hockey in China.

“Although hockey is a very old game I would have to say that I am one of the earlier generations of hockey players in China recent years.

“It’s definitely a developing market. It’s not as complete as other countries but I think there is already a certain skill level there.”

Chen notes that Beijing is home to the Kunlun Red Star, which competes in the Russia-based Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), although the team relocated to Russia to ease travel in preparation for the Olympics.  Red Star players makes up the bulk of the Chinese Olympic roster, which included three Americans and 10 Canadians.

Besides watching the Olympic tournament as a fan, Chen will be watching each team’s goaltenders and hoping to pick up traits to add to his own game.

“I definitely watch out for some technical details that goaltenders really focus on and normal people wouldn’t,” he said. “The depth a goaltender takes when it’s a two on one or two on two, odd man rushes, those kind of small things are what I notice. 

 “But, other than that, I definitely still enjoy the game just from the average fan’s viewpoint.”

Unsurprisingly Chen would like to represent his homeland in international completion one day. 

“I think it’s every kid’s dream to represent their country,” he said, “and I’m no exception. It’s a wish to represent the country at the highest level someday in the future.

“I’m already part of the U-20 China national team, so that’s a pretty good start for me already but yeah I definitely look forward to one day wearing that sweater and playing for all the people I love back home.”

Hun School 1 St Joseph’s Prep 0 (sh)

Hamilton Township, N.J.—High-school hockey doesn’t any better than this, from a goaltending point of view. Stephen Chen (Hun School) and Ajay White (St. Joseph’s Prep) were letter perfect in their Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference matchup Thursday afternoon at Ice Land. For 51 minutes of regulation and five minutes of overtime the two were impregnable. Chen, a junior, stopped 34 shots while White, a sophomore, turned aside 32.

The Raiders’ Riley Frost was able to put a puck over White’s left shoulder in the bottom of the third round of a shootout to give his team a 1-0 in its first APAC game in school history.

For his part, Chen tried to focus on the task at hand. “It was an awesome experience for sure,” he said, “but I think the focus was just to win the game, focus on the next shot, and enjoy the moment.”

White was the losing goaltender on the scoresheet, simply because there had to be a winner. But their were no flaws to be found in his performance. “That was fun to watch,” he said. “I have a lot of respect for (Chen). He stole the game for them. He made a lot of big saves. It’s a fun atmosphere to play in.”

Despite the scoreline, it was not an easy afternoon for either netminder. Both were challenged often but came up big repeatedly.

As the game wore on, Chen focused on maintaining his concentration. “There are moments when thoughts pop into your mind,” he said, “but as a goaltender, the most important thing is to have a free mind and just stay in the zone and concentrate on the next shot.”

White embraced the challenge of matching his opponent’s performance at the other end of the ice. “I like competition,” he said. “It’s always fun. I think it definitely helps.”

St. Joseph’s Prep coach David Giacomin noted his team had quality chances but Chen took them away. “We were preaching to the kids just to keep putting pressure on him,” he said, “and keep getting shots to the net. We had some wide open shots where his leg came out of nowhere or a glove came out of nowhere.

‘I think it was probably about eight of them that we counted that the puck should have been in the net, but he found a way to get to that spot and stole it from us. He played a phenomenal hockey game and so did our guy.”

Hun School’s Ryan Croddick battles opponents for the puck in Thursday’s game (Robert Barnes)

For Hun School coach Ian McNally, Thursday’s encounter was a new experience. “I’ve never been part of a 0-0 game at this level,” he said. “That was stressful. And frustrating, because you go through a period without scoring, and then you try to talk about what you can do to score and then you go through another period with scoring.

“You try a different strategy, different lines and nothing’s working. It was exciting and stressful all at the same time.”

Ice Chips—With the win, Hun School improves to 4-2 overall. The Hawks now stand at 2-3-1 (0-2 in the APAC). The game featured six minor penalties, three against each team.

St. Joseph’s Prep 0 0 0 0 (0)

Hun School 0 0 0 0 (1)—1

Shootout goal: Riley Frost (HS)

Shots: SJP 34, Hun School 32; Saves: A.J. White (SJP) 32, Stephen Chen (HS) 34