Chris Sanzone Biography

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Chris Sanzone has had a unique path to the VHLM. Growing up in apple country in the deep suburbs of Rochester, NY he was only exposed to football growing up. That is until 6^th grade when he moved closer to the city within a few miles of a new ice rink that was being built. Although he was considered one of the fastest running backs in the league, his short football career was riddled with bad memories like a 1-17 record in the last two seasons and the last one not only being 0-9 but only scoring two team touchdowns the entire season. Surprisingly, while the rink was being built by his new home, it wasn’t on the ice that his love for hockey developed.

 

He dabbled in street hockey for a few years leading up to the move, he started out being a goalie in a roller hockey league. Within two years Sanzone was considered one of the top goalies in the league. Halfway through the second season, he was traded for the league’s top two-point scorers. Both teams flourished after the trade, one with poor goaltending and the other with little to no offense prior to the trade. Both teams did so well that they met each other in the championship that year. While Chris Sanzone played well, his team lost 1-0. One of the players he was traded for scored the game-winning goal on a breakaway.

Despite losing the championship, he felt he needed to elevate his game to the next level, by taking it to the ice. When proposed to his father, his father responded with “You’re certainly not going to be a goalie then, I’m not paying for all that equipment.” Still motivated by the championship loss and proving to that roller hockey league that he’s moved to higher levels, he agreed to change positions in order to hit the ice.   

Being new to ice hockey he decided to play house hockey and tried out with hopes to make the House A team. His Father decided to start coaching and would be the coach of the House B team. After tryouts, he wasn’t assigned to the House A team but would be playing for his dad on House B. It would be years later that he realized that he did make the House A team but played House B for obvious reasons with his dad.

Having the experience of stopping the puck, he started the season on defense. With a trait that he continued to display from his football days, he was one of the fastest players in the league once again. Between his speed and the unknown fact at the time that he should’ve been on a higher level, he was voted as team captain in his first season. He started off slowly as, like Luis Mendoza of the Mighty Ducks movies, he was fast, but couldn’t stop. As the season went on, he nearly scored every game and at the end of his first season on the ice, he was tied for first for goals scored.

 

Now moving into middle school, he was looking to make more friends in his new town. In one of his classes, he got partnered up with a kid called Grant. While talking to him, they realized that they were on the same hockey team for the following season on House A. With his dad still coaching he was looking forward to another season of success. What happened was the most memorable years of his life and would alter his drive and passion for the game. As the season went on the bond of the team grew faster and faster. Chris transitioned to offense as it helped balance the roster. His best friend and teammate at the time, Chad, were unfortunately separated nearly halfway into the season after Chad’s dad treated Chris’ dad after a disagreement about ice time.  Weeks later in homeroom, Grant sat next to Chris and another teammate Kody waiting for the first block to start. While talking with each other Grant expressed that he wasn’t feeling well, and Chris encouraged Grant to go to the nurse and go home to rest up and get healthy before the weekend of games coming up. Two days later, while Chris was playing a video game in his room with another teammate, Chris’ dad and head coach walked into the room and a look on his face that Chris had never seen. The news was that Grant had passed away that morning in his mother’s arms from a rare form of strep throat. They were just 13 years old. The team was in shock, and all got together and mourned with the entire town of the tragic news. In the remaining games, Grant’s jersey was hung on the bench and after each goal scored, we’d point to his jersey. During the last championship tournament as a team that had been through so much, they managed to sneak into the championship but were the big underdog as the other team had nearly a perfect season. Near the end of the 2^nd, an opponent told Chris at a faceoff that it was over as they were up 4-1. Chris swears to this day that he heard Grant say that there was no way it was over. That same shift Chris went down and scored a goal to make the score 4-2. The next shift the team captain, Alan, scored again to make it 4-3 at the end of the 2^nd. The third period was intense and with less than a minute left with the goalie pulled, Chris found the back of the net again on a one-timer to tie it at 4-4. Two minutes into overtime Chris got caught in the defensive zone and after their goalie made a few clutch saves, Chris got it out of the zone, into the opponent’s blue line and wired a slap shot, and started to skate back to the bench to get fresh legs on the ice. On his way back he heard a TING and skating back to the bench his team erupted and poured onto the ice. Chris had scored a game-winning hattrick goal to win the Championship during the most emotional season of his life and he didn’t even know he scored it.  

 

Beyond the tough emotional season, Chris went on to play the remaining of his grade school years playing travel hockey in Western NY/PA. During those years he was constantly among the team leading scorers along with usually having some type of leadership role and was nominated and won sportsmanship awards along the way. He played three years of varsity hockey focusing on developing the younger players. The two years after he graduated, the kids he contributed to their development won states back-to-back.

 

He fulfilled his dream of playing for his favorite college, the University of Maine. After being a Hobey Baker finalist he was drafted into the VHLM by the Mexico City Kings where he hopes to contribute to a championship season.