John Perdue - The Humble Origins of a Great [2/2]

[johnnyhockey42 13]

The Humble Origins of a Great

Name: John Perdue

Position: Left Wing

Born: Buffalo, New York

Age: 20 Years Old

Height: 6’0”

Weight: 175 lbs

Shoots: Left

 

On the Pond

Born during the harsh winter of Buffalo, New York, John Perdue became acquainted with the ice quicker than most kids.  This created a relationship to the sport of hockey for John. One of the first things John saved up for was a pair of decent hockey skates so that he could play at the local pond with the other kids.  By the time he was 5, he was skating every weekend at the Lackawanna pond just outside of Buffalo with a group of kids that he considered to be his ‘team.’ John always cared more about being a team player than being a solo star.  John and his pond hockey team started practicing plays, train each other, and focused more on the practical aspect of the game. This benefitted John as he took the sport of hockey seriously at such an early age. At age 8, Perdue, a self-taught athlete, decided to look into junior hockey leagues he could possibly be a part of to begin properly learning the sport, which made his parents realize that hockey was more than just a hobby to John.

Rink Life

It was his career in junior hockey leagues where John got the nickname of “Johnny Hockey.”  His coach immediately noticed John’s passion for the game during his first season with the Buffalo Junior Blades.  He taught John not only how to play a conscious left-wing role in all contexts, but he also advised him how to be a prevalent leader in the locker room.  Back in his time, his coach was a Defenseman for the Toronto Legion, which intrigued John greatly. It was Perdue’s idea to bring the team to a Legion game as a team bonding trip, where that would be his first exposure to the VHL.

When John saw Evan Lawson take to the ice, he knew what kind of player he wanted to be.  He was blown away by the sheer athleticism and exciting atmosphere of the game, he knew he had to be a part of this league. Some way, somehow.

On Stage

John began to also show interest in music at age 10 - the drums, more specifically.  John felt like he needed other interests to separate himself from the pressures of school and hockey, so he took on the drums and began teaching himself songs that he had downloaded on his MP3 player.  His father was an avid guitarist and was very encouraging of his drumming because he knew talent when he saw it.

“If John was not looking to be a VHL player, he’d be a drummer,” said his father.

“I am so proud of him and what he’s accomplished in both aspects, hockey and music.”  John, a natural team player, wanted to find a band to play for during his offseason downtime.  With his musical influences drawing from alternative rock, he formed the punk rock band “Previous Love”  with friends from school, where they tour together around North America every summer when John isn’t playing hockey.

 

Teenage Years

John continued moving up age divisions within the Junior Blades organization throughout middle school and high school.  Perdue’s middle school and high school were relatively large, where he hung around with his teammates and other kids that were hockey fanatics.  John was a conscientious worker when it came to school, he knew hockey scouts would look at his grades so he always took it seriously and made it apparent to his teachers that he had big plans after he graduated.  Every Friday, it was tradition for students that played for the Junior Blades to wear hockey jerseys to show team spirit - sometimes they had to wear team jerseys to show they had a game that night, otherwise they could wear any jersey they wanted.  John saw those Fridays as opportunities to wear his Toronto Legion jersey and support his favorite player, none other than Evan Lawson.

John faced a difficult decision during his freshman year of high school by his hockey coach, parents and school principal.  They both advised he worked towards early graduation in order to begin his hockey career as soon as possible. John thought it would be a good idea, but socially he was worried that his teammates would be upset with him.  Much to his disbelief, they showed nothing but support for him. They agreed that he had something special and he shouldn’t waste any time working towards what will eventually be his career.

So, John began taking night classes and attended summer school in order to graduate two years early at the age of 16.  This meant that he began taking offers from prospects and considering possible teams to play for at a developmental level.  His mom advised him to consider more than just North American teams, as she was encouraging him to play somewhere abroad for some experience with other cultures.  His mom was so happy to see that he had an opportunity to see the world with his career, and she wanted only the best for him. John understood that his mother knew best, so he decided to take a convincing offer from the Hamburg Ice Freezers, which was a team in the DEL, an elite league from Germany, where he had the benefits of housing and a full-ride scholarship to attend the joint-university with the hockey club.  It was difficult to leave his family and friends behind, but he knew it was the best choice for him to become a VHL’er.

 

Life as a Freezer

Perdue began playing as a defensive left winger for the Hamburg Ice Freezers and immediately found his place with the teams.  There was a bit of a language barrier, but after a few nights out on the town, John began to become very accustomed to the culture of Germany and formed some amazing bonds with his squad.  He spent three years with the organization and accrued seventy nine goals, ninety seven assists, (one hundred seventy six total points) and a career plus/minus of +Sixty. He was even able to receive a Bachelor’s Degree in Sport Psychology from the joint-university! These numbers were nothing for John to scoff at, as they were right on track with his progress from the Junior Blades. The Ice Freezers made two playoff appearances while Perdue was on the team, but were never able to advance past the quarterfinals.  However, John never measured his success by counting his trophies. He benefited greatly from his experiences in the league and he couldn’t have been more thankful for his time in the Hamburg organization. As his third and final season with the Ice Freezers came to a close, Perdue began to seriously consider offers from VHLM teams around the league. He was so excited about the possibility to come back to North America and he wanted to make sure he made the right impressions with the right teams before the VHLM Dispersal Draft.                         

 

A Wild Draft

In a Germany airport, John was on his laptop ready to book any flight back to North America to join whichever team drafted him at the 65th VHLM Dispersal Draft.  Eventually, John was selected 37th overall by the Saskatoon Wild, a team that can guarantee him a bright future and healthy development into a player for the VHL.  He called his family, friends, band, teammates, and hockey coach to tell them the news and they all said the same thing: “We knew you would make it!” John hopped on the first train to Saskatoon and by the next morning, he joined his new teammates for an open skate and was already acting as a morale boost in the locker room with his positive outlook and attitude.  With the 65th season approaching, John is preparing with his team to take over this league and go up against anyone standing in their way.

[rjfryman 1,120]

I love the fact that John saved up his own money for his skates, it adds a desire that only someone younger than 5 really shows, especially considering money is such a foreign concept. Really enjoy the character building that doesn't solely revolve around hockey. I like the small windows into John's heart and true love for his team/teammates when he was worried about how they would react to his graduation early. John seems like a really well-rounded hockey player/person who I believe would be a great teammate on any team lucky enough to get him.

 

Edited February 26, 2019 by rjfryman

[DMaximus 1,046]

Review:

Great job fully fleshing out a story of the career of John to this point. I like that you added in that he has interests outside of hockey, specifically music and schooling. I hope that can be an ongoing discussion topic for John in his future. One unrealistic part is that a person in Buffalo would be able to wear a Toronto without getting beat up . Seriously though, great job. Thank you for writing this story.