Featured Player: Thomas Dennis
Thomas Dennis hasn’t played for Mason long, but the freshman defenseman already feels at home.
What’s made the difference, he says, is playing with a “great group of guys” who have taken the time to show him the ropes of college hockey.
On the ice, he has the heart of a classic defenseman. His philosophy is to grind the puck and get it to the guys who can bury it in the net.
However, Dennis has proven himself to be adept at taking on new roles for the team. When the coaches needed him to fill a gap in the line-up due to injuries in the Nov. 5 game against Rowan University, Dennis played forward and helped them to a 3-2 victory.
While his game on the ice may change depending on where he is needed, his pre-game rituals do not. Before each game, the 18-year-old stays focused by putting the left side of all his equipment on first, then the right side.
Born and raised in Chesterfield, Virginia, Dennis decided to start playing hockey after watching his dad play roller hockey. But watching NHL games on TV convinced him that he should switch from roller hockey to the faster game on the ice. He loved the action and intensity of ice hockey that made it different from other sports. He had tried soccer, baseball, and football before, but they weren’t as fun to him.
His first team was the Richmond Royals, which he joined when he was 10 years old. The team later merged with the Richmond Generals. He continued to play for the Generals until he aged out at 18.
Dennis graduated from Cosby High School this past spring. He is studying engineering at Mason with an eye towards working for a cybersecurity firm in the future. In the offseason, he tries to stay in shape by playing hockey as often as he can, either going to pick-up games or playing with friends, as well as working out.
