For many junior hockey players, the goal is to play for a NCAA Div. I program. This opportunity is enticing, with the possibility of athletic scholarships and some sense of being a celebrity.

While there is a good amount of hockey players that go Div. I, sometimes, it does not always work out. Players have two options after leaving a Div. I team: leave the sport of hockey or go to another program. Schools like Oswego State, which have strong Div. III programs, have benefited from players who bury their ego and take the jump to Div. III.

The Oswego State men’s ice hockey team has been compared to a Div. I program in the way the team treats its players and its success. Out of the 34 players on the roster, four of those players came from some Div. I program, including three from Niagara University.

“We would not take them unless we really feel, especially as transfers, that they’re going to help us,” head coach Ed Gosek said. “We don’t want a bad second situation for them. That’s not healthy for anyone.”

Before attending Niagara University, Devin Campbell, Derek Brown and Joseph Molinaro were all recruited by former head coach Dave Burkholder. Niagara University fired Burkholder in 2017 and brought in Jason Lammers.

All three players said the situation just did not work out between the different coaching staffs and playing at the Div. I level.

“I just didn’t feel like I meshed very well with the new coaches there,” Campbell said. “I think they wanted to phase me out.”

Campbell joined the Lakers halfway through the 2016-2017 season. Molinaro joined a year later, and Brown is one of the 12 players Oswego State welcomed to its ranks this season. With Campbell joining the Lakers before the other two players, he was a key influence in bringing the other two to join Oswego State’s program. Campbell said he was close to Molinaro and Brown while at Niagara University.

“These guys all talked before we even talked to them. You know, what kind of coach am I? How do I treat people? Is it organized? There’s a lot of unknowns,” Gosek said. “With a second chance at something, they’re going to make sure it’s the right fit.”

Campbell said his transfer process was unusual for him. He said he was never a player to quit or ask for a trade, especially after spending five years with the same junior program. Campbell’s parents were able to help him make the decision to look at other options outside of Niagara University.

“It was one of those times where you’re almost listening to country music because of the place, mentally, that you’re in. You’re in a bad place,” Campbell said. “My parents said to me, ‘This is supposed to be the funnest years of your life. I don’t know why you’re so mad and so disappointed with what’s going on here when there’s a lot of other options if you want them.’”

After meeting with the players from the Lakers’ roster and seeing the actual campus, Campbell knew he wanted to transfer to Oswego State.

“I wouldn’t change my path here,” Campbell said. “It just didn’t work out for me. That’s just how it is.”

For players like Brown and Molinaro, both said it was an easy transition from Niagara University to Oswego State. Between the treatment the players get and the general team atmosphere, it was a great opportunity.

“I feel like I’ve already played with these guys for a couple years now, and I’ve been here for two months,” Brown said. “That’s just how it is. I like it.”

In his first season, Molinaro said he has a lot of memories with his new team. But one weekend stands out, even though the Lakers lost both games to Plattsburgh State and SUNY Potsdam. He remembers the arena packed with fans decked out in white clothing.

“The whiteout weekend was pretty cool, even though we lost both games,” Molinaro said. “I’d say that was the coolest experience I’ve ever played in for hockey, just to see all those fans.”

Molinaro and Brown have one more season with the Lakers after the conclusion of the 2018-2019 season. But, for players like Campbell, even though the season is still young, he is still aware that his time at Oswego State is coming to a close. In all of this, he remembers why he chose Oswego State: for the love of the sport. And, as a Laker, he has found that once again.

“In two weeks, the only thing you’ll remember is whether you won or lost. Years down the line, the only thing you’ll remember is the relationships that you made here,” Campbell said. “And that’s the reason you play the sport in the first place, is to have great memories and have things to look back on in life.”