Back in the game
Colin Marshall, Andrew Burden step up to help out short-staffed Axemen
jason.malloy @saltwire.com @JasonMa47772994
Colin Marshall has gone from not playing hockey in nearly three years to competing in what is known as the top non-professional league in the country.
“It’s a little bit like getting thrown into the deep end of a swimming pool,” he said before an Acadia Axemen practice on March 4. “You go from not playing hockey for 2 ½ years to being on one of the better teams in U Sports hockey. It’s pretty surreal.”
Marshall and his roommate Andrew Burden, both kinesiology students at Acadia University, each received calls from Axemen head coach Darren Burns earlier this winter with the team struggling to fill its roster for the second half of the Atlantic University Sport (AUS) season. Burden remembers the Feb. 13 call on Super Bowl Sunday before he and Marshall attended daily skates the next three days.
“Things just kept happening really quickly and all of a sudden I was moving my stuff into the dressing room,” Burden said. “It’s pretty surreal, to be honest.
“I’m still finding it hard to believe, playing in the AUS with all of these great players and players who have had long careers in the CHL (Canadian Hockey League), winning Memorial Cups and championships in their own respective leagues. Just being able to be out here with these kind of guys has been great.”
THE NEED
The Axemen needed players after five guys turned pro around the Christmas break as uncertainty surrounded the university season. The first half of the AUS season ended on Dec. 4 and the next game did not take place until Feb. 12 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Prior to COVID-19, some CHL graduates would try pro hockey for the first half of the season but then return to university hockey for the second semester. Players don’t lose their scholarships, if they return after one semester of playing professional hockey.
But this season was almost the opposite.
With six-player taxi squads being implemented by the NHL, it drew players up from American Hockey League teams, which then filled out their rosters from the ECHL. That created mid-season roster spots in the pros that traditionally wouldn’t exist and numerous university players from across the country turned pro.
“This year, it was so different,” Burns explained. “You didn’t see as many guys coming from pro because you didn’t even know if we were going to start back up.”
So, Burns and his staff started to make some calls to see who was on campus that might be able to help them. But it was not like the Axemen were trying to fill out a roster for a noon-hour hockey game – it’s the AUS.
“It’s tough for guys who have played four or five years of major junior hockey stepping into our league,” Burns acknowledged. “Let alone putting them in at this time of year when the speed has picked up and the intensity has picked up.”
Marshall and Burden were soon identified, and calls were made to check their interest.
“We made the decision to step in so we could help the team because we knew they were down players,” Marshall said. “Whatever chance we get to play, we’re going to try to energize people. … We’re going to keep our game super simple.”
While a little intimidating
at first, both newcomers said they were welcomed with open arms by their new teammates.
“I love coming to the rink every day because those guys teach you so much about the game,” Marshall said.
Marshall and Burden, both 22 years old, are believed to be among a handful of players in the conference playing now, given the unusual circumstances.
And while both have played limited roles in three games, Burns said he has been pleased with their contributions. He called them intelligent, athletic and driven kids who have provided energy for the squad.
“They’ve fit in real nice, really quick,” he said. “These two kids are great kids. They’ve been huge additions. They’ve worked hard in practice, they’re committed kids.
“Our guys have kind of rallied around it.”
PAST EXPERIENCES
Burden, a five-foot-11, 180pound left-winger from
Corner Brook, N.L., averaged about a point per game last season with the Pictou County Weeks Crushers of the Maritime Junior Hockey League. He elevated his game in the postseason, registering 11 points, including six goals, in five playoff games.
After the season, he thought his competitive hockey days were over.
“I basically shifted my entire focus to my academics here at Acadia,” he said. “It’s crazy how the game really follows you around.”
He played in a rec league during the first semester and continued to train to stay in shape.
“When the opportunity came (to join the Axemen), it wasn’t too big of a jump for me to get back into it.”
Marshall, a six-foot, 205pound right-winger from Brockville, Ont., hadn’t played a competitive game since competing with the Ottawa Jr. Senators at the 2019 national junior A championship in Brooks, Alta. After sustaining multiple concussions, Marshall decided to step away from playing the game.
He enrolled at Acadia after hearing good things about the kinesiology program from Axemen alumni. Last year, he completed his courses online from Brockville while coaching an under-18 team. This year, he has been in Wolfville fulltime.
He’s healthy and excited to be back on the ice
“I thought my time as a hockey player was done,” he said. “Taking those three years off, I didn’t think I would miss the game.”
He was wrong. He remembers hearing Nick Deakin-Poot, a fellow kinesiology student, talk about the team and the strong culture they have created.
“They all have this one goal of wanting to perform in front of the home crowd at the U Sports championship,” Marshall said. “I’m just trying to do my part and try to help bring a national championship to Acadia.”
The Axemen will host the Cavendish Farm University Cup, an eight-team national championship, in Wolfville from March 31 to April 3.
It’s still hard for Marshall to explain what it will be like to compete for a national championship again.
“I can’t process it,” he said. “I just can’t fathom this whole experience at all.
“What an opportunity.”