2008 Woodie Awards
Swanson makes the switch to defense
Jake Laxen
Issue date: 11/15/07 Section: Sports
- Page 1 of 2 next >
SCSU junior John Swanson made his reputation as forward.
He shined at nearby St. Cloud Tech as a prep hockey star and went on to play Juniors and produced admirably at the position.
He was then recruited to play for his hometown Huskies, making his debut in 2006.
Swanson put up 33 points in his first two seasons in Husky red and black, slowly becoming a fan-favorite throughout the middle lines.
Yet during this offseason, head coach Bob Motzko began to flirt with the idea of moving Swanson to defense, a position he had not played since the Bantam level.
After team captain Casey Borer and first-line blueliner Justin Fletcher graduated, SCSU needed to revamp its defensive core.
"It will be imperative that we find players on defense to replace those guys," Motzko said.
The Huskies entered the year with the defense as their biggest question mark and already had Aaron Brocklehurst transfer from forward back to his original position of defenseman.
Swanson also fit the bill for a potential swap of positions due to his great puck-handling skills, blazing speed and respected hockey knowledge.
Motzko took it easy with the transition, working with him in the offseason and practice. Motzko then sent him out with the Husky penalty kill to see if Swanson would be able to make the full-scale switch.
Swanson looked sharp and looked disciplined on the Huskies No. 23 ranked penalty kill, so he was given a chance to prove himself on the team's exhibition game with the U.S. Under-18 Team.
In the game, Swanson was on ice on both of Jordan Schroeder's two goals against SCSU, but the goals were not his fault.
He then switched to the black uniforms in practice the next week, to signal that he was now officially a defenseman.
He made his first regular season action Nov. 2 against visiting Alaska-Anchorage. Swanson was paired with sophomore Garrett Raboin and made a solid first impression in the Huskies 5-3 win.
He shined at nearby St. Cloud Tech as a prep hockey star and went on to play Juniors and produced admirably at the position.
He was then recruited to play for his hometown Huskies, making his debut in 2006.
Swanson put up 33 points in his first two seasons in Husky red and black, slowly becoming a fan-favorite throughout the middle lines.
Yet during this offseason, head coach Bob Motzko began to flirt with the idea of moving Swanson to defense, a position he had not played since the Bantam level.
After team captain Casey Borer and first-line blueliner Justin Fletcher graduated, SCSU needed to revamp its defensive core.
"It will be imperative that we find players on defense to replace those guys," Motzko said.
The Huskies entered the year with the defense as their biggest question mark and already had Aaron Brocklehurst transfer from forward back to his original position of defenseman.
Swanson also fit the bill for a potential swap of positions due to his great puck-handling skills, blazing speed and respected hockey knowledge.
Motzko took it easy with the transition, working with him in the offseason and practice. Motzko then sent him out with the Husky penalty kill to see if Swanson would be able to make the full-scale switch.
Swanson looked sharp and looked disciplined on the Huskies No. 23 ranked penalty kill, so he was given a chance to prove himself on the team's exhibition game with the U.S. Under-18 Team.
In the game, Swanson was on ice on both of Jordan Schroeder's two goals against SCSU, but the goals were not his fault.
He then switched to the black uniforms in practice the next week, to signal that he was now officially a defenseman.
He made his first regular season action Nov. 2 against visiting Alaska-Anchorage. Swanson was paired with sophomore Garrett Raboin and made a solid first impression in the Huskies 5-3 win.