Texas Stars Guide

By Melissa Mixon Friday, 19 February 2010

CEDAR PARK — Landon Wilson has known both glory and sacrifice as a professional hockey player.

He played for Team USA in the 2001 World Championship in Germany, has been nominated by his peers for multiple awards and he’s led his teams to victory in high-pressure shootouts, a one-on-one matchup between a goalie and a shooter that determines the winning team.

Those are the high moments.

The lows are being apart from his wife and two young children. The American Hockey League season has a long and grueling schedule, with 80 games played around the country. Wilson, 34, stays in touch with his family by talking on cell phones while he’s on the road, and when the season ends, they spend all of their time together, relaxing at their home in Dallas, visiting family up north or vacationing at their cabin in Minnesota.

Still, Wilson said the sacrifices are worth it, if it means his kids are happy and taken care of, and he gets to continue in a career that he’s loved since childhood.

“I always played the game for fun growing up and I actually loved it,” he said.

“When you’re all lined up and you see the fans, it’s great,” Wilson said. “When we’re coming out on the ice, it’s just—it’s not an adrenaline rush—but it’s very exciting and it’s always nice to play at home and have that support.”

Wilson is one of roughly 22 members of the Texas Stars team, an AHL hockey league that came to Cedar Park when the Cedar Park Center opened in September.

The center has helped put the city on the map, with concerts by big name artists, like Wilco and George Strait, who played a sold-out show the night it opened.

But each week, fans come for the hockey games. With more than 5,000 people in attendance on average, the sport that was traditionally a northern sport has found a following in Cedar Park, where football is typically more popular.

“That’s the easiest thing. We love football fans because football fans love hockey,” Rick McLaughlin, general manager of the Cedar Park Center said.

The Texas Stars are owned by Hicks Cedar Park LLC, and players on the team are paid anywhere from $50,000 to $100,000 annually. They come from all over the world to Cedar Park, where they practice, live and play during the season.

“It’s very nice. It’s January and outside the sun is shining,” Perttu Lindgren, a center player from Finland, said.

He, like many players, grew up playing hockey and has sacrificed being away from his family back home to play the sport he loves.

While it can be difficult, players said they do whatever it takes to be professional and prepare for games.

There is also the risk of being traded or dropped by your team.

While professional hockey is extremely competitive, it’s easy to slide back and forth between the National Hockey League, the most prestigious level of playing, and the AHL, which is a level below.

“The elite level that you try to get to, it’s so difficult, but at the same time, you’re so close to getting to the NHL. Guys go up and down every day,” said Greg Rallo, a forward from Chicago. “There’s always going to be guys, because there’s two other levels that are lower than us, that are trying to take my job, so you’ve got to stay on top of things, stay in shape and you’ve got to work hard or else you can be on the outside looking in real quick.”

The constant up and down can lead to mental and physical fatigue, players said.

“People don’t realize, I mean I have a wife and kids and I’ve been traded—once when my daughter was really young—and when you get traded you leave that day or the following morning and you’re gone, so you’ve got to have a strong wife and support system wherever you’re at,” Wilson said.

It also helps having a strong wife, given how physical hockey can be. Fights occur often, though that’s a part of the culture and atmosphere of professional hockey.

The first game that Wilson’s wife saw him play, she was with her dad and Wilson got in a couple of fights with a player from the opposing team.

“She enjoyed it, but her dad was like, ‘You’re dating that guy?’” Wilson said. “But on and off the ice, I’m two different people. I try to hold myself in line with integrity, but there’s times when you have to be physical. Off the ice, I’m a big teddy bear.”

During the season, members of the team live in apartments in Cedar Park or some, especially the families, rent homes in the city or in Austin. They hang out together, but respect each other’s privacy and time when family members come to visit after long periods without seeing each other.

For the Texas Stars, who are in the running to qualify for playoff games in May, the greatest rush is when they are playing.

“To be able to play at this level and this is my job—I come to work and it’s hockey—it’s been a dream come true for me,” Rallo said. “I wouldn’t pick anything else to do right now.”

Hockey fun facts:

Players

• Goaltender: The goalie’s primary task is to keep the puck out of his own net. Seldom does he leave the net.
• Defensemen: These players try to stop the incoming play at their own blue line. They break up passes, block shots, cover opposing forwards and clear the puck from in front of their own goal. Offensively, they get the puck to their forwards and follow the play into the attacking zone.
• Center: The center leads the attack by carrying the puck on offense. On defense, he tries to disrupt a play before it gets on his team’s side of the ice.
• Wings: The wings team with the center on the attack to set up shots on the goal. Defensively, they attempt to break up plays by their counterparts and upset the shot attempts.

How thick is the ice?

Ice for professional hockey is approximately 3/4” thick and is usually held at 16 degrees Fahrenheit.

What is the puck made of?

The puck is made of vulcanized rubber. It is three inches in diameter, one inch thick and weighs six ounces. It is frozen before entering play to make it bounce resistant.

How fast does the puck travel?

Some players have shot between 90 and 100 m.p.h., while the game’s hardest shooters reached 110 m.p.h.

Source: Texas Stars

GOALTENDERS
Name	#	Position	Height	Weight	Shoots
Todd Ford	1	G	6-4	185 pounds	L
Matt Climie	33	G	6-3	205 pounds	L
Brent Krahn	41	G	6-4	212 pounds	L
SKATERS
Name	#	Position	Height	Weight	Shoots
Dan Jancevski	4	D	6-3	212 pounds	L
Garrett Stafford	5	D	6-0	195 pounds	R
Colton Sceviour	7	RW	5-11	201 pounds	R
Andrew Hutchinson	10	D	6-2	198 pounds	R
Aaron Gagnon	11	C	5-11	189 pounds	R
Scott McCulloch	12	LW	6-1	198 pounds	L
Perttu Lindgren	17	C	6-0	185 pounds	L
Maxime Fortunus	18	D	5-11	182 pounds	R
Tyler Shelast	19	RW	6-1	202 pounds	R
Matt Stephenson	20	D	6-2	204 pounds	R
Landon Wilson	22	RW	6-3	226 pounds	R
Travis Morin	23	C	6-2	195 pounds	L
Trevor Ludwig	24	D	6-1	210 pounds	L
Warren Peters	25	C	6-0	201 pounds	L
Mathieu Beaudoin	26	RW	5-11	195 pounds	R
Greg Rallo	27	RW	6-0	195 pounds	R
Sergei Korostin	32	RW	5-11	192 pounds	L
Luke Gazdic	34	LW	6-3	228 pounds	L
Mathieu Tousignant	40	F	6-0	185 pounds	L