Derrick Spencer '16 Recruiting Profile

"What are the three most important things in life?"

"Family, education, hockey".

I have been answering that question, asked at least once a month by my father, for nearly my entire life.  The answer has always remained the same and has never wavered.  But to understand me it is important to understand this question and the "why" of the answer.

Family has always and will always come first.  We are a very close knit family and I rely on them (my father, mother and sister) in good times and in bad.  Likewise, they rely on me the same way and I will always be there for them through thick and thin.  My father has always said, "Without family you've got nothing", and over time I have come, not only to believe this, but to truly understand and live my life by it.

If family is the bedrock on which my life is built, education is the foundation for everything that I will make of my life from here on.  It is for this reason, along with hockey, that I made the decision to attend a school like Phillips Exeter Academy (once they had accepted me).  I could have stayed at my local public school and been an excellent student (3.8 to 4.0).  However, attending a school like PEA was the challenge and opportunity I was looking for.  The academic rigor at PEA is second to none and while this is often difficult it is also incredibly rewarding.  And while I am not a 3.8 to 4.0 student here, I still do very well (3.4) and I am certain I am being challenged far beyond what would otherwise have been the case. At the same time, PEA, has provided me with the chance to meet and become friends with students from all over the world, and I can never thank them enough for that.

Hockey.  Hockey has always been my passion.  It is in my blood like a poison.  If I don't skate for a few days I feel a kind of withdrawal and have to get on the ice.  From the time I was about 3 years old I have been skating, and I have been playing hockey since 5 or 6 and I have always known this was what I loved doing more than anything.  By age 7 I KNEW I wanted to play college hockey and I also knew that nobody was going to stop me from pursuing this dream with everything I had.

From a pure nuts and bolts of hockey perspective ,I will be entering my senior year at PEA in the fall of 2015 and have been a varsity rostered player from the time I arrived as a true freshmen.  While I played a mix of JV and varsity games during my first 2 years, I feel this gave me the opportunity to see more ice time than I otherwise would have and allowed me to work on some things I needed to improve and I feel I used this to my  advantage rather than complaining or pouting about it.

 I believe I bring a great deal to the table for any team I end up playing for.  I have been playing defense nearly my entire career and I have always been more of a defensive defenseman.  If you are looking for a "grab the puck and go coast to coast" kind of guy, then I am not the right guy for you.  However, if you are looking for a defenseman who doesn't get beat, wins puck battles, makes a good first pass out of the zone and sees the ice very well then you have found him.  In the offensive end, I look to hold my point and make sure I get shots through to the net to create for teammates.  I am very much a team guy who is always looking to pick up his teammates, doesn't shy away from taking responsibility for mistakes, and doesn't really care who is scoring or getting points or glory as long as the team is winning.  Lastly, while I may not be the next Paul Coffey or Bobby Orr, I can guarantee the coaching staff and the school that has me playing hockey for them, they will not have a player who works harder to be the best player, student, teammate, and member of the campus community than I will.