Marshall Warren's diverse hockey journey

Michigan's Marshall Warren was the only black player to participate in this year's Frozen Four, which was held in St. Paul last week. He is one of five Black college hockey players interviewed by MSR this season.

“Obviously, that's not where it should be,” Warren acknowledged of hockey's diversity. The 6-foot defenseman from Laurel Hollow, New York, played four seasons at Boston College and then as a graduate student at Ann Arbor. He was named to the All-Tournament team and scored a goal in the Wolverines' win over Michigan State, advancing to the Frozen Four with an NCAA record 28.^th time.

“We had a really good year, but we just couldn't win,” Warren said after Michigan lost 4-0 to Boston College in the NCAA semifinals last Thursday. “I’m so proud of this group because we’ve been through a lot.

“Michigan is a special place. When I got the opportunity to go here, it was a no-brainer,” he noted. “I’m so grateful and blessed.”

Last Friday, the Frozen Four held a “State of the Game” press conference. There are four panelists. UMD head coach Scott Sandelin. NCAA Rules Committee Chairman Eric Martinson; Jeff Schulman, NCAA DI Hockey Committee Chair, University of Vermont AD. and Hockey East Commissioner Steve Metcalf.

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All committee members agreed with Martinson, saying hockey is “in a great place.” But when asked by MSR about making college hockey more diverse for fans and players, Metcalf said, “This is a long game.” A Minnesota Wild arena employee said there were less than 10 black fans at three games last weekend.

“The goal is to increase awareness and bring the game to places it hasn’t been played before,” Metcalf added, adding, “We’re trying to work with NHL stakeholders in communities where both NHL and college hockey exist.” ” he added.

“We all know that hockey has probably not been as diverse as we all would like,” he admitted.

After the press conference, Metcalfe further explained to MSR that “it's not like a light switch where you can flip a switch and fix everything.”

Hockey East leaders noted that several efforts have been made to introduce hockey to Black and other underserved communities. Metcalfe recalled a program at the University of New Hampshire that brought black people to hockey games, some of them for the first time.

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“we, [Boston] “With the Bruins, we tried to open up some areas in the city, get them equipped and get them on the ice,” Metcalf said. He also proposed a similar program to increase interest in hockey by having college players host clinics in areas with both NHL and college teams.

“It's an ongoing conversation,” Metcalf said.

Warren, a sixth-round pick by Minnesota in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, said: “I think hockey should be for everyone. It's such a great sport and I'm really happy to be able to play it.”