The moment a junior varsity player is called up to varsity is a pivotal moment in their career – their time to prove that they belong on the team. For junior hockey player Mack Dempsey, it happened on a long bus ride back when he was a freshman.
“In my freshman year, we went up to Erie to play Cathedral Prep,” Dempsey said. “On the bus ride there I got called up and we ended up winning, so that was fun and was a great memory.”
Dempsey started playing hockey when he was 7 and he never looked back. He started with dek hockey and in sixth grade moved to ice. He did not start playing out of the blue, though, as his reason for starting hockey was his brother, Will.
“I just remember playing dek hockey with him when I was little and I had fun with it,” Dempsey said.
Dempsey is a center for Baldwin and he also plays in the South Hills Amateur Hockey Association. On his SHAHA team, there are many familiar faces, but the two teams are still different.
“It’s nice because there are a lot of kids who play for Baldwin that are on my SHAHA team too, but there is a different environment for both teams,” Dempsey said.
Since his freshman year, Dempsey has continued to make instrumental plays for the team. This season, he has scored nine goals and had five assists. Senior Gabe Herrle remembers Dempsey’s biggest game as a goal scorer this year.
“He got a hat trick against Canon-Mac this year. The last one was an empty net and Logan Cramer gave him a pass for the hat trick on the breakaway,” Herrle said.
Dempsey is well-liked by his teammates and is known for his ability to boost morale.
“He’s a locker room guy but he’s good on the ice. He’s fast. He can keep up and he always tries his hardest,” Herrle said.
Senior Logan Cramer normally skates on a different line, but he has played with Dempsey on the power play.
“This is my third year playing with him, so experiencing wins with him and scoring goals on the power play is big because we are on different lines,” Cramer said.
Dempsey loves the game of hockey, but he appreciates the friendships he made even more.
“My favorite part of hockey is just being around my friends, getting to know people, and making great memories,” Dempsey said.
As the season nears its end, Baldwin is currently 3-14. But the team has still played well, he said.
“I think we are doing well even though our record does not show it,” Dempsey said.
