Former Dartmouth defenseman Mike Hartwick '07 is one of those who decided to forgo the Wall Street experience in favor of the grind of minor league hockey. This past week, Hartwick signed a one-year contract with the Charlotte Checkers of the East Coast Hockey League.
"This is my first full-season contract, and so I'm pretty excited," he said.
After the Big Green's ECACHL playoff run this past winter, Hartwick spent the end of the season playing for the Wheeling Nailers of the East Coast Hockey League, a minor league affiliate of the Pittsburgh Penguins, where he appeared in seven games.
Hartwick is one of three former Dartmouth players who have made the move down to Charlotte., N.C. Hugh Jessiman '06 and Mike Ouellette '06 have played for the Checkers and were, along with a number of other factors, a major reason why Hartwick signed with Charlotte.
"I spoke with Jessiman over Green Key weekend and he couldn't say enough good things about the city, the team and the coach," Hartwick said. "It was between there, Wheeling and another team that I wasn't really considering."
"In the end it wasn't really my decision to make. My agent and I were looking at a number of teams trying to find the situation that would be the best fit for me and Charlotte was that situation," Hartwick said.
Checkers general manager and head coach Derek Wilkinson says that Hartwick is a force on the blueline.
"He is a physical stay-at-home defenseman who provides a tough presence on the ice," Wilkinson said.
Hartwick is very excited about knowing another player on the team next year.
"To likely have a friendly face in Mike Ouellette will be good," Hartwick said.
And the next year is a journey into the unknown for Hartwick.
"This summer I went to Europe with Tom Manzo ['07], Dan Shribman ['07] and Rob Hale ['07] and now its time to get working," Hartwick said. "At first I wasn't sure what to do on the hockey front, whether I should do the Wall Street thing and get a real job. The East Coast Hockey League isn't the CHL [Canadian Hockey League] and it isn't the NHL. It's minor league hockey with a lot of buses and all that. I thought about and this is really what I wanted to do. "
Before the 2006 Fall term, Hartwick attended the NHL's Boston Bruins' rookie camp. There, he says he gained some valuable experience in a professional hockey environment.
"Now I'm pretty comfortable going to training camps, but this [the Checker's season] starts in October and goes to May, which is certainly longer than Dartmouth. But I think I'm ready for the grind."
Looking at Dartmouth's team for next season, Hartwick thinks the Big Green has a chance to surprise some people.
"It will be interesting to see what happens," he said. "You lose a couple key guys especially with David Jones '08 leaving early. They are very well coached but they will have to work very hard."
