(Photo obtained from the Skidmore Athletics website)
Since he was three, Brandon Kasel ‘20 attended Cornell hockey games with his grandfather. In combination with a family that played hockey, Kasel was destined to play the sport. He grew up watching the goalies — sitting right behind the net at every game — which inevitably led him to become one himself.
Playing hockey at the collegiate level was something Kasel always knew he wanted to do. In kindergarten, Kasel was asked to write his high school self a letter. “My teacher mailed the letters when we graduated and it said ‘I hope you are playing college hockey right now, and if you’re not, I hope you have a good job.’”
Kasel did not go right into playing college hockey. Instead, he played Juniors for two years on Syracuse Stars of the USPHL. This is not uncommon for college hockey players, who tend to play in a junior league before coming to college.
When asked why this is, Kasel responded, “It’s just how hockey is. Boys develop slower, so this gives them time to develop more and become a stronger player. It gives you more of an advantage, especially as goalie. Plus, you’re older.”
The adjustment back to school was something Kasel found challenging as during his first semester freshman year, he was still getting into the swing of going to class. Eventually, Kasel and many players on the team like him, found their strides and now the hockey team consistently has the highest team GPA.
"We take pride in our academics and we stride to be the leading team on campus [to set] an example for the other sports,” he says. “It’s definitely a challenge especially with practices, games, and meetings, but it can be done. It’s still not easy as a senior, you definitely have to manage your time very well.”
Not only has Kasel excelled in his academics, but also in the net. Breaking out his freshman year, Kasel started 15 times in net, totaling a .916 save percentage and 349 saves. He made the New England Hockey Conference (NEHC) All-Rookie team and earned NEHC Rookie of the week.
This stamina continued into his sophomore year, starting 22 of 23 games and making 685 saves. By the time he was a junior, Kasel had already made an impact on the team, and now a senior, Kasel has landed on the NEHC honor roll, and was named the Skidmore Thanksgiving Invitational MVP.
Earning the MVP title was not as important to him as winning the championship game. Skidmore won the Thanksgiving tournament for the first time in 11 years: “It felt nice, like a weight was lifted. We’ve been in the championships for the last three years, and we couldn’t quite capitalize on it. Actually winning was amazing, we finally did it.”
Kasel says that the most challenging part of being a goalie is not wanting to let your team down.
“You feel the pressure; if you make a mistake, it ends up being a goal. I think the main thing for me is never letting my teammates down. I want to give them the opportunity to win every single night.”
Having a clear mind going into the game is a huge part of this. When in goal, Kasel tries not to think too much, as this will lead him to over complicate things and make moves he wouldn’t normally. “I’ve trained so hard for so many hours and I just have to trust my body to know what to do. Get in the rhythm, don’t think, and my reaction time will be quicker.”
When asked to reflect on the current season, Kasel notes that the team is off to a good start, 6-2-1, an improvement over the last couple of years. “Not to say we haven’t had talent on the team in the past, but the pieces are finally coming together and guys are really accepting their roles on the team,” he says.
He believes that all the time they spend together has been showing up in games — saying the closer the team is, the better they play. “This year's team is a little different, we have the ability to take it to the next level and close out these upcoming games and start winning more.”
As for his future plans, Kasel is thinking of playing hockey for a year or two after graduation. “There’s a bunch of professional teams, especially overseas. It’d be a cool opportunity to travel a little bit, but nothing is set. Hockey is all I've ever known, I’m not sure I am ready to give it up quite yet.”
But right now the focus is on this season and the rest of his senior year. According to Kasel, it’s hit him hard that his time here is coming to an end. He says, “It’s short, your time here is so short. I’m trying to improve the program the best I can, by helping the younger guys and knowing they are going to be the future of this program.”
And as he wraps up his Skidmore career, Kasel thanks his grandfather for introducing him to hockey — remembering him by keeping a photo of the man on his helmet. As Kasel reflects on his time left, he shares that the best thing about Skidmore is his teammates.
“They’ve been incredible friends that I know I'll have for a lifetime,” he shares. “This is going to sound dark, but if something ever happened to me and I had kids one day I know I have seven to eight guys in my class alone that will be able to take care of them. So that closeness is the nicest thing.”
One piece of advice Kasel would give to anyone thinking of playing collegiate hockey would be to keep going no matter how hard it may seem. He admits the work is hard, but so worth it in the end — even he was taken aback by it in the beginning, saying it began to wear him down mentally and physically.
His advice is to keep pushing, even when you are at your lowest points and not playing well, but also ask for help. He says everyone has times when they struggle, but with persistence and support, it’ll get better.
“[Hockey’s] really a community,” he says. “I gained lifelong friends and just the experience has given me everything I'll ever need.”