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Senior D-men share bond on, off the ice

Blueliners have improved each season

Will Weber doing what he does best -- laying out opponents. In this case, he takes out Ohio State's Ryan Dzingel (Cathy Lachmann/WCPO.com).

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Posted: 03/23/2012

By John Lachmann
Kypostsports@yahoo.com

OXFORD, Ohio – After the 2007-08 season, three of Miami’s top seven defensemen graduated, and a fourth left early for the pros.

Enter Will Weber, Cameron Schilling and Chris Wideman, incoming freshmen at the time who were asked to replace them after the RedHawks had racked up a school-record 33 wins and taken eventual champion Boston College to overtime in an NCAA regional final the previous year.

Along with Matt Tomassoni, a classmate who has since moved to forward, rookies made up two-thirds of the blueliners on the RedHawks’ lineup sheet each night.

All Weber, Schilling and Wideman have done in their Miami careers is play in the NCAA Tournament each season, including back-to-back Frozen Fours, and combine for a plus-143 rating.

“They’ve done a nice job for us for four years, have steadily improved and have been through a lot back there,” Miami coach Enrico Blasi said. “They’ve seen a lot of different situations in different games – in big games – and to go to the national tournament four years in a row, that’s not an easy feat, and they’re obviously a big part of that.”

Between them, they have racked up honors as members of the all-CCHA rookie team, the all-NCAA Tournament West Regional team and the conference’s top defensive defenseman.

And of course, all three will be in the lineup when the RedHawks open NCAA Tournament play against UMass-Lowell on Friday.

The three play completely different styles, yet they are close friends and help each other with nuances of their position.

Weber, at 6-feet-4, 226 pounds, is a physical beast on the ice and plays mostly in his own end. He has played in 153 games, recording five goals and 25 assists for his career.

“It’s crazy, sometimes we say he has stupid strength,” Schilling said. “It’s just ridiculous, he just throws guys, not necessarily even hits them. It’s amazing watching him play sometimes in practice and games, how he can manhandle guys, especially little guys on the ice. It’s definitely a treat to watch.”

As a sophomore in 2009-10, he was honored as the CCHA’s best defensive defenseman. As a junior he was named assistant captain and is a co-captain this season.

Weber’s road to this point has not been easy. His father, Dick, who played hockey at Cornell, died in a plane crash when Weber was 11. His junior season, Weber’s throat was cut by an opponent’s skate in a freak accident while that player toppled into the boards.

Weber only missed four games, but he still feels the physical effects of that injury.

“I never really took things for granted – I think that started with my father passing away,” Weber said. “But there’s always things like that where if you do take things for granted, it’ll definitely wake you up.”

Wideman is a born playmaker, and was named to the conference’s all-rookie team as a freshman after racking up a team-high 26 assists.

Wideman has played 162 games and is second only to junior forward Reilly Smith in career points among active players with 94. He has tallied 20 or more points in all four of his seasons in Oxford, and is plus-58 for his career.

In practice and warm-ups, Wideman is almost always one of the last players off the ice, and this season his younger brother, Alex is a freshman forward on the team.

“You don’t have to go out there and kill yourself, but an extra 10, 15 minutes each day, that’s going to pay dividends in a year, two years, and you just have to keep doing it,” Wideman said. “It’s not one day a week, it’s every day. That’s something that we learned as kids and it just comes naturally to us now.”

Schilling is a blend of the two, a physical player who also works the point on the power play. He boasts one of the hardest shots on the team.

He only played 25 games as a freshman but started in the national championship game that season.

“Cameron had some raw ability, obviously his skating ability was pretty good, but he has definitely improved himself every single season to a player that also contributes offensively now as well as defensively, so he’s a mainstay back there,” Blasi said.

Schilling was named to the West Regional All-Tournament team that season, and has eight goals and 50 assists in 143 career games with a plus-55 rating.

Weber was drafted by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the second round, 53rd overall in 2007. He played one season with the Chicago Steel of the USHL before starting his Miami career.

Wideman was supposed to play another season in juniors, but when Alec Martinez left a year early he was called in. After his freshman season Wideman was taken by the Ottawa Senators in the fourth round of the NHL draft.

Schilling was not drafted, but has drawn attention around the pros and should have no problem finding a suitor this fall.

The decision to come to Miami was a difficult one for Weber. Both his father and uncle had played at Cornell, and being from Gaylord, Mich., it was tempting to accept the offer to play at Michigan State, which won the NCAA Tournament

the year Weber was drafted.

“The biggest thing was just the coaching staff because that’s who you spend the most time with, and also the culture of the program,” Weber said. “You’re around 24 other guys basically every day all year, so that’s a big part of it.

“I knew once I came there that this was the place that I wanted to be at.”

The choice was easier for both Schilling and Wideman.

Schilling is from Carmel, Ind., which is just north of Indianapolis, and he said proximity played a large role in his decision.

“At the time they were an up-and-coming program, really successful, and it was close to home – that’s a big thing,” Schilling said. “And it’s a very good school, so it was kind of a no-brainer when I got an offer to come here.”

Wideman is from St. Louis, and fell in love with Oxford when he played in a midget tournament at age 15.

“Obviously ‘The Brotherhood’ and being a part of something like this is special, not to mention they’re a top team in the country,” Wideman said. “It was a no-brainer, when I was offered a scholarship I really didn’t even consider anywhere else.”

All three defenseman are clearly worthy of playing professional hockey next season, and they have all taken advantage of their four collegiate seasons to develop from good players to great ones.

Weber said that veterans like Kevin Roeder, Michael Findorff and Ray Eichenalub helped their adaptation to the college game as freshmen.

“I thought it was a pretty easy transition for us – they were always helping us out with anything that we needed,” Weber said. “The ice time was there and we made a lot of mistakes, as most freshmen will, but I think toward the end of that year things turned out pretty good.”

Schilling’s talent was evident his freshman year, but it was raw. After being held to seven points as a freshman, all assists, he put up 19 points his second season and has posted double-digit points totals the last two years as well.

“The proof is every NHL team is after him – he’s definitely going to be a really good pro player,” Weber said. “I knew from Day One he was going to be a great player for us, and I think he’s shown that and he’s done better every single year.”

Schilling said both Wideman and Weber have helped him become the player he is currently.

“I learned a lot of stuff from Chris, being a very offensive guy, watching him, and the same with Will being very good defensively, just watching him in practice and seeing how he eliminates guys,” Schilling said. “Obviously he’s a bigger guy than I am so I can’t do everything he can, but it’s definitely good watching him and taking personal things from him.”

Wideman fit in immediately on the power play, but he is most proud that he has developed the defensive side of his game during his stay in Oxford.

Wideman has also been paired with Weber much of this season, and he said that allows him to jump into the play more, knowing that Weber has the defensive end covered.

“When I came in as a freshman I was more of a high-risk player, kind of just out there learning as I go,” Wideman said. “Will’s helped me a lot this year, working on my defensive game. We’re playing against a lot of good teams, a lot of good players, and it really hasn’t been that difficult this year with Will.”

Said Schilling: “(Wideman) has unbelievable skills, he’s got a great shot, great vision from the ice. I think that’s one of his best attributes – being able to see the play and he’s great on the power play, and his defensive game’s not lacking. He’s very good defensively, especially for his size.”

Three players coming from three states that play three different styles of hockey, and they have all became great friends off the ice and help each other on it. And they have loved every minute of their stay in Oxford.

“Obviously playing the same position, we have each other’s back in practice and in the games especially,” Wideman said. “That’s a bond that you share, and most people never get to have something like that. Away from the rink, just spending four years with them, they’re like your brothers. I know we say that it’s part of ‘The Brotherhood’, but they really are like your brothers.”

Said Weber: “(Wideman and Schilling) are both great guys, and that was one of the main reasons I came here is I know the culture here and the kind of guys that the coaching staff was bringing in. I knew that I was going to make life-long friends here with guys on the team.”

Said Schilling: “It’s been unbelievable, I couldn’t ask for anything else. We’ve had great success here – hopefully we can finish off strong here the next couple of weeks – but I’ve had a great time with school, summer sessions here, the coaching staff. It’s going to be tough to leave this place just because I’ve gotten so used to it in four years, but you’ve got to move on eventually. But I couldn’t ask for anything better and it’s just been an amazing experience.”