Jason Schmidt’s Bio
I was born at Swedish Medical Center and raised in Centennial, Colorado. My mom and dad moved to Centennial from Buffalo, New York and brought with them my older brother Jeff who went on to have a very successful career in Minnesota. Jeff moved to Rochester, Minnesota for high school and accepted a scholarship to St. Cloud State University, where he went on to play for four years.
I began skating at the age of four and have played hockey ever since. Starting so young, I was skating backwards at an early age, which resulted in my playing defense (being one of the only players who could skate backwards), despite my small stature. As a second year PeeWee in 1987-88 I tried out for and made Team Colorado; we won the Western Regionals, beating the Alaska Allstars and making it to the Tier 1 Semifinals for the PeeWee National Championships. Ultimately, we lost to GPD from Michigan who went on to beat the Madison Capitals for the championship. That same year I was chosen to represent Denver in an international competition against Team China and was then selected to travel to what was then West Germany. For two weeks our team was hosted and billeted by the Hedos Ice Hockey Club from Munich, Germany on a Denver-West Germany Friendship Tour. We traveled all over, what was then West Germany, playing hockey clubs and gaining a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
As a youth, I attended various summer camps from Buddy Blom’s in Aspen to Can-Am in Niagara Falls, Canada to Rochester Mayo, Minnesota. I played defense for Cherry Creek High School before hockey was a school sanctioned sport. I played for Colorado State University ACHA Division I. Then I transferred to Metro State ACHA Division II in Denver where I was elected President and Captain of the club team for two years.
As an adult, my wife and I started running marathons in honor of my father-in-law who was battling leukemia and lymphoma. My wife’s father lost his battle in 2011. In memory of him, I began training for a full IronMan (140.6 miles). I completed that quest in 2015 in Boulder. I have also completed 3 half IronMan distance races (70.3 miles), 7 full marathons, a half-marathon, a couple of triathlons in the Buffalo Creek area, and a Spartan Super Race.
I truly believe that ice hockey is the foundation on which I am built. I learned life lessons that I will always cherish and look to for guidance and strength in my adult life. I look forward to working with youth to help instill in them lessons for the game as well as life.
10 years of coaching experience
Level IV USA Hockey Coaching Certification (Squirt, Peewee, and Bantam age modules)
SafeSport Certification
Concussion Training
ISI Certified and Insured
SafeSport Certified
ADM Modules 8U-19U
Hockey is in my blood, many generations deep. My grandfather grew up in Wyoming but went to school in Montreal during the late 1950s when the Canadiens won 5 consecutive Stanley Cups. He moved to Rochester, Minnesota where his sons started playing hockey. My father and uncle have played or coached hockey for more than fifty years at nearly all levels. I was born in Connecticut and grew up in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
Learning to skate
I started skating early, at age three, on outdoor ice in Minnesota. I learned forward and backward skating mechanics starting at age four by pushing and pulling weighted chairs on the ice- weighted by puck bags, my father, or other children at the rink. I learned to use my edges playing forward and backward tag with my family and friends. My dad did not let me have a puck or stick until I was a very good skater for my age. I skated and handled a puck almost every day during the winter on a small backyard rink or with other kids on neighborhood rinks
Playing Hockey
I started playing organized hockey at age 8. I played defense nearly exclusively at the U8, U10, U12, U14, and high school levels in Minnesota. I played on a number of very good teams including two state tournament teams – U12A and U14A. I also did a lot of off-ice training, shooting, and handling pucks nearly every day in my garage.
I have worked with extremely influential and knowledgable coaches including Winny Brodt and Ronda Engelhardt (two former Minnesota Miss Hockey award winners and US National Team members) during both regular and off-season hockey programs. As an adult, I still play in adult leagues and have a blast every time I’m on the ice.
Coaching and teaching:
I spend a lot of time working with and teaching kids, and I plan on working with children for the rest of my life. I’ve been teaching skating and coaching hockey for more than 15 years. My first memories of teaching and coaching start at age ten when I began counseling at a learn-to-skate program for disadvantaged children (ages 4-10) in Saint Paul. I assisted in coaching boys and girls (ages 6-16) with my uncle at summer hockey schools for six years during junior high and high school. I am a certified Level 2 USA hockey coach. This will be my fourth year coaching with Jason Schmidt. In addition to my time on the ice with children, I have spent many hours working with and teaching children. I’ve worked for four years in classrooms in various international locations, including Lima, Peru; Merida Mexico: Barcelona, Spain, teaching English as a Second Language, and locally in Denver, Colorado, and St Paul, Minnesota. Currently, I am nannying for more than five families regularly while I work on my degree. I will earn my BA in Early Childhood Education in 2023 and plan to work with children in a Montessori, child-led, experiential-based teaching and learning environment.
Bryce DeFazio’s Bio
Grew up playing for the Colorado Springs Jr. Tigers and Pikes Peak Miners organizations. I played AAA hockey for the Colorado Rampage before moving on the play in the USHL for the Waterloo Blackhawks after my second year of U16 AAA. I played a total of 4 years of junior hockey and split time between the USHL, NAHL, BCHL, and NCDC. I was then recruited to play college hockey at SUNY Geneseo. We just finished a record season making a frozen four appearance and finished the year with a loss in the national championship game. I look forward to sharing my experience and skills I have picked up along the way with the younger generation.
**Private lessons available**
There are no substitutes for private lessons. Private lessons are the best way to elevate your game quickly and take your game to the next level surpassing others along the way.
Send me an email at information@hhockeyco.com to set up your private lesson.