WILL KARR
Editor in Chief
Ever since he could stand up on his own, Fredonia men’s ice hockey player Craig McCabe has had skates on his feet. Growing up, his parents built him and his siblings an outdoor rink in their backyard.
“Ever since I was two until I came here, skating has been a way for me to get away from reality,” McCabe said.
McCabe is a team captain and a senior business marketing major from Rochester, N.Y. As a child, McCabe first started skating at a local rink in his town, where he learned to play hockey from Fredonia alumni Dave and Tony Maksymiu. He grew up in a “hockey family.”
Since his youth, he has played for Buffalo, Syracuse, Rochester, New Jersey and Canadian teams. McCabe played in the NAHL, one of the highest rated junior leagues. McCabe’s older brother, Teddy, played hockey at SUNY Geneseo and his sister Molly plays hockey at SUNY Cortland.
McCabe graduated from McQuaid Jesuit High School in 2016. After graduating from high school, instead of heading straight off to college, McCabe took a few years off to play junior league hockey, following in his older brother’s footsteps. His older brother also played junior hockey.
“When everyone was sending off their college applications, I was pretty set on going to play juniors,” McCabe said. “… I feel like there is this pressure to go to college right after high school. But, I think that taking some time off can be beneficial because you can get some life experience and kind of see what you want to do with the rest of your life.”
McCabe said that his teachers didn’t understand his decision at the time, but he had the support of his parents and family. In order to get on a college hockey team, many players have to first go through the junior leagues to do so.
“After you graduate high school and you want to follow your dream of playing collegiate hockey, the road is different,” McCabe said. “… You can either go to prep school or try to play in a junior league. I played two years in Ottawa and lived with a billet family.”
McCabe came to Fredonia in Fall 2019, a semester before COVID-19 shut down SUNY campuses.
“COVID hitting was a tough situation because I was living off campus, and I didn’t know whether to stay in Fredonia,” McCabe said. “… The following year, I came here in hopes that I would play again. But COVID shut the [2020-2021] season down.”
After the pandemic halted the season and finding out he was ahead on credits, in spring of 2023, McCabe decided to take a semester off to become a ski instructor in Lake Tahoe.
“Skiing is kind of second nature to me, and I like being outside in the mountains,” McCabe said. “I saw that time as an opportunity to do something that I had always wanted to do.”
Growing up, McCabe spent a lot of time in the mountains during holidays and getaways at his family’s cottage in the Adirondacks. After returning back to Fredonia in Fall 2021, McCabe said that things finally started to feel normal again. With graduation months away and turning 25 in a month, McCabe is skating into his future.
“My goal would be to have a remote job where I can go skiing or go to the beach in my free time, or do what I want when I am not working,” McCabe said. “… Right after college, you are supposed to get a job. But, I am young, and I want to kind of enjoy my life while I can. I like to think that I took advantage of living my life when I was young.”
In his everyday life, McCabe describes himself as reserved. However, once he gets on the ice, his personality changes.
“Off the ice, I’m definitely calm. I go with the flow, but I do like to get my adrenaline going,” McCabe said. “On the ice, I am feisty. I like to play very hard and aggressive. … I definitely play with an edge.”
Out of all the players on the team, McCabe has one of the highest Penalty in Minute (PIM) scores on a team with a total of 125 minutes.
“Hockey is a sport where you can fight someone, sit in the penalty box and then you are fine,” McCabe said. “You can’t do that on the street or else you would get arrested.”
McCabe said that the team only needs to win a couple more games to make it to the playoffs. With the team’s 2-4 win Saturday night against SUNY Potsdam, the team only needs to win two more games to make it to the playoffs, which start on Feb. 22.
“I think we can definitely make it to the playoffs this year,” McCabe said.