For J.C. Lipon, home is a place that is so flat your dog can run away for a few days. Home is a place that may feel colder than Pluto in the winter time. And home is a place where a child’s Halloween costume is designed to fit over top of a snowsuit.  Lipon’s home is Regina, Saskatchewan in the good ol’ Canadian Prairies, and he wouldn’t have had it any other way.

For young hockey players growing up in the Prairies, the local “ODR” (Out Door Rink) is where dreams of one day playing in the National Hockey League (NHL) are born. On January 18^th, 2016 Lipon’s dream become a reality when he made his NHL debut in the neighbouring province of Manitoba with the Winnipeg Jets against the Colorado Avalanche at the MTS Centre.

“It was pretty much the most exciting day I’ve ever had,” said Lipon.

The road to that amazing day was not paved with a golden ice surface and a fast-track ticket to the big leagues. The road begins with the 1993-born right winger developing his already impressive skill set in the junior hockey arenas of the Western Hockey League (WHL) with the Kamloops Blazers.

Considered to be undersized in his 16-year-old season, Lipon was not expected to make the Blazers’ cut in his rookie season but landed a spot on the team as a depth forward. Although he worked tirelessly throughout his junior career to have his abilities noticed, he had been twice passed over in the NHL draft.

By his senior year, Lipon’s play was impressing upon scouts, and earned the opportunity to showcase his talents internationally after being selected to represent Canada at the 2013 World Junior Championship (WJC) in Russia.

“It was special. It was cool for me playing for that team. Just the way my career was going, I didn’t exactly put myself in that class of players but then I got that opportunity and I just went with it”.

During the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, Lipon was sitting comfortably at his cabin in Fort Qu’Appelle at Echo Lake surrounded by friends and family waiting patiently of his name to be called. When his name was finally called 91^st overall in the 3^rd round by the Winnipeg Jets it came as a surprise.

“I actually had never talked to Winnipeg.  I spoke to numerous other teams but not Winnipeg. I never really thought of going to there, I always thought it would be somewhere else so when it happened there were a lot of emotions. I finally had the chance to play close to home.”

Then came NHL training camp, when young prospects get their first experience at the on-ice and off-ice life of a professional hockey player.  For a young Lipon, it took a little while getting used to but was overall a great experience.

“When I was drafted, I was 19 so that was my first NHL training camp and was still very nerve racking.  But once you’re there for a couple days you kind of get used to it. You start off with guys your age and then you get mixed in with the older guys later on so it worked out and I got more comfortable each day. It’s also pretty cool with how well the team takes care of you. The little things like that kind of give you no excuse to lose.”

Following his first training camp, Lipon signed a three-year-entry level contract with Winnipeg and made his professional hockey debut the following year with the St. John’s Ice Caps, who were the Jets’ American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate at the time.  The transition from junior to professional hockey always has its difficulties on the ice but as J.C. explains, can also present its fair share of off-ice challenges as well.

“You go from living with billets and having food cooked for you every day to finding a place to live and roommates and taking care of all of that. You now have to buy groceries on your own and learn to cook.  It’s a real learning experience.  Lots of guys don’t get to live on their own at 20 these days, so I think it was definitely good for me. Once you get the hang of it, it’s nice to be on your own.”

Many young players may have difficulty with their transition to the pros and have looked to the Professional Hockey Players’ Association (PHPA) as well as veteran teammates for guidance. Lipon talks about how reassuring it is to be part of a unionized environment.

“They [PHPA] take pretty good care of you. I think as players we all know we’re pretty lucky as there’s a lot of other minor leagues that definitely don’t have close to the benefits we have, not just in hockey but in others sports like baseball or football. What I’ve heard is that a lot of people are looking to the PHPA as a model for representation at the minor league level.”

Lipon’s former IceCaps teammate and captain, Jason Jaffray served as a great leader and PHPA Player Representative who helped him through his rookie year and continues to teach him, even without saying a word.

“I learned a lot from him. It helps to see a guy that has been doing it for years and comes to the rink positive every day. He was a really good captain and now he’s over in Germany and it seems like he’s having fun out there. Even though my first goal is to have a permanent spot in the NHL, he kind of shows you that if you don’t have a full-time career in the NHL, that there are still options out there.”

After enjoying two years in St. John’s, the Jets’ AHL affiliate was relocated to Winnipeg, Manitoba. Although leaving a town with a beloved fan base may have been heartbreaking for some, the opportunity to play in the Prairies and close to home in the same building as the Jets, with management watching close by was motivating for Lipon.

“I loved St.John’s.  There were great crowds every night and I feel like I became part of the community and met a lot of good people out there. At the end of the day though, I think being in the same city as the Jets, you get a little more exposure and opportunity to show your skills with more people from the NHL team watching you. You’re motivated to play all the time but it’s always a little extra motivation when you know someone is watching. I think playing in the same rink also makes it a little easier to transition for when you get called up, being used to the arena and everything.”

That extra motivation and exposure paid off when Lipon was given the opportunity to play in nine games with the Jets this past season where he recorded an assist on a goal by Andrew Copp  as well as a fighting major against Calgary’s Micheal Ferland.  Going forward, he hopes to build on both his AHL and NHL experience as motivation to continue improving certain aspects of his game to land a permanent spot on an NHL line-up.

“I’ve been working on getting a little stronger and a little faster.  You would think its common sense but that’s what you have to do every year to keep up and be above everyone else because you’re always competing with everyone. When you get sent to the minors, it makes you extra motivated to get back up and play with the big boys.”

While he works on his speed and strength during the off-season, Lipon makes sure to strike a balance for unwinding and spending time with loved ones during the summer.

“Right at the end of season, like most guys, I go on vacation somewhere hot. Then I come home and map out my summer and what I’m going to do each week. I like to golf pretty much every second day, spend time at the lake with family, and spend as much time as possible with my girlfriend because long distance can be tough.”

Although it’s early to envision retirement, Lipon thinks about spending more time snowboarding when his playing career is over. Fortunately, he may be able to get a few pointers from hometown best friend and Olympic Snowboarder Mark McMorris.

“He’s my best friend, I used to get out snowboarding quite a bit each year when I was in Kamloops because the nice mountains were right there but now it’s pretty tough to get out. For now, I just live vicariously through him.  He used to play hockey as well and so he kind of lives vicariously through me in that aspect.”

All joking aside, Lipon is looking forward to NHL training camps getting underway, and once again impressing upon Jets’ management to earn a full-time spot in the NHL. 

Follow Colin Gratton twitter @ColinGratts