Matt Mangene has dreamed of playing in the National Hockey League all his life.  After a strong 2011-12 season with the University of Maine Black Bears, he started receiving calls from several NHL organizations, and proceeded to sign his first professional contract with the Philadelphia Flyers.  Now playing for the Texas Stars of the American Hockey League, the 26-year old is anxious to take his career to the next level, while also placing a strong value on the importance of education and preparing for an eventual life after hockey. 

As an over-ager playing Junior ‘A’ hockey for the New Hampshire Jr. Monarchs in 2008-09, Mangene weighed his options for college hockey very carefully.  “I received offers from a number of schools.  I was waiting for some of the ones that I really wanted to attend.”

During this time, Mangene had a personal short list consisting of the University of Maine, Boston College, and Northeastern.  “Coach [Tim] Whitehead was very aggressive in recruiting me and bringing me in to U. of Maine so I kind of jumped on that opportunity right away.  It was the best hockey decision I’ve ever made.”

Every player that has come through the college ranks has a unique story as to how they chose their eventual destination, but for Mangene it was the traditional college recruitment process that has been practiced by schools for decades.  “It all happened through recruiting for me. I went on visits to games and saw the atmosphere, the university, the student section, and history of the building.  I kind of fell in love with the place and in my opinion there is no other atmosphere in college hockey quite like it.  I loved it.“

The ability to play both forward and defense gave Mangene the opportunity to display his offensive output, including a goal-filled weekend that stands out as one of his favorite college hockey moments.

“My favourite moment would have to be in my junior year when I had a four-goal weekend.  Against Boston College I had a game winner in Overtime, and then the next night I followed that up with a hat trick.  That was a really memorable weekend, at least for me anyways.”

Attending classes and completing schoolwork can be difficult as a student-athlete, but like all other challenges, Mangene embraced it.  “While I was in school I majored in Business/Finance Management and then when I left school I switched to a Bachelor of Universal Studies.”

The fourth year pro recognized at an early age that playing hockey does not last forever.  “I wanted to get my degree to keep my options open.  You never know when your last game or your last season is going to be.”

“It is just something to keep my mind at ease, just in case my career ends earlier than I think it will.  I wanted to make sure I have something in my back pocket that I can fall back on after hockey.”

Not everything has been positive for Mangene throughout his hockey career.  He went undrafted and had to work hard to improve his game to impress pro scouts.  “When I didn’t get drafted I didn’t look at it as a negative.  I never felt that because I didn’t get drafted that I wouldn’t be able to play pro hockey.  It gave me a little boost and my mindset was that I could still make it.  I still believed in myself and I had my college coaches believing in me too which was really nice.”

He is a firm believer that things change quickly in the hockey world.  “You are at such a young age during your draft year that it shouldn’t matter [if you get drafted or not].  You just have to have the right mindset. A lot of things can change during the time between when you get drafted to four or five years down the road.” “I tried to stay focused on what was happening around me with school and hockey with Maine.  But once my junior season ended, the [Philadelphia] Flyers flew me down to check out their area and tour their building and stuff like that.  I realized then that I wanted to turn pro the next season and chase my dream.”

After signing with the Flyers, Mangene suited up for 5 games at the end of the season with their AHL affiliate, the Adirondack Phantoms.  The following year, he was back in Adirondack, learning the ropes of being a full time professional hockey player.

During his rookie season, Bruno Gervais was reassigned to Adirondack and played most of the 2012-13 season with the Phantoms.  Mangene explained how important Gervais was to his development in that first full year.

“He taught me how to manage my time a little better.  Going from college to pro is different.  In college you’re always doing something whether its school work, practice, or a game.  In pro, you have practice and everything that goes along with that for about 4 hours and then you’re done for the rest of the day.  That was a big change for me.  Bruno is one of the nicest guys I’ve ever met in the hockey world.  He helped out all the young guys and was a great role model to have around.”

Mangene’s time with the Flyers was full of learning experiences, but ended up being short-lived as he was traded to the New York Islanders organization at the NHL Trade Deadline.

“It was really weird.  I was sitting on my couch watching SportsCenter like a lot of guys do on the trade deadline, watching the ticker at the bottom of my TV.  I saw that Philadelphia made a trade and then a half hour later I go check my phone and I had messages from Mr. Holmgren and Mr. Hextall saying ‘pick up your phone.’  It was then that I realized I’m the guy that just got traded.”

He took the trade in stride and embraced the change.  “Jumping into a new organization involves some transition, a new system, new coaching, new players, so it was definitely a different experience for me.”

Although he was on the move, it was certainly not a disappointment.  He would be closer to hometown of Manorville, NY than he had been since his minor hockey days.

“I played for the Bridgeport Sound Tigers and the arena was only about an hour and a half away from my hometown.  I was able to stay at home for a while which was kind of nice.  It was the first time since minor hockey that it was actually easy for my parents to go to a game.”

After splitting last season with the ECHL’s Florida Everblades and the Texas Stars of the AHL, where he combined for 34 points in 59 games, Mangene is back with Texas this year.  Although his dream remains the same, Mangene is not fearful of what the world may hold for him after his playing career concludes.  

He recently enrolled in the popular Career Enhancement Program, run by the Professional Hockey Players’ Association.  The program is designed to help players transition to life after hockey by providing a number of options and education opportunities.  

“I would like to stay in the hockey world – either in scouting, coaching or even refereeing.  You never really know what every day is going to be like in this world – the hockey world is kind of different.”

The PHPA is currently auctioning a game-worn Matt Mangene Texas Stars jersey, which was donated by the Stars toward the PHPA annual Redline auction.  When asked how much he thinks his jersey will raise he quipped, “I don’t know, but I hope it raises a lot.  It’s a pretty important program that I know helps a lot of players and their families.  Hopefully there’s a Matt Mangene fan out there that steps up for this worthy cause.”

Although Mangene is still pursuing his NHL dream on the ice, you may one day find him excelling in a different role within the hockey community off the ice, putting his education and hockey experience to good use.

Follow Brendan Connolly on Twitter @BConnolly_