Alex Rubin is about to live the dream of nearly every player who straps on a high school hockey uniform – to play at the next level.
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Rubin recently signed a contract to play for the Jersey Shore Wildcats for the 2015-16 season. The Jersey Shore team is a member of the Northern States Junior Hockey League (NSJHL).
Rubin, an Alton High School senior, has been a member of the Alton team in the Mississippi Valley Club Hockey Association and a member of the Twin Bridges youth team. Both teams played home games at East Alton Ice Arena.
Rubin becomes the first player to sign at this level in about 10 years. The last player to sign such a contract was Dakota Mermis.
The Alton High School senior said he was ecstatic at signing the NSHL contract.
“I report to training camp in August,” he said. “I will be traveling up and down the east coast playing from Washington to Maine. Every kid who starts hockey definitely wants to move to the next level and eventually play professional hockey. I am going to play forward-center.”
Rubin scored 42 goals this past year for Alton High School and Twin Rivers. He said this is a natural next step for him.
The past two years the Alton hockey player attended the America’s Hockey Showcase event in Pittsburgh, where one particular scout discovered him.
“Last year, one of the Jersey Shore scouts pulled me aside and said he liked the way I played,” he said. “We sent e-mails back and forth and he said after watching me this year I was about ready for the Jersey Shore team and that level. Jersey Shore took first place in the league last year with a 40-1 record.”
The Jersey Shore coach assured Rubin that he will be a key contributor this season, which could open doors for him at the college or professional hockey level. Jersey Shore sent players to several colleges last year and that fits Rubin’s ultimate goal of getting a college scholarship.
Rubin said being a member of the Alton hockey team was an “awesome experience.”
“Every game you could count on the Redbird Nest coming out and our fans cheering us on,” he said. “I loved playing alongside my buddies for all four years in high school.”
For this Alton High School senior, hockey is his sport.
“I love it,” he said. “I grew up playing and couldn’t have asked for a better sport. It taught me so many lessons and skills on and off the ice. The players on the Alton team are like brothers and the whole experience brought my family closer together. I couldn’t ask for anything better to do.”
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