Freshman Friday is a Q-and-A feature with new members of the men's hockey team. This is the fourth installment, featuring forward Jeff Malott. He talks about playing with a past and future teammate, his rise through the junior ranks, and the teammate he's learning the most from right now.

Q: What do you think of Cornell and playing hockey here so far?
A: It's pretty awesome. The history is pretty prominent here. There's a lot of success in the program, so it's pretty cool to be part of something like that.
 
Q: You've now played a month or so of D1 college hockey. What's surprised you so far?
A: I think just the size and the strength of everybody here. I mean, in juniors, on any given night you could play against 16-year-old kids. But here, most nights you're playing against a full team of grown men. Definitely expected a bit of an adjustment, but it has been a bit of a shock how strong and how fast every player on every team is.
 
Q: Were you born and raised in Waterdown, Ontario which is in the Hamilton area, right? And did you always play hockey there?
A: I was always focused on hockey. I played in the Hamilton area growing up and then made my way into junior. Throughout high school, I also played varsity soccer for all four years. I played pretty much any sport as a hobby. I played basketball my senior year, and I hadn't played a game of basketball in my entire life until then.
 
Q: So you're first on-the-radar stop was with Caledonia in the GOJHL. It was a pretty cool year for you there, wasn't it?
A: It was a pretty awesome year. They pretty much gave me my first shot. I went in there not really expecting to play much for them, and it turned out to be probably the best place I could have played in my first year of juniors. It was a lot of fun, and we ended up winning the league with a great group of guys. I actually played with Connor Murphy there, so it's cool that we crossed paths again later.
 
Q: Does having a former teammate here make it easier to get acclimated?
A: It does really help a lot. It's one relationship you already have established and one person you feel really comfortable with. Connor and I worked out together the summer before and we played three years of minor hockey together. So we're already pretty good friends, and it helps a lot being from the same program. It makes the transition a lot easier.  It's been a lot of fun.
 
Q: So then came the big move for Junior A to Brooks, Alberta. Growing up in Ontario, you had tons of good hockey at that level around you already. Was that a tough decision to say you're going to move out west?
A: It definitely was. I was pretty set on staying in Caledonia, but Brooks made a pretty good sell and they had an insane number of commits for the Canadian Junior Hockey League. I think that was selling factor, because that was always the plan while playing junior hockey — get to the next level. That was probably one of the best organizations that I've ever played for. I loved every minute in Brooks.
 
Q: If I recall, you played for some pretty big stakes there, too. And, if I recall, you played against another future teammate in the RBC Cup (the Canada Junior A national championship tournament).
A: Yeah, we played against Noah Bauld (with the Lloydminster Bobcats). It was a lot of fun. We went far as a team and really came together. It was a pretty cool experience playing in a high-stakes tournament like that — and playing against Bauldy, too.
 
Q: Going back, you said that getting to the next level was always the idea. Was the next level always college for you? Or was major juniors ever a thought, too?
A: Really, the next level only came into the picture once I got to Caledonia. My minor career never really pointed me to the next level. But in juniors, I had coaches that put me in the right direction. But as soon as I saw hockey as something that I knew I wanted to pursue, the college level was how I wanted to go about it. Pairing that quality of education with that level of hockey was definitely the package I was looking for.
 
Q: So what are you studying?
A: I'm in Applied Economics and Management right now. I'm definitely interested in business. Probably something along the lines of finance or marketing. But I think it's just a great program to meet people and develop some skills that will transition well into the business world.
 
Q: Did you always have an eye toward the Ivy League once the college level appeared on the horizon?
A: Yeah, the Ivy League was definitely the path my family and I wanted me to take. Education has always been highly valued in my house. I think this is the perfect fit.
 
Q: What really changed during your time in Caledonia?
A: Size. I definitely grew a lot in high school. I spent a couple years just getting adjusted to a different body type, but the game is surrounded by size and speed. I just kind of got lucky with timing, I guess, and grew quite a bit. I think that just really helped the potential of my game.
 
Q: And here at Cornell in particular, we have a history of grooming bigger forwards. Was that something that weighed into your decision to come here?
A: It was actually a pretty big factor. My coach in Brooks, Ryan Papaioannou, basically from Day 1 told me that this would be the perfect fit for me. Ever since getting here, it's been everything I could ask for. It suits my style really well. I think it's made it really easy to adjust.
 
Q: What teammates do you think you're learning the most from right now?
A: I'm definitely learning a lot about what it takes to really contribute to this program and what kind of sacrifices and commitment it takes from Jake Weidner. He's a pretty selfless guy and has good control of the group here. It's cool to see how much trust coach has in him and what kind of leadership role he plays across the team. He's a solid leader.