Freshman Friday is a Q-and-A feature with new members of the men's hockey team. This is the first installment, featuring forward Morgan Barron.

Q: I guess we'll just start off with the obvious — what was your experience like at the NHL draft this summer, when the New York Rangers selected you in the sixth round?
A: It's kind of a cliché, but you really do only get to do it once in a lifetime. So it was really cool, because I got to go out to Chicago and had my parents and my brother there, so it was a lot of fun. It was busy, but I wouldn't change anything.

Q: Did you think twice about going to that? Because you were ranked pretty high, but crazier things have happened and you might not have been picked.
A: I put a lot of thought into it, actually. At the end of the day, I figured that if it was going to happen then I'd want to be there and I'd be able to soak up my losses if something did fall through. I guess it was a tough choice, I'm glad I went in the end.

Q: Anything surprise you about the experience out there?
A: Usually I'm pretty cool and collected, but I definitely got a little bit nervous there as picks kept rolling by. Once I was picked, it was obviously a lot of relief and it made the experience a lot more enjoyable. But I was definitely a little bit nervous, which surprised me because I'm not normally like that.

Q: So the Rangers are one of those teams that holds their development camp right after the draft, so off you went to New York. What did you take away from that camp?
A: I think the biggest thing is just what it means to be a pro. That was the main message they wanted to get across to us, was that those guys work a lot harder than people think and that they're really dedicated to the game. So I got in there and played against some older guys, some who are already pro, and some of them just graduated college, so that was really good to see how they treat the game and try to take that into my daily life.

Q: Christian Hilbrich '16 once participated in a Rangers prospect camp a few years ago, and he said it was a lot of analytics — measurements and numbers and stuff like that — and that there wasn't actually a whole lot of feedback. Was it a similar experience for you?
A: Yeah. They did definitely take a lot of numbers and analytics. We had the heart-rate monitors on the second we walked in the door until the second we left. We were doing our weights when we got there and then weighed again when we left. So it was a lot of that stuff. To my knowledge, they'll keep all that information and then compile it year after year to see how you progress. I haven't seen much of it yet, but when I get done next year I guess you can compare your numbers and scores from the previous year.

Q: OK, so let's rewind and talk about how you got here — because I think it's a unique road for a Canadian who never played a single game of Canadian juniors. So two years with the Newbridge Academy midget team in Nova Scotia, and then you were taken in the fourth round of the QMJHL draft. Why not just go that route at that point?
A: After my first year of not getting drafted (by the QMJHL), to be honest with you I wasn't really that disappointed. I knew I wasn't going to get picked that year, because I didn't talk to any teams in advance. But I had a growth spurt that summer, and I guess that second year of midget is where things started really clicking. I actually did go to camp and spent my 48 hours (with the team) in Saint John, and it was really enjoyable. But at the end of the day I just wanted to give myself a chance to explore both avenues. At that point, I had already committed to go off to St. Andrew's for my two years. It was a long process to make that decision, but I stuck to my commitment, and I'm glad I did. In Nova Scotia, you're not exposed to college hockey that much. It's starting to get better, but I really knew nothing about it until I went off to St. Andrew's.  I was glad I stuck it out and at least gave myself the chance to look at both sides.

Q: So why St. Andrew's? It has a great reputation as grounds for development in Canada outside the junior system, but it's in Ontario far from home for you.
A: I had a teammate who I played with in my first year in midget, and he went off the year before me and he really liked it. I contacted a lot of schools, but they're pretty much the only one that got back to me and said they'd be happy to take me. It was obviously an amazing experience. I don't think any other school can compare to the quality of the program they have there. So it was really a privilege for me to go there.

Q: So your first year there was Grade 11, and you committed to Cornell within a couple of months. Did all of that happen pretty quickly?
A: When I headed off to St. Andrew's, I wasn't really in contact with any schools. Like I said, I wasn't really exposed to it up there (in Nova Scotia). I think it was my second weekend at St. Andrew's, (associate head coach) Ben Syer came up to watch me play and got in contact with me the week after. I think the biggest thing for me was that he's a world-class recruiter. He was calling every week and really keeping up to date with my progress. I got down for a visit in January (2016), and then I gave myself a couple more months to think things over. But pretty much through the entire process, I was pretty sure I wanted it to be Cornell. When I got that offer, I was really excited about it. So it was a process, but a really fun one.

Q: Were you able to catch a game on your visit here?
A: I did. They lost to Dartmouth, 3-0, when I was here. It was a Friday, and I had to drive back up to Toronto for a game on Saturday night. So I still haven't seen a Cornell goal at Lynah, but I'm hoping that trend doesn't continue for too long.

Q: So with all due respect to St. Andrew's, once you were committed here, why didn't you go to juniors at that point?
A: I definitely looked at it, but I think the big thing with me is that I wanted to honor the decision I had made. When I went for Grade 11, I told them I would do my two years. At the end of the day, I didn't see how that would hold me back. I knew it would be a little bit tougher here, but I know that at the end of the day our coach at St. Andrew's made sure we had the toughest schedule possible. That obviously meant a lot of travel, but we were playing a lot of the top schools in Boston, or heading out to Minnesota to play Shattuck-St. Mary's, or heading to Indiana to play Culver. But the big thing for me was honoring that decision I made and to stick with it. I'm really glad that I did. It worked out in my favor.

Q: By all accounts, it's going to be a pretty big jump in competition from that to here. Do you think that's the sort of thing you have to be aware of?
A: It's obviously a different style of play. You're playing against a lot of bigger and stronger guys, so I think that's definitely something I'm going to have to adjust to. You can't go out there and play like you're still playing high school hockey. But in terms of the level of skill, I'm trying not to think about it too much. I think when I go out there and I'm surrounded by stronger players, too — which is obviously helpful — I think I fit well out there and I think can hold my own. So I'll go in with that attitude and really not thinking about where I played last year, but how things are going on the ice this year.

Q: You've described yourself as a late bloomer. I'm curious about how that's affected your game. Did you have to take a different approach to the game when you realized, 'Hey, I'm going to be a power forward'?
A: Absolutely. That was a huge adjustment for me. Especially the first two years after I grew, I really didn't play as physically as you'd expect from someone my size. That was just solely the fact that I honestly didn't realize I got just knock guys off pucks pretty easily, or protect pucks, or use my body. That was definitely a big adjustment.

Q: So now you come here to a program that has a history of developing power forwards. Is that something you considered when you decided to come here?
A: Yeah, the style that Coach Schafer has us play is like a pro-style game. In terms of the defensive style of hockey, he's really strict. But at the same time, he's working really hard to develop our offense and we'll produce as much as we can. That fit what I wanted. And to see the history of the great power forwards that have come out of here, I figured that it would be a good fit.

Q: So who do you model yourself after?
A: I like to say Chris Kreider (of the New York Rangers). I've always said that. Just watching him play, he's a really explosive skater and I think we have a similar build.

Q: Outside of hockey, what are you studying here?
A: Right now, I'm in Arts and Sciences and I was thinking about majoring in Economics. But now I'm thinking about switching to Applied Economics and Management. So we'll see how that goes.

Q: And what do your parents do?
A: My dad works Nova Scotia Power as a sales rep, and my mom works as a nurse at the local hospital.

Q: Have they always pushed the academic side of things?
A: Yeah, that's a big side of it for them. They were always supportive of whatever I wanted to do, but they didn't push me one way or the other. But for them, they're ecstatic that I'm at an Ivy League school. I don't think they ever thought that would be possible, but here we are.