Freshman Friday is a Q-and-A feature with new members of the men's hockey team. This is the eighth of nine installments this year, featuring defenseman Peter Muzyka.

Q: We're a full semester in at this point. How are things going for you? How is the adjustment process?
A: I think it's been going pretty smoothly. Coming in, you're nervous about school, the academics and balancing with the hockey, but I think I've done a pretty good job.  I think all of the freshman have, for the most part. I think the upperclassmen helped us out a lot. I think that was kind of a big thing. Whenever we were in trouble, kind of balancing out certain things or we had concerns or whatever it may be, they kind of just told us to take a step back and breathe. You know, 'you're fine, just get it done.' They were huge for us.

Q: And now we're at an interesting time in the year too. During the semester break, you guys really get a different experience. Is this a welcome respite from your routine when school is in session?
A: Yeah, it kind of feels like it's junior hockey all over again a bit. You wake up, have breakfast, come to the rink, do your video, get your warmup in, practice, and then lift or do whatever you have to do after practice and then kind of go home and rest. I think for a lot of guys this time of year is great. All we are worried about is practicing and looking after our bodies and just kind of having fun on the ice and away from the rink.

Q: What are you studying?
A: I'm a communications major, and I'm trying to get my business minor, as well. Both of my parents were in the insurance industry, and business was something I wanted to go into. I know communications isn't straight business, but it's still along the lines. If I get that business minor, I can kind of tie it all together. What I want to do after school here? I'm not entirely sure, but I think I'm keeping that business aspect open and my mind open as to where I want to go.

Q: One of the things I noticed is you were taken in the OHL draft in '14. A guy who eschews that route from an early age, that kind of sticks out. You were highly regarded way back in your midget days, but did you know the NCAA was going to be your route the whole time?
A: Not really, to be quite honest with you. All the way through minor midget I thought: "I'm going to the (Ontario Hockey League)". Obviously, being an Ontario kid, that's huge. You see all of these great players graduating and going straight to the NHL, and any young hockey player's dream is to make that jump to the NHL. So you think, 'if I can hop into the O and play well ,I can make it there fast.'

But kind of halfway through a season, one of my hockey coaches at school sat me down and said, 'Hey, I went to school in the states, and you may want to consider it.' It's always kind of been a thought, and my family put a big emphasis on school. We're at an Ivy League school right now, but you still want that hockey aspect, too. So I thought about it. Could I have gone to the OHL and played right away? Maybe. I was a big kid, but I didn't have the weight or the strength. I was around 6 feet or 5-11, but I was like 155 pounds, 160 pounds. I just knew competing at that level probably wasn't going to be an option right away, so I wanted to give my body a little bit more time to develop. And even looking at myself now, I'm 6-3, 190, and I'm looking at the guys in the room, they are around the same size, but they're men. So giving myself four years here to develop and get bigger, that was kind of the goal.

Q: One of the things I thought was interesting is that you played one year in Penticton (in the British Columbia Hockey League), and then there was some talk about you going back whether you'd go back for another year or come in here. How was that decision ultimately made?
A: Yeah, I talked to Fred Harbinson (the president, general manager and head coach in Penticton), and talked to (Associate Head Coach) Ben Syer here. Freddy wanted me to come back another year, and Benny wanted me to come it. So I just said to Ben, 'Hey, whatever you think is best. You've had the most experience doing this … wherever you think I'm going to develop the best.' So not playing, it's tough right now. But you see how deep we are, and I'm kind of learning from the older guys and trying to take as much away from them as possible."

Q: We've had some awfully good defensemen come through here that didn't play much as freshmen. Jacob McDonald '15 played eight games as a rookie – now he's one of the top-scoring defensemen in the AHL. Matt Nuttle '19 played twice as a freshman, then was the named the league's best defensive defenseman last year. So how do you get better in these circumstances?
A: It's just showing up to practice and being consistent every day. You look at the guys that are playing, you look at the guys who are drafted, you look at the guys that have had success throughout all four years, and you just try to model everything they do. Obviously no one is perfect, and they have flaws, too. They are working to get better. So every time they are working on something, you are picking up on it. You are listening to Coach Schafer, you're listening to Benny, (assistant coach Sean Flanagan), (volunteer assistant coach) Mitch (Stephens), and you're just trying to get better every day. Every little thing that they say to help grow your game. So you are soaking it all up and just kind of working to fine tune those details.

You look at how deep we are, it's unbelievable. You can't complain with how well we are doing and how well our D are doing, especially. We have a bunch of young guys playing well and it's great to see and it's exciting, because we are going to be strong in the future, too. This isn't a one-year thing. Being able to hop into the lineup in the next three years is going to be exciting.

Q: How would you describe your game? And what, specifically, are you working on to get to that next step?
A: I think I'm a big defensive defenseman. I'm working on my play-making, making a good first pass, hopping up on the play, and just being consistent on making the right plays all of the time. I think that the defensive side of my game is kind of taken care of itself. I feel like I've adjusted well to the pace of play, our systems and our D-zone (coverage). I think those kinds of things come naturally to me. I think it's more about advancing pucks for our guys and staying consistent.

Q: It's funny, because you played two years with the North York Rangers in the Ontario Junior Hockey League, where you put up some ridiculous defensive numbers there as a team. Is there a similar sort of feeling around this program as it was around that program, in regards to taking pride in your own zone?
A: Yeah, it's kind of the exact same feeling, to be quite honest with you. You look at how detailed we are with our penalty kill here. You look at how detailed we are with our defensive zone. It was the exact same way. I think that it has been huge for me, because kind of growing up or playing in that atmosphere for two years and then coming here, it feels like there hasn't been much of an adjustment period in regards to that side of the game. I feel like that's been an easy transition, and it hasn't been tough to pick up. I think that part has been smooth sailing so far.

Q: Now to Penticton. After two years in the OJHL, you make the decision to go out west and play in the BCHL. That's not only moving away from Toronto, but it's a pretty different league, too. How was that decision like for you?
A: It was unreal. Honestly, I loved the West Coast – other than the absurd bus trips, when you are tired and just want to get back to bed and you are stuck on a bus for seven more hours. But it was beautiful year-round. It was unbelievable. The hockey was next level. I found that in Ontario, the hockey was a little more defensive-minded. It was a little more of a chip-and-chase grind game, where in Penticton it was all possession – possess the puck. It was very skilled and highly offensive, so that was a bit of a change for me. I didn't put up as many offensive numbers there, because I was focused on really tailoring my game to that defensive style, because I was playing against some of the best offensive players in junior hockey. I thought the coaches did a good job in preparing me to come to college. Jason Becker, our D coach, he talked to (Syer) on a weekly, monthly basis, and they were always looking at things to kind of detail my game a little bit more. They have kind of the same philosophies, and I think that was kind of huge before coming in here where I have the tools already instilled in me.

Q: Penticton has a reputation of being a tiny rink. And then you come to Cornell and ECAC Hockey which has, a few buildings with some really deep corners. From a defensive defenseman's perspective, which do you prefer? Is it that much of an adjustment for you?
A: Honestly, in these rinks, no. It's not terrible. It's when you get to the Olympic sheets when it's a lot bigger – then you're kind of struggling. … It's more when you get to the bigger size rinks where you start to notice it when you try to lock down man-to-man it's a little tougher.

Q: Your mentioned your parents were in insurance, and you also have two older sisters. So is there lots of hockey in the family, or is it just kind of your thing?
A: So my dad grew up in Thunder Bay, Ontario. For all you American people down here, it's kind of like near North Dakota, Minnesota …

Q: Yes. North of Duluth …
A: Yeah, it's up there. Cold in the winters. So he grew up playing hockey. Didn't really have a choice. That was kind of his thing growing up until he made his switch to basketball. Other than that though, mom wasn't too big into hockey. A few uncles and cousins kind of played it, but no one really played at a high level in my family.

Q: So you played baseball, too. What was your position?
A: I pitched for a little bit, first base, and then right field. When I was younger, it kind of leaked into my hockey game, too. I used to get frustrated pretty easily, so pitching wasn't always the best spot for me. So we kind of had to dial that in and change positions a little bit.

Q: At what point did you know you were going to do something with hockey?
A: It's kind of a funny story actually. I played AAA baseball as well, and I was really competitive with that. I think it was around Grade 7 or Grade 8, I was coming back from a baseball tournament in Cooperstown, and my dad's favorite team is the Montreal Canadiens, and he loved Ken Dryden. So he said, 'Hey, you know what? How about we stop at Cornell. I heard it's a great school. Ken Dryden went there, and I want to see what it looks like and check out the campus and the rink and what not.' I think I was 13 years old. We came, we stopped in, we checked out the rink and saw Dryden's jersey hanging and took a little bit of a tour of the campus.

It's funny, he said it'd be awesome if you could go to a school like this. Sure enough, a few years later, we're playing minor midget hockey and talking to a few scouts and coaches, and Cornell rolls around. And here we are. Just kind of a cool story..

Q: Is there anything that really stuck out to you from that time?
A: Yeah, being from Toronto, you talk about college hockey a little bit and you talk about college rinks, and I think that this is the perfect college rink. It gives me chills every time we pack it and just kind of looking how it's a little bit of a smaller rink, but it's got that old barn feeling, and it's unbelievable. The rink kind of stood out to me first, and then you just look around campus and it's beautiful, especially around summertime. It was unreal.

Q: You mentioned the recruiting process. Did you have it in your mind that you wanted to go specifically to an Ivy League program? Because you mentioned that tie a little bit. Or where you more tailored toward picking a specific program?
A: Not really the Ivy League. I wanted to make sure that I was going to a good school first, and then obviously a good hockey program. The fact that Cornell has both ranked it right up there. I also didn't talk to that many schools when I was young, because the OHL still was kind of buzzing, and that was kind of the thing. I didn't reach out to too many schools. I reached out to a few, Cornell obviously being one of them, but I didn't really think too much about the Ivy League connection. But definitely when Cornell came rolling around, it stuck out to me.

Freshman Friday

•  Oct. 18: Sam Malinski
•  Oct. 25: Matt Stienburg
•  Nov. 1: Travis Mitchell
•  Nov. 15: Ben Berard
•  Nov. 22: Zach Tupker
•  Nov. 29: Jack Malone
•  Jan. 3: Ben Tupker
•  Jan. 17: Peter Muzyka