When you come into GCHS you can only imagine the accomplishments and achievements students could have gained in and out of school. Tyler Graf, a junior here at GCHS, has been participating in hockey for seven years now and is not planning on stopping there. 

Graf is currently heading into his UA teen year right now with a program named the Vipers, but the journey was never easy. Graf started hockey when he was 10 years old going through many different programs along the way.With  that he has also been having to deal with different age groups but to him it has only made him better. 

“I think it really helped me out playing with the older kids. It helped  get my speed up and get used to the physicality in the higher levels,” Graf said.

Hockey wasn’t the first sport Graf played, as he started with football at a young age but with concussions being more and more prone to children his parents decided to switch him to hockey where his journey continued, 

 “I wish I started earlier because I started playing football but over the years of me playing, a kid got a really bad concussion and my parents didn’t want me to play after that. So we switched to hockey but I wish we started with hockey earlier because then I would have been at a different level and higher then I am now,” Graf said. 

Graf could not have done this all alone; he has had many coaches help him on his journey. 

 Greg Kischer has been coaching hockey for 22 years and to him, hockey has helped shape him to who he is today. 

“Most of my lifelong friends are from hockey, and the bond you create with those around you while battling adversity in a competitive atmosphere truly shapes who you are at an early age,” said Kischer.

 Kischer had the opportunity to coach Graf through one full season of hockey and to him Graf was a kid to watch “Tyler’s grit and grind set him apart from his peers. When he played for me, he was actually playing an age group up from where he would traditionally be placed. This wasn’t just because his older brother was on the team, but also, he carried the skillset to be successful at that level,” said Kischer. 

With Graf’s current trajectory, he currently has a ceiling of Tier 2 Junior A, IE. NAHL with a floor of Tier 3, IE NA3HL or USPHL. With Graf only being a junior as well, that is an accomplishment we should all be proud of for him,

 “Tyler’s hockey future is bright. Hopefully his approach to his game remains fluid and doors continue to open for him,” said Kischer. 

With Graf still on his journey to climb the ranks of hockey, let’s help cheer him on and congratulate him on all of his hard work he has been through and the accomplishments he has gained.