By Warren Kozireski
The top-two lines in hockey are usually the scorers—those depended on to put points on the scoreboard. The fourth line is often called the energy line, seeing maybe three shifts per period and called to give the rest of the team a blow and create havoc.
Then there’s the third line.
Often not talked about; sometimes not even noticed. Can walk down Main St. in the middle of the season and not be recognized.
But essential to the success of any team.
Bellmore native and junior right wing K.J. Tiefenwerth has had a breakout campaign with a career high seven goals and 13 assists in helping Quinnipiac University earn the number one ranking in the nation and a spot in the Frozen Four in Tampa.
“It’s always a dream to play Division I and, when you actually get there, the main goal is to get to the Frozen Four and win a national championship and I’m fortunate enough to be here and actually achieving that,” he said.
But his story goes much deeper.
Originally committed to UMass, he changed his mind when the Minutemen switched coaches and decided to go to Quinnipiac after his freshman season. That meant sitting out one year per NCAA transfer rules.
It was during that period when going for a routine physical that doctors discovered a heart defect which led to open heart surgery during the summer of 2013.
The question of whether he would still be able to play hockey was obvious, but the long rehab was just as big a question.
Two years later he is playing a regular shift and chipped in with two goals and three assists in the postseason.
“The way our team runs our system everybody is important. Everybody has to chip in for us to be successful and that’s why we are where we are. That’s why we only had three losses on the year.
Tiefenwerth played his junior and senior year in prep school for Avon Old Farms where he won the New England championship before playing for the Junior Bruins where he ranked third in the EJHL with 77 points and third with 30 goals one year after being named the league’s Rookie of the Year.
And he played for the Long Island Royals when he was younger.
“It’s cool to see that they are still a powerhouse on Long Island and that players are still becoming better and better and getting recognized. A lot of guys like Sonny (Milano), (Brandon) Fortunato and others are doing good for the sport on Long Island and it’s cool to skate with those guys in the summer.
“I went to Fairfield when I was about 12, but I learned most about hockey when I was younger with the Royals.
“It’s cool when you go to a rink and kids in the area know who you are, they message you on social media or you go to help out at a hockey camp locally. They’re looking up to you because I remember when I was that age when a Division I player came you looked at him like he was the next-best thing.
“To follow in those footsteps and leave a little trail behind is cool.”
