Senior Thane Schinabeck is a well-known student at Ludlow High School, partly because of his position as forward on the LHS hockey team, and partly because of his carefree, “chill kid,” and overall cool-guy persona.

The LHS hockey forward (#20) played a big role on the team when it came to winning. “I attack the opposing team’s defense and goaltender while trying to score,” said Schinabeck during the season.

Having scored a total of 35 goals and 19 assists, Shinabeck has accounted for many of the LHS hockey team’s 14 wins this season. “We’ve been playing a lot better this year. We have a 14-7 record,” he said.

This year was one of achievement for Thane. “I scored my first high school career hat trick,” he said. A hat trick is when a player scores three goals in one game. “I have a total of seven hat tricks this year. I’ve done it before, just not in high school,” he said.

The team’s had its share of tough opponents. “Long meadow was the toughest,” said Schinabeck. “Their goaltender was real hard to get by.” The LHS hockey team lost to Longmeadow in the playoffs 5-4 in the seventh round of a shootout. “I scored two goals in the last five minutes to tie the game,” he said.

Another tough opponent the team has faced was Westfield. “Westfield is though,” he said. “We played them at their home rink and their fans are crazy. They’ve thrown skittles at us during our practice before,” he said. LHS lost toWestfield8-4.

Schinabeck hasn’t sustained any serious injuries this year. “I bruised my ribs last week. No big deal,” he said.

Looking on the bright side, Schinabeck says he’ll be relieved that he doesn’t have go to practice anymore.

“I’ll definitely miss connecting with my teammates and team dinners the most,” he said.

Schinabeck then reflects on his years spent here at LHS and explains a day he’d like to relive. “I’d definitely like to relive the day we got out of school for summer vacation last year,” he said. “I won $500 on a lottery ticket right after school,” he exclaimed with a wide smile on his face.

However, there have been a few bad days for Thane. “I’d love to forget about the day we lost to Westside 7-2, which was Feb. 3,” he said. “Everything went bad that day, from waking up and coming to school late, to not having a paper that was due that day,” he said sadly. “It broke our win streak.”

Golf and baseball are two of the other activities Thane has participated in, although he admittedly enjoys hockey most.

How does Thane stay in shape year-round in order to be physically fit for these sports? “I ran every day in the summer and went to the gym every couple of days,” he said.

Cardio and leg workouts are essential for his sports of choice.

“It doesn’t matter how big you are, it’s all about core strength,” he said.

Life outside of school for Thane revolves around sports as well. “I watch every Sabres game I can,” he said. “I watch football too.” Being a Patriots fan, Thane sarcastically added that it was a “great way to end the season this year.”

Hobbies other than sports include spending time with friends and working on his 2004 Mazda RX8. “I painted the rims with a white base and a red center piece,” he said. “It’s pretty sweet.”

Now in his senior year, Thane has had lots of experiences. He talks about the time he finished in fifth place in Western Mass for golf, thus qualifying for states as a junior in high school. “It was nuts. I didn’t even have a good day,” he said.

“That day basically resembled my high school life,” he said. “Lazy, stopped caring halfway through, and still got by.”

College hockey is a definite for Thane. He plans on going to Bridgton Academy to play junior A hockey and transfer to a Division I or Division II college. “University of Maine is a possibility. They’re in the Big East division with Boston College and Boston University,” he said.

Being the talented hockey player he is, Thane is a huge fan of professional hockey.

“If I could share the ice with one NHL player, it’d be number 63 Tyler Ennis, forward for the Buffalo Sabres,” said Schinabeck. “He’s the player I try to be like. I compare highlights of myself in games to highlights of him,” he said.

For now, though, Thane will concern himself with college.