Luke Fiegl Finds a Home in Michigan
The Parker native has his sights set on a promising season in Flint
By Matt Mackinder
Colorado Rubber Magazine
www.rubberhockey.com
 
He’s one of just a handful of non-Michigan-born players on the Michigan Warriors’ roster, but Luke Fiegl is feeling right at home with the second-year North American Hockey League (NAHL) team.
 
Drafted by the club in the second round of May’s NAHL Entry Draft, the Parker native’s foray into the Tier II Junior A circuit this year is his first experience away from his Colorado home.
 
“It’s been a little rough,” the 18-year-old admitted. “I have two younger brothers and leaving them has been hard at times, but those are the kinds of sacrifices you make to play at a high level.”
 
Coming to Michigan to play for the Warriors - the Robertson Cup runner-up as NAHL champions a year ago - has been enjoyable in the early goings but, according to Fiegl, nothing like Colorado.
 
“Is Flint anything like back home? Not really,” said Fiegl. “There’s a lot more hockey here - a lot more. Playing for the Warriors, it’s been very welcoming and I feel like I belong.
 
“It’s been an adjustment going from Midget to juniors and, as a defenseman, I’ve learned to make quicker decisions with the puck and have adjusted to the level of play. I didn’t think I’d adjust this early, but I feel very confident.”
 
Back home in Colorado, Fiegl played for the Colorado Rampage and Arapahoe Warriors organizations, winning nationals with Arapahoe his Bantam AA and Midget Minor AA years.
 
He credits coaches Gerry Hogue and Andrew Sherman for much of his development as a player.
 
Oh, and the Colorado Avalanche.
 
“When I was younger, our home rink (the South Suburban Family Sports Center) was where the Avs practiced,” remembered Fiegl. “After we’d get done skating, we’d all go over to see the players and say hello. It was unreal. I was that kid who had all the posters of Joe Sakic and Adam Foote in my room - that was me.”
 
Playing in the NAHL on a team that developed a quick winning reputation last year, Fiegl is hoping to be playing on the national stage next May as the Warriors look to duplicate their Robertson Cup run of 2011.
 
Even if that doesn’t happen, Fiegl wouldn’t mind attracting some serious Division I college attention along the way.
 
“I’ve learned very quickly here that Moe (Mantha) will take care of you,” Fiegl said of the Warriors’ head coach, who patrolled the blue line for five NHL teams from 1980-92. “He knows a lot of people, has been around a long time and can make things happen for those who deserve it.
 
“The NAHL is a league of tremendous opportunity and I think with as many teams as we have here (28), it gives all the players that much more exposure. It’s definitely a good thing.”
 
Flint, the Warriors’ home located roughly an hour north of Detroit, has long been known as a blue-collar city. It had pro hockey for the better part of 40 years until the Warriors came to town after relocating from Marquette, Mich.
 
Once Fiegl saw what kind of town Flint was, he felt an even bigger sense of belonging.
 
“I’ve always thought of myself as a gritty, hard-working type of player,” said Fiegl. “I’ve heard that’s what the people of Flint appreciate. That’s how I’ve always played as a player and that’s what I want to bring to the Warriors.”