With the absence of former Pioneer Drew Shore, now affiliated with the Florida Panthers, big shoes were left to fill on the Pioneer hockey team. Fortunately for Denver, younger brother Nick Shore is ready to step up this season.
So far, he has assumed his brother’s role as the points leader, with 11 points off of five goals and six assists in the first six games of the season.
“Obviously, it was great having Drew here my first two years, but I think it’s a collective effort of everybody to fill those shoes of the guys who left, and it’s everybody pitching in,” said Nick.
In the contest against Air Force on Oct. 20, Nick picked up the team’s first hat trick since Zucker scored one on Dec. 3, 2010 against Minnesota-Duluth. In addition to Nick’s three goals of the evening, he also added one assist, putting his point total to four.
Nick has either scored or assisted in each of the five games this season where the Pioneers have made it onto the board. Since the first game against UMass-Lowell on Oct. 19, Nick picked up an assist; had a hat trick and assist against Air Force; added a goal and an assist in the team’s third contest against Michigan Tech on Oct. 26; tallied two assists on Oct. 27 in the team’s win over Michigan Tech and had a goal and an assist Saturday in the team’s win over St. Cloud State.
“It was certainly nice. I think there was a point of emphasis of ours to have a quick start to the year, and obviously the two wins helped that,” said Nick. “To get a hat trick, that’s a great start to the year. Really, I just had a lot of good chances; the puck started bouncing in and any time that happens it’s pretty good.”
Nick’s scoring explosion has not gone unnoticed, according to head coach George Gwozdecky, who now sees him as one of the main go-to players on the team.
“He certainly has assumed that leadership position on the ice for us; there’s no question,” said Gwozdecky. “His skill level, his size and strength [and] his smarts have shown themselves in both games that we’ve played so far. He has assumed one of the go-to guys roles on the team and not only is he very comfortable in that role, but he’s being very productive in that role, so that’s good to see.”
During his rookie season as a Pioneer in 2010-2011, Nick played in 33 of the team’s games, tallying 18 points off seven goals and 11 assists. That same year, Nick was selected in the fourth round (82nd overall) of the 2011 NHL entry draft by the Los Angeles Kings.
Last season, Nick was the No. 3 point-getter for the Pioneers, behind his brother Drew and former Pioneer Jason Zucker. Nick exploded from his freshman season, tallying 41 points his sophomore season off 13 goals and 28 assists and played in all 43 games.
The Denver native is part of a long line of hockey players, including older brother Drew, himself, freshman forward Quentin and youngest brother Baker, who is 13 years old. Alongside Drew, Nick became half of the first sibling pair to play at the National Development Team Program at the same time, where he played from 2008-2010.
Before joining the DU hockey ranks, Nick played on several other competitive hockey teams in his career. In 2007-2008, he totaled 135 points on 64 goals and 71 assists for the Colorado Thunderbirds.
Nick also headlined the U.S. National Under-17 team in 2008-2009. Following his stint with the under-17 team, Nick played on the U.S. National Under-18 Team in 2009-2010, where he tallied 45 points on 16 goals and 29 assists in 56 games. He also helped the US to the gold medal at the 2010 IIHF World Men’s Under-18 Championship.
Nick graduated from Pioneer High School in Ann Arbor, Mich., before returning to Denver to continue as a Pioneer.
“It’s amazing [having my family here],” said Nick. “It’s one of the best things about being at school here at DU. Every single home game, my parents, my little brother and all my family gets to come, so I think that it’s definitely an advantage, and it’s something that a lot of people don’t get to see.”
In addition to assuming the role at center that was vacated by his brother, Nick is also an assistant captain for the team, working with senior defenseman and captain Paul Phillips.
“I’m just trying to keep everything the same,” said Nick. “For me, being an assistant captain, I’m not trying to change anything, [I’m] just trying to lead by example and do what I’ve been doing for the past two years.”
