From small-town Manitoba to college hockey history

Like many kids growing up on the prairies in the rural town of Virden, Bryn Chyzyk had dreams of making it to the NHL.

He also had a passion for scouting and player development from a young age, which is part of the reason he abandoned — or at least altered — his plan after one season of professional hockey with the Indianapolis Fuel of the ECHL and a two-game cameo with the Rockford IceHogs of the American Hockey League.

“That was probably my most accurate scouting report that I ever had — evaluating myself and realizing that I wasn’t going to make a lot of money playing the game of hockey,” Chyzyk said in a telephone interview from Iowa earlier this week while he was on a recruiting visit. “I do like the academic side of things, so the decision to go to law school was a difficult one, but I’m really glad I made it because I didn’t think I was good enough to make a long career out of it.

“I was just very honest with myself, that I did not see an NHL pathway for myself as a player. Playing minor pro or going to Europe really didn’t excite me. The goal was to play in the NHL and if I didn’t see that as a reality, nothing really else would have done it for me. So, it was a natural course to move on with what’s next in life.”

In the scouting world, critical assessments like the one Chyzyk made for himself are an essential component of building successful teams.

That ability to make difficult decisions is one of the reasons Chyzyk was hired by the University of North Dakota to become the first general manager in the history of the men’s hockey program. He will also be an assistant coach on the staff of bench boss Dane Jackson as he takes over for former Jets defenceman and Manitoba Moose assistant coach Brad Berry this season.

Given the ever-changing landscape of college hockey, with NIL (name, image and likeness) money that is available and the changing rules involving the Canadian Hockey League players having the ability to move to the NCAA without having to sit out a full season, Chyzyk understands there will be some new challenges to navigate.

But that was part of the appeal of the job for Chyzyk.

“It’s super exciting for myself and my family. There’s a lot of connections and to be back in the community will be fun for all of us,” he said, noting that his wife, Sarah, also went to school at UND. “Obviously, I have a lot to learn with the new landscape and we’re trying to sort through it day-by-day. I don’t have a great pulse on it yet, but I’m learning how the different things fit together.”

The opportunity to work closely with Jackson was also part of the appeal.

“I was fortunate enough to be recruited by Dane Jackson and get the chance to play for him and we’ve stayed in touch since,” said Chyzyk, who served as a graduate assistant coach at UND during his final year of law school. “That’s a big piece of it. To work with him and help as he takes on the head coaching role.”

Having been part of the eighth NCAA men’s hockey championship for the program back in 2016 when he served as an alternate captain, Chyzyk can speak authentically about what the experience is about for student athletes.

“That was super special, to see what it means to the community. It’s impactful,” said Chyzyk, who had 10 goals and 22 points in 42 games during his senior season in 2015-16. “At the end of the day, the top piece in recruiting is that you have to find kids that want to play for your program and are fired up to do so. With the NIL, are there ways to have a little bit of money in your pocket? Yes, but I don’t think you’re making your life choice as a young man based off that.

“You’ve got to be fired up for the development path on the hockey side, the school side and just everything that comes with playing with UND. The tradition and bringing kids on a recruiting visit, it’s fun to be a part of because it’s pretty special to be on the other side of it.”

Showing off the incredible facilities and pointing to players past and present that made it to the NHL is another thing Chyzyk and the Fighting Hawks can lean on. Just this season, UND alum Jake Sanderson of the Ottawa Senators finished 10th in Norris Trophy voting and he’s just three seasons removed from his time with the program.

Chyzyk’s choice to go to law school at the University of North Dakota (his alma mater) turned out to be a wise one, though not necessarily for the reasons you might expect.

After graduating with his law degree, Chyzyk turned his full-time attention back to hockey, accepting a job as the director of scouting for the Waterloo Blackhawks of the USHL. Following one season, Chyzyk was promoted to general manager of the Blackhawks, spending the past four seasons there.

“I never actually pursued being a lawyer,” said Chyzyk. “I took that degree with me and jumped right into the hockey scene. It was perfect for me as a young guy to be thrown into the fire as a young GM and to have to figure it out. That includes mistakes in drafting and includes mistakes in trades. But the best way to learn for myself was to experience it all.”

There was plenty of winning mixed in with that steep learning curve, as the Blackhawks qualified for the playoffs in each of those four seasons and Chyzyk was named USHL GM of the year in 2023. This past spring, the Blackhawks made it to the fifth and deciding game of the Clark Cup final before losing 4-3 in overtime to the Muskegon Lumberjacks.

“Everything has happened fairly fast for a young guy. I’ve been very fortunate to catch some breaks along the way,” said Chyzyk, who is 32. “The one thing that I always want to stay true to is that I’ve learned so much in my four years at Waterloo. I made a lot of mistakes and that was how I learned and grew and changed how I evaluate guys. I’m still in that stage.

“It would have been nice to go out on top, but to see the steady improvement our organization made was fun to be a part of.

Chyzyk was drawn to hockey at a young age.

“In small-town Manitoba, you don’t really have a choice,” said Chyzyk, whose parents Dave and Michelle still live in Virden, while his younger brother Brady is a teacher in Souris. “All of my buddies did it, so it’s what you did. I was so fortunate to grow up in a small town, with access to ice. In today’s hockey world, it’s about ‘where should I play this year? Which AAA team should I go to.’ In small-town Manitoba, it was such a luxury to play with your buddies.”

As much as he enjoyed playing the sport, Chyzyk studied hockey closely, both in terms of strategy but also the team building aspects of it.

“The people back in Virden, my buddies and my parents would say that I was more into (scouting and player evaluation) than actually playing,” said Chyzyk. “I was always following the NHL Draft and going to Brandon Wheat Kings games. It was truly a passion of mine, just that side of it.”

That didn’t prevent Chyzyk from carving out a solid hockey resumé for himself.

Working his way up through minor hockey in Virden, Chyzyk eventually suited up with the Southwest Cougars AAA team before making the Dauphin Kings of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League in 2010-11.

Chyzyk had an outstanding season, racking up 22 goals and 71 points in 62 games to sit second in team scoring.

“That was fun,” he said. “Moving away from home for the first time and the whole junior hockey experience. I’m really glad I had one year in the MJHL. It makes you grow up fast and I appreciated that.”

He then joined the Fargo Force of the USHL the following season before beginning his four-year stint with the UND Fighting Hawks in the NCAA ranks.

That one pro season was next, but Chyzyk understood what his true calling was and he’s been tackling that ever since.

ken.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca

X and Bluesky: @WiebesWorld