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Get to Know Brock Kautz
12/24/2018 2:48:00 PM | Men's Hockey
MINNEAPOLIS -- From high school to juniors to college, Gopher Hockey senior forward Brock Kautz is one of a select few players who has been able to play his entire career in his home-state.Â
Starting off in goal for Rochester Century High School, the netminder eventually moved on to play four years in the NAHL and helped the Minnesota Wilderness capture the organization's first Robertson Cup in 2015 before joining the University of Minnesota just over three years ago.Â
GopherSports.com caught up with Kautz to talk about his final year of college hockey.
You and Darian Romanko have been teammates for the last five years going back to when you two played together for the Minnesota Wilderness in 2014-15, how has your relationship with Darian changed on and off the ice since you've started playing together?
"It definitely made the transition easier to come to college. It's nice knowing somebody and having somebody that you played with. I think winning the championship before we came to Minnesota built our relationship even more, and then knowing each other coming straight into college is a big thing too. Just over the four years here I think we grew closer, he's obviously a great player, he's one of our assistant captains now so he's a great leader. He's one of the best teammates on our team, he's just a great guy to have around the locker room, and he's an even better guy off the ice and outside of the rink. Overall he's just somebody that I'll keep in touch with for my whole life."
You were able to see your first action of the season by playing the third period against Trinity Western. What was it like to get back out there and be in net for the Gophers for your fourth and final season?
"It was fun. I knew I was going to play the third period, during our morning skate coach told me so. It was definitely nice to get back out there after not seeing the ice for a while, but it's just nice to get out there and compete with the guys instead of against them in practice. Even though we were winning the guys were still blocking shots and playing the game the right way. It's nice to see that they still have respect for me even playing late in the game and being up by multiple goals. It was fun to get back out there, and it's always great to play with all the guys in the locker room, that's what makes it so special."
How much have you changed as a person and as a player from your freshman season to now here at Minnesota?
"I think just growing as a person throughout my time here. You really learn a lot about yourself when you're in college and you get tested. You have to go through a lot of adversity with going back to class, especially for me after not going to school for three years out of high school. I learned a lot about myself, I think I accumulated a lot more skills and learned a lot from my coaches and teammates throughout my time in college as far as from a knowledge perspective. As a player, I think I've gotten better every year. You just kind of get used to the pace of the game and obviously I have a lot of time at practice to grow my skills and I've been able to work on my game over the summer, so as a player I feel more confident in myself overall."
You've spent a large majority of your life and hockey career right here in the state of hockey itself. Is there a reason that you've stuck around in Minnesota for so long, or has it kind of just worked out this way where almost every team has been based in Minnesota?
"I would definitely say it's fallen into place. I remember leaving for juniors and it was close to home so it was an easy transition for me personally as well as my family. And then I left to go to Wisconsin for a couple of years which wasn't really far either. I wouldn't say that I had a dream or was intentionally staying in Minnesota, but obviously being from Minnesota and playing in the state of hockey is nice for me to be here and easy for my family and friends where I can stay in touch and still see them. It's definitely a dream come true to be able to play in the state of hockey for so many years, and growing up here makes it even more obvious that I don't plan on leaving.
For the past two seasons you've been honored with being named Academic All-Big Ten. What does it mean to you to have your success in the classroom be awarded in that way?
"It's a great feeling knowing that your hard work is paying off. There's a lot of emphasis on being a student before you're an athlete, so you really have to focus in on balancing your courses with your hockey season. It's nice to get acknowledged for that and I take a lot of pride in working hard in the classroom, because it isn't easy. As I said coming from playing juniors for so long and not being in the classroom, and then being the oldest guy on the team and the oldest guy in most classes, so I just try to put in work in the classroom and it's nice to see that it's been paying off."
What's been your most memorable game or moment with the Gophers so far in your career?
"One of my favorite moments would have to be setting a record for the NCAA in winning six regular-season championships in a row. It's nice to be a part of a team experience like that because it's tough to win just one conference championship, and I was able to do it back-to-back years my freshman and sophomore years. So it was a pretty special feeling to be able to do that with all of the guys in the locker room."
Starting off in goal for Rochester Century High School, the netminder eventually moved on to play four years in the NAHL and helped the Minnesota Wilderness capture the organization's first Robertson Cup in 2015 before joining the University of Minnesota just over three years ago.Â
GopherSports.com caught up with Kautz to talk about his final year of college hockey.
You and Darian Romanko have been teammates for the last five years going back to when you two played together for the Minnesota Wilderness in 2014-15, how has your relationship with Darian changed on and off the ice since you've started playing together?
"It definitely made the transition easier to come to college. It's nice knowing somebody and having somebody that you played with. I think winning the championship before we came to Minnesota built our relationship even more, and then knowing each other coming straight into college is a big thing too. Just over the four years here I think we grew closer, he's obviously a great player, he's one of our assistant captains now so he's a great leader. He's one of the best teammates on our team, he's just a great guy to have around the locker room, and he's an even better guy off the ice and outside of the rink. Overall he's just somebody that I'll keep in touch with for my whole life."
You were able to see your first action of the season by playing the third period against Trinity Western. What was it like to get back out there and be in net for the Gophers for your fourth and final season?
"It was fun. I knew I was going to play the third period, during our morning skate coach told me so. It was definitely nice to get back out there after not seeing the ice for a while, but it's just nice to get out there and compete with the guys instead of against them in practice. Even though we were winning the guys were still blocking shots and playing the game the right way. It's nice to see that they still have respect for me even playing late in the game and being up by multiple goals. It was fun to get back out there, and it's always great to play with all the guys in the locker room, that's what makes it so special."
How much have you changed as a person and as a player from your freshman season to now here at Minnesota?
"I think just growing as a person throughout my time here. You really learn a lot about yourself when you're in college and you get tested. You have to go through a lot of adversity with going back to class, especially for me after not going to school for three years out of high school. I learned a lot about myself, I think I accumulated a lot more skills and learned a lot from my coaches and teammates throughout my time in college as far as from a knowledge perspective. As a player, I think I've gotten better every year. You just kind of get used to the pace of the game and obviously I have a lot of time at practice to grow my skills and I've been able to work on my game over the summer, so as a player I feel more confident in myself overall."
You've spent a large majority of your life and hockey career right here in the state of hockey itself. Is there a reason that you've stuck around in Minnesota for so long, or has it kind of just worked out this way where almost every team has been based in Minnesota?
"I would definitely say it's fallen into place. I remember leaving for juniors and it was close to home so it was an easy transition for me personally as well as my family. And then I left to go to Wisconsin for a couple of years which wasn't really far either. I wouldn't say that I had a dream or was intentionally staying in Minnesota, but obviously being from Minnesota and playing in the state of hockey is nice for me to be here and easy for my family and friends where I can stay in touch and still see them. It's definitely a dream come true to be able to play in the state of hockey for so many years, and growing up here makes it even more obvious that I don't plan on leaving.
For the past two seasons you've been honored with being named Academic All-Big Ten. What does it mean to you to have your success in the classroom be awarded in that way?
"It's a great feeling knowing that your hard work is paying off. There's a lot of emphasis on being a student before you're an athlete, so you really have to focus in on balancing your courses with your hockey season. It's nice to get acknowledged for that and I take a lot of pride in working hard in the classroom, because it isn't easy. As I said coming from playing juniors for so long and not being in the classroom, and then being the oldest guy on the team and the oldest guy in most classes, so I just try to put in work in the classroom and it's nice to see that it's been paying off."
What's been your most memorable game or moment with the Gophers so far in your career?
"One of my favorite moments would have to be setting a record for the NCAA in winning six regular-season championships in a row. It's nice to be a part of a team experience like that because it's tough to win just one conference championship, and I was able to do it back-to-back years my freshman and sophomore years. So it was a pretty special feeling to be able to do that with all of the guys in the locker room."
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