10 to Remember: Winter 2014-15

KENTWOOD – It’s been more than 30 years since the 1990 Class A championship hockey game was played in Flint.

However, Mike Knuble still recalls vividly a key moment that helped East Kentwood upset favored Trenton.

“One of our players scored on a fluky bounce with about seven or eight minutes left,” said Knuble, who recorded a hat trick in the 5-4 victory. “(Trenton) threw everything at us after that, and somehow we held them off and they weren’t able to score. Our goalie had a heck of a game, and it happened to be our night.”

The state title was the program’s first. It also marked the final game of a remarkable high school career for Knuble, who would eventually go on to have a lengthy career in the NHL.

The Falcons had lost in the 1989 Semifinals to Flint Powers Catholic, which helped fuel their run to the championship game the following season.

“We felt we should be there as a team,” said the 52-year-old Knuble, who tallied an eye-popping 103 points (63 goals/40 assists) his senior year.

“We got by Flint Powers, and the question was if we could win the final game. Trenton had a nice program for a number of years, and a lot of history. We wanted to keep it close and then hang on.”

The emergence of the East Kentwood hockey program, guided by legendary coach Ron Baum, was a community initiative.

“We had a real grassroots effort in the 80s to get a youth program started, and that filtered to the high school,” said Knuble. “We built the rink by hand, and I remember hauling hoses into the building for the sand flooring. It was a unique time in Kentwood with the amount of focus on the program and buy-in from the community.

“It was a real nice high school to play for in the late 80s and early 90s, and we always had competitive teams and nice players. We played a lot of hockey when we were younger.”

In 1991, Knuble was drafted by the Detroit Red Wings in the fourth round, 76th overall, and played the next four seasons at University of Michigan.

He earned Central Collegiate Hockey Association second-team honors twice and was named an NCAA West All-American in 1995.

“I was pretty raw so I had to develop my skills as a player, and someone in the Red Wings organization identified some potential in me,” Knuble said. “It’s one thing to be drafted and another thing to sign a pro contract, so the good thing was Michigan gave me a longer runway to develop as a player on and off the ice. It gave me extra time to get my game in order in the right environment under a great coach.”

Knuble made his NHL debut on March 26,1997, against the Colorado Avalanche. He played nine games, but not during the playoffs as the Red Wings went on to win their first Stanley Cup championship since 1955.

Knuble made the roster the following year and was a part of Detroit’s 1998 team that won the Stanley Cup for the second straight season.

“I didn't have a huge hand in it; the players that were there really drove that bus, and we were younger guys,” Knuble said. “We had a lot of fun and enjoyed ourselves, but at the end of the day you know who really won things and it was a great experience as a young player.  

“You learn what it takes to be a pro, you watch how guys operate and how a winning team works. Everyone accepted their roles.”

Knuble, who resides in the Grand Rapids area, would ultimately play 16 seasons in the NHL with Detroit, the New York Rangers, Boston Bruins and Philadelphia Flyers.

He played in 1,068 games and scored 278 goals along with 270 assists.

“As a player you go through cycles,” Knuble said. “Your first step is to get a foothold in the league and try to get in the league, and the second one is to stay there.

“And the third one is to be an everyday guy, and then fourth is to sign repeat contracts and play for as long as you can. And then you become one of the old guys. When I was younger I saw players who had their kids in the room, and I said that I wanted to play as long as that guy. I wanted to do that, and it means you've played for a long time.”

Knuble also was a member of the 2006 U.S. Olympic Team and won four world championships with Team USA.

“It’s a year-to-year, day-to-day business in pro sports, and it can go south at any time, but I got a lot out of it and had some great experiences,” Knuble said. ”I played in a lot of great cities, met a lot of great people and played a ton of games. It was a really good run, and we had kids and they were old enough to remember stuff and experience that, too.

“I played until I was 40, and if you are going to play until you're 40, you really don't have a lot to complain about.”

Knuble had been an assistant coach with the Grand Rapids Griffins for several years, but stepped away in order to spend time with his three children. He watches his two sons play collegiate hockey while also assisting a local youth hockey program.

Cam is in his fifth year at Western Michigan University, and Cole is beginning his second season at Notre Dame. Anna is a student at Michigan State University.

“I had two kids playing college and a daughter in the middle of college, so I learned to like my flexibility,” Knuble said. “I took last year off and now help with the Fox Motors program that has 15 and 16-year-olds. I’m staying in the game, just trying to help young players find their way and make decisions whether to play juniors or high school.”

After Knuble played his final season with the Flyers in 2012-13, he had the opportunity to coach both of his sons.

“That was really important to me,” he said. “I had many opportunities to work full time, but I wanted to be around to coach my sons and do the driving and take them places. To see where they could be as players. I played long enough where I could make a decision like that and take that route.”

Knuble is enjoying ‘the college life’ as he travels around supporting his children.

“We are seeing a lot of college campuses with tailgating and hockey games, and it’s been a lot of fun,” Knuble said. “Both have great hockey environments, and both are lucky to play in different types of programs. We’ve been very fortunate to have them play and go down to see them.

“That’s why I didn’t want to get locked into something fulltime where you wish you were watching them play versus what you’re doing.”

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PHOTOS At left, East Kentwood’s Mike Knuble as a high school senior in 1990, and at right with his family. (Photos provided by Mike Knuble.)