15 Year Old Caryite Commits to Play Hockey at U. of N. Dakota

January 19, 2011 | Story by: Matt Young | Categories: Canes, Featured, Hockey, News, Sports

Story by Matt Young. Photo by Chris Adamczyk.

Cary, N.C. – Cary’s Charlie Pelnick, a sophomore at Cardinal Gibbons High School, has committed to play hockey at the University of North Dakota.

How Many 15-year-olds Have the Next 6 Years Planned?

The Fighting Sioux, year after year, has one of the finest programs in collegiate ice hockey. Charlie has been offered a full scholarship to play there when he graduates from high school.

Charlie is currently a member of the Jr. Hurricanes U16 AAA team and is the first Jr. Hurricanes player to commit to a college team. Hockey is known for recruiting players at young ages, both for college play and the pros, but to have a college to commit to a 15-year old is rare.

“I’ve been real fortunate. I have had great coaches all along. I started when I was 3 years old and a number of coaches have been with me all along to help me with my skills development. I can’t credit Steve Sabo (Sabo played for University of Wisconsin), Colin Muldoon, Rich Shulmistra and David Laszlo enough.”

Starting Young

Charlie’s dad and sister are basketball players. His interest in hockey began at a young age when he saw his cousins playing. He started out as a center. Soon as a Mini-Mite (4-6 years old), he was playing between periods at Canes games. As he grew and developed his skating skills he moved over to defense.

“It started getting competitive when I was in the Squirts (10 years and under). I was playing in the summer U.S.A. Select Camp and other leagues. Over time I was getting noticed. The Jr. Hurricanes is a travel team that you have to try out for. In hockey here in the south, the trips are often far away. It’s hard to find competitive teams in this area, even though the popularity of hockey is growing. Recently our team has traveled to Illinois and Minnesota.”

Of course his ultimate goal is to play professional ice hockey in the NHL.  Maybe Cary’s first?