By Casey Shillabeer ’22, staff writer

Most hockey players play an extra few years after high school in the junior league before they head to college. When they get to college most of them know that is their last few years of playing competitive hockey.

Two LVC students have gone even further and played for a professional hockey team. Alex Boroweic and Zak Sheikh played for the Vermillion County Bobcats located in Danville, Illinois during the 2021-2022 season.

Boroweic and Sheikh had played together for the Dutchmen for a few years before Sheikh graduated in 2021.

Sheikh was a neuroscience major at LVC, and after professional hockey he plans to obtain a Ph.D. in neuropsychology and work as a clinical neurophysiologist.

“I want to help individuals who suffer from traumatic brain injuries, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and Amyotrophic Sclerosis, as well as working with athletes that suffer from anxiety and depression related to performance expectations,” Sheik said.

Boroweic, on the other hand, plans to continue with hockey.

“I hope to stay in hockey and hopefully referee professional hockey when I am done playing,” Boroweic said.

Both Sheikh and Boroweic have different perspectives on their favorite parts of playing professional hockey.

“I think it is the competitiveness, the cool arenas and the big crowds we get to play in front of,” Boroweic said.

“All of it, the grind is something I will miss forever when I retire from professional sports,” Sheikh said.

One thing they have in common is that Coach Don Parsons made an impact on both their college careers and professional careers.

Sheik had transferred in from another school and Coach Parksons and Coach Yingst gave him a chance to play hockey in the NCAA and without them, he would not be where is today. They also were a big part of his signing process as well.

“They helped me as a free agent find a team and were excellent resources for me along the way,” Sheikh said. “Coach Niedert of the Bobcats gave me an opportunity to play and be myself and I am so grateful for that; he restored the love of the game that I had recently lost.”

Coach Parsons had talked to the coach about Boroweic and Coach Niedert was interested in having him.

“Zak Sheikh also told me a lot of good things about the team and encouraged me to come,” said Boroweic. “I really appreciate all that Coach Parsons did for me in helping me to get to this point and I want to thank Zak for helping me come to the team and get comfortable.”

It is not every day you get to play a professional sport, let alone play with someone you played with in college. Sheikh and Boroweic are very lucky to be teammates at the next level.