To competition, the notorious #12 is known for his speed, stickhandling, and incredible skill out on the ice. Here in Delaware, we like to call him our captain, John Redgate. A marketing major from Suffern, New York, John comes from a big family, and is the oldest of five siblings. Inspired by the Rangers winning the Stanley Cup in 1994, John’s grandpa gave him his first hockey stick at just a few months old. On skates by three, Redgate has been playing hockey ever since.

Suffern is a small town, with a really close knit community. After all of these years playing hockey, one memory sticks out the most. In high school, John’s team won the state championship. It was something that hadn’t been done in twenty years, and that was a really great accomplishment for the team.

Coming to UD was a very last minute decision for this captain. He was set on going to a SUNY school, but applied to Delaware on a whim. He sent in his application and his hockey resume to the coaches at the time. They were immediately interested in him, and he made a visit to this beautiful campus. John fell in love with the school, made the spur of the moment decision to come here, and hasn’t regretted a minute of it. Now after four years of playing with the Blue Hens, his fondest memory with the team was when they hosted the National tournament in 2014. “Even though we lost in overtime, just the atmosphere we created, well the fans created that night, and being 8 in the country playing 19. It would’ve been nicer if we won, but that was a very cool experience here,” said Redgate. Over the years here, there have been certain teams that always seem to bring a certain kind of heat to the ice. While the conference teams like Rutgers and URI are always good games, John would say his biggest rival is, “Stony Brook because I have the worst record against them.”

This senior has special responsibility with his role as a captain. He serves as a mentor for the younger players both on and off the ice, and his teammates describe him as tenacious, spontaneous, caring and mature. In his position, he says, “I try not to do too much, try not to say too much.” His leadership approach is to take a backseat, and he noted that since they have a pretty great record so far, he doesn’t want to mess with the formula too much. He will always step in if he sees need for it, but otherwise he always has an open door for his teammates. When he graduates in May, he wants to leave the team with this, “Keep the tradition going….Keep the winning ways going, and continue to grow from there.” Delaware hockey has grown so much over the years, and after he leaves, John would love to come back and see all of the great things that have happened since.

20 Questions:

1. Cats or dogs? Dogs.
2. Guilty pleasure song? Halo by Beyonce
3. Kate’s or Grottos? “Kate’s. Grottos is too sticky of floors and can’t get drinks in time.”
4. If you could eat dinner with three people, dead or alive, who would they be? Carl Hagland, J. Cole, Derek Jeter.
5. If you could choose to sing one song on American Idol, what would it be? One of the songs Grace VanderWaal sings.
6. If your life were made into a movie, who would play you? Leonardo DiCaprio
7. You’re a new Crayola crayon color, what’s your name? Spaz blue.
8. What is the best prank you ever played? Prank call my grandpa, and he would never know it’s me.
9. Who’s your favorite Disney princess? Fiona.
10. Early bird or night owl? Neither.
11. If you HAD to change your name, what would you change it to? Seamus.
12. What’s one thing that you can’t live without? “Big coffee guy, a nice Dunkin. No starbucks or anything fancy like that, just a nice Dunkin iced coffee.”
13. If you could have any superpower, what would it be? Fly.
14. What’s your best pickup line? “I play hockey.”
15. Fallon or Kimmel? Fallon.
16. Dream vacation spot? “Somewhere far that I’ve never been to.”
17. Most embarrassing moment? “I peed my bed this year.”
18. Any hidden talents? “No, I have zero talent outside of the hockey rink.”
19. Is it a great day to be a Blue Hen? Of course, always.
20. Ready to graduate or no? “I don’t think anyone is ready to graduate.”

Written By: Analisa Vizzoni