Mitch Porowski didn’t know he had won the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) rookie of the year award until his teammates informed him.
They were all in a Tim Hortons, coming home after a road trip when someone’s phone went off. Then someone else’s did.
Before he knew it, his teammates were telling him that he was the new rookie of the year.
Then, just a week later, on March 13, he was named the top rookie in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS).
Despite all the goals he scored this year, he still remembers his first.
First game on home ice against the Concordia University Stingers, and he was anchoring the third line.
Nineteen seconds in, and he pounced on a loose puck.
“I remember [Tim] Billingsley shooting the puck in then sort of just thrusting my stick at the puck and hoping for the best,” Porowski says, smiling at the memory.
The Ottawa native has taken the OUA by storm, leading the Ravens in goals and points this season.
“We certainly didn’t expect that he’d be this dominant offensively in his first year,” Ravens head coach Marty Johnston said.
He’s part of the larger success of the Ravens, who finished second in the OUA East divison and made it to the division finals.
A player in the power forward mould from his days in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), Porowski has worked on his goal scoring ability and his presence in front of the net.
“In my junior years, I felt I could’ve played more offensively,” he said. “I was big and the intimidator but I’m keen on moving forward and improving.”
While he’s found success in the nation’s capital, the journey hasn’t always been easy.
For the kid who was a natural athlete while at Hillcrest High School, hockey was in the blood.
His grandfather and uncle, both on his mom’s side, played hockey with his uncle, lacing up skates for the Ryerson University Rams.
“The first time I went out on the ice, I thought I’d be better than everyone else,” Porowski said. “Then I stepped on the ice and fell right away.”
His hockey tutelage has taken him to Gatineau, Que.; Pembroke, Ont.; and Brampton, Ont., with stints in the QMJHL and the Ontario Hockey League (OHL).
After a trying first year with the Gatineau Olympiques in the QMJHL, he was sent down to play for the Pembroke Lumber Kings of the Central Canada Hockey League, under the watchful eye of former NHLer Sheldon Keefe.
“I didn’t feel like I had a great chance in my first year in Gatineau,” he said. “Going down to Pembroke was for the best for me, and playing with Sheldon Keefe as coach, he really helped me excel.”
Under the tutelage of Keefe, Porowski returned to Gatineau a much improved player, and his dedication was rewarded with a shot at a professional contract.
His improvement as a player was rewarded with the offer of a tryout with the St. Louis Blues in 2010.
Unfortunately, a hit from behind into the stanchion forced him out of the tryouts for two days and derailed the opportunity.
“It helps you understand what you need to make it in the NHL and helped me as a player,” he said.
A final year in Gatineau went by before Porowski hit the road to Brampton to play for the Brampton Battalion of the OHL to end his junior career.
Described as a quiet guy in the locker-room by Johnston, Porowski has impressed his coaches with his work ethic and dedication to the game.
He’s formed an impressive chemistry with Jeff Hayes, an OHL veteran with the Oshawa Generals.
Together, they combined for 71 points for the Ravens.
Practices with the Ottawa Senators during the lockout has also led to whispers of an invitation to training camps in the summer, but with a marathon season now over, he wants to take a few weeks off before he steps back onto the rink.
