How the relationships formed at Penn State are helping Chase Berger adjust to professional hockey

The adjustment from playing in college to the professional ranks isn’t easy for any athlete to make.

Having new teammates, nearly twice as many games, being far away from family and friends, as well as the instability faced by most minor league players, doesn’t faze former Penn State ice hockey center Chase Berger.

“It’d be great to have the same team the whole year and get really close, but you can’t really control that,” he said. “For me, I just kind of gotta worry about making sure I’m doing the best for my team every single day and if my line mates change twice a week, guys are moving in and out, I can’t really control it. You kind of just gotta learn to handle your business and contribute to the team whatever way you can.”

Berger, who graduated in 2019 after spending four years with Penn State’s program, went undrafted and was signed as a free agent with the Pittsburgh Penguins organization his senior season in 2019. He now plays for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, the American Hockey League affiliate of the Pittsburgh Penguins.

At Penn State, his impact on the program is something that won’t be forgotten by many of his former teammates and mentees, including recent graduate Kris Myllari.

“Chase was an excellent role model in every category,” Myllari said. Obviously, he was a tremendous student, a great hockey player, but also a leader and a great guy away from the rink. I think that’s something that really resonated with a lot of guys when you talk about Chase, how he just checked every box that you’re looking for — as a leader, as a player, and as a person.”

During his time with the Nittany Lions, Berger was a mentor to not only Myllari, but also former Penn State hockey players Ludvig Larsson and Nikita Pavlychev. He also was a mentor to the program’s upcoming 2020-21 captain, Alex Limoges.

“He’s just such a well-rounded human; the standards that he set for the next class of players at Penn State … it’s going to be there for 10-plus years,” Myllari said. “That’s the impact Chase had on our program.”

To Berger, the program’s impact on him is permanent, and he takes lessons and sayings from the program into his everyday life.

“We have a couple sayings, and one is ‘enjoy what you do.’ It’s kind of about just being present,” he said. “I think sometimes, I would get carried away with thinking about what’s next — two weeks down the line, and this game coming up. You’d kind of forget about how lucky we are to do what we’re doing, even if it’s just showing up for workout and practice on Monday.

He added: “Learning to love just the little things in life and doing them to the best of your abilities, I think is something that is pretty controllable.”

While Berger has been looking at his first pro season with a positive outlook, he can’t deny that the change has been jarring.

“Obviously you’re still playing hockey, but I think with college you have so much on your plate. You have schooling, you have travel, the social stuff — kind of so many things going on,” he said. “Where pro — your job is to show up every day, play hockey and you gotta do it to the best of your abilities and then the rest of the day you’re on your own. For me, it’s just kind of understanding that every single day, that’s your job. It’s not, I got all this other stuff going on, there’s no excuses.”

Forming bonds with teammates has been more difficult versus playing collegiately, as many teammates are constantly moving through the minor league system are of varying ages and have families.

“So you got kind of this melting pot of people where — for me this year in Wilkes-Barre, I don’t know if we had the same lineup more than two games in a row, ever. We always had guys going up to Pittsburgh, or calling guys up from Wheeling (West Virginia) ... everything’s always changing,” Berger said.

Keeping in contact with former teammates and friends, including Alec Marsh, Derian Hamilton, Vince Pedrie and Andrew Sturtz, who were playing in the minor leagues before Berger started his pro career, has made the transition easier.

“We all have different experiences and so we kind of compare and talk about it, maybe make some humor out of the bad times and try to pick each other up at the same time,” Berger said. “I think for me the bonds I made at Penn State are so strong that those really are the guys that I lean on and talk to the most day in and day out.”

Sturtz, not only a former teammate but former line mate and roommate, has been one person who Berger has kept in contact with.

“He’s the kind of guy who, if everyone could be like him or if you could have 20 guys like him, you’d be in one heck of a good spot,” Sturtz said. “He’s really, really good in the classroom, works really hard both in the classroom and on the ice and in college hockey that’s what it’s all about.

“For me, I wasn’t necessarily a good student before I came to Penn State. Chase challenged everyone on the team to become a better student, and I think he carried a 4.0 most of his time there.”

Playing on the same line together starting their freshman year, Sturtz and Berger have a close relationship. Sturtz is close to Berger’s family, and the two keep in touch and talk frequently.

Despite the challenges, Berger is happy to be a part of the Penguins organization.

“We have been treated so well in Wilkes-Barre. The organization is top-notch all around, whether it’s bringing in really good talent with players, whether it’s bringing in really, really good coaches,” Berger said. “It’s just been a fantastic experience, so I couldn’t have asked for a better situation.”

Looking forward to potentially playing again this coming season, Berger is excited for the future ahead of him.

“All I really was hoping for was the opportunity to play in the American (Hockey) League and prove myself and demonstrate what I can do,” Berger said. “I think I did a pretty good job of that this year; I have room to grow for sure.

“For me, I’m just trying to be the best I can be and wherever that leads me, I’m happy.”

This story was originally published July 28, 2020 at 3:11 PM.