Former Anaheim Jr. Ducks and Orange County Hockey Club forward Shane McMahan recently committed to play Division I college hockey at Minnesota State.
McMahan, who is in his third season of junior hockey with Fargo of the United States Hockey League, played one season of Midget 16U AAA for both OCHC and the Jr. Ducks under former coach Jim Burcar.
McMahan also played for coaches Dave Karpa and Kelly Askew at JSerra High School in the Anaheim Ducks High School Hockey League, and he said that experience ranks as one of his favorites during his time in California.
“We got to play at Honda Center in a CAHA final (in 2011),” he said. “I’ll never forget being able to do that.”
The 6-foot-1, 210-pound McMahan has emerged as one of the leaders on Fargo and was selected an assistant captain at the start of the season. His coach described McMahan as a defensive force.
“We have one of the top two penalty kills in the league, and he’s a big reason why,” Fargo coach and GM Cary Eades said. “He’s great on faceoffs, he’s chipping in offense and he’s like an assistant coach on the ice.”
Eades estimates McMahan will play up to 25 minutes some games because he routinely plays 1:20 of a 2-minute penalty kill and is counted upon in every 5-on-5 situation.
“Some kids wouldn’t buy into that, they just want to score,” Eades said. “But he has consistently developed other parts of his game, and I’m biased, but I think he’s one of the best – if not the best – penalty killers in the league.”
McMahan becomes the seventh player with ties to the Jr. Ducks who have made NCAA Division I college commitments this season.
Longtime Jr. Ducks 2001s defensemen Cameron York (Boston College) and Nicholas Kent (Quinnipiac) committed in early fall. Center Eetu Selanne (Northeastern) and defenseman Rourke Russell (Miami) – who played a couple of seasons of Bantam AAA with the Jr. Ducks – committed later in the fall, as did forward Patrick Choi (Bentley) and defenseman Slava Demin (Denver).
That also brings the number of D-I commitments for the program to 11 in the past two years. Justin Dixson (UMass-Amherst), Jack Gates (Colorado College) and Chad Sasaki (Colorado College) committed during the 2014-15 season and Rory Herrman (Arizona State) committed last season. In addition, one of Herrman’s teammates, goaltender Carl Stankowski, is playing for Seattle of the Western Hockey League.
McMahan was quick to credit the training he received throughout his time playing for the various Anaheim Amateur Hockey Association entities.
“I had great coaching all the way up in California,” he said. “I wouldn’t be where I’m at without each individual coach.”
- Chris Bayee