Cooper Pumphrey points to a correlation between hockey and baseball while discussing his background on the ice.
Pumphrey, an Ozark junior pitcher and Mizzou commit, played hockey as a youth at the Jordan Valley Ice Park in Springfield. He even played as a prep the past two years at the Culver Academies in Culver, Indiana, prior to returning to SWMO last summer.
“I skated for the first time when I was 2 years old,” Pumphrey said. “I grew up playing hockey, baseball and soccer. I even did gymnastics at one point. Hockey and baseball were my main two sports as I got older.”
Pumphrey found a home within the crease as a goalie.
“The main thing about being a goalie is being flexible,” he said. “My flexibility and athleticism from hockey carry over to baseball. That’s helped me with my hips and having strong legs. Having a strong foundation and being explosive has helped when I am on the mound or making plays diving for a ball.”
High school hockey is played in Missouri, but is made up of teams almost exclusively from St. Louis or Kansas City as part of the Mid-States Club Hockey Association. Matter of fact, St. Louis area high schools have had 17 alumni reach the NHL.
Former Blues great Keith Tkachuk’s sons, Florida Panthers left winger Matthew Tkachuk and Ottawa left winger Brady Tkachuk, played at Chaminade.
Pumphrey doesn’t bemoan the fact his high school hockey playing days are behind him.
“After I got done playing hockey at Culver and came back (to Ozark), I was thinking, ‘It’s time to focus on baseball,’” he said. “I do (hockey) drop-ins just to have fun. But now it’s all baseball.”
