Graduating Varsity Blues men’s hockey forwards Michael Markovic and Jeff Brown signed professional ECHL contracts in late February, following in the footsteps of recent football graduate Aaron Wheaton, who signed with the Ottawa Redblacks of the Canadian Football League (CFL) in early January.
Markovic was signed by the ECHL’s reigning champions, the Alaska Aces, who are currently locked in a dead heat with the Utah Grizzlies for the final Pacific Division playoff spot. A hard-working two-way forward, Markovic endeared himself to U of T fans with his selfless play, and finished his Varsity Blues career in elite company as one of only 24 players to surpass the 100-point threshold in the program’s 124 year history.
Brown signed with the Brampton Beast, where he has quickly become a fan favorite, scoring five points in his first nine professional games and laying thunderous body checks.
At times inconsistent in his three seasons with the Blues, the sniper was fantastic down the stretch when it appeared as though a playoff miss was likely, and even better in the playoffs.
Aside from goaltender Brett Willows, who put on a performance for the ages in the first round against the Ryerson Rams, Brown was U of T’s playoff MVP.
Brown was offered the opportunity to play professionally after the Beast’s coaching staff scouted several U of T playoff games, and has been given the opportunity to play with two of the club’s best forwards in Richmond Hill, native Bobby Hughes and Brampton’s Jason Pitton, something for which Brown has expressed gratitude.
At a Beast game earlier this month, Brown elaborated on the transition from Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) to the ECHL, communicating that it has been, perhaps, easier than might be expected thanks to the more structured nature of professional hockey: “I think this level suits my play… Guys are a bit faster and hit stronger, but it’s more of a chip-and-chase game [where] you get [the puck] in the zone and create offense off the cycle, whereas sometimes in the CIS it’s more ‘gunslinger’ or ‘run-and-gun’ hockey.”
Wheaton, drafted twenty-eighth overall in the 2014 Canadian College Draft, signed with the Redblacks following his fifth season with the Varsity Blues. A 295-pound offensive lineman, Wheaton was instrumental in the recent turnaround of the U of T football program, playing 38 games over the past five years. He anchored a young offensive line in his final seasons, earning a spot at the 2013 East West Bowl for his efforts.
