Ambroz ready to lead Omaha

Hi, my name is Seth Ambroz and I'm currently in my third season with the Omaha Lancers in the USHL.

I guess I'll start at the beginning. Growing up in New Prague, Minn., our family wasn't very much into hockey at the start. My brother (Matt) picked it up at a young age from uncles and I just followed along and starting skating when I was 2-years-old. When I turned 4, I got into hockey and, since then, our family has been really into it. My sister (Kacey) ended up joining a team when she turned 12 and picked up on it really quick. We all got scholarships for hockey and it's kind of a big deal now.
 
I played bantam hockey in Minnesota about two years early and then ended up playing on the varsity team as a eighth grader and that's when I kind of thought this would be a neat thing for me. My brother and my family have supported me the whole way.

I've really enjoyed my three seasons with Omaha. I'm aware of my reputation as a power-forward and it doesn't bother me. That's just the type of player I am and I accept that. I can't try to be someone I'm not. I can't try and be a big skilled forward because that's not my game. I get in front of the net and just battle, be that first man in on the forecheck and put a body on someone and I just have to be a physical presence out there as well.

I'm happy I have a coach like Bliss (Littler), who has definitely helped me a lot. He brought me in as a 15-year-old and even put me in situations such as the power-play and he trusted me with all that stuff. He's really developed me a ton and coming into my third year with him is great. He's still teaching me as well and I think he's felt he's been a really big impact on my success so far.

I've definitely grown as a player and a person in my three years in the USHL. Now I'm that guy that people look up to and it's nice to kind of pass on that knowledge to the younger players coming into the league while getting to know the league better.

I really enjoyed my experience at the NHL Research and Development Camp in August. There were a lot of great players there and high-paced games. It was definitely a lot of fun and having an opportunity to room with Scott Mayfield (of the USHL's Youngstown Phantoms) was a good time. We got to know each other well and he's a great player too.

Coming into this year, I didn't try to set a points standard for myself or anything. I'd like to have a successful season but I want to keep developing as a player every day. My main goal is to get better every single day. I really hope I can help our team get to the Clark Cup final and be successful.

We're currently 3-3. There are a lot of young guys and it'll take some time. But we have a lot of talent on this roster so, by Christmas, when everyone learns to play together, we'll have much better chemistry and will know the systems without thinking about it. There's a lot of learning, but we've had a pretty good start.

During the first few weeks, I played right wing and with Justin Crandall and Stefan Demopoulos but that'll change throughout the season many times. I'm not real focused on lines right now. We'll find what works. Lines are scrambled up early in the year, but they'll eventually start settling down.

Finally, I'm definitely excited about the draft coming to Minnesota. I just hope it all works out well. I realize there's pressure but you just hope to play well in front of the scouts who are watching. It's something that you can't really think about too much because you know you're not going to be able to have your best game every single night. You can't let the pressure get to you because that's when you kind of start grabbing your stick a little harder or not making the simple plays you should be making, so just got to think of it as just another game. Just do what you do best.

Thanks for reading and check back next month.