Living the dream

When Will Lockwood was a little boy, he loved everything about hockey. He loved being at the rink. He loved being on the ice. He loved watching other teams play and he loved the Michigan Wolverines.

"I've been bleeding maize and blue since the day I was born. It's a tradition in my family to go to the University of Michigan and my dad played here, so I went to hockey games and football games when I was young, but I didn't really care about the games so much," explained the Bloomfield Hills, MI native as he chuckled at the memory. "My biggest concern was getting on the jumbotron. I was always cheering as loud as I could and jumping up and down and basically making a fool of myself to get noticed. That was always a big goal for me back then - do whatever it took to get on that jumbotron."
A decade later, Lockwood finds himself on the jumbotron at Michigan's Yost Ice Arena more often than not now that he's in his second season wearing the maize and blue and on pace for his best season yet.
"I always said I wanted to play here and I always told people I wanted to be an NHL player when I grew up, but I also didn't really believe any of that would actually happen until my U16 year," said Lockwood, who was drafted by the Vancouver Canucks in the third round in 2016. "I had some great coaching and played a bigger role on my team and I took advantage of it and had a really good second half of the year. I was invited to try out for the US National Team Development Program and, shortly after that, I got an offer to play at Michigan. What happened in those two months told me I could make something out of this and might have that childhood dream become a reality."
Always one of the smaller guys on the ice, Lockwood decided at an early age that if he couldn't out muscle or out play someone, he'd do his best to out work him. That's why things like intensity and compete level and tenacity are often mentioned before his outstanding skill and speed.
"I got to watch him last year on the opposition and the one thing you noticed about him was he was a real tough guy to play against," said Mel Pearson, in his first season as the bench boss in Ann Arbor, about the 5-foot-11, 170-pound winger. "He might not be one of the biggest guys on the ice, but he plays much bigger than his physical stature and his work ethic is something you wish you could reproduce. Then you add in his ability to make plays and do things at a high rate of speed, it just makes him a very special player."
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According to Lockwood, playing with grit has always been a big part of his game and is, in fact, one of the things he loves most about playing hockey, but this year he's being a bit more selective about when he decides to show that grit.
"[Over the past few years], I suffered two concussions, a separated shoulder and I dislocated my left shoulder twice and that's why Mel's been harping on me to pick my spots better," he explained. "I've never been the biggest guy on the ice, so just the law of physics, me running into them is probably going to affect my body a little more than theirs. So I had to adjust my game a little bit. I still have a high level of tenacity to my game, but I realized there's a time to make a big hit and change momentum and it's not every time you go on the ice. I'm more focused on puck control and stripping pucks instead of flying around trying to get guys off their game physically."
As far as his speed and skill, it's undeniable and a big part of the reason he was invited to USA Hockey's selection camp for the 2018 World Junior Championship. It's also how he got his nickname - Skills.
"I think it's more that skill rhymes with Will, so I think that's where that came from," Lockwood explained, a little embarrassed. "I'm not a huge fan of it. I don't think I'm that guy. I just like to keep it simple - Will or Locks or basically anything except that, but it's a nickname that stuck and basically now everyone will call me that - even girls in school or friends at home."
That doesn't keep him from working on his skills and living up to his nickname though. He's a big believer in working towards improvement every day. Whether that be on the ice or in the weight room, Lockwood has committed himself to giving just that little bit extra after practice to work on the details.
"I work on my shot every day. I look at guys in the NHL and how they shoot the puck and then I look at my shot and say 'oh man, I need to work on that' so I'm always firing off a couple extra one-timers or practicing my shot to be quicker and more accurate," he said. "I think my skating is my strength, but I'm also always working on that. The higher you go, the faster they are. It's all about speed in today's game and if you can do that well, you're able to create room for yourself out there and get away from defenders, so I'm always looking to get better there too."
Having spent two seasons with the USNTDP, Lockwood is no stranger to wearing the USA jersey and is eager for the opportunity to do it again at the World Junior Championship starting in Buffalo later this month.
"It's a tournament I've watched since I was really young and you see the kind of players that come out and it and it's nothing short of the best players in the country, so just to be invited [to selection camp] is a huge honor and if I'm lucky enough to be selected and represent USA again, it would be even better. I'd love to be able to help win a gold medal and defend the title."
While the circumstances might be different now, the goal for Lockwood is still the same - do whatever it takes to get on the jumbotron.
"Hopefully, now it's because I scored a goal or made a good play and not for making a funny face," he said laughing.