Devon Schade:
This Guy Can Play
By Scott Taylor, Photos courtesy U of M Golf Team
Devon Schade was playing junior
hockey in Waywayseecappo when he
realized, “I gotta get back to school.”
It’s not that he didn’t like hockey.
Fact is, he loves it and still plays
with the Transcona Railer Express in
the Manitoba Major Junior Hockey
League, but like so many young high
school graduates from Winnipeg who
are forced out of town to chase a longshot hockey dream, there comes a
time when the University of Manitoba
looks pretty darn good.
As outstanding all-around athlete
from Beausejour, Schade was a
particularly good hockey player and
golfer. However, since the National
Hockey League wasn’t about to
offer him a contract, perhaps the
golf swing – that one that won him
the 2015 Manitoba Amateur Golf
Championship – could get him a
university scholarship.
“I’ve known (U of M golf coach)
Garth Goodbrandson for a long time
and I really like him,” Schade said,
“He’s a great coach and I always
wanted to play for him so when he
offered me a spot on the team, I
couldn’t say no.”
Turns out, after he struggled a little
with academics in his first year at the
U of M, everything in his life has come
together. School was tremendous in
Year 2 and now he’s working to get into
the Asper School of Business. He’s also
enjoying his hockey career again.
“Yeah, I decided to leave Wayway
and the Manitoba Junior League and
got an offer to play for Transcona in
the MMMJHL,” he said. “That’s been a
great experience. It’s really high-level
competitive junior hockey and yet it
still offers me the chance to play golf
at the U of M and work on my marks
so I can, hopefully, get into the Asper
School.
Schade, 20, started playing hockey
at a very young age (“Gee, I think I
was three or four.”) in Beausejour. He
played all of his minor hockey there,
played bantam with the Northern
Knights and then midget with the
Manitoba Midget Hockey League’s
Eastman Selects.
Although only 5-foot-9, 150 pounds,
he was selected by the Portage Terriers
in the MJHL bantam draft and at 17
played 50 games with the Terriers
and had seven goals and six assists.
He was traded to Wayway, where he
Devon Schade goes to the net
scored nine goals and dished out
10 assists in 2013-14. Living away
from home in Western Manitoba and
playing in front of small crowds in
Waywayseecappo, it was obvious to
him that it was time to get back to
Winnipeg and into university.
“Wayway was alright and I liked
(head coach) Barry Butler, but when
an offer arose to play on the golf team
at the U of M, I figured I had to accept
it,” Schade said. “And the MMJHL
has allowed me to continue playing
hockey at a really competitive level. I
really like what the MM offers me. I’m
20 so I can play this year and again
24 / sportslife