Unless you’re a Canuck, chances are the sport of hockey is fairly underappreciated in your home town. Even in many northern U.S. cities — like Chicago and Boston — hockey’s popularity lags way behind that of other sports. So it shouldn’t be too surprising that here at Stanford, it’s difficult for the club ice hockey team to capture a lot of attention.

Until you read that last sentence, you may not have even been aware that Stanford had a club hockey team. Hockey can be a very fast-paced, exciting sport to watch, and Stanford’s club team definitely plays an exciting brand: in their 13 games so far this season, an average of over 12 goals have been scored per game. And while their record currently stands at 4-9, sophomore right wing Jonathan Rich believed that the team is doing well, considering the small pool of players they have at their disposal.

Rich argued that since Stanford’s enrollment is so much smaller than other schools in the Pac-8 (basically the Pac-10 without Oregon State and Arizona), it is very difficult for the team to challenge for the conference title. Another problem the Cardinal faces is a lack of exposure on campus.

“A lot of freshmen [who have played hockey before] will come in and not know about the team until halfway through the season,” Rich said.

Which is why the team is now making a push to gain more exposure around campus. They realize that being one of the best club teams in the conference is a long-term goal, one which will start with getting people’s attention on campus.

“The hope is to build a stronger program that’s more consistent, so that we’re never really worrying about having enough players for the season,” Rich said.

“Hopefully, we’ll be able to keep growing as a club and get more recognition from students on campus and potential players applying to college,” senior captain Andy Meyerson added.

As a result, the team is putting the call out to anyone with an interest in playing competitive hockey and representing their university. Players with high school hockey experience are preferred — most of the team’s current players played either travel or school hockey in their high school years — but even that is not necessary. If you have game, you can play. Also, because it is a club team, both undergrads and grad students are eligible to compete.

The team’s season runs from October to early February. They usually practice twice a week and play two games on the weekends at the Redwood City Ice Oasis. The Cardinal still has about a third of its schedule left to play, including two more games against California — one at home on Feb. 2 — which Rich suggests will be the most important of their season.

The team has split its two games with the Golden Bears so far this season, so they can still capture the season series against Cal, which (as the football team showed Stanford fans everywhere) can seem just as sweet as winning the league championship.

Overall though — no matter the team’s final record — the squad’s main goal is to continue growing and improving. According to Meyerson, they are already on the upswing.

“The team is definitely the best it has been in my four years here,” he said. “We’ve been able to compete with some of the best teams in the league.”

If the club hockey team continues such improvement, they may not only compete with the top teams in the conference — they’ll be right up there with them.

Know of any interesting stories about non-varsity sports or individual athletes on campus? Let Sam Svoboda know at ssvoboda@stanford.edu.