Garrett Roe (Photo Courtesy AHL/Hershey Bears)
St. Cloud, MN—An old adage states, “You can’t go home again,” inferring that we tend to view the past in an overly optimistic light. But people and circumstances change, making it challenging to recreate past memories by going back home.
But, after ten seasons in international professional hockey in Germany, Sweden, and Switzerland, former St. Cloud State University Husky Garrett Roe has done just that, returning home after signing a one-year deal with the reigning Calder Cup champions, the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League, in July for the 2023-24 season. Technically, Roe’s place of birth is Vienna, VA, a mere 128 miles from Hershey, PA.
Roe, who skated for the Huskies from 2007-2011, amassed 178 points (3rd on the all-time list) in 156 games, including 65 goals (8th on the all-time list) and 147 assists (1st on the all-time list). He led the team in points with 48 in 2009 and was tied with Ryan Lasch for the team lead in points with 49 in 2010. He also led or was tied for the team lead in assists in 2009, 2010, and 2011. He also tied Ryan Lasch for the team lead in goals with 20 in 2010.
During his time as a Husky, he was named to numerous postseason WCHA All-Star teams, including the All-Rookie and Second All-Star teams in 2007-08 and the Third All-Star teams in 2008-09 and 2009-10.
Garrett Roe vs Denver Nov. 2008 (Photo Prout)
Following his career as a Husky, Roe skated for two seasons with the Adirondack Phantoms of the American Hockey League, posting 66 points in 129 games. He then pursued a career in professional hockey in Europe in 2013-14, culminating in a decade of hockey in the German, Swedish, and Swiss Leagues, primarily for the ZSC Lions of the Swiss League, where he skated for four seasons and as an assistant captain in 2022-23.
Roe earned great success in the Swiss League, accumulating 56 goals and 147 assists for 203 points in 226 games. This also included being a member of league championship squads in 2018-19, 2021-22 and 2022-23.
Additionally, Roe was a member of the USA Olympic team during the 2017-18 season, posting 2 points in 5 games, and a member of the Deutschland Cup-winning USA team that same season.
Family circumstances encouraged his return to the USA after Roe’s mother, Julie, passed away after a courageous battle with cancer in late June 2023. At the time, his father, Larry, told me Garrett, now 36, would like to be closer to home and family. Larry was heavily involved in amateur hockey on the East Coast and still resides in Vienna, Va. He still laces up the skates and continues to do some coaching.
With the average age of an American Hockey League player hovering around 25, Roe is in the twilight of his professional career. With a one-year contract, who knows where his career will be in 2024-25. But that’s in the future. Roe has played in 48 of the team’s 72 regular-season contests, scoring 7 goals and 14 assists for 21 points and producing strong defensive play with a +15 plus/minus.
Garret Roe vs Springfield Dec. 2023 (Photo Prout)
After having the opportunity to catch a Hershey Bears game in person in December, he’s become a situational player. He earns time on the power play and penalty kill and is good defensively on a team deep with offensive forwards.
However, he’s exploded in the Calder Cup playoffs after being a healthy scratch in the first three playoff games. Since then, he’s produced six goals and four assists for ten points, is tied for the team lead in goals with six, and has a solid plus/minus of +6.
In the series against Hartford, Roe netted three goals, including the game-winning goal in game three, and was +6 for the series. In an intense battle with the Cleveland Monsters in the semi-finals, Roe netted two goals, including the game-winning goal in overtime in the deciding game seven, to advance the Bears to the Calder Cup finals vs Coachella Valley.
In describing the game-winner, in front of a packed house at the Giant Center in Hershey, PA, 29-year-old defenseman Logan Day said, “I threw an absolute muffin, and luckily it bounced right onto his stick,” Day said smiling. I mean, that guy is 87 years old, so he’s played a couple of hockey games, and it was the right place, right time for him, and he buried it.”
St. Cloud State University alumn and current Hershey Bears Manager of Media Relations and Broadcasting and play-by-play announcer Zack Fisch broadcasted three of Roe’s four seasons with Husky Productions and says it’s been exciting to be reunited with his fellow alumni.
“Garrett has been an extremely valuable member of the Bears all season and has been a great part of the team’s leadership group,” commented Zack Fisch. “He’s been a mentor to the younger forwards and a great locker room guy who keeps things light. He wasn’t always in the lineup due to the club’s depth and the AHL’s veteran rule, but in the postseason, he’s stepped into the spotlight and grabbed a lineup spot. Hershey is a historic hockey town, and he’s forever etched his name in this team’s accomplishments with his overtime winner in Game 7.”
In a touching tribute to his mother Julie, Roe told reporters, “I feel like she had a helping hand in this somehow. I saw a cardinal the other day and just felt like that was her. “My mom would have been thrilled to go through this whole ride with us. So it’s cool to share those memories with my brother, who is here tonight, his wife, his kid, and my kids. I had two kids yelling ‘Daddy, Daddy.’ So, it reminds you gently of how fragile hockey is and how much life means to me. So that’s the part of life that’s just more than hockey sometimes, you know?”
Garrett’s father, Larry Roe, whom I’ve known since his son’s playing days in St. Cloud, has attended every home game in the playoffs and was on his way to Hershey during my call for the first of two games at the Giant Center this weekend. “I don’t know if it’s another year for him, so I’ve been trying to attend every home game,” he said. It’s been a family affair with Garrett’s wife Brittany, an SCSU alumnus, his son, wife, and grandchildren attending games. “It was just so exciting to have him (get the overtime goal) and play the way he has. He’s there to help the younger guys become professionals and make them better players. The thing about his play this season is he never makes mistakes.”
The Calder Cup finals begin tonight (Friday, June 14), and for the first time in 33 years, two teams will meet in the Finals for the second consecutive year. The Hershey Bears will play two games this weekend at the Giant Center in Hershey, PA, against the Coachella Valley Firebirds before the games shift to Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert, CA.
Schedule:
Listen Here (Home Audio) | Watch Here (AHLtv.com $)
NHL Network: The NHL Network is scheduled to broadcast Games 1, 2, 4, 5, and 7 of the Calder Cup Finals.
Game 1 -Fri., June 14, Coachella Valley at Hershey, 7:00 PM ET
Game 2- Sun., June 16, Coachella Valley at Hershey, 5:00 PM ET
Game 3 -Tue., June 18, Hershey at Coachella Valley, 10:00 PM ET
Game 4 -Thu., June 20, Hershey at Coachella Valley, 10:00 PM ET*
Game 5-Sat., June 22, Hershey at Coachella Valley, 9:00 PM ET*
Game 6-Mon., June 24, Coachella Valley at Hershey, 7:00 PM ET*
Game 7-Wed., June 26, Coachella Valley at Hershey, 7:00 PM ET*
*if necessary (All times Eastern)
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