Vranek advancing quickly in arena far from home

By STEVE LEE
Published January 16, 2005

---

NEW PORT RICHEY - Dan Vranek misses his son and 15-year-old Daniel is homesick.

Still, the father could not be more proud nor the son more thrilled with a decision to leave the family's west Pasco home to play high school hockey in Minnesota.

"The hardest thing was not knowing anybody and not having friends for a while," said Daniel, a second-line center and sophomore at Eden Prairie High.

He's "freezing" in a winter climate where the temperature often drops to a single digit, and lives with a host family. But Daniel said playing hockey has been an easier adjustment. Judging by his statistics, that is a fair assessment.

Through 12 games, the 5-foot-5, 145-pound Floridian has seven goals and 17 assists for the 9-3 Eagles. He played with the junior varsity briefly before being called up to the varsity.

"When I first moved here I was thinking there's no way I could play varsity," Daniel said in a phone conversation on Wednesday. "Then I kind of got my hopes up, thinking I have a chance. I didn't move up here just to play JV."

Dan, who lives in New Port Richey, traveled to Minnesota in December to see his son play and was amazed, not only by the fast pace and hard hitting but by the average crowds of more than 1,000 per game at the school's rink.

"Watching the high school games, it's brutal," Dan said. "It's so fast-paced, so physical. It's so quick you can't blink an eye."

As for the checking, Dan said, "Unless it's intent to injure, they let anything go out there."

At Eden Prairie, there are games and practices nearly every day. Plus, time is made for weight training.

"It's very tiring," Daniel said. "We practice every day and work out every day."

For a teenager pursuing a dream of playing professional hockey, Daniel, who in the summer played in a USA Hockey national tourney in St. Cloud, Minn., wouldn't have it any other way.