Sit Down with Schutz: Jordan Gudridge
Jordan Gudridge is from Greenwood Village, Colorado, and has been playing hockey since he can remember. Youth hockey was at the forefront of his childhood. He grew up playing for the Krivo School of Hockey, then went on to play for the Colorado Thunderbirds. Gudridge credits these early mornings with helping start his journey.
When Gudridge was 17 years old, he took the next step in his hockey journey by joining the USHL’s Madison Capitals. Gudridge said, “It was tough at first. But it taught me a lot about myself, moving away, and having to learn to live on my own,”. He explained that the experience was tough at first, but it was a great experience. He gained independence and learned to do things on his own.
After a season in Madison, he was able to join a NAHL team in his home state, the Colorado Grit. Gudridge said, “It was great. It was an easy decision to go back home. I had some familiar faces there,”. With this, he had the opportunity to play with kids from his childhood and reconnect with them through junior hockey.
As a defenseman, Gudridge draws his play-style inspiration from the NHL. Two specific defensemen Gudridge looks towards are the Colorado Avalanche’s Cale Makar and the Vancouver Canucks’ Quinn Hughes. Gudridge said, “I love the way they play, I try to mimic some of their style and play like them,”.
This year, along with captain Carter Sproule and assistant captains Justin Bartley and Zach Boren, Gudridge was named an assistant captain. Gudridge said, “It’s a great honor and something that I don’t take lightly. It’s great to be a part of this group. We have such great characters in the room and have a great culture that we can continue to build on”. Gudridge credits his teammates for supporting him through this.
While Gudridge has been in Watertown, he has seen firsthand just how special this community is. He has felt the support throughout the year and how everyone is coming together for the collective goal. When asked about what it all means to him, Gudridge said, “Everything. It’s a tight-knit community. You can’t go anywhere without people knowing the Shamrocks…Everyone from the fans, the city, the people that are at the rink, everyone’s in on it,”.
Thank you Jordan for sitting down with me!
By Lily Schutzenhofer
Photo by Sarah Cooper