On the ice, he’s a solid, smart defenseman. On the lacrosse field, he’s been described as a “freak of nature” by Hamburg lacrosse coach Jerry Severino.
While Jason Chiodo was a key part of a tight-knit Hamburg hockey team this past season that improved greatly over the course of the season, it’s lacrosse that he loves. And while the Hamburg junior isn’t sure what the future holds for him yet in terms of sports, it’s likely that his lacrosse career will continue beyond high school.
Recently, Chiodo talked to Icing The Fed about the crossover between the two sports and why he enjoys playing lacrosse more than playing hockey.
Which came first, hockey or lacrosse?
Lacrosse. I was playing since I could even remember. My dad put a stick in my hands, and he was my role model, always being the one asking me to play pass and working on my stick skills.
How long have you been playing lacrosse? How long have you been playing hockey?
Four years old is when I signed up for Hamburg youth lacrosse over at the Nike Base, and I started playing hockey when I was 7.
I know lacrosse is huge in Hamburg, almost a cultural thing for the town. Do you just want to talk about that a little bit?
Our program has made an extreme jump from what it used to be to now, and all of our players are very dedicated to the sport. Our Hamburg lacrosse team has a very high role in Section 6, and we gotta take it every year and show ’em who’s boss.
Do you know where you’re going to college yet?
I don’t. I’m taking my days one day at a time, my practices one practice at a time, and I’m taking advantage of every step of the way.
What’s your biggest focus for this season?
Getting my seniors as far as they could because they’ve worked so hard for this opportunity, and I just want to give it to them, my best friends.
Do you want to talk about some of your memories from hockey growing up?
I played on the Hamburg Hawks, which is basically Hamburg lacrosse, with a lot of these guys on my Hamburg lacrosse team. And just the bond that we made playing hockey is the same bond that we have during lacrosse, and that’s what makes us so good.
What’s the biggest crossover from hockey to lacrosse?
Definitely, I learned my physical game in hockey, and I bring it out on the lacrosse field, but the lacrosse game has so much more stick skills and shots, and you can do so much more, I feel like, without having to get ice time to play hockey.
What’s the biggest difference?
I can do so much more with a lacrosse stick and a ball in my stick than I can with a hockey puck and a hockey stick. It just makes this game so much better.
Do you want to just say a little bit about this hockey season?
We started out as a slow team, but we moved our way up one by one by working so hard at 5:30 am practices in the morning, and it paid off. It paid off, and we got better from it, from working hard every day.
What are you expecting next year for hockey and lacrosse?
Better players coming up. Younger guys definitely need, again, to take their role and know what to do on this team, and we just gotta be ready.