Happy New Year! The holidays are over, the weather is freezing, and the rink rats are heading outdoors to hit the pond. Many start planning goals to achieve in the next year or look back at their outstanding accomplishments. AHA was founded in 2001, and with the start of 2025, very few players have been in the league since its beginning. One of these legends is our player of the month!
AHA Player Spotlight
Name: Tom Albin
Hometown: Detroit, MI
# / Position: #18, #14, #8, #68, #98, Center & Wing
Team / Tier: Blue Devils, Venom B3, Blizzard C1, Chiefs C1, Norsemen C2, & Norsemen C1
As a kid growing up in the Detroit area, I was a hockey fan but never played the sport. Finally, at age 16, I decided to give it a shot. I couldn't skate, so that was a HUGE challenge for me! I later took a "hockey 101" class in college and played intramural hockey. I've played pretty much year-round ever since.
I've played league hockey ever since we moved to Minneapolis. In fact, on my SECOND day in Minnesota in December of 1988, the doorman delivering my car from the parking lot said, "Why do you have ice skates in your back seat?" I told him I was a hockey player but had just moved to town and was taking the year off. He said, "Come join MY team; I'm a goalie in a Forest Lake, Minnesota league." So I DID! We got my gear out of storage, and our suite at the hotel had a room for my wife and me and a room for my gear! I knew then that I would love it in Minnesota!!
I joined the AHA for its first season in the fall of 2001. I played for the Lumberjacks, the Blue Devils (winning the winter championship in 2005), then the B3 Venom from 2007-2022. I joined a SECOND team when our youngest child went to college in 2012—first, the C1 Blizzard, then the Chiefs, then the Norsemen. I played center, mostly, and my favorite spot on the rink is JUST outside ..or maybe a little inside.. the other team crease! At a team cookout party this summer, two teammates and I were inducted into the Venom "Hall of Fame!" OK, there's no hall, but we DID get free T-shirts…
I was diagnosed with Bulbar ALS in November of 2022, which initially involved my core (affecting eating, speaking, & breathing) rather than my arms and legs. I still played for two whole years with the disease as my symptoms were manageable, and it was just one more excuse for why I skate so slowly. My voice combines Stevie Knarben from "Malcolm in the Middle" and Mathesar from "Galaxy Quest."
I retired this fall, at age 63, because breathing is getting more challenging, and I also hurt my neck this summer, falling off a stepstool while painting the garage (which is WAY more dangerous than hockey!!)
So, I don't play anymore, and I miss it terribly, but I still IDENTIFY as a hockey player! I attend a few games weekly, joining my teammates behind the bench and opening doors for the skaters. I've built tons of amazing friendships in the AHA and still hang out often with the guys & gals I've met.
AHA Game Streaming
Did you know almost all AHA games are available to watch via livestream and on-demand? Visit our Game Streaming page for more details so you and your friends and family can watch AHA games live or re-watch the game at any time!