The Cyclone hockey team has gotten off to a fast start, thanks in large part to the strong offensive play of one of the new faces on the team.

Junior forward Derek Behrman, who transferred from Minot State University-Bottineau has found quick success with the team, leading the team in scoring with 7 goals in six games this year.

Six of his 7 goals scored have come from two hat tricks. The first hat trick was scored during the second game of the Missouri series and the second came this past Friday against Kansas.

“Two hat tricks in six games is incredible,” coach Al Murdoch said. “Some guys go a lifetime without getting a hat trick and [Behrman] has two already.”

Growing up in the small town of Consul, in Saskatchewan, Canada, Behrman said he has been playing hockey for as long as he can remember.

“In the winter time, it’s all about hockey,” Behrman said. “It’s just what you do; hockey’s like religion in Canada. As soon as you can walk, you pretty much put the skates on and head to the rink.”

It hasn’t taken him long to adjust to the Iowa lifestyle and he has found many commonalities between Iowa and his hometown.

“It’s pretty similar to Iowa,” Behrman said. “I come from a farming community with small town values. You see that a lot here — people are pretty friendly.”

Behrman was also able to grow up watching his biggest influence play hockey: his dad.

“Growing up I always looked up to my dad,” Behrman said. “We had a local team in our town and he played on that. In Canada, your local team is like your professional team; everybody looks up to the local team.”

While Behrman has been successful on the ice, it is his classroom success that Murdoch is more proud of.

“He’s had a big impact on the season so far,” Murdoch said. “The number one reason we went after him was his academics. He transferred in with a 4.0 GPA and qualified for an academic scholarship and that’s huge because the better you do in the classroom, the better you do on the ice.”

Sophomore forward Cort Bulloch said the early success of the hockey team had a lot to do with Behrman.

“He’s been very solid for us,” Bulloch said. “He works hard on and off the ice. He shows great leadership for some of the rookies coming in. Even though he’s a transfer student he’s still considered a rookie, but he provides great leadership for the younger players and he’s been a great role model.”

Bulloch thinks Behrman’s leadership has come from his willingness to do everything he has been asked.

“He’s been a goal scorer, he’ll go into the corners and hit,” Bulloch said. “He’s pretty much doing everything we’ve asked from him.”

If the team is going to be successful, Behrman said he knows it will be important for him to continue to contribute.

“So far I’ve been lucky to get some goals, but that’s probably not going to hold up all season long,” Behrman said. “I just want to help any way I can.”

With Behrman and the rest of the Cyclone hockey team hopeful for a National Championship, one thing remains certain — if the team continues to play with this level of success, the fans, players and coaches will have something to cheer about.