Level-headed, calm and simple. These traits tend to go unnoticed in an intensely physical and fast-paced game like hockey.

For one Cyclone player, however, these are the defining traits of his game — and have led to a breakout season.

Freshman defenseman Jake Arroyo has exploded onto the scene for Cyclone Hockey. Arroyo is currently tied for the team lead in plus-minus, a stat that is used to determine a players scoring impact while he is on the ice. He comes in at +23 while only scoring 12 points by himself, meaning he has helped manufacture 11 goals just by being on the ice.

“He plays a really steady game,” said Cyclone Hockey coach Jason Fairman. “His highs are never too high, and his lows are never too low either.”

Arroyo grew up in Bolingbrook, Ill., where he began playing youth hockey until high school. He then started his run of junior hockey with the Utah Junior Grizzlies at the AAA level of minor hockey. Arroyo would return home his senior year to finish his AAA play with the Chicago Mission.

After finishing high school and AAA hockey, Arroyo joined the Austin Bruins of the North American Hockey League. Arroyo played three seasons with the Bruins, totaling 158 games with 33 points and an eerily similar +23 rating for his career.

After his three-year stint in the NAHL, Arroyo was on the lookout for a Division I scholarship. When none came, he turned to Cyclone Hockey.

Arroyo had a connection with a former Cyclone player who was a member of his Bruins teams, and once he was found by Cyclone Hockey, it quickly proved to be a fit.

“Once I finally made my way here, it seemed like a great place to be,” said Arroyo. “Since I’ve started, it’s been great ever since.”

Since arriving, Arroyo has put his tremendous junior hockey experience to work on the ice. The 21-year-old freshman has been playing like a veteran since day one and has helped bulk up a defense that didn’t return a lot of players from last year.

Arroyo’s philosophy of simple hockey has not only improved his own play but also the play of others around him, giving his teammates more room to operate and succeed.

“My goal is to never try and do too much with the puck,” Arroyo said. “If the simple pass is there, make it. If you have room to take it up then go lead the rush. It’s all about making the smart and simple plays.”

Another difference he makes is with his leadership, even if it isn’t the most conventional form. The typical ideas of leadership are embodied by vocal leaders or those who try to lead by example. But Arroyo tries a different approach.

“We have all different kinds of leaders on this team, but he just tries to keep things light and the guys loose,” Fairman said. “I think he can be a great leader for the future of this team and he brings a different kind of personality to the team.”

In a game characterized by physicality, skill and coordination, sometimes the simple approach can be the most effective. For Arroyo and the rest of the Cyclones, it seems to be a strategy that is paying off now.