The N.C.A.A. celebrates Division III week April 1-7, 2019. Division III Week is a positive opportunity for all individuals associated with Division III to observe and celebrate the impact of athletics and of student-athletes on the campus and surrounding community. Here at the University of Wisconsin-Superior, we want to use the opportunity to highlight some of the unique stories of Yellowjacket Athletics.
 

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SUPERIOR, Wis.: The Yellowjacket men's hockey program is nearing a major milestone. Granted it's still eight years away, but the year 2027 will mark the 100^th anniversary of the first time UW-Superior iced a hockey program. There were numerous years in there where hockey was not a varsity sport at UW-Superior, including the entire decade of the 1940s, but marking 100 years since the first team hit the ice is worth celebrating.
 
The current incarnation of Yellowjacket men's hockey was born in 1965. From that time through to the present day, it hasn't been rare to see the rosters dotted with players from nations other than the United States, with Canada always being a strong recruiting pipeline. The majority of the roster still comes from North America, but more recently, there has been an influx of players coming from other continents as well.
 
"Hockey truly is a global game. Recruiting at the college level is a 365 day job now, and there is a lot of competition for players, especially in the United State and Canada," said Yellowjacket Head Coach Rich McKenna. "If you plan on surviving, you have to be willing to work and be willing to get outside of your recruiting comfort zone. And in a way, that's what we've done here.
 
"UW-Superior has very strong numbers when it comes to bringing in international students, and over the past few years the freshman classes have had record international numbers. We're glad to be able to be part of that and have a strong international presence on our roster."
 
The 2018-19 Yellowajckets had players from seven different countries. In addition to the United States and Canada, the Yellowjackets iced players from Sweden (Oscar Svensson), Finland (Jerry Miettunen), Russia (Pavel Mikhasenok), Latvia (Bruno Birzitis), and Ukraine (Artur Terchiyev).
 
Now to be fair, not everything was new to the European players upon arriving in Superior, as most have been in North America for a number of years, but a special bond is being forged, particularly from the three hailing from Eastern Europe.
 
"I first came to North America because one of my friends from Latvia coaches at the University of Alaska in Fairbanks. He played college hockey in the United States and has been living her ever since," said Birzitis. "At the time he was living in Nashville and invited me to come from Latvia to skate in the Elite Edge Showcase. The Soo Eagles in the NAHL saw me there and invited me to play for them in the upcoming season."
 
Mikhasenok has been in North America longer, nearing a decade on American soil.
 
"My grandmother lived in Los Angeles and my dad and I flew there to visit her. During that time I attended a hockey camp where I was invited to lay for the Los Angeles Junior Kings," said Mikhasenok. "Then my dad decided to move to Los Angeles and that's how I started my journey in North America."
 
Terchiyev has had the shortest tenure in North America, being here for only a couple years.
 
"My first step was moving to Canada, and I guess that happened because Canada is known as the number one country in hockey," Terchiyev said. "It's a huge leap from hockey in Ukraine."
 
All three took different roads, but all of those roads led to UW-Superior.
 
"I played in Sault Ste. Marie for two years before going to New Jersey where I played for Coach McKenna. When he got the job in Superior he recruited me to come with him," Birzitis said. "Moving from one team to another is an exciting experience, and when I was first recruited I saw a large number of international players on the roster and it made me feel far more comfortable coming to UW-Superior."
 
Familiarity and comfort played a role in Terchiyev landing in Superior as well.
 
"I knew Pavel from high school, so he was a pretty big factor in my decision," Terchiyev said. "I also knew guys like Macker (Alec MacKenzie) and Blaiser (Liam Blais) who I knew from Elliot Lake. And (Chad) Lopez because we were roommates and we are close and he wanted to come here so all of that was a factor as well."
 
Mikhasenok was playing his junior hockey right down the road from Superior, with the Minnesota Wilderness of the NAHL, making his move from junior to college a short one.
 
"Rich was talking to me about coming for a visit and it was good timing because my dad was also in town and it was easier to make a decision with his help," Mikhasenok said. "Once here, since I've been in North America for so long, it is easy for me to blend in with guys. But of course it is easier for me when someone who can speak Russian is also on the team and I was glad that Bruno was here because I could talk to him in my language."
 
All three are obviously fluent in hockey, with each playing pivotal roles for the Yellowjackets. But they are also fluent in other areas, including the Russian language.
 
Language. With seven different countries represented on the roster, it wouldn't be surprising if there were multiple language barriers in the locker room, but it's quite the contrary, actually.
 
"I have been here almost nine years, and I really don't have a language barrier," Mikhasenok said.
 
"Before coming to UW-Superior I took a few online college classes that helped me get used to school in another language," Birzitis said. "But when I do have difficulty understanding the odd word in class, with UW-Superior having such small class sizes, I always have a teammate in class that is willing to help me understand."
 
"There have been no issues with language so far," Terchiyev said.
 
Birzitis, Mikhasenok, and Mikhasenok are clearly comfortable with English as their second language, but that doesn't stop them from moving back into Russian on occasion, particularly on the ice.

"Whenever I'm on the ice with Arty or Bruno we try to speak in our language, like calling for a puck or letting one know what's around him or what play to make," said Mikhasenok.
 
"When I'm frustrated on the ice I'll yell in Russian because I don't want to let anybody know I'm mad," Terchiyev said. "With Pavel on the ice we talk Russian, so nobody knows our next move."
 
"Pav, Arty, and I speak Russian in the locker room and around the boys," Birzitis said. "Now many of them are able to joke around with us, saying a few Russian words."
 
And for the ones they don't understand?
 
"Sometimes the guys tell us to stop talking Russian around them," Terchiyev said.
 
The language spoken doesn't matter to McKenna, so long as all three continue to have their play speak the loudest.
 
"These are three really good hockey players. They are three very different players, but all three are really good at what they do," McKenna said. "For us to continue to build the program that we want, we need them to continue doing what they do best."
 
As for future players from overseas, McKenna isn't shy.
 
"United States, Canada, Russia, Australia, Jamaica, I don't care. It doesn't matter to me where they come from," he said. "As long as they are good people, good students, and can help move our program in the direction we want it to go we're going to give them a look."