Continued: St. Francis' Joey Benik: Hidden in plain sight

There likely is some celebrating going on in the men's hockey offices at St. Cloud State these days, and it has nothing to do with the split the Huskies earned over the weekend on their trek to Anchorage, Alaska.

Huskies coach Bob Motzko has received a verbal commitment from St. Francis junior center Joey Benik, who is one goal away from tying Jared Festler's single-season state goal-scoring record, heading into tonight's game at Benilde-St. Margaret's. A check of the metro scoring leaders shows Benik's 61 goals are nearly twice as many as any other player.

Benik's numbers have caused a few raised eyebrows in the hockey community, but they haven't drawn the kind of attention this gifted athlete deserves.

St. Cloud State is the only college program to make any personal contact with Benik. Denver recently sent an inquiring e-mail to St. Francis coach Tony Hoops, but it came when Benik was well on his way to making his commitment to the Huskies.

Granted, the rink is a bit of a ride up Hwy. 65, and you could hang meat in the arena, it is kept so cold. But the kid had 22 goals and 36 points in the first month of the season. How much of a sacrifice would it be to get a firsthand look?

The misguided rationale goes something like this: He plays in the mediocre North Suburban Conference on a mediocre team. Hoops acknowledges Benik's goal totals probably would be cut in half if he played top competition every night, but that still would put him at or near the top of the metro leaders.

To be fair, a certain high school hockey writer had to get an extra nudge from an editor before agreeing to make the drive up to East Bethel to watch Benik play. Turns out, the kid is so good it was embarrassing to witness. Truly magical hands, a rocket of a shot and an anticipation that simply can't be taught.

Watching Benik score a natural hat trick in the first period against Spring Lake Park last Thursday (he finished with five goals and a assist in a 6-3 victory) brought this thought to mind: If it's so easy to score goals in this league, how come he's the only one doing it at a record clip?

"Each year there is going to be a different kid leading the state in scoring," Benik said. "Some schools are going to come out and check him out and some schools aren't. I guess that is why St. Cloud contacted me first. They said they always come out."

Benik made an official visit to SCSU on Jan. 30, taking in the Huskies' game against North Dakota with his dad. Their day included spending time with Huskies assistant coaches Eric Rud and Mike Gibbons. Following the game, they sat down with Motzko.

"After telling us about his background, Coach Motzko got right to the point," Benik said. "He said he wanted a commitment by the next morning."

Benik had no problem meeting that deadline, considering the scholarship offer will cover 90 percent of his college costs.

"I've been taking a lot of business classes in high school, and they have a nice business program there," Benik said. "Plus, it's close to home and my parents can see me play. That was the big thing. I wanted my family to be able to watch the games."

Benik's upbringing included a scenario that amounted to a hockey player's dream: An outdoor rink steps from his house in Anoka and a twin brother who willingly played goalie.

Andy Benik is St. Francis' starting goaltender and a longtime believer in his brother's talents. He appreciates not having to face Joey in games, but said his impact continues to be felt.

"No one shoots the puck like he does," Andy Benik said, "so after facing him in practice I have to make an adjustment to seeing slower shots in games."

Benik's older brother, Charlie, is a freshman forward for Finlandia University in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.

"Charlie and I used to get Andy out in the garage in some junky pads and rifle pucks at him all day," Benik said.

In other words, Benik simply went quietly about his business, trying to become the best player he could be.

He became a talent any fan of the game would appreciate watching. Too bad so many of us waited so long to take a look.

Dean Spiros • dspiros@startribune.com