'It's everything': How this Peoria native and Rivermen captain said goodbye to hockey
PEORIA — Alec Hagaman was Peoria-born to do this.
A hometown kid in the Carver Arena grandstand who fell in love with the Peoria Rivermen and one day grew up to become captain of one of the most historic teams in minor league hockey.
Now 33, the great captain of the Rivermen stood on the ice saying goodbye Saturday in a regular-season finale at Carver Arena, announcing that he will retire when the upcoming SPHL playoffs end.
BOX SCORE: Rivermen 4, Pensacola 1 | STANDINGS: SPHL 2022-23 | PLAYOFFS: Pairings, schedule
"This is what I wanted to be. Captain of the Peoria Rivermen," Hagaman said afterward. "Captain of the Peoria Rivermen, it's everything. For me, it was a dream come true.
"We are a blue-collar franchise in a blue-collar town, and I'm a blue-collar guy. I've tried to play that way and live that way and never change who I am.
"This night, it was a lot to take in."
The Rivermen beat Pensacola 4-1 in a game that didn't matter, the two teams already locked into a first-round best-of-3 playoff series against each other that will start Thursday in Florida.
The 2,792 in attendance were there to say goodbye to a special player.
"Alec Hagaman built his legacy," Rivermen head coach Jean-Guy Trudel said. "There have been guys with more talent, there's been some high, high levels of the game played here.
"But to me, Alec Hagaman has been the most influential player in the history of the Peoria Rivermen."
The team surprised Hagaman with special jerseys themed with his likeness on them, and the locker room set up and waiting when he arrived.
"I walked into the locker room and saw that jersey, saw all of them hanging there, and I needed a moment to myself," Hagaman said. "I had to get out of there and find a place to be alone and I cried for the first time in 10 years.
"It hit me all at once when I saw that. It's going to be over for me."
More: New lease in hand, Peoria Rivermen keep celebration alive with regular-season title
A place of honor
Of all the things a professional hockey player has to do — early mornings and long bus hours and fights and bleeding and pain and sacrificing family time and accepting small paychecks with big hopes chasing championship dreams — reaching the end of a career and saying goodbye is the hardest and hurts the most.
Hagaman is the 24th captain of the Peoria Rivermen and had the second-longest tenure for the 41-year franchise. Now in his fourth season as captain, his time at the helm ends behind only Darren Maloney's five-year ECHL run. Hagaman would have had five years, too, if not for the team being dormant because of the pandemic in 2020-21.
It's a privilege to know and work with every Rivermen captain in the past. Dave Thomlinson, Dave Mackey, Trevor Baker, Darren Maloney, Doug Evans, guys who led championship teams, often the team's best player, played with grit and passion, fought and bled and sacrificed everything in their lives to make sure they gave of themselves as much as they demanded from their teammates.
Hagaman is all of those things and that's what makes him special. But what makes him one-of-a-kind is his status as the only Peoria-born captain of a 41-year franchise that has touched five decades.
He is a Peorian leading Peoria's pro hockey team.
"We live in a society now where things aren't always earned anymore," Trudel said. "But Alec Hagaman earned everything he got here. He earned this night. He came here as a hockey player, but he leaves as a great person and leader."
More: Peoria Rivermen, Peoria Civic Center reach deal to keep pro hockey team at Carver Arena
A video tribute, a birthday song and $3,000
Hagaman skated out for a pre-game ceremony with his wife, Emily, and daughter, Adley, joining him on the ice with Trudel and team co-owner Bart Rogers.
A tribute video played overhead, with clips from teammates past and present … Ben Oskroba, Connor Gorman, Adam Stuart, Nick Neville, Zach Wilkie … Eric Levine, Alec Baer, Mitch McPherson, JM Piotrowski … Jake Hamilton, Jordan Ernst, Austin Veith, Brandon Rumble, Justin Greenberg … all delivering a glorious sendoff.
"The impact you've had on the organization and the community as a whole. … you've had a helluva career," Piotrowski said.
Hagaman joined Pensacola captain Garrett Milan — who was part of the 2020-21 Flyers championship team that Hagaman played for while the Rivermen were dormant — for a ceremonial puck drop. Adley Hagaman, celebrating her fifth birthday, dropped the puck.
McPherson scored two goals in the game, Cayden Cahill notched the game-winner and Ernst had a goal and an assist.
Then Hagaman grabbed a microphone and thanked the crowd, embraced his friend and teammate, Nick Neville, and told everyone goodbye.
Thirty minutes later, someone bought his jersey for $3,000 in a post-game auction. Then he danced with his teammates and longtime superfan Adam Masso in the locker room, as is their ritual following victories.
Hagaman held Adley in his arms in the middle of the room as the team gathered around and sang Happy Birthday to her. Then he headed upstairs with his teammates to meet fans for pictures and autographs.
"To get that honor, to hear those tributes from my teammates past and present, listen to coach Trudel talking, it was amazing," Hagaman said. "It's a blessing for me to have played with my friend, Nick Neville, and all these guys around me. They kept me coming back year after year. These guys just want to win and win.
"When COVID hit and the team went dormant for a year, Nick called me and said 'Where are we going together?'It's closeness like that you treasure. I can't thank everyone enough. I haven't even thought about what my next step is going to be."
One more run to make
Trudel will turn his attention to finalizing the Rivermen roster for the playoffs, with the SPHL deadline arriving at 4 p.m. on Sunday. Then it's on a bus to Pensacola on Tuesday, Game 1 on Thursday in Florida, and the Rivermen will start their title defense.
"I love Alec, and now we have one more run to make," Trudel said. "We had a great weekend of things to celebrate here. Clinched a league championship for the sixth time. Winning the Coffey Trophy. A new lease for the team with the Civic Center. Saying goodbye to Alec Hagaman, what an emotional day it's been.
"When I think about Alec Hagaman, I think about that kid who put so much effort into his game, working and practicing and maintaining a high standard for himself even when no one was looking."
Hagaman heads into the playoffs with 404 career SPHL points, the third-most in league history. He is the only player in league history to reach 400 games and 400 points.
Those are just regular-season totals — of which 399 games, 158 goals and 229 assists were with Peoria. He's played another 41 playoff games with 15 goals and 19 assists. His combined league total: 464 games, 438 points. His combined career totals for eight Rivermen seasons: 437 games, 170 goals, 246 assists for 416 points.
If the SPHL had a Hall of Fame, he'd be in it. The Rivermen do, and he will be.
"To see the way he plays hockey now, one of the best ever in this league's history, one of the best Rivermen ever, a kid now a man with a wife and children … it's just awesome," Trudel said. "He's an absolute warrior. He's a guy who if I'm going into war I want him by my side."
Neville, who along with a few other Rivermen players might be contemplating their own retirements, had this to say about his friend and captain:
"We've been teammates now seven years, the best seven years of my life. You are a leader, a role model to this franchise and to the entire city of Peoria.
"And you will always be my captain."
Peorians' captain, truly.
Peoria Rivermen all-time captains list
Includes franchise as Peoria Prancers and Rivermen in IHL from 1982-83 thru 1995-96; in ECHL from 1996-97 thru 2004-05; in AHL from 2005-06 thru 2012-13; and in SPHL from 2013-14 to present.
1982-83: Steve Harrison, d
1983-84: Steve Harrison, d
1984-85: Rick Hendricks, d
1985-86: Rick Hendricks, d; Tony Curtale, d
1986-87: Tony Curtale, d
1987-88: Glenn Johannesen, lw
1988-89: Rob Whistle, d
1989-90: Dave Thomlinson, lw
1990-91: Dave Thomlinson, lw
1991-92: Dave Mackey, lw
1992-93: Dave Mackey, lw
1993-94: Dave Mackey, lw
1994-95: Doug Evans, lw
1995-96: Doug Evans, lw
1996-97: Darren Maloney, d
1997-98: Darren Maloney, d
1998-99: Darren Maloney, d
1999-00: Darren Maloney, d
2000-01: Darren Maloney, d
2001-02: Matt Golden, d
2002-03: Derek Booth, d
2003-04: Trevor Baker, c
2004-05: Trevor Baker, c
2005-06: Brendan Buckley, d
2006-07: Aaron MacKenzie, d
2007-08: Aaron MacKenzie, d
2008-09: Trent Whitfield, c
2009-10: Yan Stastny, c
2010-11: Dean Arsene, d
2011-12: Adam Cracknell, c-w
2012-13: Scott Ford, d
2013-14: Jarrett Rush, d; Cole Ruwe, d
2014-15: Cole Ruwe, d
2015-16: Dan Bremner, lw
2016-17: Dan Bremner, lw
2017-18: Dave Pszenyczny, d
2018-19: Alec Hagaman, lw
2019-20: Alec Hagaman, lw
2020-21: COVID, no season
2021-22: Alec Hagaman, lw
2022-23: Alec Hagaman, lw
Sources: Dave Eminian, Journal Star archives, Peoria Rivermen, AHL, IHL, ECHL, SPHL archives
Dave Eminian is the Journal Star sports columnist, and covers Bradley men's basketball, the Rivermen and Chiefs. He writes the Cleve In The Eve sports column for pjstar.com. He can be reached at 686-3206 or deminian@pjstar.com. Follow him on Twitter @icetimecleve.
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Peoria Rivermen hockey: Peoria native captain Alec Hagaman retires
