GORHAM, Maine – On Saturday, November 7, the University of Southern Maine Department of Athletics and the Huskies' Student-Athlete Advisory Committee welcomed former Huskies' men's ice hockey player Johnny Kyte '20 back to campus to share his expertise with current student-athletes. Kyte, a three-time Deaflympic medalist and captain of the Canadian Deaf Men's Ice Hockey Team, is the founder of Kyte Academics & Performance, a company that focuses on bridging the gap between elite athletics and academic success.
 
Kyte played 93 games over his four-year career for the Huskies from 2016-20. During that time, he recorded a goal and six assists. He graduated with a degree in Tourism and Hospitality. After graduating, Kyte returned to his home country of Canada, where he continued playing for the Canadian Deaf Men's Ice Hockey Team. He also became a teacher before starting his own business earlier this year. His company aims to empower teams, organizations, and students through elite athletic principles and academic excellence.
 
While at Southern Maine, he was named to the New England Hockey Conference All-Academic Team twice, and was a three-time William B. Wise Scholar-Athlete. In addition to playing hockey, Kyte was a member of SAAC, which is part of the reason he was so willing to share his experience with current Southern Maine student-athletes.
 
Kyte reached out to SAAC via Instagram and expressed interest in speaking to a group of student-athletes while he was back on campus for the men's hockey alumni game.
 
"As a former student-athlete at USM, I thought the stars aligned and the alumni game would be an awesome opportunity to connect with current and prospective student-athletes and share what it's really like to balance academics, athletics, relationships, and figuring out what you want to pursue beyond college," said Kyte. "I wanted to share my experiences, not just the successes, but also the failures and lessons learned along the way. Specifically, I wanted to give students a better understanding of what an entrepreneurial mindset looks like when pursuing your own business, especially one designed to help student-athletes succeed both academically and athletically."
 
During his presentation, which was titled "Game Beyond the Game", Kyte discussed how to approach athletics, academics and life in a similar way. The presentation covered habits, discipline, relationships, adversity, identity beyond athletics, and the importance of being present. He had two key messages that he wanted to emphasize: "every person you meet knows something you don't" and "you never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory".
 
"A major theme throughout the presentation was impact. I wanted students to recognize the impact they have on the people around them, whether they realize it or not. Not just the impact they had on me during my time at USM, but the impact they have on each other through their everyday interactions, relationships, and experiences on campus." said Kyte.
 
Kyte's presentation also included interactive elements as a way to help deliver the message. Participants discussed athletic, academic and personal goals and went around the room sharing these on sticky notes. He also included an activity that featured one minute of silence and asked participants to see what they could observe in an exercise focused on awareness and communication. This exercise ties into his experience in the Deaflympics where participants aren't allowed assistive devices during competition.
 
"Ultimately, my hope was that the student-athletes walked away recognizing that their time as student-athletes is about much more than wins, losses, grades, or statistics. It's about the people they meet, the habits they build, the impact they make, and who they become along the way."  Kyte said.
 
That message rang true for men's ice hockey senior Marcus Torgner (Mjolby, Sweden), one of the student-athletes in attendance. "My biggest takeaway was hearing someone who was once in my shoes reflect on how the USM community shaped his life," said Torgner, a two-time assistant captain for the Huskies. "As a senior hockey player, it made me appreciate my own experience here and reminded me how much these relationships can matter beyond graduation."
 
The presentation was an equally positive experience for Kyte, who said "Honestly, it felt like I had never left. It was really cool to be back on campus and remember what it was like to be sitting in those same seats as a student-athlete. It brought back a lot of memories, and I think you don't always realize the impact a place and the people within it have on you until years later when you return. This time, I wasn't coming back as a student-athlete, but as someone sharing my experiences with the next generation. It was both humbling and rewarding, and I'm incredibly grateful to USM SAAC and everyone involved for making the opportunity possible."
 
Kyte's presentation ended with the words "Don't Blink" alongside an image of an eye. The intention was to remind student-athletes of how quickly time passes and the emphasis on focusing on the current moment.
 
"You can always make more money, but you can never get that time back. As student-athletes, it's easy to get caught up in what's next. The next game, the next semester, graduation, or life after sports. But the reality is that these years go by incredibly fast," said Kyte. "Build meaningful relationships, ask questions, take chances, and don't be afraid to fail. You don't need to have everything figured out. Just keep showing up, keep learning, and appreciate the opportunities right in front of you. Because one day, the moments that seem ordinary right now might become the memories you value the most. Don't blink now."
 
After the presentation, Kyte stuck around for the Huskies' hockey doubleheader, which saw his former program earn a 4-3 Little East Conference win over Keene State College, before playing in the team's alumni game.