Ambrosio never satisfied
Colby Ambrosio is the first to admit he demands a lot of himself.
The 18-year-old Welland native is a self-proclaimed perfectionist who is always looking to improve his game.
“I’m pretty hard on myself,” Ambrosio said from Nebraska where he is working out following a successful freshman season at Boston College. “You’ll never achieve your goals if you’re satisfied where you are.
“I always think I can get better and work on things to become that elite player.”
Ambrosio gives credit to his family for his work ethic.
“Just looking at my parents, from a young age my dad (Joe) worked like a crazy person. He’s never really satisfied and same with my mom (Sandy) being a nurse, she works her butt off, and same with my brothers.”
Ambrosio collected seven goals and 15 points in 24 games for the Eagles, finishing seventh in team scoring and second in freshman scoring behind Nikita Nesterenko, a sixth-round selection of the Minnesota Wild in 2019.
“From an individual standpoint, I thought I did pretty good but I could have done better. I think next year coming up I have a lot more in the tank,” Ambrosio said. “I was in a top-six role all year which was nice. I got some good opportunities. I was pretty happy with that. Now next year coming up, I’m going to have that opportunity again. I’m going to have a big summer to go into it.”
Ambrosio, who played for the Tri-City Storm of the United States Hockey League before attending Boston College, felt the transition to the NCAA went as smoothly as could be expected.
“I wouldn’t say there was something (specific) that stood out,” he said. “I was focused on this year a lot after last year in Tri-City. I obviously wanted to get bigger and stronger because you’re playing against guys in their 20s. I wouldn’t say anything stuck out, but time and space, I think that happens at every level as you go up, it’s taken away from you. That’s probably the biggest thing I noticed.”
The Eagles finished with a 17-6-1 record before being ousted 6-5 in double overtime by UMass Lowell in the Hockey East semifinal playoffs.
“Obviously it was a weird year with COVID but I had a great experience,” he said. “I was with a great group of guys all year. We had a really good team — we were always ranked top three or four nationally and a couple of times we were ranked first — so we had a really good squad. We just came up short at the end.”
Ambrosio said the Eagles were able to keep COVID at bay during the season with no positive tests.
“We were tested three times a week and then had to wear masks everywhere inside and outside,” he said. “We all stayed discipled because we didn’t want to have our season canceled and make it as far as we can and win a national championship that we fell short of.
“We all cared for each other and that was something we had to do.”
Ambrosio, who is majoring in business, was able to find a working balance between hockey and schoolwork.
“It wasn’t too hard. Throughout the whole year, I had good time management. When we were done practising, I would go back and do school work in my dorm.
“If you don’t find a balance you can get all messed up with how busy you are. I felt pretty good about it this year.”
Ambrosio, a fourth-round selection of the Colorado Avalanche in the 2020 NHL Draft, got positive feedback from the Avs who were following his progress.
“I’ve talked to them. They are happy with my year and the ice time I got and that I stepped up to the plate so that was very good to hear, but at the same time, I told them I’m never really satisfied with my game and I always want to get better. I told them I have a lot left in the tank and this next year I’m going to run with my time and show everyone I had a good summer and I’m ready to go.”
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