Hockey (M) 2/1/2023 10:45:00 AM Ilyas Hussein

From misery to affection: Jesse Barwell's Bold hockey adventure

It's Senior Night for the Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) Bold men's hockey team. Captain Jesse Barwell skates to centre ice of the Mattamy Athletic Centre. He joins members of his family and head coach Johnny Duco for the traditional senior photo. As he smiles and poses for his picture, the emotions within the Oakville, Ont., native begin to creep up. He realizes that there is not much time left before he will stop suiting up in the blue and gold.

Barwell's dedication and love of hockey have been clear throughout his five seasons with the Bold — a far cry from when he first hit the ice at three years old.

"When I first started skating, I actually hated it," said Barwell with a laugh. "I would cry because I could never stand up and I would fall down."

His mother signed him up for lessons because his brother played hockey. However, the younger Barwell wanted no part in lacing up his own skates.

"I was miserable," he added.

Nonetheless, he eventually learned and started to play the sport himself.

Athletics has always been a large part of the Barwell family. His father, Jay, played in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), his grandfather, Gord, played in the Canadian Football League (CFL) and his mother was a field hockey player for Team Canada.

Jay was also the first OHL player to play hockey for the then-known Ryerson Rams.

"It's been a lot of athletics in our family and everyone kind of pushed [me and my brother] towards hockey," said Barwell.

The push to play the sport paid off for Jesse as he started to excel in it. He played Single A hockey with his first-ever rep team in the Oakville Rangers before jumping up to triple AAA — two tiers above — in a single year.

With the Rangers, Barwell found a second home as the familiar faces led to a sense of comfort.

"I had the same coach for seven years — who had a big part of our development," said Barwell.

In his final year in minor hockey, the Rangers ended up winning the OHL Cup — the major trophy for minor hockey in Ontario. The first for Oakville.

"It was amazing. At 15 years old, it's your first time experiencing such a big win. All of the tournaments before were cool, but they were just medals. I think this is the first time, as a young adult, you're realizing how much time and effort you put into it," said Barwell. "It's one of my fondest memories of hockey for sure."

Although that was the last time they would play as a team, the championship helped catapult the squad into further opportunities. Fifteen out of the 18 players were drafted into the OHL.

After watching the first round of the 2013 OHL Priority Selection pass, Barwell slowly anticipated his name to be called. He had an idea of where he would go as he was in contact with many teams prior to the draft. Yet, in the second round, the Mississauga Steelheads — a team he never spoke to — made their selection. Barwell was drafted 26th overall and was heading to the OHL Central Division.

"When Mississauga drafted me I was kind of thrown off and caught by surprise," said Barwell. "But, it was near my hometown and close by."

While in his rookie season in the OHL, Barwell was chosen to represent Canada Ontario at the 2014 U-17 World Hockey Challenge in Sydney, N.S.

In the tournament, Barwell played alongside future National Hockey League players Mitch Marner, Travis Konecny, Dylan Strome, Lawson Crouse and Jakob Chychurun. He also spent the weekend sharing a hotel room with Marner. The squad did not achieve their desired result with a fifth-place finish, but for Barwell, putting on the Team Canada crest was an experience like no other.

"Every kid's dream is to wear that jersey, no matter what sport they're playing," said Barwell. "I'll never forget it."

However, back in Mississauga, Barwell struggled with consistency. "I just didn't think it was the right fit," he said. After a year and a half with the Steelheads, he requested a move elsewhere.

In his contract, Barwell had a no-move clause, which meant he had to approve a trade before it was finalized. As soon as he found out about a proposed trade to the Saginaw Spirit, he was all ears.

In the proposed move to Saginaw, Greg DiTomaso, who also went on to don the blue and gold of TMU, was also included — but he was not as keen. Unlike Barwell, DiTomaso did not have a no-move clause in his contract, so he did not have a choice in the matter – unless Barwell declined the trade.

Before waiving his clause, the Oakville, Ont., native called DiTomaso to inform him of his decision.

"Greg, I'm going to accept the trade and we're going to Saginaw," Barwell told him. To which DiTomaso reluctantly accepted.

The two would then go on to enjoy their time together in the city across Lake Huron, but DiTomaso "was not happy at the time [of the move]," said Barwell.

Barwell would spend three seasons with the Spirit where he would put up 70 points in 175 games. After concluding his time in Saginaw, Barwell had options. Either stay in the OHL as a rotating player, go play university hockey or spend a year in the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League (GOJHL).

He decided it would be best for him to play in the GOJHL, so he could "enjoy his last year in junior hockey."

"I don't think I was mentally ready for school yet," said Barwell.

Following a year with the Caledonia Corvairs, where he led the league in scoring, Barwell elected to follow in his father's footsteps.

"This rink sells you the minute you walk in," said Barwell of the Mattamy Athletic Centre. "It's a fantastic program, great people, and the school culture is unbelievable, so it was kind of hard to say no. I think Toronto is where I wanted to end up, so between here and [the University of Toronto] I'm happy I [chose] this school," said Barwell.

Captain Jesse Barwell skates towards the bench for high fives with his teammates.

Over his five years with TMU, Barwell went from a rookie who was determined to be in the lineup to the team captain — a change that occurred as a result of his work ethic.

"As I moved forward, I set a goal for myself to become team captain and be a leader on the team," said Barwell.

"He does everything the right way and is exactly the student-athlete we want the rest of our team to be," said Duco in an interview before this season.

In his fourth year at the university, he played a key role in helping the school make its first-ever appearance at the U SPORTS National Championships — where they finished in fourth place.

"That is going to be a memory for the school and all the guys who got there," Barwell added.

Throughout his time, Barwell has met people he now considers "lifelong friends" as he prepares to walk out of the door with the other seniors alongside him.

"Those guys have been huge parts of our program. They've had a lot of success and they've certainly left the program in a better place than they found it," said Duco following the Senior Night game against the Varsity Blues.

"We've been through all the up's and down's," Barwell added.

With his final season approaching an end, Barwell can sense his looming departure. As a result, he wants to partake in every event, so he could share every laugh with every person he possibly can.

"After this year, it's over," said Barwell. "I think the best memories — and the most fun ones — were always at the athlete events where everyone was doing fun things."

At the end of the school year, he will be graduating with his Masters of Business Administration (MBA) after completing his undergraduate degree in Economics and Management Sciences last spring.

For Barwell, business is the thing that intrigues him the most outside of the rink.

"A large part of when I was thinking of programs to go to was that I always enjoyed math growing up and I knew math was applicable to many of the business courses I could take," said Barwell. "It's just always where I wanted to be. An entrepreneur."

Following his completion of his MBA, Barwell will set his eyes on the business world as he currently owns a restaurant.

"I think I'll be done school for a while," he said with a smile.

His next step in hockey might take him across the pond in Europe as last summer he was approached by some teams for this season, but he wanted to finish his MBA.

"It's more of me extorting hockey for my benefit. I want to see the world and I don't think I'm quite finished with hockey yet," said Barwell. "I think it's a great way to finish it out. Use hockey for all that I've given to it to see some cool things in the world."

Now, as he stands at the centre ice of the Mattamy Athletic Centre to take his Senior Night photo, the blue and gold doors of TMU are almost closed shut for Barwell. In the short moment, he reflects on each moment in his journey.

Whether it be winning the OHL Cup, representing Canada on an international stage, or choosing to play with the Bold, it all traces back to his love for hockey — something his mother reminds him he should be glad he stuck with.

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Players Mentioned

#21 Jesse Barwell: F; 5' 11"; 4

Players Mentioned

#21 Jesse Barwell
: 5' 11"; 4
: F

Players Mentioned

#21 Jesse Barwell

Players Mentioned

#21 Jesse Barwell