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Brothers love sharing the ice

Chris and Alex Wideman help RedHawks climb CCHL hockey standings.

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1:13 AM Friday, February 3, 2012

By Pete Conrad

Staff Writer

OXFORD — When Chris Wideman and his younger brother, Alex, were children playing in the back yard of their home in St. Louis, they would rely on their imagination.

“We would be in an NHL game, scoring game-winning goals,” Alex said. “And it wasn’t just hockey. We always made up stupid little games. Anything you could think of with a ball or a hockey stick, we’d do.”

According to Chris, “We’d envision ourselves doing what we’re doing now — playing together.”

Now, Chris Wideman is a senior defenseman for Miami University’s hockey team.

His shots on goal find the back of the net about once every two months, but he is an assist machine.

Alex Wideman is a freshman forward for the RedHawks. He scored in his first college game and then went 26 games without another goal.

No matter. This year they are back together, playing in a kind of wonderland which has taken its show on the road to the University of Michigan this weekend, where the RedHawks will continue their quest to go from worst to first in the Central Collegiate Hockey League.

“It’s a dream come true. I’m still sort of in shock when I’m on the ice out there with him,” Alex said of Chris. “He was a huge role model for me. I tried to do the things he did, like most little brothers do.”

“He’s always been my best friend,” Chris said of Alex, “and it’s been awesome to have him around this year. It’s something we always dreamed about.”

The dream took an upward swing last Saturday when Alex broke his scoring drought with two goals, with an assist from Chris on the second, and Miami broke a three-game losing streak to Northern Michigan with a 6-0 win.

Chris knows about droughts. In his four seasons at Miami he has taken 246 shots and scored nine times.

But that’s a misleading stat. When Chris is on the ice, the RedHawks score goals. He’s second on the team with 14 assists this season and has 77 in his career.

“I’m out there just to move the puck,” Chris said, “to get it to our skill players, and there are a lot of skill players on our team.”

Miami started the season 0-4 in the CCHL but has climbed into a three-way tie for second with Western Michigan and Ohio State. The RedHawks are one point behind first-place Ferris State, which plays this weekend at Northern Michigan.

Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2197 or Pete.Conrad@coxinc.com.

Weekend series

Who: No. 18 Miami RedHawks (15-11-2, 11-9-2-1) at No. 7/8 Michigan Wolverines 15-9-4, 9-7-4-1 CCHA)

When: 7:35 tonight and Saturday

Where: Yost Ice Arena, Ann Arbor, Mich.

TV: CBS Sports Network Saturday only

Radio: WMOH-AM (1450) Saturday only

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