JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Jacksonville isn’t exactly the first place you think of when you hear “hockey.” But a group of Jacksonville University students is changing that — building a team, a community, and a legacy on ice.
The JU hockey program didn’t exist a year ago. Now, the Dolphins are 4-4-1 and competing in the ACHA’s ACDC division — a league for developing programs across the South. They compete against UNF, UF, and FSU among other Florida universities.
“I got the idea,” JU hockey team founder Michael Gugliotta said. “I was like, you know what, why not try to apply to JU and start up a hockey team?”
That idea turned into something much bigger. Gugliotta wanted to create something that would last long after he graduates.
“More so to create something bigger than myself,” he said. “I wanted to make sure that I made a lasting legacy at JU — not only give that opportunity to myself to play college hockey, but to also give that opportunity to my fellow student-athletes as well.”
Gugliotta handles everything — from scheduling games to budgeting to recruiting players. Those players have come from all over — New England, the Midwest, Alaska — places where hockey isn’t just a game, it’s a way of life.
The Dolphins’ first-ever game was a 10-1 win over St. Leo back in September. The team is entirely player-funded, still growing, and giving dozens of students a chance to keep playing the sport they love.
“We really have the potential to be great, and it kind of took off from there,” Gugliotta said. “It surprised me, but I’m so thankful. I’m so happy that it happened.”
Gugliotta’s story goes deeper. After being diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, he wasn’t sure he’d ever play again. But hockey — and this team — gave him purpose.
“You just have to have the right mindset, the right hard work, the right effort, and you can definitely make it happen,” he said. “I definitely wasn’t going to let that disease beat me, and I don’t think anybody else should either.”
Coaching the Dolphins is former Jacksonville Icemen standout Derek Lodermeier, the franchise’s all-time leader in games played.
“It’s special, honestly,” Lodermeier said. “I didn’t really know what to expect when I signed up for this job, but it’s been a great opportunity.”
The program also has the full support of the university.
“I’ve been here for 23 years, and I have never seen a group of students this passionate — and I think that’s the sport,” said Bambi Brundage, JU’s executive director for Student Wellness and Engagement.
JU is one of four club programs on campus, but this one is bringing new energy to a sport that’s starting to take root in Northeast Florida.
“A university in Jacksonville — not obviously a hockey town — but I think it’s turning into that a little bit,” Lodermeier said.
And for Gugliotta, that’s exactly the goal.
“I don’t know where I would be today without hockey,” he said. “It really is the most fun I’ve ever had — and Coach Lodermeier and my teammates make it that way as well.”
JU faces crosstown rival UNF on Friday — a matchup already being called the “River City Rumble on Ice.”
Gugliotta says the team is searching for sponsors who will help alleviate the costs associated with starting and operating a team.
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