Milan Gaffron can hear his father cheering from the stands, but he never looks up. Discipline keeps his eyes trained on the puck.
A defenseman for the Minuteman Flames, one of 12 teams in the Eastern Hockey Federation’s 2015 Platinum Division, and a player in the Concord-Carlisle Patriots Squirt AAA team, 10-year-old Milan has mastered the “clean kill,” a hockey term for breaking up a play without drawing a penalty.
Six years ago, early in the Covid-19 pandemic, Milan first stepped onto the frozen surface of Nick Macone Pond with his father, Chris. Born in Germany, Chris grew up playing soccer and was looking for a safe outdoor activity during the lockdown.
“We went onto the pond, and he’s like, ‘I love this, I should sign up for a team,’” Chris said, “and [he] started us down this path.”
Milan improved quickly, moving from Concord-Carlisle Youth Hockey’s learn-to-skate program to the town team, later earning a spot in the Eastern Hockey Federation, the region’s most competitive league.
“Milan is fast, tenacious, and has a high hockey IQ,” said Flames Coach Mark Agostinelli. “We rely on [him] in critical moments, especially when protecting a lead.”
Gold at Lake Placid
Last January, the Flames returned from the hallowed Lake Placid CAN/AM tournament draped in gold, undefeated in four games against elite youth teams from Canada and the United States.
A fifth grader at Thoreau Elementary, Milan anchored the Flames’ penalty kill unit during the tournament, posting a rare 12-for-12 performance and not allowing a single power-play goal.
“I like to make players mad,” Milan said. “They get mad when they can’t score.”
That defensive discipline has carried into league play. As of February 19, the Flames sat in sixth place (among 12 teams), with a record of 15-10-9. In 33 games this season, Milan contributed three goals and 14 assists for 17 points, posted a +6 rating, and — perhaps most remarkably — had yet to take a penalty.
Getting his kicks
In addition to hockey, Milan earned his black belt in karate and plays soccer like his father, who competes in an over-40 league. Chris says Milan’s sure-footed soccer play has sharpened his puck control, while the discipline instilled by martial arts has contributed to his penalty-free season.
The Flames’ most recent game against the Billerica Bulldogs marked a return to regular-season play and tested the team’s abilities.
“It’s going to be intense,” said Chris, watching the teams warm up. It was their fourth meeting of the season, with a dead-even 1-1-1 record. The Bulldogs sat at second in the league with the highest-scoring offense.
While Milan prepares to defend the blue line, his father sits in the stands, taking stats and video recording Milan’s time on the ice, archiving a journey that began in 2020.
Milan often rewatches the footage on his own, but Chris also captures his son’s accomplishments for family members in the Philippines who may never get to see him play in person.
A defensive and team-minded player, Milan doesn’t play “hero hockey,” where someone monopolizes the puck and ends up losing it.
“I like to work the puck around,” he said.
A balanced intensity
Milan’s focus reflects an intensity his father has watched grow on and off the ice.
“We always knew he’s fairly determined to do things the right way,” Chris said, “but he takes it to another level at hockey.”
Even with school, two hockey teams, and soccer in the spring and fall, Milan is still mainly focused on being a kid.
His favorite part of the CAN/AM tournament was, of course, the maple syrup. In his free time, he is designing his own version of Monopoly with his friends. He enjoys playing the strategy game Catan with his dad, and can easily pivot from the deconstruction of defensive power-play to an analysis of the Seven Years’ War. His favorite school subject is history.
“I don’t want to put too much pressure on him,” Chris said. “I wouldn’t even mind if he didn’t go to college right the second he leaves school. There are other things you can do just to experience life for a bit.”
The game against the Bulldogs ended in a tie, giving the Flames the most ties in the league. But Milan said he felt good when he got off the ice, his mind already on to the next thing.
“I’m excited to see my sister [figure] skate in her tournament tomorrow,” he said, heading for the locker room.
This story was written by a journalism student in Boston University’s Newsroom program, a partnership that includes the university, The Concord Bridge, and other Boston-area news organizations.