For the men’s hockey team, the locker room has become a home away from home, players say.

“Naturally, the locker room is like a second home,” junior Mike Santaguida said. Thirty wood stalls for each player’s hockey gear as well as 30 stalls for work out gear and street clothes border the rectangular locker room, with a big Catamount logo in the center of the floor.

The men’s hockey team locker room has stick racks, drying racks for equipment, surround sound speakers on all corners, projectors, televisions and a countertop serving as a snack bar. It also has junior forward Tom Forgione’s personal favorite: the players lounge.

“You’ll often find at least 10 of us watching the Game Show Network or Sportscenter before practice,” Forgione said.  The players lounge includes a wide-screen satellite TV and La-Z-Boy couches, protected by a coded lock entry.

Junior defenseman Rob Hamilton said that when he needs to get out the house, he will do homework in the lounge.  “It’s one of my favorite places to be on campus at anytime,” Hamilton said. “I go to the rink early and stay late to hang out.”

The team’s locker room creates much of the team’s chemistry.  “The rectangular set up of our 30 stalls allows us to get to know our stallmates as well as the people across from us,” Forgione said.

“Our locker room helps team build and it also allows us to grow closer,” Forgione said. “And that should translate to success on the ice.”

The sheer number of hours over the course of the week and the “top-notch setup” of the locker room allow for this room to be a central hub for the hockey team.Even during the offseason, the UVM men’s hockey team can be found watching NHL playoff games in the lounge or doing school work together.

“The locker room is absolutely a home away from home for me,” Forgione said.