Jack Ceglarski on Player Development, Recruiting, and Building Middlebury Hockey

Jack Ceglarski, head coach of Middlebury men’s hockey, joins Puck Academy to talk about building players — and building a program — in today’s evolving hockey world.

A former SUNY Geneseo national champion and pro (Reading, Indy, Huntsville), Jack shares his path from player to coach, including lessons learned from growing up in a deeply rooted hockey family and navigating expectations along the way.

We cover:

• Why he believes multi-sport athletes develop better long term

• What’s broken in modern youth hockey (over-specialization, money, drill culture)

• Why cross-ice and small-area play matter more than ever

• What he actually looks for in recruiting (hint: it’s not just points)

• How academics factor into roster building at a place like Middlebury

• His philosophy on the transfer portal and NIL

• Practice structure, video usage, and the balance between analytics and the eye test

• Why players should dominate a level before moving up

• The importance of trust, relationships, and enjoying the college experience