Opportunities in professional hockey are limited, at best. With so many talented players coming out of various junior and collegiate programs, securing a roster spot is a tall task and maintaining that position can be a challenge.

Phil Tesoriero’s career may have started in a slightly unconventional manner, but three years later he has become a mainstay on the Denver Cutthroats (Central Hockey League) roster.

Tesoriero, a graduate of Davenport University and a Boulder, Colorado native, took the advice from a former coach to check out an open tryout for the Cutthroats after he graduated. He impressed enough at the tryouts to earn a contract and has since played 121 games on the Denver blueline.

The tryout process is something used by many minor league clubs as an avenue to evaluate a number of players in one location. The practice has been so successful for the Cutthroats that they will be hosting their third-annual open tryout on August 22 at the Edge Ice Arena in Littleton, CO.  The tryout is three days in total and requires a $175 fee per player.

While the odds are often stacked against players attending, Tesoriero didn’t just work his way to a training camp invite, but a full-time role on the Cutthroat roster.
“It was my goal to make a pro team at any level, but I truly wanted the experience of playing in my hometown, and having that connection the most,” he said.

As a hometown product, Tesoriero was the only ACHA alum participating in the tryouts and is the sole ACHA representative on the Denver roster. While there aren’t any other ACHA products in the Denver dressing room, Tesoriero has noticed a few familiar names throughout each season.

“Every once in a while, I notice a few players from the ACHA playing on current CHL teams,” Tesoriero said. “Although the number is few, it’s been great to see these players pop up around the league. It really means that the product the ACHA is producing is starting to elevate itself into [a higher stratosphere.

“The ACHA isn’t just a league for those who can’t make NCAA Div. I and III teams, but has begun to show itself as a league where legitimate talent can be developed and even progress to the next levels.”

The itch to consider pursuing a professional career didn’t really take hold for Tesoriero until he had experienced a few deep National Championship runs with Davenport. Even though his collegiate career had started at the NCAA Division III level, it was his time at Davenport that helped push him to consider continuing his professional career. Now, thanks in part to his time at Davenport and his friends and family members who pushed him to try out in the first place, Tesoriero is looking to take the next step in his professional development.

“I’d like to eventually have the opportunity to play overseas,” Tesoriero said. “It’s an incredible experience to be able to play professional hockey, and use that as a catalyst to experience new frontiers at both a pro-hockey level and as an individual. That’s an attitude that I developed while playing for the ACHA and have continued to embody throughout my professional hockey journey.”

While Tesoriero’s long-term goal is earning a spot with a European club, his sights are set firmly on the 2014-15 CHL season and continuing to serve as a steady contributor on the Denver blueline. The Cutthroats were dispatched from the 2014 Finals in five games and Tesoriero is hoping to see the club take the next step this season.

Although his journey to the professional ranks may have been unorthodox, Tesoriero is proving that the development he received at Davenport paved the way for his professional career.