Alex Kim

Number: 18
Position: Forward
Height: 5' 11"
Weight: 185
Hometown: Fullerton, CA
Birthdate: 5/10/79

Player Biography

Alex joins several of his former teammates from the Soo Hawks in the Michigan National Hockey League, for his first season with the Bucs. With the Soo Hawks last year, Alex scored 29 goals and 32 assists. Alex is a native of Fullerton California, and plans to go to school for business and play Division I Hockey.

Sarah: That was quite a game! (see the November 23 game.)

Alex Kim: Yes, I felt at times the game was shifting one way, but I thought we came out strong. We played well, throughout the first period. That was a bad call on Furness by the ref.

Sarah: Ya, I didn't understand that one. What happened there?

A. Kim: I guess Furness lifted his stick up and he caught his nose and the guy started bleeding. Unfortunately when you get a high stick and someone starts bleeding, you get kicked out of the game and a five minute major. That really hurt us in the beginning, but that was just a bad call on the ref.

Sarah: How old where you when you started?

Alex Kim: I was six years old when I started. I started out in California and played travel all the way up until I was sixteen. Then last year I moved to Michigan and played the year there. Now I'm here in Des Moines.

Sarah: Why did you start?

A. Kim: Well, I saw my sister figure skating and I really liked skating. A man asked my mom if I played ice hockey and my mom wasn't too fond of me playing hockey. The guy said why don't you put him in hockey, she said it was too dangerous, but I really wanted to play so she let me start.

Sarah: What made you decide to play for the Bucs?

Kim: I was protected by the Soo Hawks last year, being in Sault Ste. Marie. We were an affiliate with the Bucs. I heard a lot of good comments and things about their organization and I really felt like I wanted to make this team and play for the Bucs. I came out here, made the try-outs and was really happy about that.

Sarah: Have you always been a forward?

Kim: Yes. Actually I started out playing defense my very first game. I changed the second period of that game to play forward and from then on I played forward.

Sarah: Do you have a favorite pro or college team?

Kim: I like the Ducks, you know, home town. Paul Kariya. I also like Miami of Ohio for college teams.

Sarah: What about a favorite player?

Kim: Richard Park, Doug Weight, and Paul Kariya. I try to pattern myself after the three.

Sarah: Tell me about your past teams.

Kim: I played club for about two years, maybe a year. From then on I started playing travel team. We'd go to Quebec, Toronto, Montreal, British Columbia, Colorado, Michigan and a lot of other states. It was just travel teams, we'd fit in about a 50 game schedule from pee-wee's on up. We played in really good tournaments throughout my travel years. Hockey out in California is not a hot bed for hockey players so we had to go away to get our competition. It was always rough on us because we practiced once a week. This is my first year of getting to practice every day. Most players get to practice every day. The majority of the players on the team I'm pretty sure have been able to practice every day for the past three years at least. For myself this is my first year of practicing every day. We'd get once a week practices back home in California so this is kinda hard.

Sarah: What do you like to do besides hockey?

Kim: I like playing basketball. In the wintertime back home in California I liked to play golf, because it didn't snow. It was convenient to play other sports all year round. Besides sports I enjoy going to the movies, shooting pool, lifting weights, going to the beach of course being out there in California.

Sarah: Do you have a favorite movie?

Kim: I really liked Braveheart. I'm a big fan of Braveheart, Mel Gibson. It had everything, romance, fighting, everything in the movie and a good moral to the story.

Sarah: The best thing about being a Buc is?

Kim: That's a tough question because there's so many things. The fans, the town, the atmosphere as a whole. It's really fun playing here and I'm enjoying my time right now here in Des Moines. It's phenomenal, because I've never ever played in front of 3,500 people screaming and going crazy. I guess that's the biggest thing, the atmosphere here, it's hockey town USA.

Sarah: If you won a million dollars what would you do with it?

Kim: I would give half to Christian missionaries and I'd have to invest the other half in business probably.

Sarah: Tell me some of your goals for the future.

Kim: My goals are to get a good education in college, start a business of my own, a sports bar type restaurant, and hopefully play the highest level of hockey that I'll be able to obtain. Maybe European pro's if that's possible. I'll give it my best, my hundred percent.

Sarah: Finish this sentence: The fans would be surprised to know that I...

Kim: Am a Christian. It's hard but it's okay.

Sarah: In hockey is that really hard? You don't see a lot of Christian's in hockey.

Kim: Yes it's very hard, you don't see them and it's hard to relate to other kids on the team when I was back home.