The first hockey sweater Brandon Svoboda pulled over his head changed his life.
A Level Green, Westmoreland County, native, Svoboda had his love of the game kick-started in much of the same way as a generation of Western Pennsylvania kids.
“I was, I think, the first person in my bloodline to play hockey,” Svoboda said. “I grew up with the Sidney Crosby Little Penguins Learn to Play program. You get dressed yourself in free gear. It’s like Christmas morning whenever we got that box. That’s where the dream kind of started and it took off from there.
“I think I got the box around 5 years old and never looked back since.”
Each subsequent sweater has kept that trend intact.
Svoboda first rose to prominence in local youth hockey as a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins Elite travel teams before moving on to stand out with the United States Hockey League’s Youngstown Phantoms and Fargo Force.
The 2023 Penn-Trafford High School graduate then represented southwestern Pennsylvania this past summer as the area’s lone representative on the United States team at the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship in Ottawa, Ontario.
And Svoboda’s latest milestone will come with him clad in the traditional red and white of Boston University.
A freshman center, Svoboda and his eighth-ranked Terriers will face hated rival Boston College, the nation’s top-ranked team, in the 72nd annual Dunkin Men’s Beanpot Championship 7:30 p.m. Monday on the TD Garden home ice of the NHL’s Boston Bruins.
The Beanpot is a storied midseason tournament contested by the Boston area’s four rival NCAA Division I hockey programs — Boston University, Boston College, Northeastern and Harvard.
“It’s everything that people talk about and more,” Svoboda said. “It’s a special tournament, and I think everyone’s got a little extra chip on their shoulder whenever they go and play in it.”
Svoboda endeared himself to Beanpot competition well in his first contest Feb. 3. He registered an assist in Boston University’s 7-1 semifinal rout of Harvard at TD Center.
“It is very unique,” said third-year Terriers coach Jay Pandolfo.“How often on two Mondays in February are you playing out in front of a sold-out crowd in an NHL building? It’s pretty special. It’s great for these guys to experience that. A lot of these guys have aspirations to play in the professional hockey league, so this is the type of an environment that you’re going to face on a nightly basis.
“It’s great to see these guys have that opportunity,” he added. “It’s great to see those guys who can perform in that type of environment.”
Pandolfo — who won a national championship in four seasons at Boston University before moving on to win two Stanley Cups with the New Jersey Devils during a 15-year NHL playing career — said Svoboda is certainly one of those players.
A third-round selection by the San Jose Sharks in the 2023 NHL draft, Svoboda has performed well on Boston University’s fourth line and penalty-kill unit this season.
“He’s killing penalties, he’s taking big faceoffs, he’s been really good for us,” Pandolfo said. “He’d like to produce a little bit more offensively, but I think his game will grow and he’ll be able to produce more offensively as we move forward here. I really like where his game is at right now. He’s certainly helping us win hockey games.”
In 20 games, the 6-foot-3, 210-pound center has four goals and an assist on 24 shots. He has been particularly strong in the faceoff circle, winning 92 of his 159 attempts.
Svoboda said he has utilized his speed and size to excel throughout his career and especially in his first season at the Division I level.
“I think definitely my speed, No. 1, being able to take the ‘D’ wide, I think also my hands, being able to manipulate defenders,” he said in reference to his strengths. “I think also just kind of playing in the defensive zone, chasing down plays and, obviously, I’m a big kid, so using my body to protect the puck and take pucks to the net.
“I am just trying to do what the coaches tell me, and, I think, I’m just going to try to come to the rink every day and work hard and try to work myself up as [best] I can.”
Pandolfo said Svoboda first got on Boston University’s radar during his time in the USHL. He scored 16 goals with 10 assists in 59 games in his first major action at the junior level for Youngstown during the 2022-23 season.
Svoboda then scored seven goals with four assists for Youngstown the following season before finishing out the year with Fargo and contributing five goals with four assists.
Most importantly for Pandolfo, though, Svoboda was a major contributor on back-to-back Clark Cup championship teams during his two seasons in juniors.
“I just really liked his energy, the way he could skate, big body, I thought he would be a great fit for us,” Pandolfo said. “That’s where we kind of watched him even more closely, at the USHL level. Obviously, he won two championships at the USHL level, and that goes a long way for us. He understands what it takes to win. A lot of good things, a lot of boxes that he checks.”
#BUSA
— BU Men's Hockey (@TerrierHockey) January 22, 2025pic.twitter.com/XMAz1NR8bZ
Svoboda has also gained critical experience in international competition, scoring three goals with three assists during the 2023 World Junior A Championship before leading all American-born players with five goals and four assists at the 2024 World Junior Summer Showcase.
On junior hockey’s grandest stage, though, Svoboda put his considerable talent most on display. He scored three goals with three assists to help lead the U.S. team to its second straight IIHF World Junior Championship this past summer in the prestigious international junior competition.
“He was very proud of making that, it was a goal of his at the beginning of the year,” Pandolfo said. “For the way he played, and the role he played for that team, he made a huge impact on that team and them winning the gold. He came up in big moments. He killed penalties for them. He did a lot of little things that helped them win, and right now that’s the role he’s in for us.”
Svoboda said his international experience has served him well.
“It’s a dream for every single kid that grows up playing hockey, watching it when they’re really little,” he said. “I think actually playing in it was one of the biggest dreams come true for me. It was one of the best moments of my life, and I’ll never forget it for sure.”
Svoboda’s attention now, though, is squarely focused on Boston College.
The Eagles (21-4-1, 13-3-1) swept Svoboda’s Terriers (15-10-1, 10-6-1) in the first two meetings between the Hockey East Association rivals this season. Boston College won the first game, 6-2, Jan. 24 before earning another win the following night, 2-0.
“They’ve had our number so far this year, so we are looking forward to Monday for sure,” Svoboda said. “They have some high-end guys.”
Boston University has notched 31 Beanpot championships, the most all time, with its last title coming in 2022. Boston College has claimed the second-most Beanpot championships with 20.
“It’s great for these guys to have this opportunity to play in an event like this,” Pandolfo said. “Does it make it a little more special, too, when it’s a BC-BU final? I think so. I think that revs it up a little bit more. It’s going to be exciting.”
Svoboda said the sacrifices to further his hockey career made by his parents, Curt and Sandra, along with his siblings, Dylan and Sami, have meant a great deal to him.
“I’m never going to forget the stuff they did for me,” he said. “I’m super grateful for it.”
Svoboda said his father is planning to be in attendance at the Beanpot final along with a couple additional extended family members.
“It will definitely be pretty cool,” he said. “Last Monday when we played Harvard they were right next to the glass, and my dad said it was pretty special being pretty much right on the glass in an NHL rink. It was pretty cool for him.
“Whenever you play on the big boys’ ice it’s definitely something special,” he added. “You look around and there’s just a million seats with a million people in them, and it’s something special that you’ve got to be super grateful for.”
John is a copy editor and page designer at the Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at jsanta@unionprogress.com.