University of Vermont hockey goalie Mike Spillane has vivid memories as a youngster learning to play hockey.

“My brother needed someone to pound pucks at, and I was that someone,” said the Bow native.

The UVM sophomore is currently working hard to become the best goalie in Catamounts history.

“He is one of the hardest working kids I have ever coached,” said Bow High School hockey coach Tim Walsh, who mentored Spillane from 2001 to ’04. “Mike would work so hard in practice we sometimes had to hold him back.”

The former Falcons standout was born into a hockey family and started skating when he was four-years-old.

He said he knew he wanted to be a goaltender when he was young and his father, Kevin, ran youth hockey programs in Concord.

“My dad tried to keep me out of the goalie equipment at first, but my second year I finally got in the goalie gear, and I’ve never gotten out,” he said.

As an up-and-coming hockey player, Spillane looked to many professional keepers, including current Dallas Stars goalie Marty Turco, who is known for his stick handling abilities.

“Mike can play the puck extremely well for a goalie,” said UVM head coach Kevin Sneddon. “He can make a mistake and recover without getting into trouble because of his athleticism.”

Sneddon, like Walsh, is impressed with Spillane’s mental toughness at game time. “The thing I like about Mike is that he’s always ready to play,” he said.

Spillane appeared in seven games during his freshman campaign a year ago and went 1-2-2 with a 1.96 goals against average and a .919 save percentage.

Before Vermont, the netminder played with the Green Mountain Glades in the Eastern Junior Hockey League for one year. He then played for the Omaha Lancers in the USHL.

Walsh remembered how superstitious Spillane was when he played for Bow High School.

“Back then he would find things to be superstitious about,” said Walsh. “He’d even worry if he put on the left sock before the right sock.” But Spillane conquered his superstitions.

“I always think about how silly they were,” said Omaha’s team MVP in 2005-’06. “Now I just go out there and play.” Spillane was recruited by seven colleges, including the 2006 national champion Wisconsin Badgers.

He said he decided to attend UVM because the team’s goals were similar to his. There is also a long family history at the school.

His older brother, Ryan, currently attends UVM and his father is a 1973 graduate. His mother, Jean, received a graduate degree from UVM and his uncle Philip graduated in 1977.

“I can’t explain how excited I am to have this chance,” said Spillane. “I’m trying to work as hard as I can, and when you see that hard work pay off, it is a great feeling.”

Sneddon said the sophomore’s future could include even better feelings.

“I’m convinced you will hear the name ‘Mike Spillane’ called out as the starting goaltender,” he said.