Letts reaches high point in career

Growing up in Newport Beach, Ryan Letts had several options for activity.

He couldā€™ve gone to hit the waves with friends, or maybe even play volleyball on the sand. Instead, he went to the ice.

His love for hockey began when he was 6 when he first slipped on a pair of ice skates. Letts would practice and practice while skating at the Irvine Ice Arena that his father was part owner of.

Soon it became easy to turn down those other options for activity. Letts had found his niche, and what heā€™d hope would be his career. When he was 16, he left Newport Beach to play hockey in Canada. Today, heā€™s reached a high point in his life.

Letts is playing in the title game for the Memorial Cup with the Spokane Chiefs, who are 3-0 in the tournament. For junior hockey players, the Memorial Cup is similar to the Stanley Cup, except for that this is one game.

ā€œItā€™s an unreal feeling,ā€ Letts said in a phone interview Saturday night. ā€œThis is the biggest game for me and for our team, pretty much the whole reason why we play. Just crazy.ā€

Three years ago, he only dreamed for moments such as the ones heā€™s experienced this season. At 16, he left his friends at Corona del Mar High and he said good-bye to his parents and two sisters.

Heā€™d just been drafted by the Calgary Hitmen of the Western Hockey League and was headed for rookie camp.

ā€œIt was extremely difficult when he first left,ā€ said Lettsā€™ father, Rick. ā€œItā€™s your 16-year-old and heā€™s going to live with another family in another country. But the opportunity was amazing. You just couldnā€™t say no.ā€

Ryan Letts missed his family, but he remained determined when he went to Canada and made the team. There he lived with a different family, or whatā€™s known as billets.

He did his best to do well with his studies, always keeping in mind that he wanted to graduate with a high school diploma from Corona del Mar.

Sure he couldā€™ve graduated in Canada, but he said he wanted to finish what heā€™d started, just like his mentality for how he began with hockey.

Last year, he walked with his senior class at CdM.

ā€œIt meant a lot to me to walk with my class,ā€ Letts said. ā€œI started there and I wanted to finish there.ā€

Also last year, Letts was traded to the Spokane Chiefs and moved in with new billets, Terry and Jennifer Felice, who are in Ontario to see Letts play.

This year, as a wing on the fourth line, Letts helped the Chiefs to the WHL championship. His energy has been beneficial for the Chiefs, who face the Kitchener Rangers, the Ontario Hockey League champs, in their arena today.

ā€œIā€™m a pretty physical player,ā€ said Letts, 6-foot-2, 210 pounds. ā€œI can fight, so thatā€™s pretty good. I donā€™t score. Iā€™m a grinder.

ā€œI wouldnā€™t say Iā€™m the toughest guy, but I play physical. I enjoy it.ā€

STEVE VIRGEN may be reached at (714) 966-4616 or by e-mail at [email protected].