Kingston, Ontario, is over 400 miles away from Athens, Ohio, but Luc Reeve still feels right at home.
Kingston has a fairly similar setup to Athens. The town is centered around Queens University, where Reeve’s father is a teacher. It has a main downtown area and according to Reeve, “that’s pretty much it.”
Reeve moved away from home for the first time in the eighth grade. He went to The Hill Academy in Caledon, Ontario, that year, but then ended up moving to a different private school in Lakefield, Ontario, later on. Reeve was never quite able to settle down; however, as a rocky juniors career had him ping-ponging around Canada.
He started playing for his hometown juniors team but was then traded twice, ultimately landing him with the Aurora Tigers. There, he met his best friends Tommy Kloepfer and Hollander Thompson, and that’s when he heard about Ohio’s program.
“I wasn’t really talking anywhere else, so I decided to come down here (Athens) for a visit to see how I like it. And it was so nice, so I couldn’t not come here, plus I had Tommy and Hollander coming too.”
Playing for so many teams made it hard for Reeve to enjoy the game of hockey, but coming to Ohio made him fall right back in love with it.
“I was just looking for somewhere to settle down and I wanted to get out of juniors. A bit more stability to life just really helped me out.”
Reeve is best known for being the leading scorer in the American Collegiate Hockey Association, with 32 goals and 40 assists equaling 70 points. He never lets the pressure get to him though, and has adopted a “just don’t think about it” mentality.
“If you only think about it, then you’re not going to think about what you’re doing in the moment,“ Reeve said. "So you almost have to just not think about anything so that you can make sure you’re not thinking about it. So just sort of blank, until you’re in the game.”
Reeve is more than just an offensive weapon. Off the ice, he also possesses a hidden musical talent, coupled with an affinity for Broadway musicals.
“I’m really big into music, I got taught to play guitar but I learned piano on YouTube,” Reeve said.
After moving away from home for the second time to Lakefield, Reeve had a keyboard in his room and would play for 10 minutes at night. He enthusiastically expressed his fondness for "La La Land," the 2016 hit movie musical starring Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone. Reeve cited that Gosling was the main reason he decided to start tickling the ivories.
“'City of Stars’ was the first song I learned, I really just love 'La La Land,'” Reeve said.
Stage musicals are another one of Reeve’s many interests outside hockey. Reeve also enjoys musical adaptations as well. The new “Matilda” adaptation on Netflix and the first “Pitch Perfect” movie, in which he knows all the words to the songs, are some of his other favorite musical works.
“I’ve seen 'Les Miserables' on Broadway and in my hometown, I love 'Phantom of the Opera,' I saw 'Book of Mormon' on Broadway, too, but I was too young to understand it, which was sad,” Reeve said.
Reeve is talented all around. He’s able to solve a Rubik’s cube in under 30 seconds and he’s a stellar hockey player — which makes him a perfect addition to the Bobcats.
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