TPH 25 Background

A Letter from Our Founder

July 21, 2026 | Colleen Lynch |

For 25 years, we have helped young people grow through hockey. Today, I want to celebrate the people who carried those lessons into life.

What began as a two-week summer hockey camp in Huntsville, Alabama, has grown into something far greater, and none of it would have been possible without the people who have been part of our journey along the way. This anniversary is a celebration of every student-athlete who wore the jersey, every parent who placed their trust in our coaches, every staff member who dedicated their time to developing the next generation, every partner who helped open new doors, and every community that welcomed us as its own.

The wins still matter. So do the championships, the draft selections, the college commitments, and the professional careers. They represent years of dedication from student-athletes, families, coaches, and communities who believed in something bigger than themselves.

However, a far more meaningful measure of success has emerged over the last quarter-century.

It arrived in the wedding invitations that found their way back to former coaches. In the photos of growing families shared by alumni who once filled TPH locker rooms. In the conversations with former players who had become teachers, nurses, military service members, business owners, first responders, coaches, and parents. It appeared in communities where the game had long since ended, but the lessons had not.

For twenty-five years, athletes have come to TPH hoping to become better hockey players and left the rink with something much greater.

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Our promise has never been that every student-athlete becomes a professional hockey player. The promise is that they become disciplined competitors. They learn how to work hard for what they want, respond to adversity, push themselves alongside others doing the same, and carry those habits into whatever life they choose.

They learned how to compete when the outcome was uncertain. They learned to respond to adversity instead of avoiding it. They learned the value of preparation, accountability, discipline, and serving something larger than themselves. They learned what it meant to be part of a team.

More than three decades ago, I arrived in Huntsville, Alabama to play collegiate hockey. Every day I watched talented young players take the ice. Their ability was obvious. Their opportunities were not.

I remember walking into the rink and seeing how good those kids were. They just didn't understand what opportunities were available to them. Out of that passion to help them pursue their dreams, a two-week summer hockey camp was born. That's when Total Package Hockey came alive.

What began with a handful of athletes in Huntsville expanded into Canada. We established a new pathway for players across the Southeast through Thunder AAA. Our team stepped onto the ice at the OHL Cup for the first time, beginning a tradition that continues today. As the game evolved, so did we, introducing a holistic development model that challenged the industry to think differently about student-athlete development.

In 2014, a new TPH brand was born: TPH Academy. From the beginning, our vision was to build upon the foundation established through hockey and expand our impact into other sports. Today, TPH Academy serves as a multi-sport day academy model that helps aspiring elite student-athletes pursue their personal, academic, and athletic dreams. We have supported student-athletes from more than 18 sports and disciplines, but our foundation remains the same: Study, Train, Play. This fall, we are excited to take another significant step forward with the launch of our first-ever TPH Soccer Academy in St. Louis.

While hockey will always be at the heart of our story, TPH Academy has allowed us to carry the lessons that shaped Total Package Hockey into new environments. Regardless of the sport, our purpose remains unchanged: to help young people pursue ambitious goals while becoming intelligent, adaptable, and confident individuals.

Every new campus, partnership, and program represented another opportunity for us to serve families who wanted an environment where their student-athletes could thrive. The launch of our Impact Player Foundation in 2023 reinforced that commitment by extending support beyond the rink through scholarships and financial assistance, while our recent partnerships and expansions continue creating opportunities for more young people to pursue their goals without compromising their education or personal development.

We celebrate every player who went on to compete in the National Hockey League, professional hockey, college hockey, junior hockey, or at the highest levels of their chosen sport.

Nic Dowd of the Vegas Golden Knights represents so much of what we have always valued at TPH. Nic attended our first camp and played on the first TPH Thunder Tier I team, which advanced to Nationals in its very first year of play. His untraditional path to more than 650 games in the National Hockey League reflects what ultimately drives every athlete forward: compete, passion, commitment, skill, and mental toughness. Nic is the ultimate teammate and an incredible role model for every young person pursuing a dream.

But just as exciting, if perhaps not more exciting, has been watching our former players become incredible business owners, doctors, members of the military, police officers, great community leaders, and good moms and dads.

Our next chapter has already begun, as more than 1,000 student-athletes each year pursue ambitious goals across hockey and an expanding range of sports. They are supported by coaches, educators, and mentors who continue to dedicate themselves to helping young people discover what they are capable of. Our standard, however, will remain exactly where it has always been.

nic dowd

If I were to put my finger on one thing that's been our key, and what will continue to be the key for the next twenty-five years, it's our relentless pursuit of a higher standard. We don't think we have this thing figured out. We know we have to continue to get better. We know we have to continue to learn.

The next twenty-five years will undoubtedly bring new campuses, new partnerships, new championships, and new opportunities for student-athletes. They will also bring new families placing their trust in us for the first time, new coaches discovering the joy of helping young people grow, and another generation of alumni who will lead with intelligence, adaptability, and confidence.

I especially want to thank all of our team members. Please understand the impact that you have on our student-athletes every single day. You're amazing. For you to take your most precious asset, which is your time, and give that to these young aspiring student-athletes... we're so fortunate.

Twenty-five years have passed since the first campers stepped onto the ice with us. Today, our legacy belongs to thousands of alumni and student-athletes whose stories extend across sports, careers, communities, and generations. That has always been our mission and will continue to define our future.

We are immensely proud of what we have built together over the last quarter-century, but we know our most significant work is always in front of us. This anniversary is not a victory lap; it is a promise of what is to come. Every lesson learned, every sacrifice made, and every challenge met has been in service of creating something lasting—a foundation for the next generation of young people to find their own path.

To our alumni: your lives are the ultimate measure of our success. We want to hear your stories. We invite you to share the moments, the coaches, and the lessons that defined your time with us and guided you to where you are today. Join us in celebrating our history by sharing your photos and videos through our anniversary campaign. Thank you for being the heart of TPH. Here’s to the next twenty-five years.

- Nathan bowen, founder of total package hockey

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