- April 19, 2024
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Florida Alliance hockey player Jai Van Rij hopes to further his sports career in college. Photos by Michele Meyers
Ice hockey player Jai Van Rij.
Jai and his parents Kelly Quinn Van Rij and Ryan Van Rij.
Jai Van Rij on the ice at the Daytona Ice Arena.
Player number 31 Jai Van Rij.
Where it all began for Jai, the Daytona Ice Arena.
Detroit player Thomas Wray and Jai Van Rij share some hockey talk on the ice.
One-on-one action between Jai Van Rij and Thomas Wray.
The Daytona Ice Arena is located at 2400 S. Ridgewood Ave.
When he was 7-years-old, Jai Van Rij was invited to his friend’s birthday party at the Daytona Ice Arena.
He told his mother Kelly Quinn Van Rij that he didn’t know how to ice skate. She reassured him that she would help him on the ice.
“I told him to wait while I get my skates on,” she said. “By the time I turned around, he was on the ice, skating with the other kids.”
Later that week, Jai’s parents took him to ice hockey skating lessons. Waiting on the ice was a group of walkers used to help ice skating newbies balance on the ice as they learn the nuances of the sport. Immediately to the right of the walkers was a group of kids getting ready to join in their first practice with the Daytona Ice Arena's house ice hockey team.
Jai made a beeline toward the team players. His parents noticed he fit right in and made a decision not to correct him. Jai never looked back.
For eight years, Jai has been a power forward for the Florida Alliance competitive ice hockey team. His team plays at the AAA Elite level and this year qualified for the Chipotle-USA Hockey National Championships in the Tier 1, 15 Only division. Games began on April 28 and ran through May 3 in Dallas, Texas. After playing four games that went into overtime — three resulting in shootouts, including one win against Honeybaked of Michigan — Alliance lost to them in the final 6-3. They went into the championships ranked sixth in the country and walked off the ice as runners-up.
This fall, Jai heads into his junior year at Seabreeze High School, bringing with him a 4.3 GPA earned at Father Lopez. He hasn’t decided where he would like to go to college but expressed his appreciation for the University of Notre Dame’s campus and state-of-the-art athletic facility where his friend and fellow hockey player Ethan Straky plays. He hopes to further his hockey experience in college as well.
“I at least want hockey to take me through college,” Jai said. “If I could go pro, that would be amazing. If something happens, I would pursue a career in finance. Investing and finance are interesting to me.”
This summer, Jai continues to hit the weights and do light training on the ice in preparation for a scouting event to be held in south Florida. His parents continue to be his support system and his biggest fans.
“When Jai was 22 days old, he was airlifted to the Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children and put on life support,” Kelly Quinn Van Rij said. “They wouldn’t tell us if he was going to live or, if he did, how he would develop. We feel it’s even more amazing what he is doing today.”
“He is just a very special kid,” his father Ryan Van Rij said.
