A good comeback story is something everyone can get behind. We’ve all been knocked down a time or two and been forced to make a decision whether or not to get back on our feet. For professional athletes their job is on the line. Despina Barton explains why 25-year old Solar Bears forward Trevor Olson was so determined to return to the ice after an injury sidelined him for nearly six months:

It’s difficult to standout in a pool of professional hockey players. For Trevor Olson though, it comes natural when he’s around the guys at Solar Bears Camp.

“I don’t like to be the center of attention but I like to think of myself as a jokester in the locker room and I like to make things feel easy for other guys,” Olson explained.

But for Olson the last eight months have been anything but easy.

“I play a physical game and I get into the corners and I am going to deal with some injuries, it just comes with the territory,” Olson added.

In mid-March he injured his knee on this slate of ice. He spent the next three months away from the game completely.

“Something almost clicks in your mind,” Olson said of that time. “You think is my time up? Things like that?”

Those thoughts though didn’t last long as his days were filled with rehab exercises to build back-up the strength in his leg.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve played a game so it’s going to be interesting to get back into game shape and things like that,” Olson said of his return. 

“We love his compete level and his leadership. You know he does whatever it takes to win, he’ll put his face in front of the puck if he has to,” Solar Bears Head Coach Drake Berehowsky said of Olson.

For the 25-year-old forward, it’s all he’s ever known.

“I’m from Duluth, Minnesota so hockey is everything up there,” Olson explained. “So my dad used to walk me down to the outdoor rinks and we use to play all day and I’ve been skating ever since.”

In college Olson won a Frozen Four Title with North Dakota in 2016.

He skated his way on to a pro deal with the solar bears and as a rookie last year scored 16 goals and 16 assists in 51 games.

“He’s one of those guys that draws everyone to him,” Berehowsky added. “He’s fun off the ice, he realizes when he comes to the rink it’s all business but you want that and you want to have fun. Being a hockey player is the best life in the world.”

And Olson knows that—that’s why he was so determined to return here to Orlando.

“Drake and this whole organization stayed in touch with me the whole summer, ‘they were like we got your back and things like that and that pushes me to be the best that I can be.”

Through it all—he never lost his zest for life and his goofiness, just now it’s back ice side with his team mates.

“I love the game of hockey, I love playing this sport and it’s been my whole life so it’s a dream come true to play professionally obviously the dream is to get to the NHL but that comes with time and I’m just happy to be where I am at.”

The Orlando Solar Bears open up their 2019 season Saturday, October 12^th against South Carolina at Amway Center.