Apr 1, 2025
For Garrett Cecere, it took seven or eight games of color commentary during Iowa Wild games for things to finally click.
“The challenges are different than when you’re playing,” said Cecere “You don’t want to repeat yourself, drop a swear word, or take away the thunder that Ben (Gislason) has when play is in the offensive zone and there’s a goal about to be scored.”
While there was an initial learning curve for the Des Moines native in the broadcast booth, he has been able to draw from a lifetime of hockey experience throughout the season.
“Simply playing the game doesn’t make you a natural in an analyst position,” Gislason said. “He was such a cerebral player. I thought that would translate well to the booth and it has.”
Cecere, whose father played for the Fresno Falcons, was born in San Francisco and moved to Des Moines in 1996 when he was a year old. He and his brother, Nick, started skating at three years old and played baseball in the summers.
“Once the Iowa Stars came here, hockey got a lot bigger,” said Cecere. “I had a love for hockey and wanted to pursue it.”
Despite a growth in opportunities for young hockey players in Iowa in the mid-2000s, high-level competition was still hard to come by. In the summer, Cecere would play on select teams with hockey players his age from Waterloo, Cedar Rapids, Omaha, and Kansas City that competed against teams from Chicago and Minnesota.
“We never had prep or AAA hockey here when I was growing up,” said Cecere. “The Wild started so many things with their youth programs. Guys who played for the Wild or Des Moine Buccaneers started to live here as adults. The RecPlex is such a huge place for hockey now and a place for kids to go, so that’s big for development and big for AAA hockey.”
Cecere took a leap at age 14 and went to Shattuck St. Mary’s, a Minnesota boarding school known for its prep hockey and production of future NHL stars like Sidney Crosby. During the 2011-12 season, Cecere made the jump to the NAHL, where he played against his future broadcasting partner with the Janesville Jets.
“Garrett and I actually played against each other in the NAHL,” said Gislason. “He roomed in junior with the best man at my wedding, so we have a lot of connections… he was a very talented defenseman.”
Cecere moved on to the USHL, where he played close to home as a member of the Dubuque Fighting Saints,…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Iowa Wild…