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M H J O N L I N E . C O M | O C T O B E R 2 0 1 9 24 "The minute Blake hit the ice, it was just like 'boom' he was into it. He loved it, we loved it, and we haven't really looked back since." It wouldn't have been unfathomable to think that Blake would have excelled on the hardwood courts as much as he does on the ice. Growing up, Blake seemed to have a knack for every athletic endeavor he tried. There was football in the fall, hockey in the winter, baseball and golf in the summer, plus tennis, piano, swimming and every- thing in between. "I loved whenever the season changed, being able to be around some of the same group of guys but in a different arena," said Blake. "I just remember, even as a kid, get- ting so burnt out of hockey. If you play in the summer tournaments and you're traveling and investing so much time into one sport, it's exhausting. You need to be able to get away from it. There's the skill development aspect of it, and those things are important, but for me, just being able to get away from doing the same thing all the time was such a huge break. I think it's the most important thing kids can do is to not play any sport year-round." It's a mentality Blake continues to preach as he's established himself among the NHL's best. BLAKE THE LEADER When the Winnipeg Jets announced Blake as their captain in 2016, "It was an honor." But wearing the 'C' comes with plenty of challenges. "It's hard, it's really hard," said Blake, who was an alternate captain with the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers a natural lead- er on all his teams growing up. "You never quite figure it out. It's one of those things that constantly evolves and you constantly learn from experiences and successes you have, and mistakes you make. "To be completely honest, I just tr y and lead by example ever y day. I tr y to uphold a rea lly high standard of how I come to work and set the tone ever y single day. From there I believe that gives me some equit y to spea k up in the room when I need to, a nd ta lk to some g uys when I need to or give some encouragement when I need to. "If I'm not practicing what I preach, then I can't really carry much of a voice in the locker room, so I try to lead on the ice to start and then if I need to be speaking up in the room, so be it." BLAKE THE ATHLETE Wheeler continually gravitated toward other sports. It just seemed natural to him. But it wasn't just him; it was the friends around him, too. "Our group of friends in Wayzata had some extraordinary athletes," said Blake. "We had a couple guys who played in the NFL: Dominique Barber and James Laurinaitis. A BLAKE WHEELER Photos / MHJ Archives, University of Minnesota I loved being able to play baseball with my friends in the summer and playing football with my friends in the fall; going golfing in the summer with my friends."