On March 30, Los Angeles’ beloved NHL team, the Los Angeles Kings, were in the middle of giving the San Jose Sharks a severe 8-1 beatdown. 

But that evening, another L.A. hockey team was the talk of the city. 

“My phone just immediately blew up,” said Heath Chancey II, a senior majoring in art, technology and the business of innovation. “My parents called me, guys were calling me on the team … I was just getting texts left and right.”

What could be making such a ruckus in the L.A. hockey community? Only a post that read “Breaking: USC Athletics moves to build D1 hockey program with new 5,000-seat arena.” 

The post received thousands of likes and shares from excited Trojan fans, but many of them missed one key detail: The source, who was aptly credited as “April Jennifer Phools.” 

Chancey, who was the mastermind behind the April Fools’ post, is the president of USC Club Hockey and a goalie on the team. The post was meant as a prank, but Chancey also saw it as an opportunity to prove that there is a market for Division I hockey at USC. 

“What it went to show is that people want hockey at USC,” Chancey said. “They want to be bigger; they’d love to have a D1 team; they’d love to see us have a program and an arena that’s actually conveniently located.” 

The viral post represented the first time that many people had considered the idea of a Trojan hockey team. 

In the absence of an official Division I team, the club team that Chancey helps lead remains a mainstay in campus culture. This year, the club celebrated its 100th season, a remarkable accomplishment considering the lack of University support and publicity that a club team receives compared to an official varsity sport. 

The 100 years have seen a multitude of competitive overhauls, philosophical restarts, outside threats and administrative apathy. 

From World War II to the COVID-19 pandemic, the program has faced moments where even its very existence was in doubt. 

But amid all the twists and turns, the appetite for hockey at USC remains strong amongst the student body and the alumni. 

Ryan Sefidfard, a 2009 USC alum and a former club hockey player, currently serves as the chairman of the USC Hockey Association, the team’s alumni and support group. 

He has seen many changes within the program since he stepped on campus nearly two decades ago. But he has also seen the program consistently attract some of the best and brightest Trojans, many of whom treat the program with the same discipline as if they were on a professional team. 

“The program has always attracted [what] I would describe as really well-balanced hockey players, or well-balanced people frankly,” Sefidfard said. “People [who] are great athletes, fun to hang out with, super smart and ambitious. That was evident while playing with those guys and even more so after graduating.” 

Sefidfard served as the engine in many ways in USC Club Hockey’s plans to celebrate its 100th anniversary this season. 

Led by Sefidfard, everyone affiliated with the team put in an immense amount of effort to honor and spread awareness about USC Club Hockey’s 100-year legacy. They debuted special black jerseys during the season, designed branding, merchandise and a commemorative patch special for the 100th year, and even had a special edition of the Crosstown Cup versus UCLA in the Honda Center after an Anaheim Ducks game versus the Pittsburgh Penguins on Jan. 23. 

Unfortunately, operating without University support meant that not all of these plans would come to fruition, despite the club’s best efforts. 

USC Club Hockey coach Jerry Toy said the delivery of the special black jerseys was delayed several times, significantly impacting their ability to plan and hold their 100th-year pregame ceremony alongside alumni and other program friends. Their new red jerseys, with a special 100th-year patch, didn’t even deliver before the season ended and will never see the ice. 

The program was also supposed to have a banquet with administrators such as President Carol Folt and Athletic Director Jen Cohen to expose the program to powerful people within the University’s administration, beyond those in the Registered Clubs and Organizations department. That, too, never came to light despite the team’s best efforts. 

But the program still views the celebrations that did happen this season as a massive success. The highlight for many of them seems to be the Crosstown Cup at the Honda Center, the home of the Anaheim Ducks. 

The Trojans were considered massive underdogs coming into the matchup. They had been run out of the rink by scores of 15-3 and 12-0 in their matchups with the Bruins last season. 

The game’s location provided a twist of irony for both teams as well, given both universities are located in L.A., but Orange County’s NHL team served as the host. In a heated rivalry where the universities fight for pride in L.A., carrying out such a meaningful matchup in Anaheim was only right, given that neither hockey team plays in L.A. Finding a venue in the City of Angels that would host them has proven difficult for both.

Late that Saturday night, Galen Center, Pauley Pavilion and Crypto.com Arena stood empty while the entire lower section of the Honda Center remained full to see if their “hometown” Trojans, who play their home games at Anaheim ICE, could do the impossible and take down the mighty Bruins. 

The fans that stuck around until the end saw an instant classic. The game was a back-and-forth affair and regulation ended in a 3-3 tie. The game went to a shootout, and ultimately, the team’s fate rested on the shoulders of on-ice captain Chris Chow. 

“[Chow] just comes up to my side before he takes the shot and he was like, ‘We’re going to have a storybook ending right now,’” Chancey said. “He takes the puck, goes up, scores [and] throws the stick into the crowd … It was just an all-time moment, beating UCLA in that venue.” 

Chow’s confidence played a big role in Toy selecting him to take that last shot. 

“I put Chris out there; he told me he was going to do it,” Toy said. “And he did it.” 

Belief is the heart of the USC Club Hockey team. They wouldn’t exist without internal belief from the members, and magic seems to happen when outside organizations like the Anaheim Ducks believe in them as well. 

Celebrating 100 years has been as much about honoring the legacy of the past 100 years as it is a message about believing in the next 100. 

“We wanted to go into the season and make a statement,” Toy said. “USC Hockey is here for another 100 years starting with this year.” 

The statement serves as a challenge to the greater Trojan family, members of the Big Ten conference and hockey fans around the country to help take the program to new heights. 

Believe in USC hockey, and see what happens.