Broadhurst Brothers: Here Come the (Local) Hawks?

Orland Park natives Alex and Terry Broadhurst never had played ice hockey together in a formal setting until they both got a chance to show their skills at the Blackhawks' prospect camp earlier this month.

Alex, 18, graduated from a high school in Green Bay after spending his freshman year at Sandburg and the next two at Lincoln-Way Central. So why Green Bay?

Alex spent time in AAA hockey with the Chicago Chill, based at the Arctic Ice Arena in Orland Park, and with the Chicago Mission based at Seven Bridges in Woodridge. Then, he took a chance and played with the Green Bay Gamblers, a junior league team.

He has been playing hockey since the age of 3 and always dreamed of playing with the Blackhawks. He was driving home from Green Bay when he received a telephone call.

"It was the Blackhawks telling me I had been drafted. The first person I called was Terry. I wasn't expecting to be drafted," Alex said. "I look up to Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane, and now I have a real good chance to play with them."

Alex, the 199th overall pick of the 2011 NHL draft, is working out at Arctic Ice Arena with a weight training coach and most likely will play one more year in Green Bay. He plans to continue his education at the University of Nebraska-Omaha. The Blackhawks own the rights to Alex for five years and could call him up at any time to play in their organization.

Terry, 22, is an unrestricted free agent in the eyes of the NHL and just finished his sophomore year at the University of Nebraska-Omaha, where he also plays hockey. Terry is a graduate of Providence Catholic High School. Like Alex, Terry spent time with the Chill and in junior league hockey. Terry played his junior league hockey in Sioux Falls before choosing to attend Nebraska-Omaha.

He was making his second appearance at the Blackhawks' prospect camp, but because of their distance in age, Alex and Terry never had played together until then.

"I think we enjoyed playing together," Terry said. "It was easy to play with Alex. Our parents got to watch us play on the same team together for the first time, and that was really special. We really could be a dynamic duo."

Terry hopes to end up in Chicago after finishing his communications degree. He will be spending the summer working out in Omaha. Both men were coached in their youth by their father, also named Terry.