ORONO – Barry Clukey was the proverbial big fish in a small pond when he set the national schoolboy hockey record for points with 356 during his days at Waterville High School.

Last year, he was a guppy in the ocean. He was a frustrated, injury-plagued redshirt center on the University of Maine’s nationalchampionship team. He had some serious doubts about his future in Orono.

What a difference a year has made.

Clukey decided to return to Maine and did so with 30 fewer pounds on his 5-foot-9 frame. He has earned himself a role as the fourth line center.

He certainly isn’t receiving the ice time he received at Waterville High, but he isn’t complaining.

“I’m happy with the way things are going,” said Clukey, who has a goal and two assists in five games. “It’s fun. I’m still a little rusty. I’ve played only seven games (including the exhibitions against the U.S. Olympic Team and Acadia University) in a year and a half. But I’m starting to feel a little better out there.

“I’m not so anxious to get rid of the puck. I’m taking my time. I’m looking for someone to pass to or looking to shoot it,” added Clukey.

Clukey acknowledged that he lost his confidence last year and it was a year he would like to forget.

“It was a tough year,” said Clukey. “There was a big adjustment, particularly to the speed. And I had an injury (strained abdominal muscle) that nagged me for the whole season.”

He said transferring to another school crossed his mind, but instead he used his lost season “to motivate me.”

He worked out religiously and addressed “my sweet tooth” by eliminating sweets.

“I watched my diet,” said Clukey. “(By losing the 30 pounds) I feel a lot quicker and a lot healthier now.”

Clukey had decided to attend Maine “to challenge myself,” but he didn’t endear himself to Maine Coach Shawn Walsh by letting his frustrations get the better of him last year.

“He seemed to have a blase attitude,” said Walsh. “My sense was that he was frustrated. I don’t think he knew what it meant to work hard. It’s one thing to work hard at Waterville High School. It’s another thing relative to playing on one of the top 10 teams in the country.”

Walsh admitted that he “wouldn’t have recruited him if he wasn’t from Maine. He was tantalyzing because he could score and I thought it was important to give him a chance.”

Walsh added that Clukey needed a redshirt year.

A shoulder injury hampered him at the outset of this season, but Clukey caught Walsh’s eye when he had a goal and two assists in the Blue-White game.

“He stepped it up and played very, very well,” said Walsh. “Then we lost Cal (Ingraham, who is serving an NCAA suspension) and had some injuries. Barry got his opportunity and he’s taken full advantage of it. He’s proven he can play at this level. He’s smart, he has real good hands and a nose for the net. If he can improve his footspeed and his intensity in the weight room, he could, in time, become a legitimate first or second-liner.”

One of the interesting aspects of Clukey’s play is he has also been a very effective defensive player. Defense was not a priority for him at Waterville High School.

“Barry now realizes there are two ends of the rink,” said Maine assistant Grant Standbrook. “He has been an excellent positional player. He has been very dependable and consistent. And he works hard.”

“He’s excellent defensively,” said senior defenseman Jason Weinrich. “His biggest area of improvement has been in his awareness on the ice. He knows when to be aggressive offensively and when he needs to take the defensive side.”

“I had to learn how to play defense,” grinned Clukey. “I learned a lot from watching Jimmy (Montgomery) last year. I’ve picked it up and I enjoy it. It fuels your offense.”

Brad Mahoney and Trevor Roenick, two of the wingers who have played with Clukey, said Clukey’s conscientious defensive play affords them the opportunity to implement their style of play.

“It allows us to be physical and aggressive because we know he’ll get back (as the third man to help out the defensemen),” said Mahoney.

That’s not to say Clukey has forgotten how to put the puck in the net.

“If you get him the puck in front of the net, he’ll bury it nine times out of 10,” said Weinrich.

“He’s got great hands,” said Roenick.

Clukey, who feels he needs to improve all aspects of his game, is satisfied with his role on the fourth line, a line whose primary job is to create havoc in the offensive zone.

“Our job is to put pressure on the other team and, if we do, we’ll get our scoring chances,” said Clukey. “We just want to do whatever we can to help the team.”