Riitta Widelski
Riitta Widelski, a native of Finland, is the Manager of People, Culture, and Development for TPH. Riitta has been working in various Human Resources roles since 2003, including employee relations, recruiting, leadership training, and mentoring, as well as performed first-hand work in administration, compliance, and policy implementation. She received a Master of Human Resources and International Master of Business Administration degrees from the University of South Carolina. She also holds two Human Resources certifications and is a certified life coach. In addition, Riitta serves as an Assistant Scoutmaster and Merit Badge Counselor for a local Boy Scout troop, and she is an avid fisher.
Colleen Lynch
A native New Englander, Lynch grew up roaming the rinks of the East Coast playing top-tier ice hockey, eventually finding a home at the University of New Hampshire where she skated with the D1 Wildcats and was a founding member of the Women’s Club Hockey team. Lynch graduated from UNH with a degree in International Business and Economics and brings years of experience from all fronts of the hockey business from coaching to club management, marketing, and beyond.
Sarah Bullington
Sarah Bullington has credentials that consist of a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry and a Bachelor of Science in Education from Central Michigan University. She received her Master of Science in Educational Leadership from Madonna in 2014. Before TPH, Bullington taught in South Redford for eight and a half years. She was also the Director of Academics for TPH Detroit for three and a half years before transitioning to her current role as Academic Coordinator within the TPH Hub and assists Bill Simms, the Chief Academic Officer. In this role, Bullington provides academic support to our Centers of Excellence across the nation and works closely with Edmentum, our school partner.
Hanna Grace Hill
A native of Erie, Pennsylvania. Hill served as an Intern with the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Hockey League (PIHL) in Event Operations and Marketing during in-season events and the PA State Championships during the spring of 2018. Since Hill spent the past 1.5 years as an Administrative Assistant in Pittsburgh for CMMI Institute, a global leader in enabling organizations to elevate and benchmark performances across critical business practices before joining the TPH Team.
Lindsay Kubica
Born and raised in Alabama, Lindsay Kubica grew up playing sports her whole life leading her to two years of collegiate softball. At age 21, Kubica joined the United States Marine Corps and served for five years as an Electronics Aviation Technician for the EA-6B Prowler. Proceeding her service Kubica finished college and earned Accounting and Management degrees at Athens State University. Upon completion of her Accounting Degree, Kubica worked for an Engineering and Inspection company as a Staff Accountant/Accounts Payable Manager. In addition, Kubica also owned two retail stores and a bakery. Happily married to her husband Adam with three kids; Kubica makes an excellent addition to #TeamTPH.
Trista Johnson
Trista Johnson, a native of Sun Valley, Idaho, grew up playing hockey, racing BMX, and swimming competitively. She graduated from the University of Oregon and currently lives in Louisville, KY with her boyfriend, son, and daughter.
Frank Anzalone
John Becanic
John had a successful coaching career that spanned over 30 years, eventually stepping away from the bench in 2016 to create Pyramid Hockey. Considered a pioneer in teaching hockey IQ, John works with players and coaches all over the world in developing their hockey IQ. In 2018 he Co-Founded The Prospect Exchange and now serves as it’s managing partner. John and his wife Rhonda reside in Mesa, AZ and have two daughters, Brooklyn and Sheridan.
Philip McRae Joins TPH Ownership Group
Blues Draft Pick, Philip McRae becomes owner of TPH St. Louis
TPH St. Louis is proud to announce that former St. Louis Blue, Philip McRae, has become an owner of TPH St. Louis and the St. Louis Center of Excellence (CoE). Philip first joined the TPH team in May of 2019, when he was named the Director and Head of Hockey for TPH St. Louis. After a 10 year professional career, Philip has developed a newfound passion for helping student-athletes maximize their potential, on and off the ice.
Philip’s career has come full circle through the St. Louis hockey community, from his humble beginnings through his professional debut. He discovered his love for the game when he began playing for the Chesterfield Falcons. After leading the Falcons to a Central States League Championship, Philip went on to win a National Championship with the St. Louis AAA Blues. At the age of 15, Philip left home to compete as an underage player for the USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program, before signing with the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League at 16. Furthermore, Philip won two medals with the USA National Team, a bronze at the U-18 World Championships and a gold at the U-20 World Juniors.
Philip’s childhood dreams came true in 2008, when he was selected 33rd overall by his hometown St. Louis Blues in the NHL draft. He would go on to have a lengthy professional career, competing in the NHL, AHL, and several international leagues, before returning to the Gateway City to join the TPH team.
After retiring from professional hockey, it didn’t take long for Philip to find himself back in the St. Louis hockey community. “I was extremely excited and grateful when TPH took a chance on me and hired me as the Director and Head of Hockey almost two years ago. I am just as excited now to be a partner and owner of TPH St. Louis” said Philip. “When I retired from playing hockey after 10 years pro, I was unsure of my future, but I have been lucky and fortunate to find what I believe is my calling in mentoring young student-athletes. I am excited to continue to run TPH St. Louis to the best of my ability, grow the program, and have a positive impact on as many young athletes as possible”. Philip also mentioned “The St. Louis Blues alumni do an amazing job of giving back to the local hockey community, so as a young player growing up in the St. Louis area, they really ingrained in me that responsibility and that’s something I now get to do each day”.
“We are extremely fortunate to have a positive role model that has played for local St. Louis programs,” stated Alan Keeso, CEO of Total Package Hockey. “Philip was in the same position as many of our Center of Excellence student-athletes, and has played at every level that they aspire to one day play at. Philip demonstrates the “TPH Way” through his actions and mentorship every single day, and his commitment to helping young student-athletes maximize their potential is incredible. We are thrilled to have Philip join our ownership group and we know that he will continue to drive-up the standard in St. Louis as a partner.”
Philip joins the TPH leadership team and ownership group amongst an incredible roster of hockey veterans. With a dedicated staff from around the country, TPH is focused on making student-athletes the best versions of themselves on and off the ice.
Take the next step in your athletic and academic journey by connecting with Philip or reserve your spot for the upcoming free TPH Day!
About Total Package Hockey
Founded in 2001, it is Total Package Hockey’s (TPH) vision to become the world leader in positively impacting the lives of student-athletes through sport. TPH prides itself on operating at a standard that exceeds expectations of student-athletes, families, coaches, teachers, advisors and all other entities within both athletic and academic circles. With platforms that include association management, elite prospects programs, tournaments and showcases, camps and clinics and its hallmark Center of Excellence academy model, TPH services over 10,000 student-athletes on an annual basis, throughout 15 U.S. based divisions.
Alan Keeso Named CEO as TPH Looks to Next 20 Years
(Nashville, TN – December 15, 2021) – TPH is excited to announce Alan Keeso as its new Chief Executive Officer, effective January 1, 2022. Having served as Strategic Advisor to TPH over the past 5 years, Keeso brings in-depth knowledge of TPH and its Center of Excellence (CoE) academy model, its team members, and culture.
“We’re so excited to have Al lead our team going into our next 20 years at TPH,” said TPH founder Nathan Bowen, who will move out of the CEO role and into the Chairman role, remaining heavily active in TPH. “Having celebrated TPH turning 20 years old this year, we are absolutely pumped about what’s to come as we strive to lead the world in positively impacting the lives of student-athletes. Al is the leader to help us scale that impact.”
In addition to consulting for TPH in recent years, Keeso has helped dozens of small and medium-sized businesses grow for over a decade as a management consultant, independently, as well as through Grant Thornton and BDC. When asked early in 2021 by Bowen and his Investing Partner Taso Sofikitis to work more closely with TPH, Keeso decided to make the move with his family to Nashville.
“TPH to its core is a purpose-driven organization, with an outstanding team of committed professionals,” said Keeso. “It’s an honor to have this kind of confidence from Nathan and Taso to take TPH to new heights, and the responsibility that comes with the CEO role to the TPH team and our student-athletes is something I take very seriously. We’re a team that’s poised for growth through our Center of Excellence Study/Train/Play academy model, association management, camps and clinics, The Prospect Exchange, prospects teams, and events, now featuring Champions League Hockey in partnership with World Hockey Group. All of these efforts and their growth will enable us to positively impact the lives of a greater number of student-athletes, not only at our current locations, but also at many new locations to come. The future is bright at TPH.”
Keeso’s own journey as a student-athlete, and ensuing career, lend perspective to what Bowen believes will continue to differentiate TPH to prospective partners as well as families weighing the incredibly important decision on where to have their children develop as students, athletes, and people.
“Al has not only been an aspiring elite student-athlete, who reached levels in hockey that many TPH student-athletes are working towards daily, but he also exemplifies to our families what the bigger picture can be when lessons learned from sports are applied beyond the game,” said Bowen. “That’s what TPH is all about, and that’s what we feel differentiates us; we prepare our student-athletes not only for the next level in their sport, but also mentor them on habits that will help them experience wild success on the ultimate journey – life. With Al’s leadership, that differentiator will only get stronger. He has lived the ups and downs the game can throw at you and is an incredible role model for young aspiring student-athletes, because he never quit and he has used those tough times as motivation and lessons learned to prepare for the next challenge in life and hit it head on in pursuit of the next success.”
In addition to a successful business career, Keeso has earned two master’s degrees – an MBA and an MSc in Biodiversity, Conservation and Management – from the University of Oxford. At Oxford, he also published a working paper, took to the TEDx stage, and was goaltender for the university’s historic ice hockey team, becoming the only men’s player in the club’s history to have earned an Extraordinary Full Blue, the highest honor in sports at Oxford. Keeso also served as an infantry officer in the armed forces reserves and ran in a federal election.
A native of Listowel, Ontario, Keeso played hockey in his hometown before joining the Huron-Perth Lakers AAA organization and continuing on to Jr hockey with the Listowel Cyclones, Strathroy Rockets, and Sarnia Blast of the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League (GOHL). He then went to Boston to study at Wentworth Institute of Technology, where he was a goaltender for the varsity NCAA Division III hockey team and graduated with a BSc in Technology Management with honors.
“Having grown up in the game of hockey, I understand the opportunities for growth that youth sports provide for young people, on and off the ice, field, and court,” said Keeso. “Team members at TPH are deeply committed to the holistic development of student-athletes, knowing that the skills and habits learned extend well beyond the game to many other arenas of life. As a result of Nathan’s leadership and an all-star team of people, we have a great foundation in place as we head into ‘The Next 20’ at TPH.”
If you are interested in learning more about our #StudyTrainPlay model at the TPH Center of Excellence, Alan and other key members of our team will be participating in a Nationwide Virtual Open House on January 10th at 8:00 PM EST. Register for free here!