Growing up in North Andover, Jim Cavanaugh had an early introduction to high-level hockey.
“Stevens Pond would freeze over every winter and the hockey guys in the area like my brother [Mike], the Heinze brothers, Steve and Andy, and Eddie Ronan — all these guys were out there playing,’’ recalled Cavanaugh, now 37.
“I was the 5-year-old and they were 11 and 12 and I’d be out on the pond and any time I could get into a game, it was a bonus for me.’’
Steve Heinze went on to star at Boston College and skate for the Bruins, Ronan was a standout at Boston University and played in the NHL, too; Andy Heinze had an impressive career at Merrimack College.
Mike Cavanaugh excelled in football and hockey at Bowdoin College, served as an 18-year assistant to Jerry York at Boston College, and is in his third season as the head coach at the University of Connecticut in the program’s formative years in Hockey East.
Jim followed Mike, a bit indirectly, to Bowdoin and ended up captaining both the football and hockey teams. A defensive back and punter on the gridiron, he played forward on the ice.
The indirect piece came when Jim detoured from North Andover High School — where his father, Mike, was the football coach and a physical education teacher — to The Governor’s Academy.
It was not an easy decision. As a sophomore, Cavanaugh was the starting quarterback for his father’s team and was excited about the seasons ahead.
“But then the town didn’t override Proposition 2½,’’ Cavanaugh said. “At the time there was a real big concern that the school wasn’t going to be able to afford athletics in general and especially hockey with it being the most expensive to run. My father sat me down and said, ‘Although I personally hate to lose you, if you want to play college hockey [prep school] is probably the right thing to do.’’
Cavanaugh repeated his sophomore year at Governor’s and his experience there helped get him to Bowdoin, he said.
“The move to Governor’s was very difficult as a kid,’’ Cavanaugh said. “As I look back on it as an adult, academically, athletically, physically, everything worked out for the best and it’s something I would do over again in a heartbeat.’’
Two-and-a-half years ago, Cavanaugh and his wife, Lucy, a former soccer player at Bucknell, moved from Andover to her hometown of Rockville Centre, N.Y., on Long Island. They have two daughters, Shea, 6, and Kelsey, 5, and a son, Kenny, 3.
Cavanaugh, who earned his degree in government and legal services, works on Long Island in financial services for ABMM Financial.
“A couple of the many things I got out of athletics are respect for people and doing the best you can,’’ Cavanaugh said.
“Especially in a sport like football, you pound the lights out of each other and then shake hands afterwards and look the other guy in the eye and say ‘good game.’ I try to take that into my life and work. The deal gets done or it doesn’t get done and then you move on to the next one. It’s all about respecting people. That’s the competitive nature of sports.’’
Allen Lessels can be reached at lessfam321@gmail.com.
