When Cody Campbell got on a plane Wednesday in Washington to fly to Europe for his first international hockey experience, he could do the big exhale.

In just over a month, the goaltender from Colorado Springs had made his first U.S. team and his college decision, committing to New Hampshire.“It’s been really exciting,” Campbell, 17, said just before he left to play for the U.S. Under-18 Select Team in the Ivan Hlinka Memorial event in Piestany, Slovakia. “It’s also been a little hectic, but all the work I’ve done since I was 4 years old is paying off now.”Just two years ago, Campbell was toiling for the Pikes Peak Minors U16 team when, in a scenario that rarely happens, he caught the eye of Dean Blais, an NCAA title-winning coach who had moved to the NHL and then junior ranks.Blais, the coach/general manager of Fargo in the United States Hockey League, needed a backup goalie. By the end of the summer, he had one.Campbell played in 18 games last season in Fargo, with a 2.99 goals-against average and .895 save percentage.“When he got in, he did a good job,” said Blais, who this spring took over as coach of Colorado College’s soon-to-be league rival Nebraska-Omaha.  In July, Campbell played for the fourth time in a USA Hockey Select festival, and it was in Rochester, N.Y., that he cemented one of two goalie spots for the Select team. But he also got the attention of the folks from NewHampshire. He visited the school last weekend and committed for 2010 for what will be a full ride.“When I got asked to play at Fargo, I knew I had a chance (for a scholarship),” Campbell said. “To get to this kind of situation is what you hope for, but to get a chance to do it is cool.”

Cody Campbell Photo by Submitted photo