ALTHOUGH only 23, Alaskan native, Scott Gomez, a center for the champion New Jersey Devils, already has won two Stanley Cups in his four National Hockey League seasons.
Gomez, who was named rookie of the year in 1999-2000, last season tied for the second most points on the team, with 55.
But enough of hockey – Gomez made another glamorous team, landing a spot in People magazine’s top 50 bachelors two years ago.
“I’m single and I guess they needed one more guy,” Gomez joked as he plopped on a locker room bench after a practice at the Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, N.J..
“You look back at that and laugh. I have a girlfriend now, so maybe that magazine article helped a little.”
Gomez’s matted locks and easy smile have given him something of a TV career. The Anchorage native made a brief appearance on “One Life to Live” a few seasons ago. And in September, he landed a role on Whoopi Goldberg’s new comedy, “Whoopi.”
“It was fun,” he said. “It was definitely a new experience.”
Gomez’s dad, Carlos, a retired construction worker, is Mexican. His mom, Dalia, hails from Colombia. His parents moved to Alaska from San Diego before Gomez was born.
“People don’t realize how ethnically diverse it {Alaska} is. Our generation grew up among the kids of all the people who came up to work on the pipeline… Mexican, Samoan, Chinese, Japanese.”
His favorite food is sopa de albondigas (meatball soup) and arroz con carne (rice with meat), especially the way his mom makes it.
Gomez, who has two sisters, is no slouch around the kitchen himself – he loves to grill salmon and halibut. “We have it sent from home, so we know it’s always fresh, he said.”
Gomez knows he’s fortunate to be in the big leagues. “It’s not a job to me yet,” he said. “I’m still living a dream.” Additional reporting by Mark Iverson