“You miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take.”

Those famous words said by hockey legend Wayne Gretzky are often used as motivation in both sports and life in general.

One Washington County native is really taking them to heart.

Dalton Blundell, a 2017 Tech High graduate and Washington County Northstars alum, is taking his shot at playing ice hockey at a higher level.

He packed his bags in September and headed to Syracuse, N.Y., to play for the Syracuse Stars in the 18U division of the United States Premier Hockey League (USPHL).

“I wanted to play at a higher level than what’s around Maryland, so I was looking for teams offering lots of practice where I could build as a player,” Blundell said. “Ultimately the goal is to get into college for ice hockey.”

As a three-year member of the Northstars, Blundell played 34 games, accumulating 36 goals and 28 assists.

He chose to forego his senior year of high school and graduated early to pursue this opportunity. He currently is taking college classes online and balancing a rigorous practice schedule.

“I felt that instead of coming up here and doing high school (classes) every day, I could take college classes so I could put in more ice time to get better,” he said.

A typical day for Blundell consists of schoolwork in the morning, practice around 12:30 p.m., an afternoon gym workout and another practice later at night.

“It takes a toll here and there,” he admitted. “Most of the time it’s just practicing, so you kind of get used to it.”

His hard work has paid off in his rookie season. He is currently leading his team in goals (seven) and assists (nine), and was recently named to the USPHL All-Star team as a defenseman.

The All-Star game was played Jan. 15 at Merrimack College in North Andover, Mass. Blundell played for the American team, which won 7-6 over National in a shootout.

“It was competitive, it was a good atmosphere playing with some of the people you play against (in the regular season),” he said. “Everyone was really talented. It was good to see how I could handle going up against those players.”

With the season winding down, Blundell already is looking ahead to his next step.

“I’m not 100 percent on anything right now,” he said. “I’m talking to coaches here and there and keeping my options open. Most players in the league are looking around (at this time of year).”

One thing is for sure. He won’t stop taking shots to achieve his ultimate goal.