If you can't find senior captain forward Bill Downey's name in the box score, just look in towards the scrum in the corner.

Or at the point on the power play.

Or in front of the net killing off penalties.

Or in the face-off circle during crunch time.

Or back checking to negate a scoring chance.

But don't bother looking down the bench for Downey because you probably won't find him there, which is how he likes it.

"If it was his choice he would be on the ice for every shift," fellow senior forward Jack Weber said.

A 'rink rat' is how he would be described in hockey terms, a player with a gritty passion to win on the ice, a tireless worker off it. He is a player who has gained the unwavering respect of his coaches and peers but is overshadowed by those who sing the praise of others.

"He's the consummate unsung hero," Penn State Icers head coach Joe Battista said.

"He doesn't get the goals and the assists that the other guys get, but [he's in on] every big face-off, penalty kill and defensive situation making great plays."

Mr. Do-It-All put on his scoring hat last weekend, however, notching two goals and an assist in Friday's 10-1 win over visiting SUNY-Buffalo and he scored the key goal to down No. 16 Drexel, 3-1.

Fittingly, it was a shorthanded goal on Friday that left his team grinning, as he read an ill-advised pass, intercepted the puck off his opponents stick and waited for the goalie to make the first move before depositing the puck in the empty net.

It was, in essence, a Bill Downey goal.

Strong skating, having a nose for the puck and supreme effort flavored with skill that gets masked by all of his hard work.

"That was also an incredible move that he made," Battista said. "It was just a gutsy move."

Perhaps shining more than his play so far this season on the ice has been his leadership off it. Whether it's in the weight room, the locker room, the classroom or organizing outside activities, Downey always comes to the forefront.

It's a position he said that he is honored to hold.

"You have to lead by example because you can't say one thing to the team and then not back it up by doing it yourself," Downey said.

Downey's leadership role has been magnified early this season with key injuries to Icer forwards Dan McKeen and Garrett Divins.

This has forced Battista to shorten the bench, leaning heavily on his upperclassmen, namely Downey, who has logged 25 to 30 minutes a game recently.

"He does the little things that don't show up on the stat sheet," Battista said.

However, it has not been all work and no play for Downey. He has tallied 35 goals and 105 points heading into his senior season, and has three ACHA championships under his belt to show for it.

He was given the Trudy & Cecil Improvement Award last season and has been honored with the Tammy Smith Unsung Hero Award each of the past two seasons. And just last summer, he was also named to the 2003 World University Games team that played in Italy and was coached by Battista. It was a trip that, according to Battista, saw Downey blossom.

"He's really raised his whole level of play to a different level," Battista said.

It's tough to get Downey to talk about his play mainly because he would rather talk about the success of the team rather than his individual accolades.

"For the most part I like each aspect of my game," Downey said. "I like just being a part of the team and hanging out with the guys."

Spoken like a true team player.

Or rink rat.

Or captain.

Or unsung hero.