MARINER PLAYS WITH GOAL IN MIND\Hockey team's center hopes to ride skills to college scholarship.

Byline: Bryan Winchell Special to the Daily News

For the Ventura Mariners' Ryan Weber, hockey is an opportunity. And so is California.

But with opportunity comes risk. The 18-year-old Weber dropped plans to play for a junior-A hockey team around his native Cincinnati, Ohio, and came west to play for the upstart Mariners, who are a junior-B team.

Not only was the move risky because Weber was dropping a level in play, he also was leaving an area known for its ice-hockey environment for a place where ice hockey can be played only indoors.

However, when Weber came to a camp held by the team last summer, he was impressed by what he saw.

"Everyone pretty much had a good attitude," Weber said. "The coach promised a lot of good things and there is a lot of opportunity out here."

There's that word again. For Weber, it means a chance to impress college scouts enough to earn a scholarship.

"It's a dream for me to play Division I hockey, being as small as I am," said Weber, who, at 5-foot-6, 145 pounds, is the smallest Mariner.

Mariners coach Sean McGillivray feels that with work on his speed and strength, Weber has the tools to play Division I hockey. And he still has two years of junior-hockey eligibility left.

"Division I college hockey is taking kids that are older more and more," McGillivray said. "The competitiveness of the players is so important, and they want stronger players, too."

Weber feels he'll play junior hockey at least for another year before making any decisions about college hockey.

For now, he's got the success of the Mariners to keep him focused. In first place in the Western States Hockey League, they are one of the favorites to win the junior-B national championship this year. And Weber believes one of the reasons for their success is that their are no stars on the team.

"On this team no one gets cocky and everyone has the same mentality to work hard," Weber said.

On the ice, Weber is one of the hardest workers on the team. A lifelong center, Weber possesses a combination of Wayne Gretzky's knack for passing and Paul Kariya's small but skilled game, McGillivray said.

"He's a natural center," McGillivray said. "He derives a heck of a lot more pleasure out of creating a great scoring opportunity than blasting the puck from the slot."

While his size makes it hard for him to lay out opponents, it can be a real advantage when trying to avoid a vicious body check.

Once again, McGillivray compares Weber to a pro. This time it's Calgary's elusive Theoren Fleury, whom McGillivray said has "made a science out of maneuverability and Ryan's like that as well."

"A little guy with great agility presents a much more difficult target to contain for a defender than a big man with agility," McGillivray said.

While Weber agrees with his coach, he said it's not always an advantage being small.

"It's harder for a big guy to get a hold of me, but when they do I really feel it," Weber said.

That doesn't mean he'll back down from a challenge.

"When he's in the corner he will win one-on-one battles with guys who outweigh him by 40-50 pounds," McGillivray said. "He's got great spin-away moves and he's tough."

McGillivray said another quality that will attract college scouts is Weber's coachability.

"Teams are looking for players with character who conduct themselves off the ice in a respectable way, and Ryan's that kind of player," McGillivray said. "I haven't had one complaint about him, and that's a little bit unusual when you're talking about an 18-year-old who is away from home."

When Weber talks about being in California, one can hear the boyish enthusiasm he feels for it.

"I like everything here: The weather's great and there's always something to do," Weber said. "I had no clue what to expect when I came here so I came with an open mind. It kind of blew me away but I like it a lot."

He still feels glee when, on a 75- to 80-degree day here, he calls friends or family back home in 10-degree weather to tell them about the sunshine.And he's visited all the famous sites, from Hollywood and Venice Beach to Beverly Hills and Bel-Air.

Now that he has adjusted to his new life, he's content to just work on his hockey skills and experience the California lifestyle.

"Personally, it's been a tremendous experience being out here," Weber said. "It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity just to live in California. As far as hockey goes, I'm just trying to be helpful to the team and help the organization grow and hopefully I'll get an education out of it."

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Photo Ohio native Ryan Weber, right, has been noted for his unselfish game. Gene Blevins/Special to the Daily News