Mark Alt (born October 18, 1991) is an American professional ice hockey defenseman who is currently under contract with Straubing Tigers of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). Playing career Alt was a two sport star at Cretin-Derham Hall High School in Minnesota. Having begun playing hockey at the age of 5, Alt was later part of the team that qualified for the 2009 Minnesota high school hockey tournament. He was earlier drafted 2nd overall in the 2007 Futures United States Hockey League draft by the Chicago Steel, however elected to continue playing exclusively with Cretin-Derham Hall and was a Finalist for the 2010 Minnesota Mr. Hockey Award. On the football field, Alt played quarterback for the 2009 Minnesota state football championship team, throwing 26 touchdowns and running for 6. He was offered football scholarships to the University of Iowa, University of Akron and University of Kansas before ultimately opting against his father's advise to pursue a hockey career in committing to the University of Minnesota under the guide of head coach Don Lucia. Amateur Alt was selected 53rd overall in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft by the Carolina Hurricanes. He joined the Golden Gophers of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association in the 2010–11 season. After missing the first game of the season, he participated in 35 consecutive games. His 10 points (two goals, eight assists) ranked fourth among Gophers defenders in points. He played in his first NCAA game on October 9, 2010 versus Massachusetts. In the same game, he logged his first career NCAA point, an assist on the game-winning goal. January 15, 2011, would mark the first NCAA goal of his career, as he scored versus divisional rival North Dakota. Alt participated in the 2010 U.S. National Junior Evaluation Camp in Lake Placid, New York. Focused on sharpening his defensive shutdown ability, Alt took on a leadership role as a sophomore in the 2011–12 season, while increasing his points totals with 5 goals and 22 points in 43 games. In his junior season in the 2012–13 season, Alt fully transitioned to a shutdown defense role in recording just 7 assists in 39 games for the Gophers. During the campaign, Alt's NHL rights were traded by the Hurricanes to the Philadelphia Flyers on January 13, 2013 along with Brian Boucher for Luke Pither. For a second consecutive year he was selected to the WCHA All-Academic Team with a 4.0