The Hudson Valley ESG hockey team will be looking to medal for the third straight year when the Empire State Games get underway Thursday in Binghamton. Western has won eight straight gold medals, while HV is looking for its first. Since the competition began in 1982, HV has four silvers and four bronzes.

There’s a new poll so you can add your prediction about this year. Also, unfortunately (well, fortunately for me) I’ll be in California during the competition, but please feel free to add your thoughts on this week’s event.

All games will be held at Broome Community College. Below is the schedule and the roster (the teams are my best guess). It includes five Section 1 players (Frank Dimaggio of Yorktown, Michael Duffy of Pelham, Alex Hagen of Bronxville, Zac Hiller of Suffern and Sean O’Connor of North Rockland) and three private-school locals (Jordan Gluck and Jake Turrin of RCDS and Rob Molinaro of Iona Prep)

Thursday
1 p.m. practice
7 p.m. vs. New York City

Friday
1:30 p.m. vs. Western

Saturday
7 a.m. vs. Central
3:30 p.m. vs. Adirondack

Sunday
9:30 a.m. vs. Long Island

Roster:
Michael Beck, Milton/Burke Catholic
Brad Campagna, Monroe/Monroe-Woodbury
Chris Cerbino, Highland/Canterbury (Conn.)
Michael Chiacchia, Hopewell Junction/John Jay-EF
Thomas Clarke, Hopewell Junction/Arlington
Frankie Dimaggio, Yorktown Heights/Yorktown
Michael Duffy, Pelham/Pelham
Conor Frei, Hopewell Junction/John Jay-EF
Joseph Garnet, Monroe/Monroe-Woodbury
Jordan Gluck, Scarsdale/Rye Country Day
Alex Hagen, Bronxville/Bronxville
Jason Healey, Goshen/Burke Catholic
Zac Hiller, Suffern/Suffern
Connor Leen, Chester/Don Bosco
John McMahon, Hopewell Junction/John Jay-EF
Christian Meiley, Highland Mills/Monroe-Woodbury
Robert Molinaro, Yonkers/Iona Prep
Sean O’Connor, Stony Point/North Rockland
Chris Reinfried, Montgomery/Burke Catholic
Jake Turrin, Brewster/Rye Country Day

Coaches: Paul Lloyd, Hopewell Junction and Jim Whalen, Florida

I know it’s been a while since I last posted, but now is as good a time as any to come back. Not one, but two former Section 1 players were just drafted into the NHL by the San Jose Sharks yesterday—Suffern twins Justin and Drew Daniels. Justin was picked in the third round (62nd overall), while Drew was selected in the seventh round (194). They are the first Mounties ever taken in the NHL draft.

Here’s the article from Sunday’s paper. And here’s a story from the New England Hockey Journal that can catch you up on what the Daniels have been doing since leaving Suffern.

Speaking of Suffern, the ‘92 state championship team will be inducted into the NYS Hockey Hall of Fame on Saturday, March 14, 2009 at the Final Four in Utica. Coach John Orlando would like as many players as possible attend the ceremony, so if any of those Suffern alumns are reading this, make sure your teammates know about it.

Thanks to everyone for keeping up with the blog.

League 1
John Jay
Mahopac
Mamaroneck
Pelham
Rye
Rye Town/Harrison
Suffern
White Plains

League 2
Brewster
Clarkstown North
ETB
Mt.Pleasant
North Rockland
Scarsdale
Yorktown

League 3
Byram Hills
Clarkstown South
Fox Lane
New Rochelle
Ossining
Pawling
Somers/No Salem

League 4
Carmel
Greeley
JFK/PV
Lakeland/Panas
Pearl River
Sleepy/Irv
TZ/Nyack

Moving up: White Plains to League 1, North Rockland and E/T/B to League 2, New Rochelle and Somers/North Salem to League 3
Moving down: Clarkstown North to League 2, Fox Lane to League 3, Lakeland/Panas to League 4

League 1 and League 2 will be decided solely by record within the league. League 3 teams will play a home-and-home with everyone in its league, and crossover to play one game against each team from League 4. All 19 games will count in the league standings, and for playoff eligibility.

There might be a merged Nyack/Tappan Zee team this year (update: this won’t be approved until May 13), but it won’t affect the playoffs. Nyack/TZ moved up to Division I, and every other team stays in the same division.
Division 1
16 teams
Carmel, Clarkstown North, Clarkstown South, ETB, Lakeland/Panas, Mahopac, Mamaroneck, Mt. Pleasant, New Rochelle, North Rockland, Rye Town/Harrison, Scarsdale, Sleepy/Irv, Suffern, TZ/Nyack, White Plains.

Division II
13 teams
Brewster, Byram Hills, Fox Lane, Greeley, JFK/PV, John Jay, Ossining, Pawling, Pearl River, Pelham, Rye, Somers/No Salem, Yorktown.

So, what does everyone think?

Mamaroneck is now officially the favorite to win League 1 next year, receiving 31 votes in our first poll to finish ahead of Suffern (23), Pelham (12) and everyone else (12).

Why not, with two returning Journal News All-Stars in defenseman Sean Hagan and goalie Luke Glaser, five of the top six forwards (first-liners Christian Glaser and Robert Fine and the entire second line of Matt Marr, Joe Naclerio and Brett Jackson), and four of the five defensemen who received significant time against Massena (Hagan, Adam Zweig, Sam Christiansen and Robbie Gardiner).

It always seems easier to play from the role of the underdog, which made Suffern’s streak so incredible, so now we’ll see how the Tigers do as the top dog.

Thanks to everyone who participated in the first poll. There’s a new one up on the right. I’ll be back next week with the 2008-09 league alignments.

Great to see how many people are still on board. As a reward, you get to participate in the first high school sticking poll (see bottom right). Hopefully this is the first of many I’ll have throughout the year.

Don’t forget the league alignments come out in a few weeks, followed by next year’s schedules, so stay with me. Also I’ll be tracking down more out-of-area schedules and keeping up to date with any rumors … like this one.

Chris McIndoe did indeed tear his ACL playing lacrosse, when his foot got caught in the turf. He will miss the travel hockey season, but expects to be back for the high school season. Basically, he is having surgery in mid-May, and the recovery time is about six months, which would put him back in mid-November.

I just got off the phone with him and he seemed in good spirits, although obviously this is a tough blow. He would be one of the top returning players in Section 1, and I’m sure everyone joins me in wishing him a speedy recovery.

At long last, The Journal News Westchester/Putnam all-star and Rockland all-county teams are here. There were a ton of great candidates to choose from, which is a good problem to have but still led to some very tough decisions. In Rockland, I polled every coach. For Westchester/Putnam, I talked to every League 1 coach and a selection from Leagues 2-4 and the CHSHL, and together this is what we came up with.

A few things to keep in mind: the all-star/all-county awards go to the players who had the best high school season. So club/travel teams and career accomplishments are two things that had no bearing on the selections. It is not necessarily a list of the most talented players who happen to live in our coverage area. It is a list of the players who had the best season. Also, statistics played a role, but mostly in cases where players had similar schedules (for instance, stats weren’t as important when judging Suffern and North Rockland players, since they came in completely different circumstances). Next, I really wish I had a seventh forward spot and a fifth defenseman spot for Westchester/Putnam. And finally, though every player was judged on his own merit, I guess there was a theme on both teams—to the winners goes the spoils.

Here is the feature story on Tom Natoli, the Rockland player of the year, and the article on Brian Conner, the Westchester/Putnam player of the year. Congratulations to them both.

The rest of the Westchester/Putman first team:
Jordan Eck, Rye: The senior forward led the DIvision II sectional champions with 29 goals and 46 points, but it was his clutch play that was most impressive. He scored the winner in the sectional final against Pelham, had both goals in the state playoff game against Thousand Island, and scored both goals in the team’s 2-2 tie with Suffern.

Luke Glaser, Mamaroneck: The junior goalie posted six shutouts and recorded a 1.74 goals-against average and 93.7 save percentage against the area’s toughest schedule. He was great on breakaways, controls rebounds well, keeps a stable, low-key demeanor and kept his team in every game down the strech, never allowing more than three goals in the last 14 games.

Sean Hagan, Mamaroneck: The 6-foot-5 junior is a good passer and has one of the game’s hardest slap shots. As a result, he tallied 36 assists, fourth in Section 1 and tops among all defensemen. He was also an effective leader with great reach who kept his composure under pressure and had very good postitioning.

Cody King, Iona Prep: The senior forward used his tremendous speed and hockey sense to record team highs of 29 goals and 37 assists, including the overtime winner that gave Iona Prep the CHSHL championship over Stepinac. The White Plains resident, who is also the school president, was fourth in the area in points (66) and finished with 182 points in his three seasons.

K.J. McCabe, Iona Prep: A steady, two-way defenseman, the White Plains resident has led the the CHSHL champions in ice time for three straight seasons, often logging upwards of 30-35 minutes a game. He’s almost impossible to beat one-on-one, he’s very good with his stick and he makes smart decisions. The senior finished his Gaels career with 61 points and two all-league selections.

Coach Mike Chiapparelli, Mamaroneck: In the course of winning the Division I sectional title, Chiapparelli’s team did what no one else could – beat top-ranked Suffern, which entered the final with a 45-game unbeaten streak. The Tigers won all 14 of their games against Westchester/Putnam teams and finished the season ranked No. 4 in the state with a 23-4-1 record.

Second team
F: Brett Novick, Sr., Rye Town/Harrison
F: Phil Sigona, Sr., White Plains
F: Marshall Rogers, Sr., Rye
D: Kevin Gordon, Sr., Rye
D: Michael Mamone, Jr., Pelham
G: Joe Reagan, Sr., Stepinac

Honorable mention
NIck Alfonzetti, Sr., Brewster; Matt Benincasa, Jr., Rye; Mike Cambria, So., Iona Prep; Mac Clay, Jr., Pelham; A.J. Datino, Sr., Stepinac; Mike DeLaVergne, So., Kennedy/Putnam Valley; Frank Dimaggio, Sr., Yorktown; Stefan DiMario, Sr., Iona Prep; Christian Edge, Sr., John Jay; Andrew Emerson, Jr., Pelham; Rui Encarnacao, Sr., White Plains; Rob Fine, Jr., Mamaronack; Marc Flory, Jr., Pelham; Jordan Gluck, So., Rye Country Day; Alex Hagen, So., Eastchester/Tuckahoe/Bronxville; Kyle Kegan, Sr., Rye Town/Harrison; Chris Latino, Sr., John Jay; Charles MacKenzie, Sr., Fordham Prep; Joe Marasco, Sr., Somers/North Salem; Cody McKinney, Sr., Rye Town/Harrison; Sean McKinney, Sr., Rye Town/Harrison; Rob Molinaro, Jr., Iona Prep; Nick Mucci, Sr., Lakeland/Panas; Robbie Oliverio, Sr., Scarsdale; Eric Perlowitz, Sr., Mount Pleasant; Tyler Perrelle, Jr., Mahopac; Brad Pesce, So., Rye Country Day; Dave Rofosky, Jr., John Jay; Jason Sartorius, Sr., Fox Lane; Matt Seid, Sr., Mamaroneck; Jake Turrin, So., Rye Country Day; Adam Urban, Jr., Rye Town/Harrison; Steven Yankowski, Jr., Stepinac.

The rest of the Rockland first team:

Mike Conklin, Suffern: Conklin was a great two-way player. From the point, his hard slap shots and pinpoint passes led to 31 assists, the second most among Section 1 defensemen. On defense the heady senior always seemed to make the right play, and he was instrumental in breakouts with his passing and skating.

Zac Hiller, Suffern: The Mounties’ first-line center was great on draws and saw the ice well, leading to 44 assists, tied for the most in Section 1. He was especially good on power plays and penalty killing. He has gotten bigger and better every year, a scary prospect for next season’s opponents.

Sean O’Connor, North Rockland: The junior forward led League 3 with 63 points as the Red Raiders won the league championship. He had a goal and three assists in a 4-2 playoff win over League 2 Mount Pleasant, scored the winner in the final seconds over Clarkstown North and earned MVP at the Bethlehem tournament, recording hat tricks in both games.

Andrew Ojeda, Suffern: A second-team all-state defenseman, Ojeda was fast and skilled. The physical senior may have been short in stature, but he may have been the hardest hitter in the section, and he was always tough to beat. He was a big reason the Mounties allowed just 38 goals in 27 games.

Zach Salt, Suffern: The senior was a fast skater who could be counted on to produce every night, either with goals or making a play to set up teammates. A second-team all-state selection, the forward scored in 22 games and led the county with 33 goals and 66 points, the fourth most in Section 1.

Coach, Rob Schelling, Suffern: The Mounties put together the only undefeated regular season in the state and rose to No. 1 in the Division I state rankings. Suffern won the League 1 title and finished the year 24-1-2, beating every area it faced, including Mamaroneck (twice), Rye, Pelham, Iona Prep, White Plains and Monroe-Woodbury.

Second team
F: Matt Ruthberg, Sr., Suffern
F: Russell Santiago, Sr., North Rockland
F: Johnny Hill, Jr., Suffern
D: Craig Meany, Jr., North Rockland
D: Eric Holewinski, Sr., Clarkstown South
G: Chris McIndoe, Jr., Clarkstown North

Honorable mention
Dan Cincotta, Sr., Clarkstown North; Chris Fyfe, Sr., Tappan Zee; Pat Heraghty, Jr., Pearl River; Greg McCarron, Jr., Suffern; Brendan Meyers, So., Clarkstown South; Josh Moelis, Sr., Clarkstown South; Alex Nestle, Jr., North Rockland; Kevin Norwin, So., Suffern; Matthew Rau, Sr., North Rockland; Matt Shore, Sr., Suffern; Brennan Slattery, Jr., Nyack; Nick Spar, Sr., Pearl River; Joe Surace, Jr., Pearl RIver; Steve Williams, Sr., Clarkstown North.

There’s a good chance that the number of rinks in Section 1 will shrink by one before next season. Cappelli Enterprises, which owns New Roc City, is trying to lure Target and Kohl’s, and would close the ice rink (and other entertainment venues) to make room for the department stores. I’ll post my story as soon as I can.

This would directly affect New Rochelle and Byram Hills, who play home games at New Roc, and Rye Town/Harrison, who practices there twice a week. I did a story early in the season about how hard it is to secure ice time around here, and it will be interesting to see what happens. My best guess is New Ro goes to the Ice Hutch, Byram Hills goes back to Brewster, and RT/H scrambles.

Nothing has been decided for certain. The affected coaches say they haven’t heard anything from rink management—not for lack of trying—and my calls weren’t returned. New Rochelle parents have circulated a petition and are going to city council meetings to try and stop the developments. But it doesn’t look good.

Ironically enough, if New Rochelle would just build another ice rink to replace New Roc (like at City Park?), this could be better for area hockey. But no one is promising that, and either way a new facility wouldn’t be open in time for next season.

When it first opened, with the NHL-sized rink and the skating rink (where the go carts are now), New Roc was a beautiful facility. But when a different company took over, it became notoriously expensive and horribly mis-managed. There were problems with ice cuts (sometimes they just didn’t occur, and when they did the Zamboni drivers weren’t trained so sometimes the ice would be flooded, or cut to the cement). It was more than $400/hour and schools were charged for ice cuts, which doesn’t happen at some other rinks.

Still, it was one of the few area rinks that stayed open during the summer, and selfishly I’m upset because New Roc had wireless, so I could file stories easily, and then go to Applebee’s for dinner. I will keep you posted when I hear more.

On a completely unrelated note, I was talking to Pelham coach Ed Witz and New Ro coach Jim Tozzo for the story and picked up a nugget on each team. Pelham and Rye will host Queensbury and Glens Falls the weekend before Christmas (remember, Section 1 plays Section 2 in the Division II state quarterfinals next season), and the Pelicans will also travel to Salmon River/Saranac Lake, the Niskayuna tournament and the Massena tournament.

Tozzo said New Rochelle will at least move up to League 3, and League 2 is also a possibility. Of course, the bigger question at the moment is, where will they play?

I’ve heard the rule is to drop the bottom team and bump up last year’s champion. That would leave us with this:
League 1: Suffern, Mamaroneck, Pelham, Rye, Rye Town/Harrison, John Jay, Mahopac, White Plains
League 2: Clarkstown North, Yorktown, Scarsdale, Brewster, Mount Pleasant, North Rockland
League 3: Fox Lane, E/T/B, Ossining, Pawling, Clarkstown South, Lakeland/Panas, New Rochelle
League 4: Byram Hills, Kennedy/PV, Somers/NS, Pearl River, SH/Irvington, Greeley, Tappan Zee, Carmel, Nyack

However, this was a really interesting year. The worst teams in League 1 were either very young (Mahopac) or missing key players (North), and I don’t think putting them in League 2 is the solution. Meanwhile, Rye Town/Harrison graduates four huge starters and White Plains graduates the top two scorers in the section and the goalie. Meanwhile, John Orlando told me that no League 1 team wants to move down. So I’m not sure where that leaves us at this point.

One radical solution, which I mentioned earlier this season, is to split the teams up by division, like they do at sectionals. So you have:
League I-A: Suffern, Mamaroneck, Rye Town/Harrison, Mahopac, White Plains, Clarkstown North, Scarsdale
League II-A: Pelham, Rye, John Jay, Yorktown, Brewster, Pawling, Fox Lane
League I-B: Mount Pleasant, North Rockland, E/T/B, Lakeland/Panas, New Rochelle, SH/Irvington, Clarkstown South, Carmel
League II-B: Ossining, Byram Hills, Kennedy/PV, Somers/NS, Pearl River, Greeley, Tappan Zee, Nyack

The final determinations won’t be made until the ADs meet on April 30. What are your picks for the new leagues?

Finally, here’s something that will complicate things further. I heard two smaller teams (update: Tappan Zee and Nyack) are thinking of merging. This shouldn’t affect the league alignments (this is a move to stay afloat, not to create a powerhouse. I expect the merged team will still be placed in League 4). What it could affect is the playoff picture. When two small schools combine, it could push a larger school into Division II. Right now the smallest school in Division I is Clarkstown South (you can find the exact numbers on a previous post). I haven’t seen the school sizes for next year, but look at how close Mamaroneck was to the Vikings this year. A merger has never been denied by Section 1, but that might change if schools like Pelham, Rye and John Jay all of a sudden see Mamaroneck as a sectional opponent.

Again, this is all hypothetical at this point. I’ll let you know if/when the merger becomes official. This brings up one other issue — how is every section allowed to determine their own rules for a state playoff? Section 1 puts teams in Divisions I and II based on school size, but Section 9 does it based on program strength. I know this was a bigger issue last year when Monroe-Woodbury beat much smaller schools (like Rye) on its way to a DII state title, but I still can’t believe sections are allowed to choose their own criteria, and everyone else in the state has to live with that decision.

The rescheduled senior all-star game will be tomorrow night at 6 p.m. at the Ice Hutch. The format will be Rockland/Northern Westchester vs. Southern/Central Westchester. Rosters are still being finalized, but I expect it to be a great show, considering how many incredible seniors there were this year. Again, I have no idea who will appear, but how about this hypothetical matchup?

Rockland/N Westchester
F Salt-Ruthberg-Shore
F Dimaggio-Latino-Alfonzetti
D Ojeda-Conklin
G Natoli

C/S Westchester
F Conner-Sigona-Encarnacao
F Eck-Novick-Rogers
D Gordon-Kegan
G McKinney

I know, I know, I left some great kids out. This was just off the top of my head. The point is there are a ton of talented seniors, and this is one last chance to see them. I’m definitely looking forward to it. Plus I just had to cover my first lacrosse game yesterday, and it was actually warmer in the Ice Hutch.

(update Monday 3/31: here were the actual lines)
Rockland/N Westchester
F Zach Salt-Matt Ruthberg-Matt Shore
F Vinny Matranga-Frank Dimaggio-Nick Mucci
F Nick Alfonzetti-Josh Moelis-Jim Arullio
D Andrew Ojeda-Mike Conklin
D Eric Holewinski-Danny Paesano
D Matt Scully-Brian Hawley
G Tom Natoli, Jason Sartorius

C/S Westchester
F Brian Conner-Nick Hardy-Phil Darland
F Phil Sigona-Rui Encarnacao-Brett Novick
F Frank Puzziferri-Tim Corini-Harry Mac Innis
D Matt Seid-Rob Oliverio
D Christian Edge-Mike Messer/Ken Sommer
G Andrew Chase, Mike Cambareri

And here is the link to the story.

Just wanted to let you know that you can win $10,000 from Lohud.com if you fill out a perfect NCAA tournament bracket. Here is the link. And here are some clues: Georgetown, UNC, UCLA and Texas. We’re still working on a Frozen Four contest.

Just heard from Pelham coach and Ice Hutch rink manager Ed Witz that the exceptional seniors game, originally scheduled for Sunday night at 6:30, has been postponed. Something about the paperwork not being submitted on time.

It is tentatively rescheduled for Saturday, March 29 at 6 p.m. at the Ice Hutch, pending Section 1 approval, which should happen Monday.

Here are the all-league sections, which are selected by the coaches from that particular league. It appears to be formula-based: four picks for the winning team, three for the runner-up, two for the middle teams and one each from the bottom three. Then honorable mention for two players from each team.

A few things I noticed at first glance: Andrew Ojeda made second-team all-state but not all-league. … All four Pelham selections were juniors, which gives some indication of how strong it can be next year. Similarly, Mamaroneck honored three juniors and Mahopac’s picks were a junior, sophomore and freshman. … There were only five all-league defensemen combined in Leagues 1, 2 and 3. Are they being undervalued?… After hearing so much about E/T/B, and Burdick scoring 45 goals for Pawling, I was surprised to see Nick Mucci get League 3 co-MVP.

As always, congratulations to everyone. The Journal News all-star teams (Westchester/Putnam and Rockland) are still to come.

League 1
All League
Tom Natoli G Sr Suffern
Zach Salt F Sr Suffern
Matt Ruthberg F Sr Suffern
Mike Conklin D Sr Suffern
Brian Conner F Sr Mamaroneck
Sean Hagan D Jr Mamaroneck
Luke Glaser G Jr Mamaroneck
Marc Flory F Jr Pelham
Andrew Emerson F Jr Pelham
Brett Novick F Sr Ryetown/Harrison
Cody McKinney F Sr Ryetown/Harrison
Jordan Eck F Sr Rye
Marshall Rogers F Sr Rye
Chris Latino F Sr John Jay CR
Tyler Perrelle F Jr Mahopac
Chris McIndoe G Jr Clarkstown North

Honorable Mention
Steve Williams D Sr Clarkstown North
Dan Cincotta D Sr Clarkstown North
Chris Mastrocola F Soph Mahopac
Tyler Gyscek F Frosh Mahopac
David Rofofsky F Jr John Jay CR
Christian Edge D Sr John Jay CR
Chris Wenzel F Sr Rye
Kevin Gordon D Sr Rye
Sean McKinney G Sr Ryetown/Harrison
Kyle Kegan D Sr Ryetown/Harrison
Mac Clay F Jr Pelham
Mike Mamone D Jr Pelham
Matt Seid D Sr Mamaroneck
Rob Fine F Jr Mamaroneck
Andrew Ojeda D Sr Suffern
Zac Hiller F Jr Suffern

Player of the Year Tom Natoli, Suffern and Brian Conner, Mamaroneck

Coach of the Year Mike Chiapparelli, Mamaroneck and Jason Friesen, Rye

Doc Rasbeck Award Scholarship and Ability Matt Shore, Suffern

Russ Simon Award Sportmanship and Ability Brett Novick, Ryetown/Harrison

Howie Kosel Team Sportsmanship Award Mahopac and Rye

League 2
Phil Sigona F Sr White Plains
Rui Encarnacao F Sr White Plains
Steve McCarrick F Jr White Plains
Mike Cambareri G Sr White Plains
Robbie Oliverio D Sr Scarsdale
Lee Gilbert F Sr Scarsdale
Andy Reggev G Sr Scarsdale
Frank Dimaggio F Sr Yorktown
Vinnie Matranga F Sr Yorktown
Nick Alfonzetti F Sr Brewster
Jason Sartorius G Sr Fox Lane
Eric Perlowitz F Sr Mt. Pleasant

Honorable Mention
Matt Altieri F Jr White Plains
Ryan McGee D Soph White Plains
Matt Oliverio F Soph Scarsdale
John Felix F Jr Scarsdale
Max Yoeli F Sr Fox Lane
John Owen F Sr Fox Lane
JoJo Pandolfo F Jr Mt.Pleasant
Kevin Dolce F Sr Mt.Pleasant
Brett Michelson D Sr Yorktown
Rocky Bonitatibus F Sr Yorktown
Mike Miller F Soph Brewster
Ian Fleming F Soph Brewster

Player of the Year Phil Sigona White Plains and Rui Encarnacao White Plains

Coach of the Year Howie Rubenstein White Plains

Doc Rasbeck Award Scholarship and Ability Max Yoeli Fox Lane

Russ Simon Award Sportsmanship and Ability Nick Alfonzetti Brewster

Howie Kosel Team Sportsmanship Award Fox Lane

League 3
Sean O’Connor F 11 North Rockland
Craig Meany D 11 North Rockland
Russell Santiago F 12 North Rockland
Matthew Rau F 12 North Rockland
Ronny Sherding F 11 ETB
Alex Hagen F 10 ETB
Joe Mercorella F 12 ETB
Robert Dorgan F 10 Ossining
Frank Puzziferri F 12 Ossining
Nick Mucci F 12 Lakeland/Panas
Matt Burdick F 11 Pawling
Jon Nash F 12 Pawling
Eric Holewinski D 12 Clarks South
Ryan Basmajian F 10 Byram Hills

Honorable Mention
Todd Smith F 12 Byram Hills
Kevin Lenhardt F 11 Byram Hills
Brendan Meyers F 10 Clarkstown South
Josh Moelis F 12 Clarkstown South
Mike Ciotti D 10 ETB
Brian McNamara D 10 ETB
Sean Rowe D 12 Lakeland/Panas
Nick Karalos F 12 Lakeland/Panas
Anthony Reda F 12 Pawling
Billy Vitro D 12 Pawling
Alex Nestle G 11 North Rockland
John Casey F 12 North Rockland
Matt Annibale F 10 Ossining
Andrew Chase G 12 Ossining

Player of the Year Nick Mucci Lakeland/Panas and Sean O’Connor North Rockland

Coach of the Year Gary Dworkowitz North Rockland

Doc Rasbeck Award Scholarship and Ability Eric Holewinski Clarkstown South

Russ Simons Award Sportsmanship and Ability Russell Santiago

Howie Kosel Team Sportsmanship Award Byram Hills

League 4
Richie Prunesti F 9 New Rochelle
Freddie Mantignetti F 11 New Rochelle
Pat Staropoli F/D 11 New Rochelle
Tim Corini F 12 New Rochelle
Mike DeLaVergne G 10 JFK/PV
Sean Sullivan F 11 JFK/PV
Patrick Considine D 12 JFK/PV
Joe Marasco F 11 Somers/NS
Danny Paesano D 12 Somers/NS
Craig Halpin D 11 Sleepy/Irv
Ryan Denis F 12 Sleepy/Irv
Brennan Slattery D 11 Nyack
James Oliver Jr. F 12 Carmel
John Amodeo F 12 Greeley
Derek Katchis D 11 Greeley
Nick Spar F 12 Pearl River
Pat Heraghty G 11 Pearl River
Chris Fyfe G 12 Tappan Zee

Honorable Mention
Andrew Doria F 11 Carmel
Marc Glaviano G 12 Carmel
Josh Kaplan F 10 Sleepy/Irv
Andrew Strauch D 12 Sleepy?irv
Paul Cho F 11 Nyack
Bobby Bausinger D 11 Nyack
Ian Steinberg F 12 Greeleey
Nathan Quicke F 11 Greeley
John Garcia F 11 TZ
Kevin Andrews D 10 TZ
Jimmy Aruilio F 12 Somers/NS
Steve Aruilio F 10 Somers/NS
Josh Gomez F 12 JFK/PV
Patrick Treacy D 11 JFK/PV
Kenny Sommer D 12 New Rochelle
Dan Feliu G 11 New Rochelle
Joe Surace F 11 Pearl River
Ryan Toal D 12 Pearl River

Player of the Year Mike DelaVergne JFK/PV

Coach of the Year Jim Tozzo New Rochelle

Doc Rasbeck Award Scholarship and Ability Nick Spar Pearl River

Russ Simon Award Sportsmanship and Ability Kenny Sommer New Rochelle

Howie Kosel Team Sportsmanship Award Pearl River

Because it’s never too early to think about next year. Big news is that there is still no outbracket, and in the state quarters the Division I winner must now travel to Section 10 (state champ Massena?), and the Division II winner will travel to Section 2 (top-ranked Queensbury?) It also looks like everything was pushed back a week. The state tournament dates are set in stone, while the sectional dates can still be changed.

Division I
First Round Monday 2/23
Quarters Thursday 2/26
Semis Saturday 2/28
Final Monday 3/1

Division II
first round Tuesday 2/24
Quarters Friday 2/27
Semis Sunday 3/1
Final Tuesday 3/3

Regionals Saturday March 7
Division I vs section 10 @ section 10
Division II vs section 2 @ section 2

Final Four Saturday March 14
Division I
1-10 winner vs 6-9 winner
5-7 winner vs 2-3 winner
Division II
1-2 winner vs 9-10 winner
6-7 winner vs 3-5 winner

Finals Sunday March 15

Eight players from Section 1, including three from Suffern and two from Mamaroneck and Rye, were honored as all-state selections Sunday in Utica.

G Tom Natoli of Suffern and D Sean Hagan of Mamaroneck were on the first team. F Brian Conner of Mamaroneck, F Zach Salt of Suffern, D Andrew Ojeda of Suffern and D Marshall Rogers of Rye made the second team. G Chris McIndoe of Clarkstown North and F Jordan Eck of Rye are honorable mention.

This is the official All-State Hockey Team as compiled by the selection committee of the NYSHSHCA (New York State High School Hockey Coaches Association)

Division I first team
Goal Tom Natoli Suffern
Def. Mac Morse Gates Chili
Def. Sean Hagan Mamaroneck
For. Adam Hitchko Shenendehowa
For. Cole Schneider St. Joe’s
For. Matt Hatch Massena
For. Scott Lewis West Genesee

Second Team
Goal John Schlegel West Genesee
Def. Andrew Ojeda Suffern
Def. Nick Fronczak Williamsville North
For. Brian Connor Mamaroneck
For. John Knisley Pittsford
For. Tim Besio West Genesee
For. Zach Salt Suffern

Honorable Mention
Chris McIndoe,Clarkstown North, Mark Goulding, St.Joe’s, Terry Schaeffer, Aquinas, Chris Sova, Oswego, Jacob Witkop, Massena, Bryan Hunter, Shendenhowa, Ben Waldman, Pittsford, Joe Karl, Lancaster, Nick Zapia, Fayetteville-Manlius, Gabe French, Ithaca, Jesse Elliott, Shenendehowa, Nick Miller, Pottsdam

Coach of the Year Joe Phillips Massena

Division 2 first team
Goal Jon Hall Thousand Islands
Goal Matt Solimano Webster-Thomas
D Joe Amico Webster-Thomas
D Matt Wood Skaneateles
F Justin Scharfe Webster-Thomas
F Marc Plante Salmon River
F Chris Snyder Clinton
F Chris Lewis Salmon River

Second Team
Goal Jack Lambe Whitesboro
D Marshall Rogers Rye
D Josh Schneider Solvay
F Matt Soprano Queensbury
F Keith Buehler Skaneateles
F George Hajjar Whitesboro

Honorable Mention
Patrick Murphy,Queensbury, Joe Poppe, Solvay, Ryan Marko, Sweet Home, Evan Roth, Canandaigua, Jordan Hobica, Clinton, Matt Zalewski, New Hartford, Lars Grater, Thousand Islands, Bill Closs, Thousand Islands, Jordan Eck, Rye, Brett Bannon, Webster-Thomas.

Coach of the Year Dave Evans Webster-Thomas

Division 1 All Tournament Team
G Kyle Anderson Massena
D Mike Mailhot Massena
D Ryan Michel West Genesee
F Matt Hatch Massena
F Scott Lewis West Genesee
F Nathan Pichette Massena
MVP Matt Hatch Massena

Division 2 All Tournament Team
G Matt Solimano Webster-Thomas
D Joe Amico Webster-Thomas
D Ryan Grimshaw Thousand Islands
F Justin Scharfe Webster-Thomas
F Trevor Parisian Thousand Islands
F Brett Bannon Webster-Thomas
MVP Justin Scharfe Webster-Thomas

Not sure if this makes Mamaroneck and Rye fans feel better or worse, but state quarterfinal opponents Massena and TI both advanced to the championship game yesterday. Here are the details from Utica.

Massena, scoring three goals in a 1:20 span of the second period, beat a depleted Lancaster team 5-3, and TI lost a 3-0 lead, and then scored with 1:33 left to beat Sweet Home 4-3 despite being outshot 36-15. The finals opponents are West Genesee in DI and Queensbury in DII.

It’s hard to boil down all the moments from a season that started on Thanksgiving weekend and didn’t end until March 1, but here’s my attempt. Love to know your thoughts and if I left anything out.

1. Mamaroneck wins Division I title

Alright, I was going to go from 10 to 1 but what’s the point, really? For so many reasons, the Mamaroneck-Suffern game was the top moment of the season. And notice how I didn’t title this “Suffern lost” because while Suffern’s status as the undefeated and top-ranked team certainly made this a bigger game, it wasn’t like the Mounties played poorly. The Tigers just played great. I pretty much wrote down everything already about the title game (click here), from the incredible pregame atmosphere

to the celebration afterwards

Unfortunately for the Tigers, the good feelings didn’t last long — It lost an overtime heartbreaker to Massena on Saturday. But when the season is over, Conner’s goal with 15 seconds left to win the championship is the strongest memory I’ll have.

2. Iona Prep wins championship in OT

The Iona Prep-Stepinac rivalry produced some classic games this year, starting in the regular season, when the Crusaders dealing Iona Prep its first league loss. But the playoffs was really when the matchups got intense. All three games were played in front of at least 650 people, and two went to overtime — Stepinac won 11 minutes into the extra session in Game 2

and, of course, Iona Prep won on Cody King’s breakaway in overtime of the third and final game.

My favorite stat: the teams split the season series 3-3, and total goals were 20-19 Iona.

3. Rye’s amazing turnaround

The Garnets were 2-5 on Dec. 18, with losses to Division II challengers Pelham and John Jay, no starting goalie, severe scoring problems, and the only two wins were against a Fox Lane team that wouldn’t qualify for the postseason. As late as Jan. 19, they didn’t have a winning record. And then came this:

Rye developed chemistry as the football players got back into the fold, Matt Benincasa (below) not only earned the starting job but became a real asset, the team built a lot of depth, stuck to a great defensive system and won 11 of its last 12 games, including an exciting 2-1 win at Pelham to clinch a second straight DII title.

4. Parity in Section 1

There seemed to be three tiers of teams: Suffern and Mamaroneck. Rye, Pelham, White Plains and Rye Town/Harrison. And then everyone else. The first round of the playoffs saw League 4 Sleepy Hollow/Irvington (below) beat League 1 Clarkstown North, and a pair of League 3 teams win (North Rockland, above beating Mount Pleasant, and E/T/B), while League 4 New Rochelle lost 7-6 to League 2 White Plains.

It made for a very exciting regular season as well, with very competitive games in League 2 (outside of White Plains), pretty much every game in League 3 and the top half of League 4.

5. Suffern’s undefeated regular season

For three months, the biggest question was whether anyone would be able to beat Suffern. Rye came the closest, skating to a 2-2 tie at Sport-O-Rama on Jan. 11. But teams like Monroe-Woodbury (4-1), Iona Prep (5-2) and White Plains (6-1) didn’t have as much luck, not to mention Mamaroneck, Pelham, and six upstate teams. In fact, only one team was able to score as many as three goals against Suffern goalie Tom Natoli (below)—Mamaroneck’s Brian Conner had a hat trick by himself in the Tigers 5-3 loss.

But it wasn’t just an all-state goalie. It was four great defenseman and three forwards that put up at least 62 points, led by first-team center Zach Salt.

6. White Plains breaks through

With a school-record 23 wins, an outright league title for the first time since 1977, the top two scorers in the section (Phil Sigona and Rui Encarnacao, above) and one of the best nicknames (”Stonewall Jackson” for goalie Mike Cambareri, below), not to mention the fact that all 20 skaters recorded a point, White Plains had the best season outside of the teams that made the sectional finals.

7. Rye Town/Harrison rises up

Eastchester/Tuckahoe/Bronxville deserves credit for going from League 5 to the runner-up in League 3, but no team made a bigger leap than Rye Town/Harrison, who finished in fourth place in its first year in the power league. One of the top forward lines in the section with Blind Brook students Brett Novick, Adam Urban and Cody McKinney—who can forget their seven-goal game against Rye, capped by Novick’s OT winner (below)—four-year starting goalie Sean McKinney and senior defenseman Kyle Kegan, the Titans showed the way for teams hoping to make it from the lower leagues to the top.

8. Pelham stays strong

After a 9-14 season that ended with a shocking quarterfinal loss, and only two seniors on the roster, the Pelicans could have been one of those teams in rebuilding mode this year, like Mahopac or North. But the Pelicans finished a strong third in League 1 and made it back to the sectional final for the 17th time in 22 years. If all (or even most) of their players return, Pelham will be back in the role of favorite next season.

9. Other amazing comebacks

Rye wasn’t the only team to turn its season around. Ossining (above), who graduated 14 players last season, was 3-8 but finished the regular season with 10 wins in their last 11 games to make the playoffs. And Fordham Prep, behind two freshman goalies, started 3-6-1 before winning eight straight, including the Scarsdale tournament, to solidify its spot in the CHSHL tournament. Below is the Rams’ Chuck MacKenzie, who wins the very unofficial “most ice time” award.

10. Playoff excitement

All three area championship games were decided by one goal, one in OT and one with 15 seconds left in regulation—in front of a combined 2,500 people, with two games having to turn people away in the first period. Mamaroneck lost its state quarterfinal game in OT. Yorktown and Brewster played a double-OT thriller in the quarterfinals. Four of the seven first-round games were won by the lower seed. There’s nothing better than playoff hockey, and this season showed us why.

As part of an effort to get more hockey in the paper, I wrote another “behind-the-scenes” weekly feature on something unique to the sport—high school rivals who are also travel teammates. The story is here. You might remember a previous story that focused on the crazy hours hockey players keep.

I was always impressed to see how friendly the top players are to each other after the game, and to see how they support each other. At every playoff game I saw players from random schools in the stands, checking on their travel teammates.

I was going to post the top 10 today, but I think if I wait until tomorrow I can include pictures and really make it look good, so I’m going to do that. I know, the suspense is killing you.

I also put a call into Greg Ransom, the head of Section 1 athletics, to determine the eligibility of a player who transfers back from private school. I’ve heard it’s not as simple as just coming back to your team and playing immediately. I will post something when he gets back to me.

I have to admit, I never thought the season would be over on March 1. Especially not when Mamaroneck was up 2-1 and Rye was up 2-0. But the unpredictability that make playoff hockey so exciting—the fact that each shift, each shot, yes each call, can turn a game—turned against our teams, and now the three-month-plus season is over.

I never made it to Rye, so here’s the game story from Eric Lebowitz. I was at Mamaroneck, where I experienced the most wild swing of emotions I’ve seen since, well, Monday. The Tigers had a goal disallowed in the final three minutes, killed a penalty that started with 1:32 left after Massena had scored twice in 17 seconds in its two previous power-play chances, and then gave up a disputed goal 29 seconds into overtime. I tried to cram as much detail into my story as possible, and I’ll write more when I can.

I thought Messana dominated the first period, but Luke Glaser was great and Mamaroneck tied the game with 0.4 seconds left. From there I thought Mamaroneck was the better team in the second period (though it took one penalty, which was one penalty too many), and the third period was even. Another huge crowd, by the way. It reached the 1,000-person limit before the opening faceoff.

Anyway, like I said I’ll have some more thoughts later on (including who the Massena coach told me was the Mamaroneck player he was most impressed with besides Conner). And in the days and weeks ahead I’ll be posting some top moments from the season and some predictions for next year, as well as whatever all-league and all-selection selections come in, and of course The Journal News all-star (Westchester/Putnam) and all-county (Rockland) teams, as well as the coach and player of the year. And when the time comes, I’ll let everyone know the new league alignments and Division I/Division II splits.

So while the games are over for the next nine months, I hope we keep the conversations going. But I also understand that this is the end of the road for some of you, and I just want to let you know that I appreciate the time you’ve spent here.

Matt Supernault scored 29 seconds into overtime to give Massena a 3-2 win over Mamaroneck in a Division I state quarterfinal tonight at Hommocks Ice Rink.

Brian Conner had a goal and an assist for the Tigers, who end the season 23-4-1.

Massena plays Lancaster on Saturday at Utica in the state semifinals.

Update: Rye lost its state quarterfinal game as well, falling to Thousand Islands 4-2 in Division II action

More to come.

I spent Friday at the County Center watching four Class A semifinal basketball games, and I can sum it all up in one word: Blowout. Or six words: The exact opposite of playoff hockey. The scores were 58-37, 79-47, 61-51 and 57-44.

So I’m glad to get back to the rinks, where I expect three close, exciting games today. I’m not going to go crazy with predictions because I have absolutely no idea what to expect from teams seven hours away, without a single common opponent. Gut feeling is that Rye will win, Iona Prep will lose, and Mamaroneck is 50/50. Only because Rye is playing so well right now, Iona Prep’s opponent is 5-0 in the state championship game and Mamaroneck and Massena both have about the same ranking and seem like similar teams. What does everyone else think?

It’s sobering to think that after three months, today could be the last day I cover hockey for a long time. Or I could be in Utica next weekend covering four games. And it will probably all be decided between 9-10 p.m. We’ll have a different reporter covering all three games, though I definitely plan on going from Hommocks to the Ice Hutch after my interviews. Google Maps provided this route, though if someone has a better idea I’m listening.