Beyond the Scoresheet

Opening Day!

Nothing like the first day of hockey season. My plane landed in Houston around 8:30 CT tonight, and I immediately checked to see if my phone was getting internet service. By some miracle, this is one of the roughly three days per month that the internet was working, so I was able to get a couple of scores right away. I got the smell of a rink yesterday by checking out the skating rink at Penn while in Philadelphia, and now some scores to really kick things off.

As always, first-day scores don’t mean a whole lot, but here’s what I learned from the scores I’ve seen for Tuesday:

• Delbarton is for real. I mean really for real. They were obviously favored to beat Don Bosco Prep, but 10-0? That blew away my expectations. I haven’t talked to Bruce Shatel or Greg Toskos yet, but you have to figure Delbarton is already in great form coming off its pre-season prep tournament in New England. It’ll be interesting to see if they can maintain that for four months. Looking at the scoring report, the Green Wave’s top line of Kenny Agostino, Mike Ambrosia, and Mike Pirovano absolutely lit up the Ironmen, producing four of the first six goals. Matt Gelnaw had two goals and an assist to provide some depth.
• Break up the Shore C! These second-year teams went 4-0 on December 1, including Howell’s 1-0 win over Brick Memorial and Freehold Township’s win over Steinert. There were also wins for Manalapan, 4-3 over WWPS, and Marlboro, 7-4 over Monroe. But the first two are the big two. Howell was the class of the division last year, going 19-4-1, winning the Dowd Cup, and a state playoff game, so they definitely won’t sneak up on anybody this year. But the Rebels lost to Brick Memorial in the Public A Round of 16, so they started off 2009-10 with a little bit of revenge thanks to a third-period power play goal from Eddie Pyskaty and 23 saves from Zack Peras, including some big ones in the final minute. The Freehold Township win may bring even better news for the division, since the Patriots were only 10-10-2 last year, including losses to St. Rose and Toms River South and 0 wins against teams that finished with a .500 or better record. To beat Steinert – nobody’s powerhouse but traditionally a solid public squad – could be an indicator of a very strong division this year. John Talamo netted six goals for Freehold Township. And remember, Shore Conference alignment gets adjusted every two years, so all five Shore C teams and first-year teams Jackson Liberty and Ocean Township are playing for a more competitive division in next year’s standings.
• I was surprised by the 3-3 tie between Montgomery and West Essex. Nothing against Wessex, but I had Montgomery as one of the Public A favorites this year. West Essex jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first period, and the Cougars had to rally for a tie. Not the way the Cougars wanted to open, but it is a good sign for West Essex, which could be very competitive in Public B.
• The Halvorsen Division will be close once again. Jefferson eked out a 5-3 win over Mountain Lakes (with the benefit of an empty-netter) to open the schedule tonight, with two goals from Luke Combos and a goal and three assists from Jimmy Stokes. Combos scored the game-winner with just 2:23 left after the Lakers had come back from a 3-1 deficit at the second intermission. John Dagger (great name) made 32 saves to keep Lakes in it. I can’t see very many easy games in that division with these two teams, Mendham, Morristown, and Pequannock. Morristown and Mendham meet on Thursday in a big-time game this early in the season. Pequannock was last year’s whipping boy, but the other four teams all accounted themselves very well in the state tournament, so hopefully they’ll all find a way to qualify again this year despite slugging it out against each other.

Wednesday’s 22 games include some interesting ones like Bishop Eustace-CBA, PDS-Randolph, Chatham-Cranford, Middletown North-Old Bridge, Mendham-Bridgewater, Pope John-Gloucester Catholic, Notre Dame-Hopewell Valley, and Paul VI-St. Joseph Metuchen.

A reminder to email confirmed scores to jty [at] njhockey.org.

2009-10 season preview

Welcome in to another season of NJ high school hockey. As always, I’ll be keeping information up-to-date as much as possible at www.njhockey.org and providing my own thoughts and information on this blog as time permits.

To start the season, here’s my preseason top 10 as published in Hockey Night in Boston. Be sure to look for the newspaper at your local rinks.

PRESEASON STATE TOP 10 (last year’s record in parentheses)
1. Delbarton (27-2-1)
2. Bergen Catholic (14-8-1)
3. CBA (22-5-2)
4. Seton Hall Prep (10-10-3)
5. Bishop Eustace (22-6)
6. Don Bosco Prep (10-11-3)
7. Morristown-Beard (22-4-1)
8. St. Augustine Prep (3-19-2)
9. Gloucester Catholic (21-2-1)
10. Ramsey (25-1-2)

SCOUTING REPORT (after the jump)
Continue reading 2009-10 season preview…

Projected seeds, 2009

OK, it’s time for my annual thoughts on state tournament seeding. I haven’t looked at anyone else’s rankings (as you may have noticed, I haven’t had much time to devote to the site in the last two weeks), but I have consulted with a number of coaches from around the state.

The general consensus is that the public brackets are pretty cluttered – there are a lot more conflicting head-to-head results than in some years, which favors people who can see the games in person and know the stories behind them, which I obviously cannot do. I’d say 3-15 Public A and 3-10 Public B were the toughest portions to rank. But here are my picks:

 

Private

1. Delbarton – Gordon regular season winner, beat BE and CBA down the stretch.

2. Bishop Eustace – Gordon regular season co-champ

3. CBA – Could have gotten No. 2 but for recent loss to BC

4. Bergen Catholic – Win over CBA helped them earn home ice for a possible quarterfinal

5. Gloucester Catholic – Despite unbeaten record, schedule not strong enough to pass BC

6. Don Bosco Prep – Finished ahead of SHP on wins and head-to-head goal differential

7. Seton Hall Prep – Easy choice.

8. St. Peter’s Prep – Here’s where it gets tough. Unbeaten non-league record helps.

9. Morristown-Beard – Beat SA, narrowly lost to SPP, 1-1 vs. Pin (won 2/16 game)

10. Pingry – Finished behind MB after splitting season series

11. Red Bank Catholic – Beat PJ, ND; tied DBP; lost to MK, SPP, Ran down the stretch, thus locking them behind MB/Pin

12. Notre Dame – Beat SJV, PJ; tied DBP; lost 5-0 to RBC

13. Pope John – Beat SJV, SJMont; lost to RBC, ND

14. St. John Vianney – Lost to ND, Ran, PJ; split with RBC; beat MD

15. Monsignor Donovan – Lost to RBC, SJV, GC

16. St. Augustine Prep – 2-0 vs. SPP offset by 0-1-1 vs. PJ, loss to MB

17. DePaul Catholic – 2nd Northern White; beat PcV twice by combined 22-3; beat Cli

18. St. Joseph Montvale – 2nd Northern Red; 1-0-1 vs. Cli; beat PcV 5-0; lost to PJ, DBP (11-1)

19. Paramus Catholic – 0-1-1 vs. SJMont; needed OT to beat IH

 

Public A

1. Ridge – Top public all year long; 1-0-1 vs. Mtgry; tied MK

2. Montgomery – 10-1-2 vs. publics; tied Rid, Kin

3. Randolph – It gets tough here. 1-0-1 vs. Kin, MK; beat SJV, RBC, Jef; lost to BM, Rmpo; 5-1-1 record vs. MK, BM, SJV, RBC, Jef, Cha (common opps.)

4. Morris Knolls – Wins over Bri, RBC, Jef; tie vs. Ran, Rid; 4-1-2 record vs. Ran, Bri, RBC, Jef, Cha, Rid (common opps.)

5. Brick Memorial – Beat SJV, Ran; lost to RBC, Jef, Rid; tied Cha; 3-3-2 record vs. Ran, Bri, SJV, RBC, Jef, Cha, Rid (common opps.)

6. Brick Township – lost to MK, RBC, SJV; only quality win vs. MidN; 0-4-1 record vs. MK, BM, SJV, RBC (common opps.)

7. Montclair – Could be higher. 15-game unbeaten streak. No marquee wins or ties in weak Northern Red.

8. Clifton – Weak division, no marquee wins, but 12-2-3 and 7-0 down the stretch

9. West Milford – Lost to Lak; Split with Hksck, Nut but won division; key win over ML to place ahead of Halvorsen

10. Morristown – Lost last 5 gms.; wins vs. Cha, Jef; tie vs. MK; no losses to bad teams

11. Howell – Beat TRN, Wall; no losses to bad teams; weak schedule

12. Fair Lawn – Tough call. Tied Rox and lost to Cha, thus below Mor; also lost to Mah; beat RBC; tied TRN

13. Toms River North – Beat SJV; tied FL; lost to How; inconsistent throughout

14. Jackson Memorial – 16-game unbeaten streak and win vs. WWPN. Weak schedule dropped them.

15. WWPN – Tough call here. Beat BM in December but lost to JkMem, HV, Pri since.

16. Wayne Valley – 5th Northern White; 2-0 vs. Ber; Lost to WM; tied Cli

17. Hunterdon Central – Dominated bad division; beat Ber 1-0; beat WWPS 2-1

18. WWPS – Beat BR, Wall, Ten but lost to HntC, Rbville

19. Hackensack – 3rd in Northern Blue; no good non-league wins; lost to Rbville

20. Marlboro – Beat Wall, Liv; 2nd to How in Shore C; lost 8-2 to MidN

21. Toms River South – Split with JkMem, Wall; 3rd in Shore B; lost to TRN

22. Old Bridge – Lost to RBR in only non-league test; lost 4-1 to HntC

23. Park Regional – Beat West, Ten; tied Nut, GL; lost to IH, Mtville (7-1)

24. Westfield – Lost to ML, Reg, HV, Men; 1 win vs. non-Union team

25. Livingston – 3rd Central Blue; lost to Ham

26. South Brunswick – 4th Central Blue; no non-league games

27. Manalapan – Los t to Sum, TRN, MidS; best win vs. Bay

 

Public B

1. Kinnelon – 2nd Mennen; split series vs. MB, MK; tied Mtgry

2. Ramsey – Big win vs. DBP but strength of schedule hurts

3. West Essex – I’m told No. 3 is too high, but 2-0 vs. GR is big; tied Nut; lost to Cha

4. Glen Rock – beat John, NH; OT loss to Rmsy; 0-2 vs. WE

5. Northern Highlands – 2nd NBIAL; 2-0 vs. Rmpo; tied Rmsy, John; lost to GR, Ran

6. Ramapo – 3rd NBIAL; beat Ran; tied Rmsy; 0-2 vs. NH

7. Verona – 1st Northern White; Beat Mclr, Men, Nut; split with Lak; lost to Para

8. Johnson – Beat MK, Hboro, Mtville; tied NH; only loss to GR but weak schedule

9. Lakeland – Split vs. Vero; 0-2 vs. Spa; beat WM

10. Mendham – lead Halvorsen; beat Pin, Ran, MK; 1-0-1 vs. ML; lost to Vero, Rbville

11. Mountain Lakes – Beat MK, GL; 0-1-1 vs. Men

12. Jefferson – Beat BM, GL, Pin, Men, Cha (2x); sub-.500 in lg. play

13. Wall – 1st Shore B; 1-1 vs. TRS; lost to BM, WWPS, How, Mboro

14. Chatham (*at-large recommendation*) – Too good not to let in; beat WE, Sum; lost to Halvorsen

15. Sparta – 4th Northern White; 2-0 vs. Lak; tied Sum

16. Hopewell Valley – Beat Cra, WWPN, Rbville, West; lost to Rox

17. Governor Livingston – 2nd UCIHL; 0-4 vs. MCSSIHL A/B

18. Summit – 4th UCIHL; beat MidS; tied Spa, Cli; lost to Cha

19. Rumson-Fair Haven – 4th Shore B; 1-4 non-league; lost to MidS

20. Nutley – 2nd Northern Blue; beat BR; tied WE; 1-1 vs. WM, HPt; lost to Vero, Rox

21. Madison – lead Haas; 1-0-1 vs. Mtville; lost to GL, Vero

22. Montville – 2nd Haas; beat Rbville; 0-1-1 vs. Mtville; lost to Sum, John, GL, ML

23. Robbinsville – Beat Men, Hksck; lost to Mtville, Pri, Ham

24. Dumont – Beat Hksck; 1-0-1 vs. HPt; 0-1-1, close vs. Ten

25. Old Tappan – Best wins vs. PkV, IH; lost 7-0 to Ten (though I’m hearing their actual record may be sub-.500)

26. High Point – 0-1-1 vs. Dmnt; lost to Spa

 

Boston take on Delbarton-CM game

We were all kind of wondering how folks up north would respond to the 5-1 shellacking Delbarton handed out to Catholic Memorial last weekend. I managed to track down a local article on the game, and I was more than a little surprised to see Catholic Memorial coach Bill Hanson – as well-respected a coach as you will find in the high school game – say that Delbarton was flat-out a better team. I was similarly surprised that the article’s author would suggest that New Jersey hockey might be better than Massachusetts hockey.

So give the article a read. There are plenty of things a naysayer could point out, but 10 years ago, a New Jersey school beating the No. 2 school in Massachusetts – and the most storied hockey program, at that – would not be believed. I didn’t even think it could happen this year. Interesting to say the least.

Great night at Mennen

I’ve stuck to my Morris County roots on this trip home, watching games at Mennen Arena both Saturday and Monday. Tonight’s second and third games were further examples of why we all love the sport (and high school sports in general). In less than four hours, I got plenty of entertainment from both games and got to see some great friends from the sport.

On the ice, I was first entertained by a game that saw Roxbury rally from a 4-1 deficit against Mountain Lakes to forge a 5-5 tie in the third period, only to see the Lakers respond with a goal of their own in the final four minutes for a 6-5 win. Roxbury is struggling a lot more than I had anticipated in the Halvorsen Division, although they carried play in the second and third periods. Mountain Lakes struggled in its own zone but seems to know how to finish a high percentage of its chances (see its 7-5 win over Morris Knolls as further evidence).

In the nightcap, we got one of those classic upsets. Mendham kept the game scoreless with Morris Knolls until late in the second period. After killing off a Knolls power play and dodging a bullet when a deflected shot trickled just wide, Mendham forward Chris DiMaio chipped the puck around a defenseman at the blue line and skated in on a bad-angle breakaway, scoring on his forehand with just six seconds left in the period. Knolls goalie Tyler Rideout left the game injured between periods, and Mendham greeted his replacement, Tim Kutnetsov, in the same fashion, as Anthony Santomo found space in the slot to whip in a wrist shot just 41 seconds into the third period. From there, Mendham held on for a 2-0 win.

Senior goalie Troy Herman was outstanding in posting the shutout, as he was credited with 24 saves (on a low night for shot totals at Mennen). I remember seeing Herman starting as an easily rattled freshman and allowing a fluke goal from the far blue line three years ago; tonight he shut out a perennial Public A power.

Hats off to Mendham for the win, but this game only reinforced what previous results had been saying … Morris Knolls just doesn’t have it at the moment. Rideout seemed back in relatively strong form tonight, and Albert Abaunza is an above-average forward, but the Golden Eagles don’t seem to have that jump or crisp offensive moment as they’ve had in the past. It is, however, still early.

That may be all the high school hockey I get to see on this trip home – I’m heading to the Prudential Center for the first time tomorrow night – but tonight certainly came through with some quality hockey.

Opening Day!

This is my second try at writing this post, so forgive some brevity; the first draft got deleted.

Opening Day arrives tomorrow, so here are a few notes and my preseason Top 10.

1. Colonia, JFK Memorial, and Woodbridge seem intent on retaining their JV status for this season despite including several varsity opponents (notably the new Shore C teams) on their schedule. I will be doing my best to keep track of their results, but to the best of my knowledge, games against these teams will NOT count toward teams’ records or state tournament eligibility.

2. Opening Day games to watch: Gloucester Catholic-Paul VI (first game; southern private battle); Howell-Brick Memorial (Howell’s first game); Colonia-Woodbridge (school-district rivalry); Malvern Prep-Bishop Eustace (big-time private game); Mendham-Westfield (Cron Tournament); Ramsey-Fair Lawn (NBIAL Cup rematch); and West Orange-Livingston (teams celebrating 50th anniversary of NJ hockey).

3. There will be an update to schedules and whatnot later Sunday afternoon. Any changes/corrections can be emailed to me.
4. HNIB Preseason Top 10 (I had a lot of information but by no means all):

1. Delbarton (27-1-1)
2. Bishop Eustace (15-8-4)
3. Bergen Catholic (12-10-5)
4. CBA (19-4-2)
5. Don Bosco Prep (9-11-5)
6. Ridge (23-4-3)
7. St. Augustine Prep (17-7-3)
8. Seton Hall Prep (7-10-5)
9. Morris Knolls (15-11-1)
10. Red Bank Catholic (21-3-2)

5. So you’re aware, I will be out of the country on vacation from December 7-17 and will not be updating the site during that time. I will do my best to catch up when I return, so please continue sending scores to jty [at] njhockey.org. I will be in New Jersey Dec. 19-26, so I will get to see a few games during that time.

6. Enjoy Opening Day, and here’s wishing all the players, coaches, parents, and fans a safe and happy high school hockey season!

7. Some rules updates, courtesy of the occasionally helpful NJSIAA:

2008-2009 Ice Hockey Rules Modification

Rule 1-4 Goal Crease The NFHS goal crease shall not be required in a rink for a contest to be played. Contests shall be permitted to be played in rinks which have truncated “NHL style” goals creases. Contests played with “NHL Style” goal creases shall utilize the truncated crease for that contest.

Rule 1-9-2 Player’s Bench The number of team personnel permitted to occupy the team bench area shall be unlimited.

Rule 2-4-2 Starting Lineups Teams shall be allowed a one minute warm up skate between periods. During this warm up period, no pucks shall be allowed on the ice.

Rule 3-4-4 Protective Equipment A player who loses his/her dental guard during play shall be permitted to complete his/her playing shift without it. During the next stoppage of play, it shall be the responsibility of the player, and not the referee, to immediately retrieve their dental guard.

Rule 6-35 Start of Game and Periods/Pregame Warm-Up Ice resurfacing shall not be allowed between the pregame warm up and the first period. “Dirty ice” may be utilized for warm up however, the first period shall commence immediately after the conclusion of warm up. For violation of this rule, the offending team(s) shall be assessed a minor penalty and the incident shall be reported to the NJSIAA office.

Rule 6-37-3 Time of Game Upon completion of the second period or, at any time during the third period, if there is a ten goal differential, the game shall end immediately and will be considered complete.

Rule 6-38 Tied Games There shall be no overtime periods except in league playoffs, regular season tournaments, the NJSIAA state tournament or when playing out of state. For games that require a team to advance, a 15 minute overtime and shootout procedure must be used. For final or championship games, a 15 minute overtime must be used. A shootout shall not be allowed.

The CBA situation …

Just a quick word on the CBA situation, which is where the biggest question mark seems to be as we’re just about a month away from practices starting.

The official word from CBA athletic director John Przygocki, via e-mail: “We will compete in both [the Gordon and Shore conferences]. … 16 Gordon games and 8 Shore Divisional games.”

The eight Shore games will be two each against the other Shore A North teams. CBA’s intentions as far as league playoffs is unclear; teams are supposed to play no more than 26 games prior to the state tournament, including the postseason league tournament.