Beyond the Scoresheet

Mennen Cup semifinals

Morristown-Beard 5, Randolph 2
Morristown-Beard will get yet another shot at a Mennen Cup championship Saturday after a 5-2 semifinal win over Randolph Thursday night sent the Crimson to their 11th championship game in the last 16 years. Beard is 0-9-1 in those games.

In a period that typified Randolph’s play against top teams, the Rams enjoyed more possession but created fewer chances than the Crimson, and Morristown-Beard took the lead with a shorthanded goal at the 6:17 mark. Corey Schneider gained the zone on the right side, juked around a defender, and snapped a shot past Dan Swenson, returning from injury in the Randolph goal, for a 1-0 advantage.

Randolph had the advantage most of the second period as well, with Chris Maloney hitting the post, but only a save by Swenson on a Greg Alberti breakaway kept it a one-goal game. The Rams finally broke through at the 9:33 mark, once again scoring in front of their student fans. After outmuscling a defender for a loose puck at the red line, Rob Kral broke into the offensive zone on the right wing and wristed a shot past John Yanchek to tie the game. Randolph scored again within two minutes, as they have done so often this year, when Chris Tamminga blasted a slap shot in the high slot that trickled through Yanchek. But the Crimson netminder redeemed himself by holding strong in the final 3:26 to keep the game 2-1 entering the final period.

Morristown-Beard came out fired up, forcing Swenson into three saves in the first 50 seconds. Then came the penalties. Randolph was first whistled for pushing Yanchek behind the net, and again only 11 seconds later for a slashing penalty at center ice. Morristown-Beard needed only 16 seconds to convert, as Ryan Paradis blasted a point shot past Swenson to tie the game. The Crimson cashed in on the other half of their power play as well, but not without controversy. Paradis’ point shot sailed high, and Sam Altiero redirected it with the definition of a borderline high-stick call. Swenson made the save but could not find the rebound, and Dan Shurts slotted it home for a 3-2 lead. The Crimson continued to be more aggressive, with Swenson stopping Turner Paine in front before Jake Lewis finally got the fourth goal, swiping home a shot from the slot after being left wide open. Randolph got a late 6-on-4 advantage, but Shurts scored into an empty net to complete Beard’s most comprehensive win over Randolph this season.

It marked the sixth time in eight years that Morristown-Beard eliminated Randolph in the Mennen Cup semifinals. The Crimson have not won an outright Mennen Cup title since 1983, although they did tie with Delbarton in the 1994 championship.

Chatham 2, Morris Knolls 1
Chatham continued to have Morris Knolls’ number in a pulsating late game, knocking off the defending Mennen Cup and public state champion for the second time this year with a 2-1 decision. The Cougars are now 2-0-1 against Knolls on the year and will play in their first Mennen Cup final since 1989 on Saturday. Chatham has not won a Mennen Cup as one high school, but Chatham Township’s last title came in 1981.

Despite reigning as the state’s top public for the entire season, Morris Knolls had been outshot in all six games against its three main Mennen Division rivals, and the Golden Eagles held true to form in the early going Thursday. Knolls took advantage of an early power play, as Tommy Tomensky snapped a shot from the right face-off circle past Michael Infante just 1:40 into the game. But it was all Chatham from then on in a hard, fast, chippy first period. Josh Ofner made 13 saves in the period to keep the score 1-0.

Infante had to make more saves (3) in the first 40 seconds of the second period than he had in the entire first period (2), but the Cougars withstood the trademark Knolls barrage and recovered to dominate the period. Chatham mixed in a 1-1-3 trap at times but could not solve Ofner, who had every fan in the arena turning to his neighbor in amazement that the state’s top public team was being dominated yet remained in the lead. He stopped Jeff Tompson twice on a shorthanded breakaway and later Rob Curcio on a breakaway to keep it a 1-0 game. The equalizing goal, from a Chatham counterattack, was slightly fortuitous. A pass out of the right corner found an unmarked target in front, but Ofner’s pokecheck deflected the puck high in the air toward the back post. Tompson, stepping up from defense, gloved the puck in mid-air but found himself behind the net. So he blindly backhanded the puck over a diving Ofner into the crease, where it deflected off a frantically arriving Dan Duda and into the net to tie the game 1-1.

Still, Ofner’s 28 saves had Knolls, with only seven shots, in a 1-1 game heading to the third period. Instead of the Golden Eagles on the initial attack, however, Chatham’s Jeff Chatterton won the face-off and whistled a shot wide of Ofner just five seconds into the period. As play continued, a Knolls dump-in attempt from center ice hit one of its own players trying to get out of the zone, and the face-off came all the way into the Knolls defensive zone. Chatham’s second line then scored the winning goal out of nothing, as Andrew Fabian’s shot from the left boards was deflected in front of the net, and Rob Curcio’s turnaround shot slipped past Ofner, still searching for the puck, at the near post. Any second-line goal was clearly going to be decisive, but Knolls had plenty of time to recover.

Although Fabian hit the post soon after, Knolls eventually settled in to control the period, but its top line of Tomensky, Duda, and Steven Jones looked tired much of the period and could not find its normal magic. The period kept fans on both sides on the edge of their seats, and the possibilities for strategy – matching lines to earn a power play, how many shifts to skate the third line, when to call time-out – were limitless. Infante made three saves on the period’s only power play, and the Cougar defense did a good job of limiting Knolls to one shot per possession on the power play. Infante really came to the fore in the middle-to-late part of the period and made 14 saves in the final stanza. His biggest came from point-blank range on Tomensky with 4:31 left, and Tomensky fired the rebound wide. The game’s final 1:10, with Ofner on the bench for a sixth skater, was breathtaking stuff, with the entire arena standing and all 12 players crammed into the space below the face-off circles, but Chatham held on for a well deserved victory.

The loss snapped a 14-game Knolls winning streak in tournament play and makes the defending public state champions appear especially vulnerable entering the state tournament. Three of Knolls’ four losses to public schools in the last two years have been against Chatham, and the teams could meet again in the public semifinals if both teams advance. The win was Chatham’s second high-quality win of the year, both against Knolls, and the Cougars will have to prove they can beat somebody else in Saturday’s final and the state tournament. But Chatham essentially battled Morristown-Beard to a tie last week, losing only because the Cougars pulled their goalie while going for the win, and are playing with sky-high confidence at the moment.

Morristown-Beard 5, Randolph 2

Scoring

Shots

1st
6:17 MB (sh) #23 Corey Schneider
2nd
9:33 Ran #9 Rob Kral (#22 Ricky Roma)
11:34 Ran #12 Chris Tamminga (#10 Derek Ranger)
3rd
2:12 MB (pp) #15 Ryan Paradis (#10 Pat Yannotta)
3:26 MB (pp) #21 Dan Shurts (#9 Sam Altiero, #15 Ryan Paradis)
7:04 MB #2 Jake Lewis (#4 Mikey Minskoff)
14:55 MB (sh, en) #21 Dan Shurts

Goalies
#31 Dan Swenson (Ran) 18-14
#30 John Yanchek (MB) 19-17

Power plays: Ran 0-3, MB 2-3

Chatham 2, Morris Knolls 1

Scoring

Shots

1st
1:40 MK (pp) #41 Tommy Tomensky (#14 Dan Duda, #44 Steven Jones)
2nd
11:07 Cha #36 Jeff Tompson (unassisted)
3rd
0:37 Cha #8 Rob Curcio (#14 Andrew Fabian, #19 Paul Ughetta)

Goalies
#1 Michael Infante (Cha) 21-20
#33 Josh Ofner (MK) 37-35

Power plays: Cha 0-1, MK 1-3

looking at the brackets

Now that I have a second to sit back and check out the brackets, let’s see what I can come up with. First of all, I talked to several members of the seeding committee about this stuff beforehand, and I know the committee members work very hard to go into the meeting prepared and come out with fair brackets. Props to them, it is no easy task. That said, here are some of my thoughts:

St. John Vianney (6) and Chatham (4) are in my opinion too high. How does St. John Vianney finish seventh in the Gordon Conference and get seeded sixth? If you take their Gordon Conference position and rank Morristown-Beard and Bishop Eustace ahead of them, they should be No. 9. To take a different approach … usually the seeding committee favors head-to-head results over standings. But CBA was 1-0-1 against SJV, including a Feb. 8 win. St. John did beat St. Peter’s Prep twice, but those were in December! The Lancers also lost their last six Gordon games. SJV at No. 6 creates a harsh quarterfinal matchup (Delbarton-CBA, two teams that were a combined 20-for-22 in reaching the semifinals) and a harsh first-round matchup (St. Peter’s Prep-Bishop Eustace) and a relative easy quarterfinal pairing (Pope John-St. John Vianney) for two teams that have a combined one semifinal appearance all-time. Questionable.
As for Chatham at No. 4 … it’s more legit than the SJV ranking. But the fact remains that Bridgewater-Raritan beat Chatham, and Montgomery has earned the right to be ranked ahead of BR. I think Montgomery at 4 (I had them at 3, but 4 would be fine), Bridgewater at 5, and Chatham at 6 would have been more fair – and I’m a guy who hates matching up teams from the same conference! So of the high rankings, Chatham was a bit questionable and St. John Vianney was a lot questionable. The coaches of both teams are on the seeding committee (but usually try not to participate in the placement of their own team.)

The NBIAL got some (deserved) love. The top four NBIAL teams were ranked 10-11-20-21, but three of the four are paired with Northern Conference teams for the first round. I would’ve liked to see a little more geographical diversity, but that’s not a big deal. I was surprised Indian Hills was seeded ahead of Ramapo, considering Ramapo won the league by a game and a half. But, as I mentioned earlier, the committee favors head-to-head results. An eight-spot differential between Ridgewood and Ramsey is tough, but probably necessary due to the glut of competitive teams from 1-20.

At-large bids. By now, you know. Red Bank Catholic, MKA, Middletown South, Paramus, and Morris Hills got at-large bids. Verona is the only team with a real complaint about the process, and I told you two weeks ago somebody deserving was going to be left out. Paramus didn’t make the playoffs in the weakest Red Division but had head-to-head success against Morris Hills, Tenafly, and even Clifton. Verona’s only big win was St. Joseph Metuchen, and the Hillbillies lost to West Orange. Morris Hills played the toughest schedule of the borderline three. Tough call all the way around, but I’m glad the committee supported the maximum of five teams.

Mouth-watering matchups. Don’t think Randolph isn’t already worried about playing Mountain Lakes a third time if they meet in the Round of 16. And a fourth Knolls-Chatham contest in the semifinals could be really enticing. Best possible first-round games: Steinert-Wall, Ridgewood-Fair Lawn, Clifton-Ramsey, Mountain Lakes-Montclair. For the round of 16, almost every game has potential.

The private tournament. Always a different atmosphere than the public tournament because there’s very little early-round drama. For example, Gloucester Catholic should definitely be ahead of Pingry, but it doesn’t really matter, because they don’t stand much of a chance of making the quarterfinals from either spot. I’ve already touched on the matchup that will keep either Delbarton or CBA out of the semifinals. Morristown-Beard could lose in the first round or make the semifinals, they’re that unpredictable. You have to figure Seton Hall Prep against Delbarton or CBA in the private final.

I know that was critical, but I really do think the committee, by and large, did a good job with this year’s field and definitely set things up for an exciting postseason.

Gordon Cup semifinals

The Gordon Conference was created to produce classic games like Wednesday’s semifinals.

The first semifinal, between Seton Hall Prep and Don Bosco Prep, had the laid-back crispness of most games at South Mountain, and it took the unbeaten Pirates a while to get going. The fourth-seeded Ironmen, playing without first-line forward Greg Blinn, took the lead with 58.5 seconds remaining in the first period. Skating out of his own zone, Billy Sanborn banked a soft pass off the right boards to Chris Buquicchio crossing the blue line. Buquicchio wristed a shot on net from the right circle that snuck through Zach Truesdell to give Bosco a 1-0 lead.

The Ironmen went up 2-0 early in the second period on the game’s only power play, although the play came in transition, rather than in an offensive-zone set. With a three-on-two on the left side, Sanborn made a slick backdoor pass that, although it was slowed down by a Pirate defenseman’s stick, found Kevin Reich arriving to finish just inside the right post to make it a 2-0 game. As so often happens, the goal seemed to wake Seton Hall Prep up, and the Pirates got back into things less than two minutes later when Matt Markovich slid a pass out of the right corner to a cutting Jan Trampota, who one-timed the puck just inside the left post. Seton Hall Prep tied the game four minutes later, when, from behind the net, John Passantino fed Chris Preziosi in the slot, and Bosco goalie Erick Cinotti could not hold his wrist shot.

The third period was a stop-start affair at times, with Seton Hall Prep coach Peter Herms complaining about Don Bosco’s sloppy line changes on the numerous stoppages of play. Herms kept skating three lines most of the period, while Gene Katz mixed and matched but seemed to shorten his bench a bit. The Ironmen had the better of play in the third period, with Truesdell reacting well to stop a sneaky backhand from the outstanding Sanborn and Reich ringing the crossbar with 1:59 remaining.

Seton Hall Prep had a definite advantage in overtime, with Bosco’s first line visibly weary. The Pirates dominated much of the period and finally cashed in to preserve their unbeaten record at the 9:42 mark. John Passantino swept in from the right wing, dragging a defender, and forced Cinotti dive to save his backhand attempt. The rebound lay loose in the low slot, and Preziosi reached it first to pop the puck into the now vacant net for the winning goal.

The overtime threw a wrench into my plan to cruise up Route 10 and make it to Randolph for most of the Delbarton-CBA game. In the end, I missed both goals in that game by about one traffic light.

Delbarton dominated the first two periods, if shot counts are any indication, but CBA struck first midway through the second period. Just after a power play ended, Mark Rivera was able to redirect a point shot from Michael Zuppe to give the sixth-seeded Colts the advantage. Delbarton won both meetings between the teams this year, and the Green Wave were back on level terms within 40 seconds, as third-line forward Zach Williams netted the tying goal. Williams’ return from injury has solidified Delbarton’s third line.

Its top two units were unable to crack Gary Kondler, however, and CBA seemed intent on duplicating its 2-1 overtime triumph in last year’s private championship game. The Colts got a mid-period power play in the third, and although Delbarton’s Jeff Leone had to make three saves in the first half of the power play, the best chance fell to Delbarton. Dan Pressl earned a neutral-zone steal for a breakaway, but could not find the net after deking to his backhand. Kondler later stopped consecutive shots from Williams and made a big save on Alex Smigelski with a minute remaining to send the game to overtime.

Delbarton appeared to have a slight advantage in overtime, with CBA content to rely on counterattacks and shoot from the blue line to test Leone. The period was fraught with tension on both sides, even moreso than in the Seton Hall Prep game, and seemed to bring out the best in both teams. With three minutes left in the 15-minute period, the Colts were clearly confident they would have an advantage in a shootout, relying on Kondler to outplay Leone.

So, five years after their epic private semifinal shootout, CBA and Delbarton were at it again. CBA won the coin toss, so Delbarton shot first. Kondler denied Matt Schillings with a poke check after Schillings moved to his backhand, but Leone answered by stopping Trevor Van Riemsdyk’s attempt at the five-hole. In the second round, Kondler foiled Pressl with a glove save, but CBA’s Mike Chilton missed while trying to beat Leone stick-side.

In the third round, Smigelski deked to his forehand and skated back to the Delbarton bench with celebratory shouts, but Kondler, flat on his stomach, had made a glove save to keep the shootout scoreless. Alex DePalma then gave CBA the lead, beating Leone with a fake to his forehand. Kondler had already stopped arguably Delbarton’s three best breakaway threats, but Charles Nerbak followed Smigelski’s lead by deking to his forehand and flipping it over Kondler’s glove. Leone responded with his best save of the shootout, a pad save on a low shot by Brett DePalma.

With the shootout tied 1-1 heading into the fifth round, Chris Volonnino confidently deked to his forehand before sliding the puck under Kondler for a 2-1 lead. Rivera responded with maybe the best-taken penalty shot, given the pressure, roofing a wrist shot to force extra frames. Freshman Alex Velischek stepped up for Delbarton’s sixth shot, snapping a left-handed shot past Kondler’s stick for a 3-2 lead. Needing to score, Ken Jordan tried to duplicate Rivera’s shot but missed high, and Delbarton advanced to its second Gordon Cup championship appearance in as many tries. Imagine what a fourth meeting would be like … you could see it in the private quarterfinals.

Seton Hall Prep 3, Don Bosco Prep 2, OT

Scoring

Shots

1st
14:01 DBP #12 Chris Buquicchio (#21 Billy Sanborn)
2nd
2:10 DBP (pp) #7 Kevin Reich (#21 Billy Sanborn)
4:01 SHP #19 Jan Trampota (#10 Matt Markovich, #7 Matt Kufta)
8:00 SHP #12 Chris Preziosi (#26 John Passantino, #24 Nick Passantino)
3rd
none
OT
9:42 SHP #12 Chris Preziosi (#26 John Passantino)

Goalies
#1 Erick Cinotti (DBP) 33-30
#30 Zach Truesdell (SHP) 26-24

Power plays: DBP 1-1

Delbarton 2, CBA 2, OT (Delbarton advances 3-2 in shootout)

Scoring

Shootout

Shots

1st
none
2nd
7:03 CBA #21 Mark Rivera (#7 Michael Zuppe, #8 Ken Jordan)
7:42 Del #25 Zach Williams (#13 Erik Olson, #2 Brian Fuller)
3rd
none
OT
none

Goalies
#36 Gary Kondler (CBA) 36-35
#35 Jeff Leone (Del) 23-22

Power plays: CBA 0-2, Del 0-1

Shootout
Goals:
CBA – Alex DePalma, Mark Rivera
Del – Charles Nerbak, Chris Volonnino, Alex Velischek
Saves:
CBA – Kondler 3-6
Del – Leone 2-4

brackets are out!

State tournament brackets are up. Click on the ‘states’ link above to get the brackets for the 2006 state tournaments.

working overtime

Two lackluster playoff games at Mennen Arena Monday were redeemed by a scintillating nightcap, as No. 2 Randolph needed overtime to escape another upset bid from Mountain Lakes. In the early games, Morris Knolls blasted Pingry 9-3 behind hat tricks from Dan Duda and Tommy Tomensky. Morristown-Beard cruised past West Morris 6-0 in the second game.

Randolph 3, Mountain Lakes 2, OT
The third game was always expected to be the best one of the night, and it didn’t disappoint. Mountain Lakes almost beat Randolph January 14, allowing a power-play goal and a deflected goal in the third period in a 2-1 loss.

Randolph looked more comfortable on this night, and although the Rams were not dominant around the net, they consistently wore down Mountain Lakes and scored in the final minute of the first (Rob Kral) and second (Derek Ranger) periods to take a 2-0 lead heading into the third period. In the third period, Mountain Lakes immediately got back into the game with a bouncing blue-line shot from Clint McDonough just 49 seconds into the period. In a bit of retribution for the Jan. 14 encounter, Lakes tied the game midway through the period on a power-play goal when Jacob Sutker’s wrist shot deflected off a Randolph stick to elude Dan Diamond.

Lakes goalie Matt Lowell, who finished with 34 saves, was strong down the stretch to send the game to overtime, the first overtime contest in the Mennen Cup tournament since 2002. The winning goal came at the 6:11 mark, as Ram defenseman Kyle Krannich – who assisted on all three goals – stickhandled into the left corner before centering the puck for Kral to bang home the winner. Randolph will face Morristown-Beard in the semifinals for the sixth time in the last eight years – the Rams are 0-5 against the Crimson in Mennen Cup play since their championship run in 1992.

Randolph 3, Mountain Lakes 2, OT

Scoring

Shots

1st
14:05 Ran #9 Rob Kral (#22 Ricky Roma, #21 Kyle Krannich)
2nd
14:24 Ran #10 Derek Ranger (#21 Kyle Krannich)
3rd
0:49 ML #44 Clint McDonough (unassisted)
7:41 ML #12 Jacob Sutker (#44 Clint McDonough, #21 Kyle Fisher)
OT
6:11 Ran #9 Rob Kral (#21 Kyle Krannich, #22 Ricky Roma)

Goalies
#30 Matt Lowell (ML) 37-34
#1 Dan Diamond (Ran) 18-16

Power plays: ML 1-2, Ran 0-2

gone fishin, be back Monday

The great seeding debate is in full swing, from inane forum posters to well-studied fans to nervous coaches to excited players. I’ve made my list of 49 (possibly 52) and my list of 18 (possibly 20), and it was so difficult that I’m skipping town. Cup tournaments may start today, but I’m taking a break with a four-day sojourn to Texas for some great college baseball, a little soccer, and some serious catching-up with friends. I should be able to update the site with scores and standings most nights, so hopefully you’ll hardly notice I’m gone. And I’ll be back Monday in time for full Mennen Cup coverage, plus whatever other games I can get to Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday. Enjoy.

empty victory

Morristown-Beard 3, Chatham 2
An empty-net goal in a tie game allowed No. 6 Morristown-Beard to escape with a 3-2 win over No. 17 Chatham Tuesday night at Mennen Arena. Chatham needed a win to earn second place in the Mennen Division, while a tie would leave the Cougars in fourth place. With the game tied 2-2 and a last-minute power play, veteran Chatham head coach Harvey Cohen pulled goalie Michael Infante for a sixth attacker with 28 seconds remaining, but Morristown-Beard’s Dan Shurts scored into an empty net to secure the victory.

Chatham had frustrated Beard all night with solid goaltending from Infante, a surprisingly effective three-line attack, and opportunistic offense. Despite being dominated in the first period, the Cougars took the lead midway through the stanza when standout defenseman Jeff Tompson, from his own blue line, banked a pass off the right boards to Jeff Chatterton at the far blue line. Chatterton, one-on-one with a defender, wound up and ripped a right-circle slap shot that beat John Yanchek inside the left post. Morristown-Beard kept up the pressure and found the tying goal with three seconds remaining inthe period when Greg Alberti crossed the blue line and beat Infante with a wrist shot to his blocker side.

Having tied the game, one might have expected Morristown-Beard to run roughshod over the Cougars in the second stanza, but instead it was Chatham getting an early opportunity when Pat Coyne rang the post just 23 seconds in. Most of the possession was in the Chatham end, but the Cougars did mix in a 1-3-1 forecheck when the puck was behind the Crimson net, and Morristown-Beard was rarely able to get stretch passes deep.

In the third period, the referees took center stage, as the teams were whistled for a combined five penalties in the first four minutes, to go along with one at the end of the second period. Chatham took advantage just one minute in, skating in a 4-on-3 situation. Tompson, set up in the left corner, landed a cross-ice pass on the tape of cutting defenseman Paul Ughetta in the high right slot. His shot was saved by Yanchek, who tried to hold on for a face-off, but Chatham’s Mario Bronzino poked the puck, apparently loose in Yanchek’s pads, into the net before the whistle blew. The Cougars held the slim lead, which would have kept them on the other side of the bracket from No. 5 Morris Knolls, until late in the period. With four minutes remaining, Chatham appeared to go to a 1-2-2 forecheck for the first time all night and quickly got burned. Crimson defenseman Pat Yannotta found Alberti behind the defense with a breakaway pass, and he deked past Infante on his backhand to bury the tying goal.

It looked like Chatham would have the best chance to win the game after a questionable slashing call with 1:14 left, but the Cougars needed a diving poke check by Pat Coyne to deny Shurts on a breakaway. Chatham then managed just one shot on the power play before pulling Infante, and Beard earned the win when Shurts found the empty net. The Crimson must regroup quickly, traveling to face Princeton Day in the NJISAA Prep B final tomorrow afternoon.

The result completes the schedule for the Mennen Cup quarterfinals, with Morristown-Beard matched up against West Morris, Randolph facing Mountain Lakes in the most intriguing matchup, and Chatham taking on Morris Hills. In the first of the four quarterfinals, Morris Knolls plays Pingry.

Morristown-Beard 3, Chatham 2

Scoring

Shots

1st
7:13 Cha #12 Jeff Chatterton (#36 Jeff Tompson)
14:57 MB #19 Greg Alberti (#21 Dan Shurts, #5 Matt Kruvant)
2nd
none
3rd
1:04 Cha (pp) #10 Mario Bronzino (#19 Paul Ughetta, #36 Jeff Tompson)
11:07 MB #19 Greg Alberti (#10 Pat Yannotta)
14:45 MB (sh, en) #21 Dan Shurts

Goalies
#30 John Yanchek (MB) 19-17
#1 Michael Infante (Cha) 28-26

Power plays: MB 0-3, Cha 1-5