Beyond the Scoresheet

freezing at the Cron Tournament

I bundled up in a turtleneck, two fleeces, and a jacket, and I still froze my butt off at the Cron Tournament Wednesday night. But I wouldn’t have it any other way. I fought through an hour of traffic to get there for the last two periods of Mendham’s surprisingly lopsided 7-1 win over West Essex. Sean Hermann scored twice for Mendham to finish as the tournament’s leading scorer with six goals and four assists. During the break, I enjoyed some real hot-stove baseball (fireplace baseball, if you want to get technical) fireside while reading Five Seasons, by Roger Angell. I’m only partway through it, but so far I highly recommend the series of pieces on the 1972-76 baseball seasons. His elocution is amazing.

Morris Knolls 3, Old Bridge 1
This was an intriguing contest between two teams with a combined record last year of 44-6-5. Pregame focus centered on enigmatic Old Bridge forward Nick Geraci, who was on the roster but not the ice to start the game. With Geraci absent and Old Bridge dressing just 13 players, Morris Knolls (4-0) looked to be strolling along after a persistent rebound goal from Tommy Tomensky just 55 seconds into the game. But Old Bridge did not back down for the rest of the period, and the game exploded into life at the 10:32 mark. Golden Eagle forward Justin Lewandowski knocked an Old Bridge defenseman into goalie Travis O’Brien at the whistle, and O’Brien remained on the ice as tempers started to flare. Geraci picked this moment to arrive, and, 10 seconds later, he drew the first of three Morris Knolls penalties in the period.

Set to open the second period with 40 seconds of 5-on-3 action, Old Bridge (3-1-1) was slow to line up for the face-off, huddling for a team cheer, and was assessed a delay-of-game penalty. Still, the difference in the Knights was readily apparent, as Geraci’s presence made defenseman and captain Ryan Melis (who showed some class by shaking hands with all four Knolls coaches before the game) more willing to go forward and the whole team more assertive. This aggression led to penalties, however, and Morris Knolls had five virtually consecutive power plays in the early part of the period. The Golden Eagles finally cashed in at 6:44, with Dan Duda patiently waiting for a lane to clear before dropping a great backdoor pass down low to Steven Jones, who slotted it behind O’Brien.

The penalties continued immediately, as Knolls took a five-minute boarding penalty just 10 seconds later. For the period, Knolls skated 5-on-3 for almost 2:30, while Old Bridge had 3:49 of consecutive power play time thanks to the major penalty. Yet the Knights were unable to get a single shot on Morris Knolls goalie Josh Ofner during the lengthy power play, even against Knolls’ second-line penalty killers. Old Bridge got one more power-play chance in the period, and Ofner truly rose to the occasion as the difference in the game, although he did get some help when Geraci wrang a wrist shot off the post. By my unofficial tally, Ofner made at least nine saves in the game on Geraci alone.

Morris Knolls essentially put the game away just 34 seconds into the third period on a brilliant individual goal from Dan Duda, who stepped up perfectly to intercept a pass at center ice, sped around one defenseman, and beat O’Brien with a high wrist shot. Old Bridge had four more power plays late in the game, finally breaking Ofner’s shutout bid with an even-strength goal at 14:14. Melis made an excellent pass from the right point to Geraci in the lower left circle, and he one-timed a high shot past Ofner. But Knolls hung on, despite nine Old Bridge power plays, for the win.

Morris Knolls won its fourth consecutive Cron Tournament title, a feat surpassed only by the five consecutive championships St. Joseph Metuchen won from 1993-97. Ofner was named MVP for the second consecutive year, this time stopping 25 shots in the championship game and 47 of 49 for the tournament. Knolls extended its winning streak against public schools to 12 games. The loss broke an 18-game regular-season unbeaten streak for Old Bridge, which lost in the public round of 16 to Middletown North last year and was eliminated in the Southern Blue cup on a shootout.

Morris Knolls 3, Old Bridge 1

Scoring

Shots

1st
0:55 MK #41 Tommy Tomensky (#44 Steven Jones)
2nd
6:44 MK (pp) #44 Steven Jones (#14 Dan Duda, #11 Danny Coiro)
3rd
0:34 MK #14 Dan Duda (unassisted)
14:14 OB #12 Nick Geraci (#22 Ryan Melis)

Goalies
#33 Travis O’Brien (OB) 21-18
#33 Josh Ofner (MK) 26-25

Power plays: MK 1-5, OB 0-9

Monday at Mennen

I caught the first two games at my home rink, Mennen Arena, Monday, both crucial games for Mennen Division teams.

Morristown-Beard 3, Randolph 2
In the first game between the three teams who appear to be actively chasing Morris Knolls in the Mennen Division, the Crimson were slightly fortunate to come away with a one-goal win. Neither team shot well on the day, and Beard (2-1) held off a spirited third-period comeback for the 3-2 win over Randolph (1-1).

After a fairly even first period that saw Randolph use its speed to produce a swarming forecheck but fail to cash in on any opportunities, Morristown-Beard took control of the game in the final minute. After Dan Swenson made a save on Crimson forward Greg Alberti, Dan Shurts controlled the rebound in the right face-off circle, deked between one defender’s legs, and lifted a backhand over Swenson’s glove at the near post for a 1-0 lead. Then came the crushing blow, after a penalty against Randolph with 0:03 remaining in the period. Beard head coach John Puskar pulled his goalie for an extra attacker on the offensive-zone face-off. That decision, combined with a slow clock start, set up Pat Yannotta for a bad-angle slap shot from the right corner that snuck through Swenson at the buzzer.

The game appeared to swing in Morristown-Beard’s favor early in the second period. With the Crimson on the power play, Ram defenseman Ricky Roma stole the puck in the neutral zone and skated in against John Yanchek with a brekaway. Skating in from the left side, Roma deked to his backhand, but Yanchek made a sprawling glove save at the right post to preserve the 2-0 lead. The Crimson added to their lead just one minute later on their third power play of the game. Yannotta was again the key figure, keeping the puck in the offensive zone with a gloved knock-down at the blue line before whipping a shot on net. Swenson made the save, but Sam Altiero was on hand to slot in the rebound. Randolph increased its pressure, aided by two power plays, and had a 26-15 shot advantage through two periods but remained in a 3-0 hole.

After killing an early penalty in the third period, Randolph came to life on a strange goal at the 4:04 mark. Ed Keenan’s wraparound attempt was deflected straight up in the air. With Yanchek down to protect against the wraparound, he lost sight of the puck, which caromed off his back and into the crease, where Greg Da Silva was on hand to tap it in. The Rams got to within a goal just 1:36 later, as forward Rob Kral rode a defender inside from the right boards and squeezed a bad-angle wrist shot between Yanchek’s glove shoulder and the crossbar for a terrific goal. Randolph only got more aggressive and confident as the period wore on, but never seriously tested Yanchek; his second-period save on Roma turned out to be the key play.

Randolph will turn its attention to another crucial division clash with rival Chatham on Thursday, while Morristown-Beard could have trouble with Mountain Lakes, a tough defensive team, the same day.

Morris Hills 4, Pingry 2
It is far too early in the season to be talking about must-win games, but Morris Hills’ contest against Pingry was as close as you can get. In their first season in the Mennen Division, the Scarlet Knights played well but lost their first two divisional contests. They have yet to suit up all three first-line forwards in a league game, with the trio of Jon Gaffney, Scott Shapiro, and Joe DiScala each missing a game.

It did not matter which two were playing in the first period, however, as Pingry (1-1-1) took advantage of an uninspired Morris Hills (2-2) team to take a 2-0 lead. Leading forward Dan Ambrosia opened the scoring at the 2:43 mark for John Magadini’s team, creeping out from behind the net and backhanding a shot through the legs of Ilya Schuf. Big Blue forward Dan Weiniger scored a similar goal midway through the period, skating out from the opposite corner and roofing a wrist shot past Schuf’s glove. Morris Hills outshot Pingry but, setting the tone for the game, took three penalties in the first period.

The Scarlet Knights got two power plays early in the second period, however, and although they did not score, Gaffney and Shapiro seemed to come to life. Late in the period, Gaffney hit Shapiro with a pass at center ice, and the latter stickhandled through the slot before backhanding a shot over Pingry goalie Bard Riccardi. (On a side note, Bard? Are you serious? Only at Pingry. All name jokes aside, and with no offense to his parents, he played well.) Pingry went on the power play with 1:41 left in the period, and Hills’ frustration showed a bit when Gaffney was called for closing his glove on the puck in the offensive zone. But Shapiro won the resulting neutral-zone face-off and wristed a shot from the high slot that caught Riccardi by surprise, tying the game.

The tying goal seemed to give Morris Hills confidence in the third period, and Gaffney scored probably the best goal I’ve seen this season to get things started. He intercepted a pass in his own right face-off circle and took off, skating past three defenders and deking past a fourth before beating Riccardi with an elaborate move and tucking the puck in on the left side. Soon after, he skated in alone on Riccardi with a semi-breakaway and deked to his backhand, this time, turning away in celebration. But Riccardi made a diving lunge at the puck to save a goal, despite Gaffney’s protests that it had crossed the line. Nevertheless, he sewed up the game with 7:08 remaining on another shorthanded strike, this one a lightning-quick wrist shot from the left wing.

Like most games this season, the game was marred by penalties, but Morris Hills pulled out the win to stay on pace for a state tournament berth. Pingry has now squandered multiple-goal leads in both league games it has played, but the Big Blue are much improved over past seasons.

Morristown-Beard 3, Randolph 2

Scoring

Shots

1st
14:22 MB #21 Dan Shurts (#19 Greg Alberti)
15:00 MB (pp) #10 Pat Yannotta (#19 Greg Alberti)
2nd
3:52 MB (pp) #9 Sam Altiero (#10 Pat Yannotta)
3rd
4:04 Ran #26 Greg Da Silva (#16 Ed Keenan, #10 Derek Ranger)
5:40 Ran #9 Rob Kral (#15 Ed Keenan)

Goalies
#30 John Yanchek (MB) 35-32
#31 Dan Swenson (Ran) 17-14

Power plays: MB 2-4, Ran 0-4

Morris Hills 4, Pingry 2

Scoring

Shots

1st
2:43 Pin #26 Dan Ambrosia (unassisted)
8:41 Pin #17 Dan Weiniger (#14 Andrew Krill)
2nd
12:09 MH #10 Scott Shapiro (#9 Jon Gaffney)
14:01 MH (sh) #10 Scott Shapiro (unassisted)
3rd
1:34 MH #9 Jon Gaffney (unassisted)
7:52 MH (sh) #9 Jon Gaffney (unassisted)

Goalies
#33 Bard Riccardi (Pin) 29-25
#1 Ilya Schuf (MH) 19-17

Power plays: Pin 0-6, MH 0-4

a busy Saturday

I had my first driving Saturday of the season, seeing most of three games at three different rinks. I started out at South Mountain for CBA-Seton Hall Prep, moved to Randolph for the last two periods of Pope John-Delbarton, and finished up at Mennen for Mendham-Jefferson.

Seton Hall Prep 1, CBA 0
It took me a bit to adjust to the new-look South Mountain Arena, which is under renovation. From what I could tell, it’s going to be awesome when finished. I’ve always been a fan of the airplane-hangar look, and if they can just get lighting to match the new seats and boards, it’ll be a gem.
Seton Hall Prep controlled the game throughout, playing with much more speed and confidence in the offensive zone. The Colts tired themselves out backchecking, but limited Seton Hall Prep’s odd-man rushes. Despite a 21-6 SHP shot advantage, the game was scoreless into the third period. CBA survived two lengthy 5-on-3 power plays for Seton Hall, while the Colts failed to take advantage of two breakaways.
Ryan Cuming was outstanding in net for CBA, including a brilliant three-save sequence three minutes into the game. After a 1-1 tie a week ago against St. Peter’s Prep with a big shot advantage, the difference for Seton Hall on this Saturday were senior stars Mike Cacciotti and Rem Vanderbeek, who both missed last week’s game. Early in the third period, Cacciotti’s deft pass from the left corner found Vanderbeek’s tape in the low slot for a one-timer through the legs of Cuming. The Pirates were never able to put the game away, but CBA, playing without transfer Mike Chilton as he sits out the required 30 days, had no offensive touch around the net.

Pope John 1, Delbarton 1
South Mountain to Aspen is not exactly a short trip, so we missed the first period of the Delbarton-Pope John game. We arrived with Delbarton leading 1-0 on a first-period goal from Dan Pressl. Pope John goalie Kevin Kobilinski (19 saves) kept the Lions in the game on three Green Wave power plays in the second and third periods. Although Pope John failed to generate many good chances, the Lions tied the game with 6:47 remaining in the third period on a point shot that Delbarton goalie John Leone (17 saves) never saw. Delbarton had pulled out a last-second victory over Don Bosco Prep earlier in the week, but Pope John was the more aggressive team down the stretch, finishing with an 8-4 shot advantage in the third period.

Mendham 5, Jefferson 2
I returned to Morristown in time to catch this game. The first two periods were a bit dull, with the only goal a fluke from the far blue line that gave Jefferson a 1-0 lead. But Mendham woke up in the third period on two early goals from the delightfully named Giovanni Marinelli. David Neves added two goals before Marinelli completed his hat trick into an empty net.

Boxscore

Scoring

Shots

1st
none
2nd
none
3rd
1:04 SHP #17 Rem Vanderbeek (#11 Mike Cacciotti)

Goalies
#1 Ryan Cuming (CBA) 32-31
#30 Zach Truesdell (SHP) 12-12

Power plays: CBA 0-3, SHP 0-6

Morris Knolls 4, Morristown-Beard 2

Defending Mennen Cup and public state champion Morris Knolls (2-0) passed its first test of the season Friday with a 4-2 win over division rival Morristown-Beard (1-1). The teams tied their first two games last year and Knolls won an exciting Mennen Cup final 1-0 on a last-minute goal, but the December encore was a distinct anticlimax, thanks in part to 14 minor penalties.

Dan Duda opened the scoring at the 6:42 mark when he stepped up from the neutral zone to keep the puck in at the blue line, then cut into the high slot and beat John Yanchek. Morristown-Beard leveled the game on a Corey Schneider goal less than two minutes later. The game turned in the middle of the second period. Knolls got a lucky goal off the hip of forward Charlie Van Houten, and Dan Coiro followed with a power-play goal to make it 3-1. Morristown-Beard turned up the pressure after that, peppering Knolls goalie Josh Ofner with 16 second-period shots. It finally paid off at the 13:34 mark, as Dan Shurts was credited with a goal when a Knolls player inadvertently poked the puck into his own net during a scramble. The Crimson continued to carry play for most of the third period, but Tommy Tomensky sealed the game with 2:52 remaining by lifting a rebound over the shoulder of Yanchek on the power play. Both goalies played well, but Ofner stood out with a 31-save performance.

The win earns Knolls an early leg up on defending its Mennen Division and Cup titles. The Golden Eagles will shift their focus to a fourth consecutive Cron Tournament title with a Monday night matchup against West Essex. Beard next faces an important division game Monday against Randolph.

Boxscore

Scoring

Shots

1st
6:42 MK #14 Dan Duda
8:24 MB #23 Corey Schneider (#17 Mike Jacquin)
2nd
4:51 MK #19 Charlie Van Houten (#5 Dennis Cole)
7:21 MK (pp) #11 Dan Coiro (#13 Dan Duda)
13:34 MB #21 Dan Shurts (#5 Matt Kruvant, #19 Greg Alberti)
3rd
12:08 MK (pp) #41 Tommy Tomensky (#14 Dan Duda)

Goalies
#9 Josh Ofner (MK) 35-33
#30 John Yanchek (MB) 22-18

Power plays: MK 2-8, MB 0-6

Putting together a schedule

I’m in Dallas for a few days, but this was written Nov. 21 for the Hockey Night in Boston preview. Apparently I wrote too much, as it didn’t quite make it. So here’s a brief look at the scheduling process … what a friend of mine from Rice would call an investigative blog.

Investigative blog – Scheduling
Coaches may not be able to control how their team plays on the ice, but they almost always have plenty of influence on who their team plays in non-league games. New Jersey coaches have anywhere from 5 to 13 non-league games to schedule, and each coach has his own style on this inexact science.

Non-league schedules are usually a good indicator of what a coach thinks of his team and division. After reaching February unbeaten last year in the relatively weak NBIAL, Indian Hills coach Phil Murphy is making the most of his limited non-league options this year by playing five top public schools, including two before Christmas.
“Since the NBIAL is new and somewhat unknown, we felt that we needed to play some Red Division teams and the top Morris County teams to become more recognizable with the other teams throughout the state,” Murphy said. “With the diversity in our schedule, we hope to improve our state ranking with the [seeding] committee when the time comes.”
Morris Knolls head coach Walt Keiper, on the other hand, is stepping out of the public ranks to test his defending public state champion. The Golden Eagles face central Jersey preps Princeton Day and Hun and two Gordon Conference teams, Hudson Catholic and Pope John.
“We play night in and night out against some of the top public schools in the state,” Keiper said of his league schedule. “Picking up games against private schools is a change for our program and will only strengthen the team. … I feel if you want to improve your program, you need to play tough opponents every game.”
In south Jersey, the difficulty of non-league scheduling is often compounded by obligations to the all-sport Shore Conference, which includes 18 of the 23 schools defined as ‘southern’ by the NJIHL. CBA head coach Mike Reynolds, for example, had 20 of his 21 games decided for him — 16 Gordon Conference games and four games in the Shore A Division.
Similarly, the central Jersey all-sport Skyland Conference will award a hockey championship this year, forcing public powers like Ridge and Bridgewater-Raritan to cancel already-scheduled games in favor of contests with first-year program Hillsborough, even though all five Skyland Conference teams already play in the holiday Somerset County Tournament.
Many NBIAL coaches have rankled under the 18-game league schedule imposed by their athletic directors that limits non-league opportunities. Still other coaches are limited by travel restrictions and ice time; teams in the lower divisions of the CVC and MCSSIHL often play non-league games against league teams, just to fill out the schedule.
But the most interesting part of the scheduling equation is the rule for state tournament qualification, which requires non-Gordon teams to have at least a .500 winning percentage as of the second Saturday in February to make the tournaments. Mid-level public coaches like Morris Hills’ Ed Higdon and Rumson/Fair Haven’s Dave Smith, among others, have to carefully plan their schedules around this deadline. This means realistically assessing their team’s chances of winning 50 percent of its games while trying to get as much exposure as possible against different regions of the state in hopes of a high seed.
Morris Hills, for example, competing in the Mennen Division for the first time since the advent of the MCSSIHL’s hierarchical division structure in 1986, can realistically expect to be 1-3 games under .500 from its league schedule. Higdon has carefully crafted his non-league schedule with six games against MCSSIHL teams from the Haas and Charette Divisions, simultaneously scheduling Paramus, Princeton, and Bayonne as ‘reach’ games. One can project Morris Hills’ record anywhere from 9-12 to 15-7, but the smart money would be on the Scarlet Knights finishing within two games of the .500 mark.
“You call all over leaving messages and trying to match up available ice-time, frequency of games in a week, and honoring commitments from last year,” Higdon said. “The state tournament is a factor, and I know that if we don’t play good hockey this year, we could miss the tournament.”
Smith, coaching his Bulldogs in the parity-ridden Southern White, has an even tougher puzzle to solve. After 12 league games and 4 Shore B matchups, he has 7 games in which to improvise. A 6-6 league season is a real possibility, and the additional Shore B games could easily see a 1-3 record. So he has to plan to go at least 4-2-1 in his non-league games to make the state tournament.
“Obviously, you need to keep in mind the goal of being .500 at the deadline, but it can be self defeating to place too much weight on that goal,” Smith said. “Every coach is guilty of looking at the schedule in advance, but I’m of the opinion that there’s no use qualifying for the state tournament if you can’t realistically envision advancing several rounds.”
With the Shore Conference encouraging crossover games, Smith scheduled four games against Shore C teams, which should be enough to get Rumson over the hump. His three remaining games? Tests against southern public power Middletown North, CVC middler WWPS, and Central Red veteran West Essex.
“We feel we can compete in the Southern White and should be no worse than .500 there,” Smith said. “We also know the Shore B could be a disaster for us, but under the best circumstances, it will toughen us up and make us better. Of our optional games, we’ve added one against a much higher-ranked opponent, two against opponents that should be of relatively equal strength, and four against regional rivals who are ranked below us, but all of whom should show up prepared to battle.”

Finally, HNIB New Jersey ranks the five strongest non-league schedules for public schools, given preseason information.

1.Indian Hills — Phil Murphy was 5-for-5 with his non-league games, scheduling three of last year’s four public semifinalists plus Northern Red powers Bayonne and Clifton.
2.Randolph — Having your own ice certainly helps, as Rich McLaughlin lined up Don Bosco Prep from the Gordon Conference in addition to four serious public contenders — Bridgewater-Raritan, Ridge, Middletown South, and Indian Hills. The Rams will also skate in the Montclair tournament.
3.Bridgewater-Raritan — Excepting three required Skyland Conference games, Patrick Alvin scheduled three of his remaining five games from the state’s top public division, a fourth with the best public in the south, and a fifth with the CVC’s top public.
4.Ridgewood — Not a regular powerhouse, but the Maroons face four Red Division teams, including Red Bank Catholic, plus relative unknowns Ramsey (twice) and Princeton. The two games with Glen Rock hurt but could be a must for the state tournament.
5.Morris Knolls — I hate to pick another big gun, but Walt Keiper deserves some props for scheduling the big boys. If only the season opener could’ve been Knolls-CBA to settle last year’s score. Knolls takes on PDS, Hun, Pope John, and a weak Hudson Catholic squad in addition to public tests against Bridgewater-Raritan, Indian Hills, and Toms River East, plus the Cron Tournament.

Bridgewater-Raritan 2, Ridge 1

well, I saw a lot more penalties today than I would have liked, but I also saw two very competitive games. I started at Bridgewater, where Mountain Lakes rallied from a 3-0 deficit early in the second period for a 3-3 tie with Pingry. Half of the game’s goals were scored on power plays.

Bridgewater-Raritan 2, Ridge 1
This was my second trip to the Rock, and it once again made me think of what I imagine Indiana high school basketball to be like … everybody parking on residential streets, the bandbox-like arena packed 20 minutes before face-off, people squeezing themselves onto the balcony, local rivals exchanging cheers and jeers, a county championship banner … a great atmosphere, to be sure, even if the spotty wireless microphone and the banging on the balcony made life tough for the national-anthem singer.

But the game couldn’t quite match the hype, to be honest. The teams combined for 16 penalties, including 9 in the first period, which prevented the game from flowing and limited both coaches’ ability to use their depth.
The sloppiness started early, with Bridgewater taking a too-many-men penalty on its first line change of the season. Before the ensuing face-off, Ridge then had to call timeout for Jon Lyons to switch goalie masks. Bridgewater eventually took an early lead, with captain Kevin Tino winning a face-off for linemate Chris Caravanos to snap into the side netting on Lyons’ stick side. The Panthers failed to capitalize on two mid-period power plays, however, and Ridge started to creep back into the game late in the period. Matt Germann rang the crossbar on a power play, which was soon nullified for a penalty. Immediately after four-on-four action ended, Greg Zambon broke into the offensive zone and, from the left slot, whipped a wrist shot inside the right post, beating Panther starter Gary Biggs to tie the game 1-1.
The barrage of power plays continued in the second period, and Ridge even had about 30 seconds of six-on-four on a delayed penalty call. With the teams a combined 0-for-10 on the power play, Bridgewater finally snapped the tie at the 10:40 mark of the second period. With a power play winding down, Caravanos and Tino broke into the zone with a two-on-one, and Tino snapped a shot past Lyons from the right slot for the crucial goal, one second before the penalty expired.

Predictably, Ridge stepped up the pressure in the third period, and Biggs responded well, although the Red Devils did not get many good scoring opportunities and were forced to rely on long stretch passes late in the game. Biggs had to make only one save down the stretch, and when Caravanos cleared the zone for the last time, Bridgewater celebrated (with plenty of emotion) its first victory ever over Ridge in eight total meetings (1-6-1).

The game was played like a season opener – sloppily – but the atmosphere made it absolutely worth the trip. The two teams are not scheduled to meet again until January 13, but both squads will hope to be in the Somerset County championship game December 28.

Boxscore

Scoring
Rid 1 0 0 — 1
BR 1 1 0 — 2

Shots (my tally)
Rid 4 9 8 — 21
BR 9 8 8 — 25

1st
4:14 BR #13 Chris Caravanos (#20 Kevin Tino)
13:04 Rid (sh) #13 Greg Zambon (#8 Scott Kiliyanski)
2nd
10:40 BR (pp) #20 Kevin Tino (#13 Chris Caravanos)
3rd
none

Goalies
#45 Jon Lyons (Rid) 25-23
#23 Gary Biggs (BR) 21-10

Power plays: Rid 0-5, BR 1-7

Opening Day at Mennen

As usual, I spent my opening day at Mennen Arena as much as possible. I actually only got to see the first game, the beginning of the second, and the end of the third, but it was good to be back watching games that count. Mennen looked in good shape, with clean ice, fancy MCPC logos, and new nets. Roxbury even had new uniforms, refuting my Pope John comment from last week. And it’s always good to see little kids taunting high-schoolers for being too slow to a loose puck.

Roxbury 3, Pequannock 3
The first game was Roxbury-Pequannock in an early matchup of perceived Haas Division favorites. I thought Pequannock was the better passing team, but Roxbury had the better of play and a 35-25 shot advantage. After a 1-1 first period, Pequannock took a 2-1 lead early in the second period on a power-play goal from Matt McGee after a deft cross-ice pass. But Roxbury responded inside of five minutes, as Alicia Lepore jammed home a rebound and Brandon Davis followed with a quick wrist shot from the right wing. Kevin McCloskey was pretty solid in the Roxbury net while protecting the lead, but Pequannock really started applying pressure down the stretch in the third period. Finally, with McCloskey on the ground, Matt Iaccheo slotted in a rebound from a bad angle to tie the game with 1:24 remaining. In a bizarre twist, Iaccheo was then penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct, but Roxbury could not take advantage of the power play, and the teams settled for a 3-3 tie.

Mt. Olive 7, Parsippany Hills 3

Morristown-Beard 4, Morris Hills 1
In the marquee game of the day, locally speaking, Morris Hills played its first game as a member of the Mennen Division against Morristown-Beard. I’m told Hills had the better of play in the first two periods, and the Scarlet Knights got a lead late in the first period on a Jon Gaffney goal. But Morristown-Beard snuck back into the game on a Sam Altiero goal late in the period and went ahead just 19 seconds into the second period on a Dan Shurts goal. Morris Hills had a 19-10 shot advantage through two periods, but tired in the third period, perhaps partially due to the absence of first-line forward Scott Shapiro.
On a penalty kill past the halfway mark in the third period, Hills got two men caught deep on the offensive forecheck, leaving Beard with a 3-on-2. Greg Alberti took it himself down the left wing, cutting inside and deking around Ilya Schuf to make it 3-1. Mike Jacquin added a goal with 2:10 left to seal the deal. John Yanchek finished with 21 saves for the Crimson, while Schuf made 15 stops. But it looks like the Mennen Division ought to be exciting once again this year.

Elsewhere
Okay, I got a confirmation of the 10-0 MonDon score … that’s pretty impressive. Second-line forward Luke Segreto hit for a hat trick, so it sounds like the Griffins were too deep. And it means I have to eat crow on the first day of the season. I got a (well-written) email from a MonDon fan last night explaining why that fan thought I was mistaken in leaving MonDon at the bottom of the division, and it looks like that fan was right. So mad props to MonDon, that’s a great opening performance. And St. Augustine Prep made a little statement of its own, too. Unfortunate opening night for the Middletowns.
Other than that, of the scores I’ve seen, I’d say the Brick-TRE score (2-2) surprised me the most; I thought Brick would come out flying against that division. And it sounds like Steinert and HoVal had no problem in the CVC. I’m still waiting on several scores though, so send me some emails, preferably with enough information to prove you were actually at the game … I much prefer emailed scores to getting results off the NJO forum.