Beyond the Scoresheet

Tuesday rundown

Nice work by Paul and J.C. at the Star-Ledger in today’s notebook: check it out here. A few things beg for a comment from yours truly, however.

Madison I’m glad somebody up there finally hopped on this story and got answers straight from the mouths of the coach and athletic director. However, the Ledger was not clear about the consequences. The article never states what rule Madison violated in the process. My real question is: has Madison been precluded from the state tournament for exceeding the limit on game disqualifications or because it refused to complete an athletic contest? The former seems the more likely, since I do not know of any NJSIAA statute that prevents teams from forfeiting games.

Shootouts Anyone who has talked to me about this issue knows how strongly I feel. But let me quote the article, which quoted the inimitable Paul McInnis:

“For teams that took part in a game-deciding shootout in a tournament this season, Paul McInnis, the NJSIAA state tournament director and ice hockey rules interpreter, has a message: Don’t count it as a tie. ‘Those teams in holiday tournaments that went to a shootout and advanced should count it as a win, and the team that didn’t should count that as a loss,’ he said. ‘In our meeting in April we’ll address this issue more clearly.’

This is lunacy. Whether you agree with the decision or not (and clearly, I don’t), the NJSIAA cannot continue to make decisions mid-season and inform coaches and athletic directors of them at the last minute or, in this case, after the fact. Teams have been playing overtimes and shootouts in holiday tournaments for years, but this year, with almost no warning, the NJSIAA decided to crack down on overtimes and force teams to go straight to shootouts. From everything I heard, that was a last-minute decision not everybody was aware of. But how can you rule that a shootout result should stand when (a) you admit you need to address the issue more clearly after the season, (b) even the NHL doesn’t count a shootout as a loss and (c) teams have already played shootouts, expecting the game itself to count as a tie. For the record, shootouts will continue to be listed as ties in my book.

Three games in a row So the Ledger reported that Don Bosco Prep will forfeit one of its wins in the Maine High School Hockey Invitational because the Ironmen played three games in three days. They would have had to forfeit the third one instead, but they lost that game anyway. This is in keeping with the NJSIAA’s precedent on violators of this rule (Delbarton, 1989 being the most well known case) but seems an odd penalty. What if the team lost all three games? How would the NJSIAA determine which game it should forfeit?
I have not heard if the NJSIAA will enforce similar penalties on Dumont (Dec. 21-23), Hudson Catholic (Jan. 4-6) or J.P. Stevens (Jan. 12-14), all of which played three games in three days. Dumont did not actually play the third game due to a forfeit, and the other two teams lost all three games.
In the Don Bosco Prep situation, I happen to know that the original schedule called for DBP to play three games in four days, but the tournament changed the schedule at the last minute due to other cancellations. Don Bosco had little choice in the matter and self-reported the violation upon its return to New Jersey.

So while the Ledger’s article didn’t answer every question, in my opinion, you have to like any report that brings up that many different storylines and gets that much space.

St. Rose I do have to give a shout-out to St. Rose for beating East Side 14-5 yesterday. I’m not quite sure how Peter O’Neill’s troops engineered a 10-goal turnaround from the teams’ first meeting, a 5-4 East Side win, but it’s good to see the Purple Roses get off the schneid. And I can now start wearing my East Side hockey shirt again. Seriously. Other teams still looking for a win include Hudson Catholic, Dayton, Old Bridge, Edison, West Morris and Middletown South … I’m rooting for each one to get at least one ‘W.’

Missing scores Game scores I’m missing … Jan. 12 Dem-OT; Jan. 12 MH-Reg; Jan. 14 Liv-SJHam.

At-large bids I received a question about at-large bids for Public B teams in competitive conferences (e.g. Verona, West Essex). To the best of my knowledge, the at-large process will be exactly the same as in the past: teams must finish within four games of .500 at the Feb. 11 cutoff date to apply for one of three public and two private at-large bids. Only three total public at-large bids will be awarded, and teams from both classes are eligible.

Trivia In preparation for next year, I’ve been wondering how to refer to John F. Kennedy Memorial High School in Iselin. What do the Mustangs they prefer? JFK Iselin? Iselin Kennedy? Kennedy (Iselin)? Kennedy Memorial? I have no idea. … It seems Jackson Liberty and Jackson Memorial have the same colors. Bizarre. … The itinerary for Delbarton’s trip to Minnesota is just freaking awesome. In addition to the three games, the Green Wave will see old friend George Parros (pictured with the trademark snarl of a Delbarton and Princeton graduate, at right) play in an NHL game, check out the U.S. Pond Hockey Championships (always a great photo in Sports Illustrated) and tour the University of Minnesota. Way better than our trips to Middlebury I went on in 1999 and 2000. … If you haven’t done so, check out this page on the Devils’ site - I like it a lot. … Finally, VOTE FOR DALE!

NFL playoffs digression

Let me talk football for a moment. What a series of games the NFL had this weekend! Between my high school sports coverage, my Sunday soccer league and my occasional social life, I haven’t watched a ton of football this year. But I managed to watch three of the four games this weekend, and they were all terrific. The fourth one - Green Bay’s win on Saturday - was played in one of the crazier snowstorms in NFL history. Quite a weekend!

Tonight, I had arranged to DVR the Giants-Cowboys game and watch it later this evening with one of my old roommates, a Cowboys fan. Driving into my apartment complex, I caught a glimpse of a neighbor’s TV and thought I saw somebody in white being interviewed. So I spent the whole game thinking the Giants were going to lose, only to see them pull it out in the end! Holy crap! I still can’t believe the Giants won that game after being completely unable to stop the Cowboys for most of the game.

Having been in Texas Stadium when the Giants beat the Cowboys in the fall of 2006, I can appreciate just how quiet that place got and how big it was for the Giants to win a game in that rivalry. I’ve hated the Cowboys since I was a little kid and they got the best of the Giants every year, it seemed, after Super Bowl XXV. So it’s nice to be on the other side of that.

Now I just wish I could be at Lambeau on Sunday.

Rankings, Vers. 3.0 (Dec. 30)

Alright, here’s the next installment of some rankings. Still not a lot of clarity between 10 and 25.
I’m putting these out there for discussion and debate, not because I think they’re infallible or because I’m particularly attached to any comparisons. I’m also splitting public schools into their Public A and Public B classifications, as we will for the state tournament.

Read on for the njhockey.org Top 10s:

Continue reading Rankings, Vers. 3.0 (Dec. 30)…

My one day of hockey

Well, I got to watch my one game of New Jersey hockey for the year this afternoon. To be honest, I prioritized friends and family today, with no regrets. After doing these interviews (Part I, Part II) on SportsNet America this morning, I decided to skip the drive to Skylands. Christmas shopping, y’know.

So I went over to Mennen this afternoon and caught up with a bunch of old friends, which was totally worth it. I got a serious handshake from Pingry coach John Magadini (who remembers when I came up to about his waist) and his staff after Pingry’s 9-2 win over Pequannock. I caught up with former Morristown baseball coach Harry Shatel, a friend and mentor to me, and several other friends from the Morris County scene. I also hung out with Dan Breeman of the Daily Record, a longtime friend and colleague.

And I watched some hockey. Arriving at Mennen near the end of the Pingry-Pequannock game, I had been in the rink for about five minutes when I got hit by a loose puck. What are the odds? Had I been in mid-season form, I might have made the catch, but I have to admit I turned away and let it hit me in the side.
I also officially met Roxbury coach Jon Benbow for the first time, and I watched his Gaels beat Park Regional 4-1. Roxbury really dominated the game, and only some sick saves from Anthony White kept Regional in it. You have to think Roxbury is the class of the Haas/Charette Division at the moment, although no big scorers really stand out.

Being back at Mennen for the first time in almost two years … I really, really missed the place. I missed the skate guards and announcements and banners and, most of all, the faces. It was just great to be back watching New Jersey hockey, and it reminded me how much I really do miss it sometimes.
There are a couple games worth seeing tomorrow, notably Indian Hills-Northern Highlands, Cranford-Watchung Hills, Rumson-Red Bank and Clifton-Ridgewood, but I will probably not be able to make any of them due to family commitments. I hope everybody in the hockey community gets to spend time with their respective families this holiday season.

Thursday update

A couple of results from Wednesday games that are worth noting. First of all, and most importantly, East Side got a win! The Red Raiders beat St. Rose 5-4 on Thursday for its first win since beating St. Rose 7-1 on Feb. 1, 2006. Of course, that’s only about five games ago, since East Side did not field a team last year. Next time these teams meet (Jan. 14), I’ll root for St. Rose.

I also wanted to point out an article most people may have missed on Delbarton’s 6-2 win over two-time defending Rhode Island state champion Bishop Hendricken.

I’ll be flying back to New Jersey for a brief holiday stay on Friday night, which means Saturday will probably be my only day of checking out N.J. hockey games this year. Any suggestions as to where I should go?

Thursday update
Just to explain several updates to various schedules … I’m told Hackettstown and Hudson Catholic had five players EACH given game disqualifications in their Dec. 17 game. That’s from one skirmish, in which I’m told no punches were thrown, and both coaches were baffled by the referees’ decision. It happened in the first period, and Hudson Catholic played the rest of the game with only six players, total.

Due to mandatory two-game suspensions (which will also yield state tournament ineligibility for both teams) for roughly half of its players, Hudson Catholic has chosen to forfeit its next two games: Friday against High Point and Sunday against Dumont. Assuming my schedules are up to date, that could save Dumont from playing on three consecutive days, which it should be noted is NOT legal. Dumont, Nutley, and Parsippany are all teams in danger of playing three games on three days at some point this month. This is a violation of NJSIAA rules and has, in the past, been punished with forfeits.

Rankings, Vers. 2.0 (Dec. 16)

Alright, I’ve always said I needed two weeks to rank teams, so I guess it’s that time again.

I’m putting these out there for discussion and debate, not because I think they’re infallible or because I’m particularly attached to any comparisons. I’m also splitting public schools into their Public A and Public B classifications, as we will for the state tournament.

Read on for the njhockey.org Top 10s:

Continue reading Rankings, Vers. 2.0 (Dec. 16)…

NJSIAA posts public split

As you can probably tell, I’m fascinated by the state’s process in splitting the public tournament. The NJSIAA has posted the list of teams that will be classified as Public A or Public B. The list is available on Page 11 of this document (which always makes for interesting reading anyway).

I haven’t done a 100 percent cross-check, but here are a couple of things:

Woodbridge and JFK Iselin are on this list, but Monroe is not. Odd, considering Monroe fields a varsity team, and Woodbridge and JFK Iselin do not.

Co-ops are listed with the enrollment of one school (Whippany Park, Point Pleasant Boro, Tenafly, Jonathan Dayton, Verona) only. This leaves all five as Public B teams, when a combined enrollment figure would have pushed Point Pleasant, Tenafly and Park Regional into Public A.

I was originally told Nottingham would be Public B, but apparently the split has been amended to place Nottingham in the Public A classification.

I don’t know if these are mistakes or if the NJSIAA has reasons, but I really feel this should have (a) been fact-checked better and (b) been released much, much earlier.

MONDAY EDIT: I have been informed that the NJSIAA will likely re-release the list in the coming days, presumably with some of these mistakes corrected.

TUESDAY EDIT: The NJSIAA has added Monroe and fixed the enrollment of various co-ops. This led to me discovering that Pascack Valley and River Dell are both co-op teams. Why does nobody tell me these things? The only kink that remains involves Verona and WWPN. I’m trying to get it sorted out.