This early in the season, so many games on Saturday will be worth watching.
South Windsor @ Fairfield Prep @ 1pm
-South Windsor better be ready to play in this one as they travel to Bridgeport's Wonderland of Ice to take on the team that beat them up in Simsbury 7-0 last year. Expect that to fuel some serious motivation in the Bobcats as they try to catch Fairfield Prep off guard early in the season. The Jesuits will need keep building on their monumental win over Ridgefield, 3-0, on opening night. South Windsor also sits at 1-0 after their 4-1 opening win against Simsbury so someone will be coming away with their first loss. This is certainly one of the top games of the day.
Darien @ West Haven @ 1
-This may be the first or second best game on Saturday but with so many good ones, there is no need to choose. Darien dropped a tough one 0-2 to Hamden on opening night so they will be both encouraged and motivated by that game. Darien is one of the top teams in the FCIAC this year while West Haven is looking to emerge as one of the top teams in the mighty SCC this year. The Westies rolled over Greenwich 5-0 in their first game and looking to just keep winning led by a potent offense, strong defense and goalie motivated by the expectations for his team this year. Be ready for a good one today at Bennett Rink.
East Haven @ Cheshire @ 2
-Big game right here as Cheshire will look to keep the momentum going from their 7-3 win over Conard on Wednesday as they take on another decent DI team, East Haven. The Easties only managed a 5-5 tie in their first game at home against Stamford so they should be playing with some intensity looking for their first win. You would think East Haven is the favorite in this one since Cheshire just moved up to DI this year but the Yellow Jackets just tied with a still DII team and Cheshire has come out ready to play this season. I think the Rams will come away victorious this one and start earning some respect from other DI teams in the state.
St. Joseph @ Guilford @ 6
-St. Joseph may be the DI team in this game but they are the ones looking for revenge after losing to Guilford early last season. Both teams went on to reach (and subsequently lose) the championship games in their respective divisions. The Cadets lost a lot of talent from last year's squad and Guilford lost some key players too but the Indians didn't lose as much and their advantage in terms of team chemistry this early in the season should result in a W. St. Joseph dropped their opener 2-6 to powerhouse Glastonbury and this will be Guilford's first game of the season.
North Haven @ Simsbury @ 8
-This game may not be the same caliber as the others I have featured but it still has importance. Both of these teams lost their opening games but are still good teams and will need to get back on track. North Haven only lost in the final minutes 0-1 to Xavier while Simsbury lost 1-4 to a good South Windsor squad. I'd pick the Thunderbirds to come out on top but anything can happen at this point in the season, especially at Simsbury's home ice.
Glastonbruy @ Ridgefield @ 850
-On paper this certainly looks to be the best game on the day; I see Glastonbury as the #1 or 2 team in the CCC and Ridgefield is my preseason pick to win the FCIAC so two teams at the top their conference battling out is sure to be some high quality hockey. Ridgefield lost their first game 0-3 to Fairfield Prep, the reigning DI and SCC champions, despite it being a home game but they will now host Glastonbury there as well in pursuit of that first win. Glastonbury picked up a convincing 6-2 win on Wednesday over new-look St. Joseph, last year's DI runner-up. If you can, I would definitely recommend attending this game; wish I could be there.
DII games:
Trumbull @ Newtown @ 5
-The Newtown Nighthawks have just moved up to DII this year and return a solid senior class. Big-time juniors like forward Christian Blais make this team deep and versatile. Coach Paul Esposito has coached most of these players for almost ten years between high school and youth hockey. Their anchor is goalie Mike Allwein who averaged only 2.87 goals against last year. Trumbull made it to Yale last year losing in the DII semi's and return forward Michale Ahearn who scored 19 goals last year. They will also still have a solid tender but some of the new younger forwards will need to step as most of their scoring form last year, aside from Ahearn, graduated. This game right here is good early season test for both teams looking to do well in DII this year. Newtown just barely lost 3-4 at Notre Dame-Fairfield in their opener while Trumbull topped Watertown/Pomperaug 5-2 on Wednesday.
Wethersfield @ Newington/Berlin @ 730
-Really a home game for both teams at Newington Arena, the rink these players grew up on. Wethersfield has high hopes for this year and this is their first game and though they open with a DIII team, N-B is at the top of their division in terms of talent, even though they dropped their first game 2-6 to, now DII, Staples/Weston/Shelton.
East Catholic @ Northwest Catholic @ 815
-A big rivalry between the catholic schools I like to watch every year. These kids know each other and take a lot of pride in choosing the school they attend over the other one. East is the defending CCC-North Champion and Northwest is one of my favorites to win DIII so this should be a very exciting game. East is 1-0 coming off a 6-1 win over St. Bernard/Bacon/NFA (not a very good team) while Northwest is also 1-0 after a big 4-3 win over Newington/Berlin, another top DIII team.
DIII games:
Rocky Hill/RHAM/Middletown @ Hall/Southington @ 1
-I like R-M-R to do well this year in DIII and this gives them a chance to build on their 3-1 over a middle of the pack DIII team, E.O. Smith/Tolland/Windham, on opening night. Hall/Southington suffered a tough loss 3-4 to a very good Northwest Catholic team in their opener so they will be playing with a bit of a chip on their shoulder still looking for their first one after coming so close on Wednesday. Both teams know should know the implications of this game as the result could end up being very decisive in DIII throughout the course of this season.
Joel Barlow @ Masuk @ 6
-Two of the teams that I think will be in top five of DIII this year are facing off in this SWC showdown at The Rinks at Shelton. Joel Barlow, leead by senior forward Mike Mattson, is 1-0 after a commanding 7-1 win over Norwalk/McMahon on Wednesday while this will be Masuk's first game. This game could also end up having major implication in the SWC-II Standings, as both teams will look to challenge Watertown-Pomperaug for the top spot this year.
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