Lots of games on deck for Saturday, not as big as some past Saturday's this season, but for two teams it is the day they can clinch a spot in the CIACI Division I State Tournament and there are some revenge games from last season being played today.
Daniel Hand @ Conard @ 1pm
-Why I'm interested in this one is that Conard has shown some instances of potential this year in a 3-2 win over South Windsor and a 3-2 win over Fermi/Enfield (I guess also a 2-3 loss to Simsbury). They now face a good DII team in Daniel Hand but Hand did lose to Fermi/Enfield 2-4. Also, the Tigers are on a three-game losing streak (all DI opponents, they are 3-1 with an OT loss in DII). However, this is their best chance of ending that streak since they will face #9 East Haven and Milford co-op next week. I really can't wait to see who wins this game.
Notre Dame-Fairfield @ #2 Notre Dame-West Haven @ 1
-I like this game for a lot of reasons. First, at 7-2, a win here means ND-WH would qualify for states and I don't really doubt that they will. However, ND-F upset them last year and no one saw that coming either and if ND-WH doesn't get over their loss to Ridgefield and channel that anger into getting better, the Lancers have the talent to do it again. The other interesting aspect to this game is that these two schools would face each other on a more regular basis if CT created a private school league for athletics. I contemplated it a bit during lacrosse season since both MA and NY (and I think NJ) have one but it has been discussed in earnest, mainly with a focus on basketball by my colleague Dave Rudden (of the CT Post). I personally am against it because of how spread out the teams are (Manchester to Stmaford) and the inequality amongst them (in all sports) but it is still an interesting discussion.
Pawling (NY) @ Joel Barlow @ 150
-Pawling is 6-3-1 and 4-2-1 in Conference I of Section 1 in NY (4th place) so they are probably a good team. Barlow could use the out-of-state test to get some more experience and back to their winning ways. The CIAC has Pawling as a "tier 2 out-of-state opponent" meaning they are equivalent to a DII team in terms of points for a victory (4, 2 for a tie) and remember the bonus points (2 in this case) are automatically awarded if Barlow wins, regardless of if Pawling qualifies for their state tournament.
Hingham (MA) @ #3 Hamden @ 230
-Another big out-of-state opponent for Hamden since Hingham beat them 4-0 last year. The Hingham Harbormen are #5 in Massachusetts with a 6-2 record. For reference, St. John's (Shrewsbury, MA) that Hamden just lost to 1-2 on Friday night, is ranked #22 at 6-3-1. Springfield Cathedral that Fairfield Prep beat 5-0 is #23 (Prep has #2 Boston College High at the Prudential Center and #6 Catholic Memorial in Bridgeport on their schedule still this year and those rankings can still change). Ranks were generated on 1/8/12 and there are 206 teams; we have 58 in CT (23 in DI, 18 in DII, 17 in DIII).
#7 North Haven @ Amity @ 315
-After W Haven's loss to Simsbury, N Haven needs more good wins to bolster their resume once again. Amity does not have the best record but I feel like they are ready to pull an upset just like they did last year over ND-WH; they played Cheshire to a 2-3 loss two games ago and only lost 1-3 to #1 Prep in their last game. NH should watch out but they do know this rink (Bennet Rink) after playing two games there for the West Haven Christmas Tournament earlier this season.
Watertown/Pomperaug @ Brookfield/Betherl/Danbury @ 4
-The Icecats are 6-3, 3-3 in-state, 2-0 SWC and 1-1 in DIII (their division) and this yet another SWC game and also their second game against a DII opponent (first was a 2-1 win, New Milford). The defending DIII champs (now in DII), W-P, are struggling with their tough schedule at 3-7, 1-3 in DII and 0-1 in the SWC (lost to a very good DII team, Newtown). This is W-P's chance to start turning things around but the Icecats will be looking to keep on rolling through the SWC.
Guilford @ Branford @ 515
-This is going to be a good one! The Guilford Indians, the favorite but runner-up last year in both DII and the SCC-II tournament will be taking on a formidable Branford team that has proved to be one of the best in DII thus far and will be looking to avenge a 1-4 loss in last year's SCC-II tournament semifinals. Guilford has already topped Cheshire 3-2 but Branford has more in-state and the home ice advantage for the only meeting between these two in the regular season. I couldn't tell you who is going to win this game and that is what makes it one of the best on the day; get out to Northford Ice Pavilion, one of my favorite rinks, if you can!
Simsbury @ #6 Glastonbury @ 6
-Simsbury is on a three-game winning streak (Fermi/Enfield 2-1, Conard 3-2, #8 West Haven 3-1) so it's legitimate, but just barely. If the Thomahawks want to prove their number six ranking, they will put an end to this streak and do so in convincing fashion (>2 goal margin of victory).
Staples/Weston/Shelton @ Trumbull @ 730
-Another good DII and conference game (FCIAC not SCC this time); that means there is a lot on the line. S-W-S is competing in DII for the first time this year after finishing second in DIII last year and they are off to a 5-0 start with four of those being good wins. Trumbull is 5-2 themselves only losing to DI Trinity Catholic and 4-5 to another top DII team, North Branford. They have a big 7-6 OT win over Branford, two of the same wins as S-W-S (W-P and Lyman Hall) and then a good 3-1 win over Newtown, another team around the top of DII. I'm sure S-W-S doesn't want to lose their first game (they are the only undefeated team left in any division, although Prep has not lost in-state) but this game is larger than that as it counts for FCIAC (and DII) tournament qualifying and then seeding.
Newington/Berlin @ Northwest Catholic @ 745
-Get ready for a battle here as arguably the top two teams in DIII (certainly top five) duke it out in Simsbury at the ISCC. N-B beat DII Wethersfield 4-0, Brookfield/Bethel/Danbury 6-2 and then two other DIII teams 5-0 and 4-1. NWC topped Hall/Southington 4-3, DII East Catholic 3-2, DI Simsbury 4-2, St. Bernard/Bacon/NFA 7-4 and Rocky Hill/RHAM/Middletown 8-2. They lost 2-5 to Wethersfield though whereas N-B lost 1-2 to St. Bernard/Bacon/NFA though. I'd say these two teams are pretty evenly matched but if I had to pick I'd go with Northwest because they have been on fire in their past two games, scoring 15 points to their opponents 6 and N-B has won 5 straight so I think they may be getting a little complacent. I think both teams know what is on line though and we might just see the best game each team has played all season.
#8 East Haven @ Farifield Ware/Ludlowe @ 8
-As the Easties continue to try their luck against DII team (5-5 tie with Stamford, 5-4 win against Milford co-op on Thursday and FWL is another good one), this one is especially important considering they will qualify for the DI state tournament with either a win or tie (they are 7-1-1). They did not qualify until 2/5 last year but being the (presumably) third team to qualify this year will put them in pretty good position.
Stamford @ New Canaan @ 840
-NC is on a little bit of a streak with a 6-1 win over St. Joseph (did not count for FCIAC record though) followed by a 9-1 win over fellow FCIAC member Norwalk/Brien McMahon in their past two games. Stamford is coming off a close 4-5 loss to FWL in their first official FCIAC game but they have the potential to give the Rams a good one on Saturday night.
St. Joseph @ #4 Ridgefield @ 850
-Another game that might not be that close but St. Joseph knows how to win, they are 5-3 with some good wins (Guilford and Greenwich). Also, they only lost to top teams (#6 Glastonbury, New Canaan, "#11" South Windsor). Ridgefield did beat #5 Glastonbury by three goals and is coming off a 2-1 win over #2 Notre Dame-West Haven but this is a big conference game now and St. Joseph did surprise New Canaan in last year's DI tournament after losing to them 3 times and being a huge underdog in the game. Also, I think it is key for Ridgefield to show how they play coming off such a big win and how much they will now distance themselves from lesser teams. Every little factor counts in the new rankings coming out on Sunday!
Funny DII game:
Wilton @ Westhill @ 640
-The bottom of DII, both these team are win-less (0-7 and 0-5-1 respectively) so there's a good chance that will end Saturday night...but is could be a close one haha.
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Boys' Hockey: Thursday and Friday's Results (1/12 and 1/13)
Thursday
Milford Co-op 4 @ #9 East Haven 5
-I highlighted this game for a reason and it is a little disappointing for the Yellow Jackets that they couldn't win by more but a win is a win and Milford is a good team so they added to their resume. Very good job by Milford co-op to almost beat a top ten team and this helps their case for being the top DII team this year. Box score:
Goals
1st period: EH - Matt Longobardi (Rich DeCarlo) 7:49; M - Craig Wargo (TJ Olsson, Zach White) 8:38. 2nd period: EH - Tristain Goodwin (Matt Longobardi, Matt Barcomb) 5:00. 3rd period: EH - Tristain Goodwin (Mark Meyerholz) 0:58; M - Zach White (Craig Wargo) 3:45; EH - Rich DeCarlo (Jordan Avena) 3:53; M - Craig Wargo 7:11; TJ Olsson (John Mclenithan, Ben Levalle) 9:28; EH - Matt Barcomb 12:01.
Saves: M - Matt White 30; EH - Zak Bouve 27.
Shots: M - 31; EH - 35.
Friday
Hamden 1 @ St. John's (Shrewsbury, MA) 2
-Since this was an out-of-state team, I am going to try and translate what it means to Hamden in-state and it just furthers my claim that Xavier really can beat Hamden since X was up 2-0 and 3-1 on this same St. John's team. X also gave Hamden a hell of game on Saturday night in which both teams looked pretty even in terms of talent and which team is better is really a toss up.
Milford Co-op 4 @ #9 East Haven 5
-I highlighted this game for a reason and it is a little disappointing for the Yellow Jackets that they couldn't win by more but a win is a win and Milford is a good team so they added to their resume. Very good job by Milford co-op to almost beat a top ten team and this helps their case for being the top DII team this year. Box score:
Goals
1st period: EH - Matt Longobardi (Rich DeCarlo) 7:49; M - Craig Wargo (TJ Olsson, Zach White) 8:38. 2nd period: EH - Tristain Goodwin (Matt Longobardi, Matt Barcomb) 5:00. 3rd period: EH - Tristain Goodwin (Mark Meyerholz) 0:58; M - Zach White (Craig Wargo) 3:45; EH - Rich DeCarlo (Jordan Avena) 3:53; M - Craig Wargo 7:11; TJ Olsson (John Mclenithan, Ben Levalle) 9:28; EH - Matt Barcomb 12:01.
Saves: M - Matt White 30; EH - Zak Bouve 27.
Shots: M - 31; EH - 35.
Friday
Hamden 1 @ St. John's (Shrewsbury, MA) 2
-Since this was an out-of-state team, I am going to try and translate what it means to Hamden in-state and it just furthers my claim that Xavier really can beat Hamden since X was up 2-0 and 3-1 on this same St. John's team. X also gave Hamden a hell of game on Saturday night in which both teams looked pretty even in terms of talent and which team is better is really a toss up.
Boys' Hockey: Thursday and Friday's Top Games (1/12 and 1/13)
Thursday
Milford Co-op @ #9 East Haven @ 730
-This Milford co-op team still has only lost once this season, 4-5 in OT to a very good DII Branford team. East Haven has also only lost once, 3-4 to #8 West Haven, but they did tie 5-5 with Stamford, a team that lost 4-10 to Branford. I think the Easties have improved since that tie but part of proving how much they improved and building a case to jump West Haven in my next rankings lies in if they can beat a top DII team like Milford co-op and if so, by how much.
Friday
#3 Hamden @ St. John's (Shrewsbury, MA) @ 710 at Holy Cross College
-Hamden goes up to Holy Cross College to take on the same St. John's team that #5 Xavier almost beat (2-0 after two, 3-1 in the third) but lost 3-5. The Green Dragons are pretty even in skill with Xavier but present a slightly different style that I think is actually better suited to play with a physical Massachusetts team like St. John's. The thing is, I expect St. John's to bring the intensity for all three periods this time since they are not traveling all the way down to CT. I think Hamden still has a good shot to win this game and the score will be probably be about 4-3 whether Hamden is the 4 or the 3.
DIII game: Rockville/Manchester/Stafford @ Bolton/Coventry/Lyman Memorial @ 820
-Two DIII teams that are in the middle to top of the division and look pretty evenly matched on paper. The winner will be in good position in DIII.
Milford Co-op @ #9 East Haven @ 730
-This Milford co-op team still has only lost once this season, 4-5 in OT to a very good DII Branford team. East Haven has also only lost once, 3-4 to #8 West Haven, but they did tie 5-5 with Stamford, a team that lost 4-10 to Branford. I think the Easties have improved since that tie but part of proving how much they improved and building a case to jump West Haven in my next rankings lies in if they can beat a top DII team like Milford co-op and if so, by how much.
Friday
#3 Hamden @ St. John's (Shrewsbury, MA) @ 710 at Holy Cross College
-Hamden goes up to Holy Cross College to take on the same St. John's team that #5 Xavier almost beat (2-0 after two, 3-1 in the third) but lost 3-5. The Green Dragons are pretty even in skill with Xavier but present a slightly different style that I think is actually better suited to play with a physical Massachusetts team like St. John's. The thing is, I expect St. John's to bring the intensity for all three periods this time since they are not traveling all the way down to CT. I think Hamden still has a good shot to win this game and the score will be probably be about 4-3 whether Hamden is the 4 or the 3.
DIII game: Rockville/Manchester/Stafford @ Bolton/Coventry/Lyman Memorial @ 820
-Two DIII teams that are in the middle to top of the division and look pretty evenly matched on paper. The winner will be in good position in DIII.
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Boys' Hockey: Wednesday's Wins and Losses (1/11)
I said it was a huge day and now that it is said and done, there is even bigger news. One team qualified for the post-season, there were some really big upsets, another team is no longer perfect, and some very close, controversial games at the top!
#4 Ridgefield 2 @ #2 Notre Dame-West Haven 1
-The first period in this one ended 0-0 but there were positives for both teams. Ridgefield was winning the physical battle and their superb defense was making up for their poor puck control. Notre Dame spent more time on offense but shots were probably about even as Ridgefield took more shots while on offense but were of less quality than the few ND managed to get off on Ridgefield's stifling defense.
The second period is when the West Haven very suspect officiating really started to show. Ridgefield was not doing good on offense and they made their job harder when #14 was picked up an interference at the 6:00 mark. Darren Capobianco got a solid shot on goal but the goalie made a pad save and ND only had one more good shot during that power play. #9 on Ridgefield had a quality opportunity right after that power play and then the action really started to pick up. Ridgefield had a good 2-on-2, ND 3-on-2 the other way then Ridgefield 3-on-1. Finally, with 3:15 remaining, Ridgefield #9 and #6 rushed the net and lit the lamp on a beautiful exchange, 9 to 6 then back to 9 to beat ND goalie Luc Amatruda. Unfortunately, #6 picked up a stupid penalty after the goal for cross-checking so ND started off their second power play of the game on the post-goal faceoff. The Green Knights had a spectacular chance when the puck popped out of a play at the net and was in front of the open side of the net with an ND player right there. However, Ridgefield's goalie, #30, along with his defense denied that goal by making hard for the ND skater to get his stick on the puck and then blocking off its path to the net. Shortly thereafter, Alex Esposito made a good play for ND in front of the net but his shot hit the left post about halfway up and did not go in. One of many blown or inconsistent calls in the game was highlighted by an ND player touching the puck on his way off the ice and ND not getting called for having too many men on the ice (they had six skaters on at that point).
In the third period, ND came out strong again and Colby Cretella had his shot at a goal, three time in fact, when he got the puck right in front of the goal and he tried the left (stick side for the goalie) but it was blocked back to him, through the five-hole but his stick was restricted by a defenseman and then around on the right (glove side) but was somehow denied once again; it was ten seconds that had everyone on the edge of their seats. Like so many other times in this game, the puck just wouldn't go in the net for the Green Knights and there seemed to be an obstacle other than the Ridgefield defensemen and goalie. Ridgefield responded at around the six-minute mark when #17 rushed the goal and slapped a shot by Amatruda from the left circle that did hit the inside of the right post but stayed in the net. From there, you could really see anger, hunger and intensity in the ND players. There was another scrum in front of the Ridgefield net but no goal for ND yet again. #16 for the Tigers got called for a cross-check (more like a bump in front of the net that was not called a penalty at any other point in the game) and ND got their third power play of the game with 4:41 remaining in the third period. The Green Knights had some good opportunities like hitting the left side of the right post but the puck ricocheted out. However, ND-WH finally scored at the 12:04 mark, a power play goal for Greg Zullo on a rebound from a shot that went across the net and the goalie and defense couldn't get there this time, as they had many other times in the game. As they did in their game against Prep, ND applied a lot of 6-on-5 pressure and got many shots on goal, coming very close to scoring but in the end Ridgefield almost scored an open net goal when they cleared the puck and time expired on ND's comeback with the score remaining 2-1 in favor of the Tigers.
Big win here for Ridgefield that can be credited almost entirely to their defense shutting down ND's offense. It took some home referees to manufacture an ND goal (as is often the case in West Haven) and Ridgefield got very lucky on their "snipe" goal that beat Amatruda, a goal I was surprised to see get by him. The score should have been 1-0 but still a clear win for the Tigers that proves they are better than the Green Knights right now but anything can happen going forward.
Conard 3 @ Fermi/Enfield 2
-Another revenge win for Conard as Fermi/Enfield had beat them 6-3 earlier in the season, on 12/20.
East Catholic 0 @ South Windsor 7
-At 8-2 overall, South Windsor was the first team in any division to qualify for the postseason this year. Once you see all the other results from tonight, look for the Bobcats to possibly rise back into the top ten rankings next week.
#7 North Haven 8 @ Daniel Hand 1
-This is a good win for two reasons now. Besides proving they are much better than a DII team, even a good one, as any top ten DI team should, this also distances North Haven from a team like West Haven that only beat Hand 5-4 and had a very disappointed result tonight that is later in this post.
Amity 1 @ #1 Fairfield Prep 3
-Although how close this game could be something to note, the bigger story here is Fairfield Prep coach Matt Sather (class of 1993) picking up his 200th in his coaching career; congratulations!
#5 Xavier 2 @ #3 Hamden 3
-I arrived near the end of the first period of this one and received a breakdown of why Hamden was up 1-0. About midway through the first period, Nick Turner on Xavier was called for a penalty and Hamden capitalized on this power play, but it wasn't hard. A Green Dragon defense took the puck to the middle of the ice and shot a laser by Xavier goalie Shane Baldwin uncontested from between the circles. Hamden seemed to have a handle on the rest of the period with Xavier showing some promising moments but the score was 1-0 going into the first intermission. Connor Walsh also picked up a stupid interference penalty for a late hit after the horn sounded so that gave Xavier a power play to start the second period.
Xavier got nothing on their power play but they had some good opportunities early in the period, most of which involved scrum in front of the net. This was a result of a slap shot or centering pass that Xavier kept trying to put home because Hamden could not quickly or easily cover up or clear the puck. I don't exactly know how to describe this situation and I wish there was a replay of this shot, as there is of a shot in the Cheshire and Guilford 2011 DII Championship game, but Hamden saucered a nice shot just out of reach of Baldwin but it ricocheted off the cross bar and bounced out to the almost the blue line in a matter of two or three seconds. After some gasps and shouts from the crowd, a Hamden referee decided to call a goal for Hamden and then talked over the call with the other official and both quickly decided to proceed with that decision. I don't know how any explanation could have satisfied Xavier's coach Scott Gainey since the only explanation (after discussing it with hockey players that have played at this rink) of how that shot was a goal was that it hit off the middle post, inside the net. However, that post is in the middle of the net and the shot was to the upper right corner of the net so that could not be possible. Nonetheless, as fans have seen in West Hartford, the officials literally gave the home team a goal in this one and that's just the way it is at the end of the day. After that and before the second period ended, Xavier had two power plays as a result of Tyler Carangelo's cross-check at about 9:02 and Mike Regan's trip at 13:50. Xavier didn't score on either, including the time in the third period, but Bryan Stanton stood out as working particularly hard for his team. That is one thing that can be said about this game, both teams worked hard and played with intensity, which is what made this game so close and so good!
Only one hundred and twenty-two seconds into the third period, a penalty on Eric Sullivan put Xavier on the power play yet again and the Falcons had 3-on-5 for twenty-one seconds when Tyler Carangelo committed a tripping penalty. However, yet again, Xavier came up empty handed and this time Hamden controlled the puck a lot over that span of about four minutes, even getting some good shots on goal despite being down 4-on-5 (3-on-4 in the offensive zone). All the effort was not in vain though when Bryan Stanton scored on a nice centering pass from Jack Gethings to make the scoreboard score 2-1, time of the goal: 7:26. Only a short while after that, at around 7:45, Dan Dupont was sent to the sin bin for tripping and Hamden went on the always deadly power play. Forty-five seconds into the power play, Tim Lee got two minutes in the penalty box for goal tender interference that allowed Hamden to put the puck in the net but the referee correctly said that there was no goal due to the goaltender interference and 4-on-4 hockey ensued. Both teams played well as the action shifted back and forth but neither could manage a goal with Xavier getting better opportunities to score but not being able to finish. Hamden came through with their second goal in the net, third on the scoreboard, when Tim Lee fed Sean Casbarro at the 12:54 mark. However, Xavier answered on a snipe by John Burkinshaw from the blue line with Ryan McClellan and Bryan Stanton picking up assists. There were only twenty-nine seconds left but Xavier earned a second legitimate goal and tried for a third but came up short.
Hamden played better in this game and got the win thanks to the officials but Xavier certainly proved they are capable of beating Hamden even if both teams play at their best, which Xavier certainly did not do in this game. Varga played well in net for the Green Dragons but didn't get tested in the same way he did against Fairfield Prep and Xavier's defense and goalie played well for most of the game but some lapses and mistakes gave Hamden just enough to score twice. Xavier's offense failed to finish plays again and again but it is promising that even on an off day they got good opportunities on a Hamden defense that I would say played to 80 or 90% of their potential. It is a shame these two teams do not meet again this season unless they find each other in the CIAC DI tournament that I'm sure both will qualify for and do well in this year.
Simsbury 3 @ #8 West Haven 1
-This proves that Simsbury is really heating up in a major way after a rough start 0-5 by winning their third straight. For West Haven, this is not what they want if they want to make a case for being a top ten team in the state. I was not at this game so I cannot speak to what exactly was the reason why the Blue Devils went down in this one at home but the result is what it is and it is not a good one for W Haven.
Joel Barlow 1 @ Newtown 8
-The Falcons went down and in a major way. This looks very good for Newtown though as they build their resume to be the top ten team in DII this year whereas Joel Barlow still looks good in DIII.
Cheshire 4 @ Watertown/Pomperaug 2
-This game was streamed on sportingnewsct.com and it looks like it was a good one but the Rams came out on top and move above .500 on the season with their 5th win. They now have ten days to prepare for their next game, a trip to #1 Fairfield Prep on next Saturday 1/21. W-P is 3-7 but has time to turn things around as they progress into a much easier Southwest Conference schedule of mostly DII and DIII teams (7 games worth), except for Newington-Berlin (DIII, not SWC though), Amity (DI, SCC) and #7 North Haven (DI, SCC).
#6 Glastonbury 6 @ Wethersfield 3
-I did not end up making it to this game so I don't if it was closer than the score indicated but I can tell you that three goals against Glastonbury is an encouraging sign for the Eagles and shows the Thomahawks that they really need to work on defense if they except to beat some of the top teams like ND-WH next Monday 1/16 or even South Windsor next Saturday 1/21 and red hot Simsbury this Saturday. Wethersfield plays DIII Hall/Southington on Saturday in the second game of their current four game homestand.
Stamford 4 @ Fairfield Warde/Ludlowe 5
-The benchmarks proved true as FWL edged Stamford out in this one by a narrow score of five to four. The victors host a very tough #8 East Haven on Saturday, that Stamford tied 5-5 in the first game of the season, where as the Black Knights take on a DI team as well in another FCIAC match-up like this game was, at the now 4-3 New Canaan Rams on Saturday.
Greenwich 5 @ St. Joseph 6
-About what you'd expect from these two teams right now: a close game in which both teams score a lot and I think the Cadets won because they a little more confidence, improving to 6-3, while Greenwich has lost to some really good teams and falls to 1-7.
#4 Ridgefield 2 @ #2 Notre Dame-West Haven 1
-The first period in this one ended 0-0 but there were positives for both teams. Ridgefield was winning the physical battle and their superb defense was making up for their poor puck control. Notre Dame spent more time on offense but shots were probably about even as Ridgefield took more shots while on offense but were of less quality than the few ND managed to get off on Ridgefield's stifling defense.
The second period is when the West Haven very suspect officiating really started to show. Ridgefield was not doing good on offense and they made their job harder when #14 was picked up an interference at the 6:00 mark. Darren Capobianco got a solid shot on goal but the goalie made a pad save and ND only had one more good shot during that power play. #9 on Ridgefield had a quality opportunity right after that power play and then the action really started to pick up. Ridgefield had a good 2-on-2, ND 3-on-2 the other way then Ridgefield 3-on-1. Finally, with 3:15 remaining, Ridgefield #9 and #6 rushed the net and lit the lamp on a beautiful exchange, 9 to 6 then back to 9 to beat ND goalie Luc Amatruda. Unfortunately, #6 picked up a stupid penalty after the goal for cross-checking so ND started off their second power play of the game on the post-goal faceoff. The Green Knights had a spectacular chance when the puck popped out of a play at the net and was in front of the open side of the net with an ND player right there. However, Ridgefield's goalie, #30, along with his defense denied that goal by making hard for the ND skater to get his stick on the puck and then blocking off its path to the net. Shortly thereafter, Alex Esposito made a good play for ND in front of the net but his shot hit the left post about halfway up and did not go in. One of many blown or inconsistent calls in the game was highlighted by an ND player touching the puck on his way off the ice and ND not getting called for having too many men on the ice (they had six skaters on at that point).
In the third period, ND came out strong again and Colby Cretella had his shot at a goal, three time in fact, when he got the puck right in front of the goal and he tried the left (stick side for the goalie) but it was blocked back to him, through the five-hole but his stick was restricted by a defenseman and then around on the right (glove side) but was somehow denied once again; it was ten seconds that had everyone on the edge of their seats. Like so many other times in this game, the puck just wouldn't go in the net for the Green Knights and there seemed to be an obstacle other than the Ridgefield defensemen and goalie. Ridgefield responded at around the six-minute mark when #17 rushed the goal and slapped a shot by Amatruda from the left circle that did hit the inside of the right post but stayed in the net. From there, you could really see anger, hunger and intensity in the ND players. There was another scrum in front of the Ridgefield net but no goal for ND yet again. #16 for the Tigers got called for a cross-check (more like a bump in front of the net that was not called a penalty at any other point in the game) and ND got their third power play of the game with 4:41 remaining in the third period. The Green Knights had some good opportunities like hitting the left side of the right post but the puck ricocheted out. However, ND-WH finally scored at the 12:04 mark, a power play goal for Greg Zullo on a rebound from a shot that went across the net and the goalie and defense couldn't get there this time, as they had many other times in the game. As they did in their game against Prep, ND applied a lot of 6-on-5 pressure and got many shots on goal, coming very close to scoring but in the end Ridgefield almost scored an open net goal when they cleared the puck and time expired on ND's comeback with the score remaining 2-1 in favor of the Tigers.
Big win here for Ridgefield that can be credited almost entirely to their defense shutting down ND's offense. It took some home referees to manufacture an ND goal (as is often the case in West Haven) and Ridgefield got very lucky on their "snipe" goal that beat Amatruda, a goal I was surprised to see get by him. The score should have been 1-0 but still a clear win for the Tigers that proves they are better than the Green Knights right now but anything can happen going forward.
Conard 3 @ Fermi/Enfield 2
-Another revenge win for Conard as Fermi/Enfield had beat them 6-3 earlier in the season, on 12/20.
East Catholic 0 @ South Windsor 7
-At 8-2 overall, South Windsor was the first team in any division to qualify for the postseason this year. Once you see all the other results from tonight, look for the Bobcats to possibly rise back into the top ten rankings next week.
#7 North Haven 8 @ Daniel Hand 1
-This is a good win for two reasons now. Besides proving they are much better than a DII team, even a good one, as any top ten DI team should, this also distances North Haven from a team like West Haven that only beat Hand 5-4 and had a very disappointed result tonight that is later in this post.
Amity 1 @ #1 Fairfield Prep 3
-Although how close this game could be something to note, the bigger story here is Fairfield Prep coach Matt Sather (class of 1993) picking up his 200th in his coaching career; congratulations!
#5 Xavier 2 @ #3 Hamden 3
-I arrived near the end of the first period of this one and received a breakdown of why Hamden was up 1-0. About midway through the first period, Nick Turner on Xavier was called for a penalty and Hamden capitalized on this power play, but it wasn't hard. A Green Dragon defense took the puck to the middle of the ice and shot a laser by Xavier goalie Shane Baldwin uncontested from between the circles. Hamden seemed to have a handle on the rest of the period with Xavier showing some promising moments but the score was 1-0 going into the first intermission. Connor Walsh also picked up a stupid interference penalty for a late hit after the horn sounded so that gave Xavier a power play to start the second period.
Xavier got nothing on their power play but they had some good opportunities early in the period, most of which involved scrum in front of the net. This was a result of a slap shot or centering pass that Xavier kept trying to put home because Hamden could not quickly or easily cover up or clear the puck. I don't exactly know how to describe this situation and I wish there was a replay of this shot, as there is of a shot in the Cheshire and Guilford 2011 DII Championship game, but Hamden saucered a nice shot just out of reach of Baldwin but it ricocheted off the cross bar and bounced out to the almost the blue line in a matter of two or three seconds. After some gasps and shouts from the crowd, a Hamden referee decided to call a goal for Hamden and then talked over the call with the other official and both quickly decided to proceed with that decision. I don't know how any explanation could have satisfied Xavier's coach Scott Gainey since the only explanation (after discussing it with hockey players that have played at this rink) of how that shot was a goal was that it hit off the middle post, inside the net. However, that post is in the middle of the net and the shot was to the upper right corner of the net so that could not be possible. Nonetheless, as fans have seen in West Hartford, the officials literally gave the home team a goal in this one and that's just the way it is at the end of the day. After that and before the second period ended, Xavier had two power plays as a result of Tyler Carangelo's cross-check at about 9:02 and Mike Regan's trip at 13:50. Xavier didn't score on either, including the time in the third period, but Bryan Stanton stood out as working particularly hard for his team. That is one thing that can be said about this game, both teams worked hard and played with intensity, which is what made this game so close and so good!
Only one hundred and twenty-two seconds into the third period, a penalty on Eric Sullivan put Xavier on the power play yet again and the Falcons had 3-on-5 for twenty-one seconds when Tyler Carangelo committed a tripping penalty. However, yet again, Xavier came up empty handed and this time Hamden controlled the puck a lot over that span of about four minutes, even getting some good shots on goal despite being down 4-on-5 (3-on-4 in the offensive zone). All the effort was not in vain though when Bryan Stanton scored on a nice centering pass from Jack Gethings to make the scoreboard score 2-1, time of the goal: 7:26. Only a short while after that, at around 7:45, Dan Dupont was sent to the sin bin for tripping and Hamden went on the always deadly power play. Forty-five seconds into the power play, Tim Lee got two minutes in the penalty box for goal tender interference that allowed Hamden to put the puck in the net but the referee correctly said that there was no goal due to the goaltender interference and 4-on-4 hockey ensued. Both teams played well as the action shifted back and forth but neither could manage a goal with Xavier getting better opportunities to score but not being able to finish. Hamden came through with their second goal in the net, third on the scoreboard, when Tim Lee fed Sean Casbarro at the 12:54 mark. However, Xavier answered on a snipe by John Burkinshaw from the blue line with Ryan McClellan and Bryan Stanton picking up assists. There were only twenty-nine seconds left but Xavier earned a second legitimate goal and tried for a third but came up short.
Hamden played better in this game and got the win thanks to the officials but Xavier certainly proved they are capable of beating Hamden even if both teams play at their best, which Xavier certainly did not do in this game. Varga played well in net for the Green Dragons but didn't get tested in the same way he did against Fairfield Prep and Xavier's defense and goalie played well for most of the game but some lapses and mistakes gave Hamden just enough to score twice. Xavier's offense failed to finish plays again and again but it is promising that even on an off day they got good opportunities on a Hamden defense that I would say played to 80 or 90% of their potential. It is a shame these two teams do not meet again this season unless they find each other in the CIAC DI tournament that I'm sure both will qualify for and do well in this year.
Simsbury 3 @ #8 West Haven 1
-This proves that Simsbury is really heating up in a major way after a rough start 0-5 by winning their third straight. For West Haven, this is not what they want if they want to make a case for being a top ten team in the state. I was not at this game so I cannot speak to what exactly was the reason why the Blue Devils went down in this one at home but the result is what it is and it is not a good one for W Haven.
Joel Barlow 1 @ Newtown 8
-The Falcons went down and in a major way. This looks very good for Newtown though as they build their resume to be the top ten team in DII this year whereas Joel Barlow still looks good in DIII.
Cheshire 4 @ Watertown/Pomperaug 2
-This game was streamed on sportingnewsct.com and it looks like it was a good one but the Rams came out on top and move above .500 on the season with their 5th win. They now have ten days to prepare for their next game, a trip to #1 Fairfield Prep on next Saturday 1/21. W-P is 3-7 but has time to turn things around as they progress into a much easier Southwest Conference schedule of mostly DII and DIII teams (7 games worth), except for Newington-Berlin (DIII, not SWC though), Amity (DI, SCC) and #7 North Haven (DI, SCC).
#6 Glastonbury 6 @ Wethersfield 3
-I did not end up making it to this game so I don't if it was closer than the score indicated but I can tell you that three goals against Glastonbury is an encouraging sign for the Eagles and shows the Thomahawks that they really need to work on defense if they except to beat some of the top teams like ND-WH next Monday 1/16 or even South Windsor next Saturday 1/21 and red hot Simsbury this Saturday. Wethersfield plays DIII Hall/Southington on Saturday in the second game of their current four game homestand.
Stamford 4 @ Fairfield Warde/Ludlowe 5
-The benchmarks proved true as FWL edged Stamford out in this one by a narrow score of five to four. The victors host a very tough #8 East Haven on Saturday, that Stamford tied 5-5 in the first game of the season, where as the Black Knights take on a DI team as well in another FCIAC match-up like this game was, at the now 4-3 New Canaan Rams on Saturday.
Greenwich 5 @ St. Joseph 6
-About what you'd expect from these two teams right now: a close game in which both teams score a lot and I think the Cadets won because they a little more confidence, improving to 6-3, while Greenwich has lost to some really good teams and falls to 1-7.
Boys' Hockey: Wednesday's Top Games (1/11)
HUGE Wednesday for hockey and now that I am back in the constitution state, I plan on making to the two top five match-ups and possibly a third game with a previous top five team in action. Also, two teams are in position to clinch post-season spots, both in DI, as 7-2 South Windsor hosts a decent DII East Catholic and 7-1 #2 ND-WH will have a much harder time at home against #4 Ridgefield.
#4 Ridgefield @ #2 Notre Dame-West Haven @ 415pm
-This game should be getting almost as much hype as 1 vs 2 or 1 vs 3 did because of the implications of a Ridgefield win would have on the polls. Additionally, a ND-WH win gives their ranking a lot of backing considering they haven't played #3 Hamden yet (and won't until 1/28), only beat Cheshire 2-1 and their only other game against a top ten team besides their 3-4 loss to #1 Fairfield Prep was a 7-2 win over #7 North Haven. They have been dominant and that's why I have them at number two but now we get to see how they do against a big-time team that they are favored against. Ridgefield's only loss is to #1 Fairfield Prep as well (0-3) but they beat #6 Glastonbury 5-2, #5 Xavier 5-4 OT just recently and the scores of their other three games were 11-0, 9-0 and 8-0; very dominant as well. Let's see which of these two juggernauts emerges with two losses and which keeps rolling.
#7 North Haven @ Daniel Hand @ 6
-Teams at the bottom of the top ten are under heavy scrutiny whenever they play good opponents. Hand only lost 4-5 to #8 West Haven and 3-4 in OT to Fairfield Warde/Ludlowe but they topped Stamford 4-2 and Branford 7-2. The Tigers lost 2-4 on Saturday at Fermi/Enfield but they may only help them in thier third consecutive game against a DI opponent.
#5 Xavier @ #3 Hamden @ 6
-This is the time both teams have on their official CIAC schedules despite different times and even different locations being reported by at least two different websites. This game means a lot to both teams and then it is an all-important SCC match-up as well (SCC DI teams do not play a tournament so their regular season records against each other determine the winner, making these games paramount). Xavier has been a pleasant surprise of young talent playing extremely well this year. After almost beating #4 Ridgefield in OT on Saturday, the Falcons now move up to #3 Hamden, also on the road. They actually beat Hamden last year for the first time in program history so Hamden will be viciously looking for revenge for that one since the Green Dragons were the #1 team in the state when the Falcons upset them. This is a chance for Xavier to prove just how elite this skills are this year. Hamden who is on a relative down year compared to how good they normally are, is still a very good team in this state that almost beat #1 Fairfield Prep. They beat #10 Darien 2-0 and New Canaan 5-3, neither of which are that convincing so I think X has a real shot. However, X only beat #7 North Haven 1-0 whereas Hamden topped them 6-3 but it was Xavier's first game of the season and those results speak more to Xavier having a strong defense and an offense that is their key to winning this, and every game. I think the big thing to watch will be how good that Xavier defense does against Hamden, a team that will be hard to shut out; can Xavier's defense give their offense a chance to win the game like it has in every other game this season or will the Green Dragons be too much for a lesser opponent? Head to Lou Asotrino Rink at 6pm and we'll see!
Joel Barlow @ Newtown @ 640
-Joel Barlow's perfect 5-0 record will be on the line when they travel to Danbury Ice Arena and take on Newtown, a top DII team. I give Newtown the edge in this one but the Falcons have a chance to surprise some people here and prove they're better than DIII.
Cheshire @ Watertown/Pomperaug @ 8
-Interesting one to watch here because the Rams need all the wins they can get and W-P is a DII team that was actually DIII last year, a relative gem among the demanding SCC DI schedule they now have themselves after being forced to move up to DI this year. However, W-P is the defending DIII champs with a strong goaltender and talented skaters looking to pick up more wins on their demanding DI and DII schedule thus far. In fact, these two teams met back on 12/27 at Cheshire and the hosts won 7-5 but in such a high scoring and close game, anything can happen the second time around.
#6 Glastonbury @ Wethersfield @ 810
-Wethersfield is hanging around the top of DII with their 4-2 record and in-state wins over Northwest Catholic and East Catholic look very good. However, losses against Newington/Berlin and Rocky Hill/RHAM/Middletown make the Eagles look inconsistent. Nonetheless, I think they have a shot at giving Glastonbury a very good game as these CCC towns are only separated by the Connecticut River. It would be disappointing for Glastonbury to find themselves in the same boat as South Windsor did after they lost to Conard so the Thomahawks better play well in this northern showdown.
Stamford @ Fairfield Warde/Ludlowe @ 815
-Solid DII game right here that will feed another result into the discussion of who is the best in DII this year. Stamford has a 5-5 tie with #9 East Haven, 10-6 win over Lyman Hall, and 3-4 loss to Staples/Weston/Shelton; they need to add a win over Fairfield Warde/Ludlowe to have some more legitimacy in that conversation with the other results they have on their schedule. FWL beat Hand 3-4 in OT a few days after Hand beat Stamford 4-2. Also, FWL beat Suffield/Granby/Windsor Locks who beat Northwest Catholic, a team Stamford lost to. Other than that, FWL doesn't have much except two losses to Branford so they need a win here to move to even at 3-3.
Greenwich @ St. Joseph @ 830
-A big FCIAC game as Greenwich has talent but St. Joseph has wins. The Cadets beat Guilford and Trinity Catholic but lost to New Canaan 1-6. The Cardinals only lost to NC 4-5 though and has played three top ten teams, highlighted by a 2-3 loss in OT at Xavier. The fact that this is a conference game makes it even more important and fans should see a good one at the Rinks at Shelton.
#4 Ridgefield @ #2 Notre Dame-West Haven @ 415pm
-This game should be getting almost as much hype as 1 vs 2 or 1 vs 3 did because of the implications of a Ridgefield win would have on the polls. Additionally, a ND-WH win gives their ranking a lot of backing considering they haven't played #3 Hamden yet (and won't until 1/28), only beat Cheshire 2-1 and their only other game against a top ten team besides their 3-4 loss to #1 Fairfield Prep was a 7-2 win over #7 North Haven. They have been dominant and that's why I have them at number two but now we get to see how they do against a big-time team that they are favored against. Ridgefield's only loss is to #1 Fairfield Prep as well (0-3) but they beat #6 Glastonbury 5-2, #5 Xavier 5-4 OT just recently and the scores of their other three games were 11-0, 9-0 and 8-0; very dominant as well. Let's see which of these two juggernauts emerges with two losses and which keeps rolling.
#7 North Haven @ Daniel Hand @ 6
-Teams at the bottom of the top ten are under heavy scrutiny whenever they play good opponents. Hand only lost 4-5 to #8 West Haven and 3-4 in OT to Fairfield Warde/Ludlowe but they topped Stamford 4-2 and Branford 7-2. The Tigers lost 2-4 on Saturday at Fermi/Enfield but they may only help them in thier third consecutive game against a DI opponent.
#5 Xavier @ #3 Hamden @ 6
-This is the time both teams have on their official CIAC schedules despite different times and even different locations being reported by at least two different websites. This game means a lot to both teams and then it is an all-important SCC match-up as well (SCC DI teams do not play a tournament so their regular season records against each other determine the winner, making these games paramount). Xavier has been a pleasant surprise of young talent playing extremely well this year. After almost beating #4 Ridgefield in OT on Saturday, the Falcons now move up to #3 Hamden, also on the road. They actually beat Hamden last year for the first time in program history so Hamden will be viciously looking for revenge for that one since the Green Dragons were the #1 team in the state when the Falcons upset them. This is a chance for Xavier to prove just how elite this skills are this year. Hamden who is on a relative down year compared to how good they normally are, is still a very good team in this state that almost beat #1 Fairfield Prep. They beat #10 Darien 2-0 and New Canaan 5-3, neither of which are that convincing so I think X has a real shot. However, X only beat #7 North Haven 1-0 whereas Hamden topped them 6-3 but it was Xavier's first game of the season and those results speak more to Xavier having a strong defense and an offense that is their key to winning this, and every game. I think the big thing to watch will be how good that Xavier defense does against Hamden, a team that will be hard to shut out; can Xavier's defense give their offense a chance to win the game like it has in every other game this season or will the Green Dragons be too much for a lesser opponent? Head to Lou Asotrino Rink at 6pm and we'll see!
Joel Barlow @ Newtown @ 640
-Joel Barlow's perfect 5-0 record will be on the line when they travel to Danbury Ice Arena and take on Newtown, a top DII team. I give Newtown the edge in this one but the Falcons have a chance to surprise some people here and prove they're better than DIII.
Cheshire @ Watertown/Pomperaug @ 8
-Interesting one to watch here because the Rams need all the wins they can get and W-P is a DII team that was actually DIII last year, a relative gem among the demanding SCC DI schedule they now have themselves after being forced to move up to DI this year. However, W-P is the defending DIII champs with a strong goaltender and talented skaters looking to pick up more wins on their demanding DI and DII schedule thus far. In fact, these two teams met back on 12/27 at Cheshire and the hosts won 7-5 but in such a high scoring and close game, anything can happen the second time around.
#6 Glastonbury @ Wethersfield @ 810
-Wethersfield is hanging around the top of DII with their 4-2 record and in-state wins over Northwest Catholic and East Catholic look very good. However, losses against Newington/Berlin and Rocky Hill/RHAM/Middletown make the Eagles look inconsistent. Nonetheless, I think they have a shot at giving Glastonbury a very good game as these CCC towns are only separated by the Connecticut River. It would be disappointing for Glastonbury to find themselves in the same boat as South Windsor did after they lost to Conard so the Thomahawks better play well in this northern showdown.
Stamford @ Fairfield Warde/Ludlowe @ 815
-Solid DII game right here that will feed another result into the discussion of who is the best in DII this year. Stamford has a 5-5 tie with #9 East Haven, 10-6 win over Lyman Hall, and 3-4 loss to Staples/Weston/Shelton; they need to add a win over Fairfield Warde/Ludlowe to have some more legitimacy in that conversation with the other results they have on their schedule. FWL beat Hand 3-4 in OT a few days after Hand beat Stamford 4-2. Also, FWL beat Suffield/Granby/Windsor Locks who beat Northwest Catholic, a team Stamford lost to. Other than that, FWL doesn't have much except two losses to Branford so they need a win here to move to even at 3-3.
Greenwich @ St. Joseph @ 830
-A big FCIAC game as Greenwich has talent but St. Joseph has wins. The Cadets beat Guilford and Trinity Catholic but lost to New Canaan 1-6. The Cardinals only lost to NC 4-5 though and has played three top ten teams, highlighted by a 2-3 loss in OT at Xavier. The fact that this is a conference game makes it even more important and fans should see a good one at the Rinks at Shelton.
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Boys' Hockey: Monday and Tuesday's Top Games (1/9 and 1/10)
Monday
Two games, #4 Ridgefield is at 0-4-1 Westhill so that isn't worth being featured so no top games.
Tuesday
Two games again and Sheehan @ Guilford shouldn't be close but...
Rocky Hill/RHAM/Middletown @ Northwest Catholic @ 715pm
-NWC is a good DIII school that has beat some of the good DII teams like East Catholic and Stamford while R-M-R beat the same Wethersfield team that beat NWC but R-M-R lost to Hall/Southington 4-1; NWC beat Hall/Southington 4-3. No telling who's going to win this one but I'd pick NWC.
Two games, #4 Ridgefield is at 0-4-1 Westhill so that isn't worth being featured so no top games.
Tuesday
Two games again and Sheehan @ Guilford shouldn't be close but...
Rocky Hill/RHAM/Middletown @ Northwest Catholic @ 715pm
-NWC is a good DIII school that has beat some of the good DII teams like East Catholic and Stamford while R-M-R beat the same Wethersfield team that beat NWC but R-M-R lost to Hall/Southington 4-1; NWC beat Hall/Southington 4-3. No telling who's going to win this one but I'd pick NWC.
Boys' Hockey: Rankings (1/8)
The top of the rankings should come as no surprise to anyone but the bottom is where I seperate myself from other rankings in the state by using my knowledge of hockey and ability to assess talent.
#1 Fairfield Prep (6-2) (5-0)
-In some ways it is nice to not have to make a long argument on why the Jesuits are number one week after week like I had to do last year with New Canaan doing so well but never playing Prep. Now, with the top three teams in the state all competing the SCC, we will see 1 vs 2, 1 vs 3 and 2 vs 3 (as they are right now) two times each this season (we could have seen all vs 4 too if Xavier had beat Ridgefield on Saturday night) and two of those match-ups came this past week. Prep beat #3 Hamden 3-1 on Wednesday and topped #2 Notre Dame-West Haven on Saturday 4-3 (it wasn't that close until the very end) to be the undisputed #1 team in the state, for now. My favorite part is that, after watching both those games, there really isn't any controversy about those results like all three teams came to play for those games and he officiating is about the best you are going to get in high school hockey. Along with those wins, remember the Jesuits beat #4 Ridgefield 3-0 in the first game of the season and previously #8 South Windsor 6-2 in their second game of the season. Prep only has one game this week and it is at home against SCC opponent Amity.
#2 Notre Dame-West Haven (7-1) (7-1)
-ND-WH did help their number two ranking by making their final score 3-4 in their loss at #1 Fairfield Prep this week with a late 5-on-6 goal so that look like they were closer to beating the Jesuits than Hamden who lost 1-3 earlier in the week. The Green Knights other game last week was a 2-1 win over Cheshire that kind of surprised me since it was so close but that can be due in part to playing at the TD Bank Sports Center in Hamden I guess. This week they have a huge game at home against #4 Ridgefield and then welcome in Notre Dame-Fairfield on Saturday for another quality game. It may not have been as big as last week but this upcoming week is still important for Notre Dame-West Haven.
#3 Hamden (4-1) (4-1)
-"Close but no cigar" could be used to sum up Hamden's 1-3 loss against #1 Fairfield Prep this past Wednesday but the Green Dragons bounced back well and showed why they are #3 in the state with a 6-3 win at #7 North Haven on Friday. Hamden has some really good games coming up this week hosting #5 Xavier on Wednesday then traveling to Holy Cross College in Worcester, MA to play the same St. John's team from Shrewsbury, MA that Xavier almost beat at home in Middletown. To challenge themselves even further, the Green Dragons scheduled a home game on Saturday afternoon with another MA team, Hingham that I think will give them a good game. Three games in four days will help Hamden get some more games under their belt and get them ready for a showdown with #2 ND-WH three weeks away at the end of January, 2:30pm on 1/28 at Lou Astorino Rink.
#4 Ridgefield (4-1) (2-1)
-They may not have had as good of a week as Fairfield Prep, but the Tigers did hand #5 (then #6) Xavier their first in-state loss, 5-4 in OT. Ridgefield has now played all top ten teams in-state thus far and they will get another at #2 Notre Dame-West Haven this upcoming Wednesday. They also host Westhill on Monday and St. Joseph on Saturday as part of their FCIAC schedule. The Tigers are looking good and can make some noise early at Bennett Rink on Wednesday at 4:15!
#5 Xavier (6-2-1) (4-1-0)
-The Falcons lost their first in-state game this past week but just barely 4-5 in OT at #4 Ridgefield. A reason for concern from this past week is only beat Greenwich 3-2 in OT at home but they also have 4-2 wins over Cheshire and Notre Dame-Fairfield along with a 1-0 victory over #7 North Haven to their credit and taking Ridgefield to OT, being a goal away from winning, proves they are a very good team and deserving of at least a #5 or #6 ranking. X jumped Glastonbury in my rankings because the Thomahawks lost 2-5 to #4 Ridgefield and don't have any other wins over top team opponents. Glastonbury is extremely close behind the Falcons though and I almost was going put these two teams as tied but losing by three goals and losing in overtime is such a big difference, it means Xavier deserves to be ahead. In fact, the Falcons have another big test in their only game next week, at #3 Hamden on Wednesday.
#6 Glastonbury (5-1) (5-1)
-I know Glastonbury went 2-0 last week and the Falcons went 1-1 yet they switched spots in the rankings because the Tomahawks' results were weakened and Xavier's strengthened. Xavier beat Cheshire who only lost 1-2 to #2 Notre Dame-West Haven last week. Glastonbury beat a DIII team while the Falcons beat DI Greenwich. Glastonbury beat Conard and Fermi/Enfield earlier in the season, both teams that lost to previously win-less Simsbury last week. Conard did beat South Windsor one of the two times they played last week so that won't mean much for Glastonbury until they beat South Windsor. Glastonbury is still a top team in the state in my opinion and a week from Monday they will get to showcase themselves in a game at #2 Notre Dame-West Haven. For now, they need to take care of business at 4-2 DII Wethersfield on Wednesday and versus Simsbury on Saturday.
#7 North Haven (3-4) (3-4)
-All three of the public "Haven teams" are a little unpredictable and that is what allows for such an open debate here. However, I give the edge to N Haven because among the three, they are 1-1 with an OT loss, while West Haven is 1-1 and East Haven is 1-1 with their win only coming in OT (against N Haven). The way I look at is if these three teams all played each other again who would win? I think N Haven has the offense to make W Haven pay for what they lack on defense but East Haven doesn't have enough offense to score more than what their defense can hold West Haven to. When East Haven and North Haven play, it is sort of a toss up but I think North Haven has enough offense to get it done; they scored as many goals against #3 Hamden as Fairfield Prep did (3) and are only one of three teams to score at least goals against #2 Notre Dame-West Haven. N Haven has two away games this week: Daniel Hand, a good DII team, and Amity, a formidable SCC opponent.
#8 West Haven (6-1) (6-1)
-The Westies are a solid 6-1 with some easier wins in there that North Haven will soon have a chance to get as well while W Haven is playing the Fairfield Prep and Hamden games N Haven already did. WH is also 1-1 against N and E Haven, a solid record, but as I say in my explanation of NH's ranking, right now I think they would go 1-1 against those teams if they were to play again. The Blue Devils only game this upcoming week is at home against a Simsbury team that has won two straight against decent opponents. W Haven needs to stop that and prove they are deserving of this #8 ranking.
#9 East Haven (6-1-1) (6-1-1)
-The public Haven team with the best record is 3rd? They are 2-0 against Westhill and Wilton, DII teams that are a combined 0-10-1 and tied 5-5 with a Stamford team that is 2-4-1 (but still a decent team in DII). They also needed OT to beat Tri-Town (3-2-1) and N Haven while their one loss is to West Haven, 3-4. That leaves an 8-4 win over Conard and a 4-2 win at Cheshire, teams the N and W Haven haven't played yet. At the end of the day, I think E Haven is a talented team (they are in my top ten) but there are eight teams that I think right now are better than them. This Thursday, E Haven host a 5-1 Milford co-op team that only lost in OT to Branford, another good DII team and then on Saturday they travel to Wonderland of Ice in Bridgeport to take on Fairfield Warde/Ludlowe, yet another team at the top of DII.
#10 Darien (3-3) (3-3)
-The Blue Wave beat New Canaan 6-1, who beat St. Joseph 6-1 so don't try to argue St. Joseph is better. New Canaan beat Greenwich 5-4 but NC only beat Notre Dame-Fairifled 3-2 in OT where as Darien has beat ND-F by at least two goals twice so I think its say safe to say they should beat Greenwich by more than one goal. You can't make a case for Fermi/Enfield or Tri-Town to be in the top ten right now based on their results and Windsor/Farmington/Avon has tied their only DI game thus far (Tri-Town). South Windsor is my #11 team right now so don't get too worked up Bobcat fans and Cheshire is just below because I like the 1-2 loss to ND-WH but a loss to Guilford 3-2, only beating Amity 3-2 and New Milford 2-1 in OT have some of teams with good DI wins ahead of them. Darien has the talent of a top ten team and they will be abe to prove it further in games against #7 North Haven, #4 Ridgefield, South Windsor, New Canaan again, St. Joseph and top DII teams like Staples/Weston/Shelton, Stamford, Trumbull, and Fairfield Warde/Ludlowe as they compete in the FCIAC. They are 3-3 because of an 0-2 loss at Hamden, 5-6 OT loss at #8 West Haven, and 1-4 loss versus #2 Notre Dame-West Haven.
#1 Fairfield Prep (6-2) (5-0)
-In some ways it is nice to not have to make a long argument on why the Jesuits are number one week after week like I had to do last year with New Canaan doing so well but never playing Prep. Now, with the top three teams in the state all competing the SCC, we will see 1 vs 2, 1 vs 3 and 2 vs 3 (as they are right now) two times each this season (we could have seen all vs 4 too if Xavier had beat Ridgefield on Saturday night) and two of those match-ups came this past week. Prep beat #3 Hamden 3-1 on Wednesday and topped #2 Notre Dame-West Haven on Saturday 4-3 (it wasn't that close until the very end) to be the undisputed #1 team in the state, for now. My favorite part is that, after watching both those games, there really isn't any controversy about those results like all three teams came to play for those games and he officiating is about the best you are going to get in high school hockey. Along with those wins, remember the Jesuits beat #4 Ridgefield 3-0 in the first game of the season and previously #8 South Windsor 6-2 in their second game of the season. Prep only has one game this week and it is at home against SCC opponent Amity.
#2 Notre Dame-West Haven (7-1) (7-1)
-ND-WH did help their number two ranking by making their final score 3-4 in their loss at #1 Fairfield Prep this week with a late 5-on-6 goal so that look like they were closer to beating the Jesuits than Hamden who lost 1-3 earlier in the week. The Green Knights other game last week was a 2-1 win over Cheshire that kind of surprised me since it was so close but that can be due in part to playing at the TD Bank Sports Center in Hamden I guess. This week they have a huge game at home against #4 Ridgefield and then welcome in Notre Dame-Fairfield on Saturday for another quality game. It may not have been as big as last week but this upcoming week is still important for Notre Dame-West Haven.
#3 Hamden (4-1) (4-1)
-"Close but no cigar" could be used to sum up Hamden's 1-3 loss against #1 Fairfield Prep this past Wednesday but the Green Dragons bounced back well and showed why they are #3 in the state with a 6-3 win at #7 North Haven on Friday. Hamden has some really good games coming up this week hosting #5 Xavier on Wednesday then traveling to Holy Cross College in Worcester, MA to play the same St. John's team from Shrewsbury, MA that Xavier almost beat at home in Middletown. To challenge themselves even further, the Green Dragons scheduled a home game on Saturday afternoon with another MA team, Hingham that I think will give them a good game. Three games in four days will help Hamden get some more games under their belt and get them ready for a showdown with #2 ND-WH three weeks away at the end of January, 2:30pm on 1/28 at Lou Astorino Rink.
#4 Ridgefield (4-1) (2-1)
-They may not have had as good of a week as Fairfield Prep, but the Tigers did hand #5 (then #6) Xavier their first in-state loss, 5-4 in OT. Ridgefield has now played all top ten teams in-state thus far and they will get another at #2 Notre Dame-West Haven this upcoming Wednesday. They also host Westhill on Monday and St. Joseph on Saturday as part of their FCIAC schedule. The Tigers are looking good and can make some noise early at Bennett Rink on Wednesday at 4:15!
#5 Xavier (6-2-1) (4-1-0)
-The Falcons lost their first in-state game this past week but just barely 4-5 in OT at #4 Ridgefield. A reason for concern from this past week is only beat Greenwich 3-2 in OT at home but they also have 4-2 wins over Cheshire and Notre Dame-Fairfield along with a 1-0 victory over #7 North Haven to their credit and taking Ridgefield to OT, being a goal away from winning, proves they are a very good team and deserving of at least a #5 or #6 ranking. X jumped Glastonbury in my rankings because the Thomahawks lost 2-5 to #4 Ridgefield and don't have any other wins over top team opponents. Glastonbury is extremely close behind the Falcons though and I almost was going put these two teams as tied but losing by three goals and losing in overtime is such a big difference, it means Xavier deserves to be ahead. In fact, the Falcons have another big test in their only game next week, at #3 Hamden on Wednesday.
#6 Glastonbury (5-1) (5-1)
-I know Glastonbury went 2-0 last week and the Falcons went 1-1 yet they switched spots in the rankings because the Tomahawks' results were weakened and Xavier's strengthened. Xavier beat Cheshire who only lost 1-2 to #2 Notre Dame-West Haven last week. Glastonbury beat a DIII team while the Falcons beat DI Greenwich. Glastonbury beat Conard and Fermi/Enfield earlier in the season, both teams that lost to previously win-less Simsbury last week. Conard did beat South Windsor one of the two times they played last week so that won't mean much for Glastonbury until they beat South Windsor. Glastonbury is still a top team in the state in my opinion and a week from Monday they will get to showcase themselves in a game at #2 Notre Dame-West Haven. For now, they need to take care of business at 4-2 DII Wethersfield on Wednesday and versus Simsbury on Saturday.
#7 North Haven (3-4) (3-4)
-All three of the public "Haven teams" are a little unpredictable and that is what allows for such an open debate here. However, I give the edge to N Haven because among the three, they are 1-1 with an OT loss, while West Haven is 1-1 and East Haven is 1-1 with their win only coming in OT (against N Haven). The way I look at is if these three teams all played each other again who would win? I think N Haven has the offense to make W Haven pay for what they lack on defense but East Haven doesn't have enough offense to score more than what their defense can hold West Haven to. When East Haven and North Haven play, it is sort of a toss up but I think North Haven has enough offense to get it done; they scored as many goals against #3 Hamden as Fairfield Prep did (3) and are only one of three teams to score at least goals against #2 Notre Dame-West Haven. N Haven has two away games this week: Daniel Hand, a good DII team, and Amity, a formidable SCC opponent.
#8 West Haven (6-1) (6-1)
-The Westies are a solid 6-1 with some easier wins in there that North Haven will soon have a chance to get as well while W Haven is playing the Fairfield Prep and Hamden games N Haven already did. WH is also 1-1 against N and E Haven, a solid record, but as I say in my explanation of NH's ranking, right now I think they would go 1-1 against those teams if they were to play again. The Blue Devils only game this upcoming week is at home against a Simsbury team that has won two straight against decent opponents. W Haven needs to stop that and prove they are deserving of this #8 ranking.
#9 East Haven (6-1-1) (6-1-1)
-The public Haven team with the best record is 3rd? They are 2-0 against Westhill and Wilton, DII teams that are a combined 0-10-1 and tied 5-5 with a Stamford team that is 2-4-1 (but still a decent team in DII). They also needed OT to beat Tri-Town (3-2-1) and N Haven while their one loss is to West Haven, 3-4. That leaves an 8-4 win over Conard and a 4-2 win at Cheshire, teams the N and W Haven haven't played yet. At the end of the day, I think E Haven is a talented team (they are in my top ten) but there are eight teams that I think right now are better than them. This Thursday, E Haven host a 5-1 Milford co-op team that only lost in OT to Branford, another good DII team and then on Saturday they travel to Wonderland of Ice in Bridgeport to take on Fairfield Warde/Ludlowe, yet another team at the top of DII.
#10 Darien (3-3) (3-3)
-The Blue Wave beat New Canaan 6-1, who beat St. Joseph 6-1 so don't try to argue St. Joseph is better. New Canaan beat Greenwich 5-4 but NC only beat Notre Dame-Fairifled 3-2 in OT where as Darien has beat ND-F by at least two goals twice so I think its say safe to say they should beat Greenwich by more than one goal. You can't make a case for Fermi/Enfield or Tri-Town to be in the top ten right now based on their results and Windsor/Farmington/Avon has tied their only DI game thus far (Tri-Town). South Windsor is my #11 team right now so don't get too worked up Bobcat fans and Cheshire is just below because I like the 1-2 loss to ND-WH but a loss to Guilford 3-2, only beating Amity 3-2 and New Milford 2-1 in OT have some of teams with good DI wins ahead of them. Darien has the talent of a top ten team and they will be abe to prove it further in games against #7 North Haven, #4 Ridgefield, South Windsor, New Canaan again, St. Joseph and top DII teams like Staples/Weston/Shelton, Stamford, Trumbull, and Fairfield Warde/Ludlowe as they compete in the FCIAC. They are 3-3 because of an 0-2 loss at Hamden, 5-6 OT loss at #8 West Haven, and 1-4 loss versus #2 Notre Dame-West Haven.
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