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4/30/00 Danville Wins NAHL Title; Streak at 20 Shane Saum had a pair of goals, Adam Wallace had one, and Nick Aulich came up big in goal as the visiting Danville Wings claimed the NAHL championship, the Robertson Cup, with a 3-1 come-from-behind win over the Texas Tornado on Friday night. The win capped off a three-game series sweep, and extended Danville's win streak to 20 games. The Wings, who haven't lost since mid-February, trailed 1-0 at the end of two periods, on a Jason Deitsch goal, but roared back with three in the third. Danville outshot Texas 32-22. Aulich had 21 saves for Danville, Ron Vogel had 30 for Texas. The Wings now move on to the National Jr. A Championship -- the Gold Cup -- March 5-6 in Green Bay. The other three competing teams will be the Twin Cities Vulcans and Green Bay Gamblers (USHL), and the Fernie Ghostriders (AWHL).
4/28/00 Gamblers Win Clark Cup in OT Green Bay, Wisc. -- The Green Bay Gamblers edged the Twin Cities Vulcans, 2-1, on an Aaron Smith goal at 8:55 of overtime last night. The Gamblers, who won the series in five games, had previously won the Clark Cup in 1995-96. The game-winning goal came when Smith jumped on the rebound of a point blast by Gamblers defenseman Tyler Sawchyn. It was Smith's league-leading 11th goal -- and 20th point -- of the playoffs. Earlier, at 14:33 of the first period, Twin Cities forward Matt Koalska beat Gamblers goaltender Jure Penko on a shot from the right circle to give the visitors a 1-0 lead. At 14:26 of the second, Gamblers forward Joe Kautz knocked a rebound past Vulcans goaltender Adam Berkhoel to tie the game at 1-1. It stayed there until Smith's OT heroics. Green Bay outshot Twin Cities, 48-28. Now, both teams move on to the Nationals, which is being hosted by Green Bay May 5-6.
4/27/00 HoneyBaked Takes Kamloops Tournament The Detroit HoneyBaked Bantams, runners-up for two straight years at the Kamloops International Bantam Tournament, won it all this year with a 5-2 win over Compuware in the championship game Monday night.. T.J. Hensick, one of two underagers on the HoneyBaked squad, had an excellent game, notching a goal and an assist. Other HoneyBaked goals were scored by Drew Miller, Rob Nowinski, and Chris Trick. Compuware scorers were Robbie Overfield and Lee Swallow. Both teams went into the championship game undefeated. The dominant player at the tournament was Cleveland Barons center Danny Fritsche, a first-year bantam from Parma, Ohio, a Cleveland suburb. Fritsche, of whom we've written in these pages, is the best American-born '85 we've seen. Here, he won the scoring title with a 9-8-17 line in five round-robin games. In the playoffs, he had a 4-1-5 line in two games. Cleveland, which finished first in their division, was beaten by the York Simcoe Express in the consolation final. Here are the award winners:
Note that Fritsche was named MVP of the tournament but was left off the all-star teams. We've seen this practice before and though the rationale -- namely, to spread the hardware around -- seems worthy, it really doesn't make a lot of sense because, in the process, it cheapens the all-star teams. Best name in the tournament -- hands down -- is Robin Big Snake. By the way, of the 24 teams in the tournament, 19 were from Canada, and five were from the U.S. All five U.S. teams play in the same Michigan-based league. In addition to the three teams mentioned above, Little Caesar's and Belle Tire were also in Kamloops. The U.S. teams posted a 21-4-0 record in round robin play.
4/26/00 Top New England Sophomores Last month, we gave you our list of top juniors. Today, we have the sophomores, i.e. this fall's juniors. Overall, it's not as good a group as the class preceding them, either at the high end or in terms of depth. The '02s are strongest at defense, and in goal. Up front, after the first few, there are a lot of questions marks, meaning that, a year from now, the list could look significantly different -- not uncommon with 10th graders. The following rankings reflect our assessment of a player's value to a Division I college program over a full four years. Some players, of course, will step in and contribute right away, while the value of others may be somewhat backloaded. Also, please remember that we're not ranking pro potential here. This list is put together solely with the college game in mind. There are some heights, weights and birthdates missing. We'll be filling them in over the next few days. If you have any of the missing pieces, please drop an e-mail to info@ushr.com. Thank you. New England 10th Graders; Ranked for NCAA Div. I Potential *The following list is based solely on the observations of the USHR staff* 10th Grade Forwards:
10th Grade Defensemen:
10th Grade Goaltenders:
4/24/00 Danville Rolls On; Streak at 19 The Danville Wings opened the NAHL's Robertson Cup final by knocking off the Texas Tornado in two straight games, extending their winning string to 19 and giving themselves a 2-0 lead in the series. Being a best-of-five affair, Danville has only to win one of the next three games to take the cup. Game #3 is scheduled for Friday April 28 in Texas. Games #4 and #5, if necessary, will take place Sat. and Sun. April 29-30, also in Texas. The series winner will represent the NAHL at the National Jr. A Championships (a.k.a The Gold Cup) in Green Bay, Wisconsin May 5-6. Danville took game #1 by a 7-4 score as Denver University-bound Lukas Dora led the way with two goals and an assist. Todd Grant, Adam Elzinga, Peter Szabo, Derek Edwardson, and Shane Saum (an empty-netter) also scored for Danville. The Wings outshot Texas by a 38-23 margin. Texas' goals were scored by Craig Foddrill, Josh Fleming, T.J. Adams, and Jonathan Awe. In game #2, Danville took a 2-0 lead on a pair of first-period goals by Saum, an Air Force recruit. However, Texas came back in the second on a pair of goals by Awe and Donnie Patrick. The game winner, off the stick of Ryan Reid, came with just 2:14 left in the third period. Nick Economakos scored an empty-netter with two seconds left in regulation to make it 4-2 and seal the win. Nick Aulich came up big in goal for the Wings, who were outshot by Texas, 36-29. The Clark Cup, kind of: Over in the USHL, the Green Bay Gamblers have taken a 2-0 lead over the Twin Cities Vulcans in the Clark Cup final. In game #1 on Friday night, the Gamblers got goals from Brett Englehardt, Joe Kautz, Aaron Smith, and Alan Swanson. Jon Maruk scored both of the Twin Cities goals. Green Bay outshot Twin Cities, 36-25. As for game #2 on Saturday night, all we know right now is that Green Bay knocked off the Vulcans, 6-3. Twenty-four hours after the fact, we're still waiting for the USHL to release further info, even basic stuff like who scored the goals. (It may seem strange, this being the championship series, that the league office is playing scant attention to it. But it's actually not so strange. U.S. Hockey Report readers already know that the USHL Draft, potentially the league's highest-profile event, is conducted in high secrecy. So perhaps it's fitting that the championship series is conducted in the same manner!)
4/24/00 U.S. Under-18's Limp Home Today, Finland will meet Russia in the gold medal game at the World Under-18 Championships in Kloten, Switzerland. Immediately before, Sweden will meet Switzerland for the bronze, and Slovakia will face off against the Czech Republic in the fifth place game. The U.S. will be home by then. Having split their two relegation round games, the U.S. returns with an eighth-place finish in the ten-team tournament. On Saturday, Germany scored a 3-1 win over the U.S., clinching 7th place overall. RW Jonas Lanier scored two of Germany's goals, with the third being an empty-netter with 51 seconds remaining. Germany got excellent goaltending from Dimitri Patzold, who stopped 52 of 53 shots. Rob Globke scored the only U.S. goal 1:47 into the second, with assists going to Bryan Perez and David Steckel. Steckel (2-5-7), Globke (4-2-6), and defenseman Joey Hope (2-3-5) were the top scorers for the U.S. in the tournament. A day earlier, on Friday, the U.S., behind a 25-save effort from Travis Weber, shut out the Ukraine, 6-0. Jon Waibel had a three-point day (2g,1a) for the U.S. Steckel (2a) and defenseman Matt Maglione (1g,1a) had two point nights. Bryan Perez, Jake Fleming, and Kris Bouchard each had single goals. The U.S. finished the week with a 2-4-0 record. Its eighth-place finish put them ahead of only the Ukraine and Belarus.
4/24/00 Cahoon Gearing Up at UMass New UMass coach Toot Cahoon was in high gear as last week came to a close, rushing between Princeton, N.J. and Amherst, Mass., closing down one chapter of his life while moving full-speed ahead on the next. Several weeks ago, Cahoon hired Mark Dennehy, who helped put together the successful Princeton teams of 1996-98 before gaining head coaching experience at Fairfield U. Since then, Cahoon has been working on picking another assistant. Top candidates include former Miami of Ohio assistant Dave Smith, Northfield-Mt. Hermon head coach Jim Ward, Chicago Freeze assistant Mark Bavis, and Omaha Lancers assistant Tommy Mutch. Right now, Cahoon is at the coaches' convention in Naples, Florida, and is talking to additional candidates. On top of all that, there's the Billy Gilligan situation to consider. In Florida, Cahoon will sit down with Gilligan, who served on Joe Mallen's staff the last two years, and try to get a feel for what Gilligan's level of interest in staying on is. Gilligan, 45, is the younger brother of UVM coach Mike Gilligan. After graduating from Brown in '77, where he's the schools's all-time scoring leader, Gilligan played a couple of years of pro hockey in the U.S. before going to Europe, first as a player and then as a coach. At different times, Gilligan coached both the Swiss National Team and Swiss National Junior Team. Cahoon's recruiting goals include making sure that the top players in Massachusetts, the rest of the U.S., and Canada understand what UMass has to offer. "We're not going to overlook any areas," he says. "We're gong to be competing with the high-end programs."
4/21/00 Clark Cup Final Gets Underway Tonight The USHL Clark Cup final gets underway this evening as the Green Bay Gamblers host the Twin Cities Vulcans at 7:05 pm. Twin Cities goaltender Adam Berkhoel, a Denver University recruit, could be the key to the series. Berkhoel, who played at Stillwater (Minn.) HS last season, has been extremely tough lately. He thrives under pressure, too. For example, in round one of the playoffs, the Sioux Falls Stampede outplayed Twin Cities in every game, but went down in three straight, losing all by 3-2 scores. Berkhoel had a phenomenal series: 102 saves on 108 shots, a 1.90 gaa, and a .944 save percentage. In round two, Twin Cities went up against #1 seed Lincoln. In the first two games, Twin Cities, playing on the road, was decisively beaten -- and Berkhoel was suddenly looking very human. Back in the Twin Cities for games three and four, the Vulcans went to work, knocking off the Stars by scores of 5-3 and 5-2 to tie up the series at two wins apiece. When the Vulcans returned to Lincoln, they shocked the Stars, taking the series finale by a 7-3 score. In those final three games, Berkhoel stopped 131 of 138 shots, posting a .949 save percentage, and a 2.33 gaa. For purposes of contrast, Lincoln's Wayne Russell, who had only allowed one goal in each of the first two games while posting a .967 save percentage, struggled in games #3,4,5, posting a 5.66 gaa and a .786 save percentage. In short, the Vulcans will go as far as Berkhoel takes them. However, neither of these teams is an offensive dynamo. Green Bay, however, has the slight edge, averaging 4.00 goals per game during the regular season, while Twin Cities averaged 3.50. The big guns up front for the Gamblers are 5'11" Madison, Wisconsin native Aaron Smith, a true sniper (he has 12 pts. in 10 playoff games) and 6'1" Brett Engelhardt (10 pts.). 5'9" former Marquette Electrician Alan Swanson has really come on strong lately, notching eight points in nine playoff games. Look for 5'5" Dallas Steward, 5'8" Luke Stauffacher, 6'1" Tristan Lush, and 6'0" Joe Kautz to contribute, too. John Eichelberger, whose 69 points in 49 regular season games was the second highest on the club, is out with an injury. Green Bay's claim to fame is its core of defensemen, perhaps the best in junior hockey. They're skilled, and also have the ability to jump-start the offense. Dan Boeser and Danny Calzada each had 37 pts. in 58 regular season games. Jeff Finger had even more -- 48. Bryce Methven is another one to watch, more of a defensive D. Matt Jones, an '83, is coming into his own. In goal for the Gamblers, Jure Penko has been excellent, posting a 2.23 gaa and .926 save percentage in the playoffs. Looking at Twin Cities, their offense is led by the line of 6'1", 190 lb. former Hill-Murray standout Matt Koalska, 5'10" LW Jon Maruk, and 6'2", 185 lb. Tim Jackman. Jackman, a native of Brooklyn Park, Minn. has the tools to be a future pro. He played a split season this year, notching 34 goals for Park Center HS (second in Minn. Class AA to Eden Prairie's super-skilled '83 forward Mike Erickson). Jon Hart, who also played this past winter for Park Center HS, is another to keep an eye on. The same goes for center Brad Thompson, who played last season for St. Louis Park (Minn.) HS. 5'11" Joel Peterson, and 5'10" Ryan Lenton anchor the D. Justin Brown, and Aaron Forsythe are a couple more to keep an eye on. As for coaching, both teams are strong in that department -- Twin Cities is led by Jim Hillman and Green Bay by Mark Osiecki. Also, both teams have a slew of players going on to Div. I hockey in the fall. The Vulcans' DI bound players are Berkhoel (Denver), Brown (Michigan Tech), Forsythe (Mankato), Koalska (Minnesota), Jackman (Mankato), Lenton (Michigan Tech), Maruk (Notre Dame), Peterson (St. Cloud State), and Thompson (Mankato in 2001). The Gamblers are sending along Boeser (Wisconsin), Calzada (Nebraska-Omaha), Eichelberger (Wisconsin), Engelhardt (Michigan Tech), Finger (St. Cloud State), Lush (Clarkson), Smith (Nebraska-Omaha), and Steward (Alaska-Anchorage). Tonight's series opener will be followed by game #2 tomorrow night, also a 7:05 start. Games #3 and 4 will be at Twin Cities Tues-Wed. April 26-27. Game 5 will be in Green Bay Thurs. April 27. Game 6 will be back in the Twin Cities on Sat. the 29th. A seventh and deciding game would be held back in Green Bay on Sunday April 30. Our pick? Green Bay in seven. Why? Green Bay has more depth, particularly on defense. Both of these squads will be among the four entrants in the National Jr. A championships on May 5-6. Those are in Green Bay, too, so Brett Favre's Steakhouse should be hopping. An interesting sidelight to this series is the fact that the Twin Cities franchise will be leaving Minnesota for Kearney, Nebraska over the summer. In the fall, the Vulcans will be reborn as the Tri-City Storm.
4/20/00 A Changing of the Guard The final round of the Robertson Cup -- emblematic of NAHL supremacy -- gets underway tonight with an intriguing matchup as the Texas Tornado, an expansion team, face off against the Danville Wings. In the NAHL pre-season coach's poll, both teams were picked to finish in the bottom half of their division. It didn't quite work out that way, though. When the dust settled, Texas wound up with the best overall record in the NAHL, with Danville just seven points behind. Both teams are undefeated in the playoffs, and Danville, as Chris Berman would say, is "en fuego", riding a 17-game win streak stretching back to mid-February. In their most-recent playoff round, the Wings knocked off the defending national Jr. A champion Compuware Ambassadors. Speaking of Compuware, they've won 10 of the last 14 NAHL championships. The other champions have been the Springfield Jr. Blues ('96 and '97), coached by current Texas coach Tony Curtale; and the Kalamazoo Jr. K Wings ('91 and '93). So no matter who wins the series starting tonight, there'll be a changing of the guard. Of the two teams, Texas is the older, more-experienced team. Curtale, who coached the OHL's Windsor Spitfires last winter, brought a couple of his OHL players along with him when he was hired in Texas. Most notable has been goaltender Ron Vogel, who's the rock on which Texas relies. Vogel, who turns 21 next week, was the top goalie in the NAHL this year, posting a 2.22 gaa and a .925 save percentage. In the postseason, he's even better --- 1.75 gaa and .949 save percentage. Up front, Texas' big guns are Jason Deitsch, Don Patrick, and Jason Guerriero, all of whom scored sixty-plus points during the regular season, and all of whom finished in the top six of the league scoring race. Behind that trio comes Chris Lieckfield, Craig Foddrill, and Peter Rynshoven, each of whom had 50-plus points. In addition, David Wyzgowski has stepped up in the playoffs, tallying four goals in Texas' sweep of the Chicago Freeze and Soo Indians. Texas' two Division I bound players are Patrick and Lieckfield, both of whom are going to Ferris State. Texas' average margin of victory this season was 4.27 to 2.37 -- pretty decisive, in other words. Against Danville this season, they went 6-1-1. Danville lacks Texas' firepower -- i.e., they had no one who scored more than 50-points during the regular season, while Texas, as mentioned above, had six. However, Danville has an excellent power play, connecting at a league-leading 23.4 percent during the regular season. However, that stat won't worry Texas much -- the Tornado killed penalties at a league leading 90.0% this season. It's strength against strength here. As for average margin of victory, Danville scored 3.59 goals per game during the regular season, and allowed 3.12 per game. It's an extremely narrow gap for a team that wins as consistently as the Wings (40-13-7 since the start of the season), and indicates that Danville, coached by Josh Mervis, is a highly-disciplined squad that wins a large number of tight, defensive games. Danville led the NAHL in moving players on to Div. I schools. The ten Wings who'll be heading to college this fall include seven forwards: Derek Edwardson (Miami), Lukas Dora (Denver), Andy Kranz (North Dakota), Shane Saum (Air Force), Amborse Tappe (Northern Michigan), Jason Costa (Dartmouth), and Kevin Murray (Quinnipiac). The defensemen moving on are Matt Gossett (Ferris State), Ray Ladochi (Northern Michigan) and Brian Van Abel (Dartmouth). In all, Mervis has recruited 26 Div. I recruits and one OHL player (Adam Elzinga) in four years. Tonight's series opener is in Danville, with a 7 pm CST faceoff. The teams meet in Game 2 tomorrow night -- same time and place. Next week, the series moves to Texas for the remainder of the best-of-five series. Game 3 will be Friday, April 28 at 7:30 pm CST. If necessary, games four and five will be on Sat. April 29 and Sun. April 30, also at 7:30. Our pick? Texas. Like so many playoffs series, it comes down to goaltending, and Vogel's just too tough. The winner of this series will represent the NAHL in the National Junior A championship in Green Bay, Wisc. May 5-6.
4/19/00 NAHL/USHL Signed Tenders Here's the latest list of signed tenders from the NAHL and the USHL. Look for a good number of signings to get done between the completion of the National Jr. A. Championships, and May 17, the date of the USHL draft. Also, look for a number of teams to simply hold off, and use their remaining tenders on their own players. NAHL Tenders Signed: Chicago Freeze: Chris Conner, F, Detroit Honeybaked Midget AAA; Eric Vesely, F, Chicago Chill; Blake Stewart, F, Team Illinois Midget AAA. St. Louis Sting: Brandon Kaleniecki, F, Detroit Catholic Central; David Moss, F, Detroit Catholic Central. Soo Indians: Jared Nightingale, F, Soo Hawks Midget AAA; John Kelly, F, Team Illinois Midget AAA. Springfield Indians: Clay Estabrooke, F, Team Illinois Midget AAA; Rochester Jr. Americans: Jeremy Scherlinck. Danville Wings: Kevin Krogol, F, Detroit Honeybaked Midget AAA; Matt Collar, D, Detroit Honeybaked Midget AAA; Jonathan Saunders, D, Detroit Honeybaked Midget AAA; Jason Tejchma, F, Detroit Honeybaked Midget AAA. Texas Tornado: Aaron Dufford, D, Ann Arbor Ice Dogs. USHL Tenders Signed: Cedar Rapids RoughRiders: Ted O'Leary, Vail Midget AAA; Kevin Frederick, Vail Midget AAA; Reynold Fauci, N.J. Titans Jr. B Des Moines Buccaneers: Ross Carlson, F, Duluth East HS (Minn.); Gabe Gauthier, F, Chilliwack Chiefs (BCHL). Dubuque Fighting Saints: Jaymie Harrington, F, Boston Jr. Bruins (EJHL); Anthony Blumer, F, St. Thomas Academy (Minn.); Adam Gerlach, Hastings HS (Minn.). Fargo-Moorhead Ice Sharks: Bryan Baron, Lake of the Woods HS (Minn.); Daryl Smoleroff, Maple Grove HS (Minn.). Green Bay Gamblers: Nathan Guenin, D, Pittsburgh Hornets Midget AAA; Dwight Labrosse, G, Pittsburgh Hornets Midget AAA. Lincoln Stars: Jake Brandt, G, Roseau HS (Minn.). Omaha Lancers: Aaron Slattengren, F, Proctor HS (Minn.); Chris Harrington, D, St. Cloud Apollo HS (Minn.). Rochester Mustangs: Bill Bagron, Alaska Blue Devils; Tim Conboy, D, Brainerd HS (Minn.); Aaron Quigley, F, North St. Paul HS (Minn.); Jesse Stokke, Hermantown HS (Minn.). Sioux City Musketeers: John Zeiler, F, Pittsburgh Hornets; Matt Fetzer, D, Chicago Young Americans; Patrick Knutson, East Grand Forks HS (Minn.). Sioux Falls Stampede: Robbie Barker, D, Lawrence Academy (Mass.); Kellen Briggs, G, Vail Midget AAA. Tri-City Storm: Joshua Hoover, Alaska All-Stars; David Bogulawski, F, Park HS (Minn.); Troy Troje, D, Henry Sibley HS (Minn.). Waterloo Black Hawks: Ryan Connelly, F, White Bear Lake HS (Minn.); Cole Baron, F, Ventura Mariners; Ryan Langenbrunner, F, Cloquet HS (Minn.).
4/18/00 Globke, U.S. Romp Over Belarus Poor Belarus. After an off day to recover from Sunday's 18-1 pasting at the hands of Russia, they where whacked again today, this time dropping a 9-1 decision to the U.S. The U.S., heading into the game winless (0-3-0), and eliminated from medal contention, had some frustrations to take out, and did, as Quinn Fylling put the U.S. up, 1-0, just 11 seconds into the game. The U.S. added another when defenseman Joey Hope scored late in the period. In the second period, the U.S. notched three goals, two by Rob Globke and one by R.J. Umberger. In the third, the U.S. added four more, by David Steckel, John Snowden, Brady Leisenring, and -- for the hat trick -- Globke. For the U.S., ten players notched at least one point. Globke led the way with four (3g,1a). Steckel had three (1g,2a). Leisenring (1g,1a), Bryan Perez (2a), and Ben Eaves (2a) each had two. Fylling (1g), Hope (1g) , Snowden (1g), Umberger (1g) and Cole Bassett (1a) each had one point. The U.S. outshot Belarus, 63-20. Travis Weber had 19 saves for the U.S. Geopolitical factoid: Belarus, a bit smaller than Kansas and wedged between Poland and Russia, was once known as White Russia or Byelorussia. Between Stalin and WWII, thousands were killed or deported and agriculture and industry were laid waste to. The eight-year-old country's capital and largest city is Minsk.
1/17/00 U.S. Knocked Out of Medal Contention The United States lost its third straight game today at the World Under-18 Championships in Weinfelden, Switzerland, bowing to Slovakia, 4-1. The loss knocked the U.S. out of medal contention. With one day left in round-robin play, the three teams that will advance to the medal round are Russia (3-0-0), which clinched first place, Slovakia (2-0-1), and Finland (2-0-1). The exact order of finish will be determined by tomorrow's games. The U.S. (0-3-0) plays Belarus -- also winless -- tomorrow. In today's game, the U.S. outshot Slovakia, 32-20, but were facing 6'1" Peter Hamerlik, the top ranked European goaltender available for June's NHL draft. Hamerlik only allowed one goal, a second period tally by David Steckel. Left wing Marian Gaborik, who could go #1 overall in June's draft, victimized the U.S. with a goal and an assist. LD Peter Fruhauf had a goal and an assist, too. Tomas Malec had a pair of assists. Nick Pannoni stopped 16 of 20 shots in the U.S. net. The U.S. MVP was center Brady Leisenring. In other action: Russia outshot Finland 70-30, and beat them 5-2. LW Egor Chastine had a goal and an assist, while Michail Jakoubov, another likely first-round draft pick in June, had a pair of assists. Andrei Medvedev stopped 28 of 30 shots for Russia, while Kari Lehtonen kicked out 65 of 70 shots for Finland .... Sweden, down 2-0 early, roared back with six unanswered goals in a 6-2 win over the Czech Republic today. Martin Samuelsson, Jens Karlsson, and Johann Eneqvist each had a goal and an assist for Sweden.... Switzerland, behind a pair of power play goals, topped Germany, 3-2.
4/15/00 Finland Edges U.S., 3-2 U.S. hopes for a medal at the World Under-18 Championship took a hit with a 3-2 loss to Finland today in Switzerland. Finland's Jarkko Immonen scored the winning goal with 1:26 remaining in the game on a slap shot from just inside the blue line. Finland outshot the U.S. by a 51-45 margin. Once again, goaltender Nick Pannoni of Babb, Montana came up big for the U.S., making 48 saves, including one on a penalty shot midway through the third period. The U.S. is 0-2-0 in the four-game round robin portion of the tournament, and, in their pool, trail Finland (2-0-0), Slovakia (1-1-0), and Russia (1-0-0). Only three teams advance to the quarterfinals from each pool, so Monday's game against Slovakia is a must-win. In other action: Sweden downed Germany, 3-0. Michael Irani, Joel Lundquist, and Martin Samuelson each had single goals... Slovakia blitzed Belarus, 7-1... Switzerland bombed the Ukraine, 10-1.
4/14/00 Russia Too Much for U.S. Russia topped the U.S., 5-1, in opening day action at the World Under-18 Championships in Weinfelden, Switzerland this evening. Russia outshot the U.S., 59-31. In the first period, Russia broke out on top at the 12:10 mark on an Alexei Smirnov goal, but that was all they'd get in the period as U.S. goaltender Nick Pannoni kept his team in the game, kicking out 24 of 25 Russian shots. In the second, Russia broke the game open, scoring three times in a five-minute span late in the period. Defensemen Alexander Frolov and Anton Volchenkov, and forward Egor Chastine were the goal scorers. The U.S. took two penalty shots in the period, both by Ben Eaves, both unsuccessful. In the third, U.S. defensemen Joey Hope cut the lead to 4-1. Assists on the goal, which came at the 16:08 mark, went to Brady Leisenring and Cole Bassett. Forty-five seconds later, Russia's Smirnov scored his second of the game to make the final 5-1. In other action: Defenseman Jan Hanzlik had a three-point day (1g,2a) and center Martin Frolik had a pair of assists to lead the Czech Republic to a 5-3 win over Germany... Forward Jens Karlsson and defenseman Andreas Jungbeck each had two goals in Sweden's 8-3 win over Switzerland... Finland topped Slovakia, 3-1.
4/14/00 U.S. Under-18's Open Against Russia The U.S. Under-18 Team begins play in the 2000 World Under-18 Championship with a game against Russia in Weinfelden, Switzerland today. The U.S. tuned up this week with a pair of exhibition wins. The first, on Sunday, was a 5-1 decision over host Switzerland. Dennis Packard had a pair of goals, and David Steckel, Quinn Fylling, and Cole Bassett each added one of their own. Nick Pannoni had 12 saves for the U.S. On Wednesday, the U.S. had a tougher test in Finland, which won this tournament last year, and, in an intense, physical game, came out on top, 3-2. R.J. Umberger, Keith Ballard, and Ben Eaves notched the U.S. goals and Travis Weber kicked out 32 of 34 shots for the win. Now, however, the games are for real, and today the U.S. faces a daunting challenge in Russia. At the Five Nations Tournament in Rauma, Finland Feb. 10, Russia scored four goals on their first six shots en route to a 5-3 win over the U.S. squad. Russia has size, speed, and puck skills. Five of their forwards are 6'3", and several more are 6'0" or better. They use their size and reach to gain body position -- and they can control the puck for lengthy stretches. Top Russians are 6'3", 200 lb. LW Alexander Frolov, who blitzed the U.S. for two goals in the aforementioned game; 6'3", 178 lb. center Mikhail Yakubov; and 5'11", 176 lb. RW Alexander Tatarinov, who can fly. Top D-men are 5'11", 165 lb. Alexander Selujanov, who has great vision; and 5'10", 176 lb. Andrei Zabolotnev, who unloads from the point as frequently as Ray Bourque in his prime. Russia's weakness -- and it's a relative term here -- is in goal, where Denis Cherepanov and Sergie Mylnikov didn't exactly wow the scouts in February. The U.S. Schedule:
4/13/00 Hey, What are We? Chopped Liver? Last week in these pages, we pointed out that the USHL (with 79) and the NAHL (with 33) were running 1-2 among U.S. junior leagues in sending players on to Div. I schools. What about us? asked an Eastern Junior Hockey League official. We checked the lists, and, indeed, the EJHL had a strong year, sending 20 players on to Div. I schools. Eight are going to Hockey East, seven to the ECAC, four to the MAAC, and one to the CCHA. Of those 20 players, 12 came from three teams. The league-champion New England Coyotes, the Walpole Stars, and New York Apple Core each advanced four players.
4/13/00 A Change of Hart Air Force had an excellent recruit for next season in Jon Hart of Park Center (Minn.) HS and the Twin Cities Vulcans (USHL). However, Hart, who committed to Air Force several weeks ago, has notified the academy that he has changed his mind. Hart will play in the USHL next season. Hart was the 5th-leading scorer in Minnesota Class AA this past winter. In 23 games he posted a 23-38-61 line.
4/13/00 A Regular Joe for Michigan State Michigan State has committed to defenseman Joe Markusen, a 6'0", 185 lb. left shot D from Grafton, North Dakota and the Lincoln Stars (USHL). Markusen, who played high school hockey in North Dakota before moving on to the USHL two years ago, is a stay-at-home D with good puck skills -- not flashy, just efficient. Markusen will join center Jeremy Jackson (Chilliwack Chiefs) and RD Joey Hope (NTDP) in the Michigan State class of 2004. Another potential member of that class is 5'9", 170 lb. forward Tim Hearon of Clarkdale, Michigan and the Omaha Lancers (USHL). Colorado College is the other school in the hunt for the 21-year-old Hearon, a skilled centerman who's put up decent numbers wherever he's been. Before going to the Lancers two seasons ago, Hearon played for the Gaylord Grizzlies (now Grand Rapids Rockets) of the NAHL. In other Div. I recruiting news, Michigan Tech is bringing in Twin Cities Vulcans defenseman Ryan Lenton, a Bloomington, Minn. native. Lenton, who's 5'10", 175 lbs., isn't big, but he skates well and can carry the puck. He's a left shot and a '79 birthdate 6'1", 192 lb. Bryan Perez, a LW from Blaine, Minn. and the U.S. National Team Development Program will also be playing for Tech in the fall. Perez, had a 7-14-21 line in 51 USHL games this season. Quinnipiac College is bringing in three forwards in Mike Warner of Avon Old Farms, Jeremy Garrison of the Valley Junior Warriors, and Brian Doherty of Cushing Academy.
4/13/00 UMass, Part II Mark Dennehy has joined Toot Cahoon's staff at UMass. Dennehy, the head coach at Fairfield University (MAAC) this past year, is no stranger to folks in Amherst. Before going to Princeton in 1996, he spent two years as an assistant on Joe Mallen's staff. Dennehy, who's from Dorchester, Mass., was a forward at Boston College from 1987-91.
4/13/00 Musical Chairs Again A number of USHL jobs will be opening up, as a couple of coaches have been hired -- or are about to be hired -- as Div. I assistants. Green Bay Gamblers head coach Mark Osiecki is reported to be heading to the University of Minnesota-Duluth to join the staff of new head coach Scott Sandelin there. Before going to Green Bay three years ago, Osiecki worked with Sandelin as an assistant at the University of North Dakota. Sioux City Musketeers head coach Dave Hakstol is a top candidate for a position on the staff of Dean Blais at North Dakota. Hakstol, who took over a moribund Sioux City franchise in 1996-97 and guided it to three straight winning seasons, is a Red Deer, Alberta native who played defense for the Fighting Sioux from 1989-92. In the college ranks, there are openings for assistants. There's already two at Colorado College (Steve Nelson, Garett MacDonald), and one at Miami, where Dave Smith recently stepped down. Now, Rob Abel is leaving Brown, effective June 1st. He'll be looking for a prep school slot doing college counseling and coaching hockey. Andover Academy, where long-time coach Chris Gurry recently retired, is a possibility.
4/12/00 NAHL Hands Out the Iron The NAHL has announced its award winners, all-star teams, and all-rookie team for 1999-00. The big prize -- the MVP -- goes to goaltender Ron Vogel of the Texas Tornado. Top D-man was J.D.Forrest of the U.S. National Team Development Program. Rookie of the year went to Chicago Freeze center Eric Przepiorka. Chicago Freeze goaltender Jason Bacashihua was named the runner-up for the MVP award. However, Bacashihua was not named Rookie of the Year, which, if you think about it, just doesn't make sense. Voting was done by the league's head coaches. They were not permitted to vote for their own players.
4/11/00 Coach: Collins "Possessed" 48 hours later, Mike Bonish, coach of the National Midget champion Eastern Mass. Senators, remains awestruck by the show put on by Sean Collins. On Sunday morning, Collins notched five goals in a national semifinal game against the L.A. Junior Kings. Later in the day, Collins notched another five in the title game win over the Chicago Chill. That's ten goals in one day. "As a coach, you want to maintain composure," Bonish said, "but we're all fans, too, and that was just very, very exciting. I had to pinch myself." The Reading HS junior, who's being pursued by both UNH (where linemate Stephen Saviano is heading this coming fall) and Boston University, just "oozed with confidence," said Bonish. "With his speed and explosiveness, nothing anyone was going to do would have stopped him. On Sunday, Sean lifted his game up about four levels. He was a man on a mission. He was possessed." Collins, the son of a Reading Police officer, led all scorers in the tournament with a 17-4-21 line. Second place went to Saviano, who finished with a 1-11-12 line. Bonish had high praise for Saviano's work, citing his excellent penalty killing and his leadership in the locker room before the final period of the title game. (The Senators, of course, notched five goals in the final stanza that day. It was the third time in six tournament games they'd come up with a five-spot in the third period.) It's possible that Sunday's game was the last time Saviano and Collins line up together. Of course, it's also possible that Collins and Saviano could get reunited in college in the fall of 2001. Time will tell. Other forwards Bonish held out for praise included Arlington High junior Ned Havern, who was suffering from the after-effects of a March bout with mono; senior Joe Chaisson of Watertown High, who was the third guy on the Collins-Saviano line; junior Andrew Madeiros of Matignon, who played his best hockey all season; senior Dave Clark of B.C. High and junior Rugo Santini of Winchester HS. Top D included Arlington High junior Tom Walsh; sophomore Danny Spang of Winchester, who played half the tournament with a bad shoulder; and Merrimack-bound Eric Pederson of Avon Old Farms and Saugus, Mass. Not to take anything away from the Senators' accomplishment, but three of the four toughest teams in the tournament -- one scout in attendance ranked them 1. Shattuck, 2. HoneyBaked, and 3 (tie) Chicago Chill and the Senators -- were in one division. The Senators were able to come out on top in their division despite dropping a 6-3 decision to HoneyBaked on the tournament's first day.
4/11/00 New England Select Teams Announced The New England Teams going out to St. Cloud, Minn. this summer for USA Hockey's Select Festivals have been announced. The Yankee Conference Festival, from which these squads were drawn, was held the last weekend in March in Hookset and Exeter, N.H. The players listed below are presented in alphabetical order. New England Select 17 Team GOALTENDERS (2): Jim Merola (N. Providence, R.I.); Brad Shirley (Hanover, N.H.). DEFENSEMEN (6): Ben Brayden (Burlington, Vt); Matt Hedrick (Orono, Maine); James Pemberton (Cumberland, R.I.); Eric Lundberg (Vernon, Conn.); John Sayles (Warwick, R.I.); Jaime Sifers (Stratford, Conn.). FORWARDS (12): Chris Chaput (Pawtucket, R.I.); Kevin Child (Shelburne, Vt.); Adam Dann (Stowe, Vt.); Joseph DeLuca (Warwick, R.I.); Micky Girardi (Easton, Conn.); Christian Jensen (New Canaan, Conn.); John LaLiberty (Saco, Maine); Justin Laverdiere (Woonsocket, R.I.); Keegan Rosenberger (Seekonk, Mass.); Matthew Roy (Greenville, R.I.); Ryan Shannon (Darien, Conn.); Ryan Trowbridge (Southbury, Conn.). New England Select 16 Team GOALTENDERS (2): Mark Heffernan (West Haven, Conn.); Travis Russell (Essex Junction, Vt.). DEFENSEMEN (6): Josh Benson (Auburn, Maine); Robert Gates (Cranston, R.I.); Ben Lovejoy (Canaan, N.H.); Sean Navin (Simsbury, Conn.); Garret Overlock (Greenwich, R.I.); Travis Pavoni (Woonsocket, R.I.). FORWARDS (12): Mike Bordieri (Rocky Hill, Conn.); Ryan Clauson (Hanover, N.H.); Corey Goglia (Warren, R.I.); Brian Horan (Farmington, Conn.); Hugh Jessiman (Darien, Conn.); Adam Ladd (Keene, N.H.); Joe Lauricella (Blackstone, Mass.); Greg Moore (Lisbon, Maine); Mike Rose (Rumford, R.I.); Greg Schultz (Avon, Conn.); James Tselikis (Cape Elizabeth, Maine); Reese Wisnowksi (East Middlebury, Vt.). New England Select 15 Team GOALTENDERS (2): Ed Mega (R.I.); John Smith (Maine). DEFENSEMEN (6): Bryan Cirullo (Conn.); Paul Forselius (Conn.); Jay Rainville (R.I.); David Reilly (Conn.); Mike Reynolds (R.I.); Jarrett Souza (R.I.). FORWARDS (12): Joseph Buteau (Vt.); Dustin Degree (Vt.); Augusto DiMarzo (Conn.); Shane Farrell (R.I.); Todd Johnson (Conn.); Brent Jurkiewicz (Vt.); Alex Meintel (Maine); Matthew Smith (Maine); Trevor Spiridi (R.I.); Jay Verrill (Maine); Phil Wright (Conn.).
4/9/00 Collins, Senators Take National Midget Title The Eastern Mass. Senators broke open a 3-2 game with five third-period goals to top the Chicago Chill, 8-3, and win the 2000 National Midget Championship in Pittsburgh, Pa. today. The big gun was -- no surprise -- Sean Collins, who notched five goals, four of them coming during the third period explosion. Linemate Stephen Saviano contributed four assists, and Andrew Madeiros had a three-point day (1g,2a). Collins finished as the tournament's leading scorer with a 17-4-21 line. Saviano (1-11-12) was next, followed by Brett Sterling of the LA Junior Kings (6-4-10). Keith McWilliams of the LA Junior Kings, a defenseman, and Ned Havern of the Senators each finished with nine points, while Chris Michael of the Chill and Rugo Santini of the Senators each had eight. BC-bound Ben Eaves of Shattuck was one of a handful of players to finish with seven points. Shatttuck, whom we figured would walk through the tournament, was the only team to win all three of their round-robin games. In the semi-finals, however, they were knocked off, 3-1, by the Chicago Chill. In that game, Shattuck broke open a scoreless game with an early third-period goal by Ryan Mayhew, but then the Larry Pedrie-coached Chill went to work, scoring three goals in the last 6:47 of the game, one by Eric Vesely, then, in quick succession, a pair from Chris Michael, the latter a power-play goal with 46 seconds left that put the game out of Shattuck's reach. ** The Eastern Mass Senators weren't the only team from Mass. to win a National title today. In the Junior B National Midget Tournament in Houston, Texas, Dorchester knocked off the Chicago Flames, 5-2 behind a pair of goals from Brendan Byrne, who plays at Milton Academy. The top goaltender in Houston was Byrne's teammate at Milton, Peter Cohen, who finished the tournament with a .931 save percentage. Top scorers at the tournament were Jake Sparks of Arvada, Col. (8-8-16), and teammate Bryson Rintala (8-7-15). Gregory Rallo of Chicago (4-9-13) was next. Garrett Roth of Chicago, Byrne of Dorchester, and Jeff Williams of Chicago each finished with 12 points apiece. ** Out in Bloomington, Minn., the Chicago Young Americans took the National Bantam title with a 9-1 drubbing of the Syracuse Stars. Leading the way for CYA was forward Anthony Cosmano, who notched a hat trick. His first goal came on the power play, his second was short-handed, and his third was an even-strength effort. CYA Winger Michael Bartlett added a pair of goals. Syracuse's lone goal was scored by Robbie Shremp, a highlight film effort scored when the game was out of reach. Shremp, an '86 left-shot center who was the center of attention at the International Pee-Wee Tournament in Quebec City in February, finished the tournament with a 4-3-7 line. Shremp, who's about 5'9", is a very complete player for his age -- he has good hands, he can skate, and he can find the net. Cosmano was the leading scorer in the tournament with a 12-4-16 line, followed by T.J. Hensick of Detroit HoneyBaked (8-6-14). Next in line were Andrew Goberstein and Topher Scott of CYA, each finishing with 14 points. Dustin Brown of Syracuse, Jeff Likens of CYA, and Tim Sestito of Syracuse each finished with 13. Dan Robins of the Bloomington-Jefferson Jaguars, the host team, was the leading goaltender with a .939 save percentage. He was followed by CYA's Zach Harris (.930); Gaetano Rando of the Washington Little Caps (.919), Adam D'Albe of CYA (.915), Ryan Thorpe of the N.H. Widcats (.905); and Brian Northcutt of the Alaska All-Stars (.905).
4/8/00 2 D for PC Another 11th grader has made a commitment. This time, it's 6'2", 195 lb. right-shot defenseman Eric Lundberg of the New England Coyotes (EJHL). Lundberg, who's from Vernon, Conn., is big, has good hands, and can skate. Many, if not most, observers feel that Lundberg, a 4/13/83 birthdate, trails only Tim Gleason and Ryan Whitney as the top pro prospects among the U.S.-born '83 defenseman. With the Coyotes this season, Lundberg, in 31 games, had a 6-17-23 line with 103 penalty minutes. Lundberg's final decision came down to Providence and Maine. Boston College was in it up until fairly recently. Reportedly, BU was in it, too, though to a lesser degree. PC will have to wait until the fall of 2001 for Lundberg, but this fall the Friars will be getting help from Stephen Wood of Lawrence Academy. Wood, who's 6'3", 204 lbs. is a right shot from Sudbury, Mass. We don't have his numbers, but we can tell you -- quite unequivocally, too -- that he's not afraid to go with the puck. He's the younger brother of Doug Wood, who played at BU from 1992-96. Next season, Providence will have two senior D, Matt Libby and Jay Leach; one sophomore, Shawn Weiman, and four freshman: Regan Kelly, Jason Platt, Dom Torretti, and Wood. Notes: In other recent college commitments, speedy Deerfield winger Glenn Sanders, who really came on this year, particularly in the second half, will be going to Union College. Sanders is the younger brother of former Northfield-Mt. Hermon and UVM forward Matt Sanders. Speaking of UVM, Sanders' teammate at Deerfield, right-shot defenseman Oriel McHugh, will be heading there this fall. McHugh who's 6'2", 200 lbs., is from Montreal, Que. From the USHL comes word that Tim Horst, a 5'11", 195 lb. left-shot D from the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders will be heading to UNH this fall. Horst, who played for South St. Paul HS, and then moved on to the USHL for the last two seasons, led all Cedar Rapids defenseman in scoring. Horst will turn 21 in June. Also, Cedar Rapids is sending former Xaverian (Mass.) HS star Gerry Hickey to Northeastern as a recruited walk-on. Hickey, who's from Hanover, Mass., had 19 goals and 180 penalty minutes this past season. Hickey's teammate at Cedar Rapids, Californian Micah Wouters, will be headed to Mankato State. Wouters, 6'0", 175 lbs., posted a 14-41-55 line this season. Wouters will turn 21 in May.
4/7/00 U.S. Under-18 Team Heads to Switzerland The U.S. Under-18 Team flies out of Detroit late this afternoon, bound for the World Championships in Switzerland. On Sunday, the U.S. meets Switzerland in an exhibition game, then will play one more exhibition game on Tuesday (vs. Finland). The tournament begins a week from today when the U.S. faces Russia in a tough opening day draw. Here's the U.S. roster: GOALTENDERS (2): Travis Weber*, Nick Pannoni. ALTERNATE: Jason Bacashihua (Chicago Freeze -- NAHL) DEFENSEMEN (7): Keith Ballard, Joey Schuman (Benilde-St. Margaret's -- Minn. HS), Michael Komisarek, Jim McNamara, Neil Komadoski, Matt Maglione, Joey Hope. ALTERNATES: Jared Newman (Plymouth Whalers -- OHL), Tim Gleason* (Windsor Spitfires --OHL). FORWARDS (13): Jake Fleming, Jon Waibel, Brady Leisenring, John Snowden, David Steckel, Ben Eaves (Shattuck-St. Mary's --- Minn. Prep), Dennis Packard, Cole Bassett, R.J. Umberger, Quinn Fylling, Rob Globke, Kris Bouchard, Bryan Perez. ALTERNATES: Kris Vernarsky (Plymouth Whalers -- OHL), Ryan Murphy*, Dwight Helminen*, Justin Maiser*. (Players with a star after their name are '83 birthdates. All others are are '82 birthdates.) As of right now, the U.S. will only have two players from outside the program making the trip, defenseman Joey Schuman and forward Ben Eaves. The latter will be flying to Switzerland in a few days. Right now, Shattuck is in Pittsburgh, Pa. competing for the National Midget Championship. Defenseman Tim Gleason, an '83 from Clawson, Mich. playing in the OHL for the Windsor Spitfires, would have been flying out with the U.S. squad -- if, that is, Windsor had lost its opening round playoff series. However, last night, an OT goal in the seventh and deciding game advanced Gleason and his teammates to the next round. Not having Gleason hurts. In a tournament like this, special teams are crucial, and Gleason, a physically strong power play point man, is a force. U.S. National Coach Jeff Jackson also hoped to have Chicago Freeze goaltender Jason Bacashihua on hand. However, Bacashihua's grades are not up to par, so he's unable to leave his high school for the required time. Also unable to make the trip are forward Kris Vernarsky and defenseman Jared Newman. Both play for the Plymouth Whalers. Plymouth advanced in the OHL playoffs and will be playing, you guessed it, Windsor.
4/5/00 Toot Takes the Reins at UMass Princeton University head coach Don "Toot" Cahoon has been named the new head coach at UMass-Amherst. The announcement, which was going to be made tomorrow in Providence, has been moved up. It will be made at 7 pm tonight at the Providence Westin. UMass interviewed only three men for the job. Dick Umile (Mon. March 28), Blaise MacDonald (this Monday), and, yesterday, Cahoon. Cahoon, who's charismatic and extremely well-liked and respected in college hockey circles, has coached Princeton for the last nine seasons. When he was hired prior to the 1991-92 season, Princeton hadn't had a winning season in 23 years. After three years getting the program back on track, the Tigers went on to post winning records in four of the next five seasons. In 1997-98, Princeton reached the NCAA tournament for the first time in the school's history, but, in opening round action, were edged by Michigan in Ann Arbor, 2-1. Cahoon, who starred at Marblehead (Mass.) High School in the late '60s, was a left wing on BU's back-to-back NCAA Championship teams in 1971 and '72. Later, Cahoon built up his resumé coaching Div. III programs, served as a coach in Austria, and took three separate stints as an assistant at Boston University. It was from there that Princeton hired Cahoon. So who takes over at Princeton? Right now, the top candidate looks to be Len Quesnelle, who arrived at Princeton as a freshman defenseman sixteen years ago, remained with the Tigers as an assistant after graduation, and was already on the scene when Cahoon arrived in 1991. Quesnelle, working closely with Cahoon, was instrumental in Princeton's success, helping recruit players like Jeff Halpern, Scott Bertoli, and Steve Shirreffs.
4/5/00 Shattuck Heavy Favorite at Nationals The Midget Nationals get underway this morning at the Island Sports Center in Pittsburgh, Pa. The heavy favorite is Shattuck-St. Mary's, entering the tournament with a 55-9-4 record and a 26-game unbeaten streak, not having lost since a Jan. 8 game against a Tier II Canadian team. In addition, Shattuck won the prestigious MAC's tournament over New Year's, trouncing the Fort Saskatchewan Rangers, 6-2, before 5,000 fans at the title game in the Calgary Saddledome. Of Shattuck's nine losses, seven have come to Tier II teams, one to a college team (Minnesota-Crookston), and one to a midget team -- a 2-1 loss on Sept. 18 to Team Illinois, which, by the way, won't be in Pittsburgh. They were knocked out in the regionals last month by the Chicago Chill. Shattuck, coached by Tom Ward, is led by Boston College bound senior Ben Eaves, one of the top college prospects in North America. Eaves, the son of former NHL player and coach Mike Eaves, is a 5'11", 158 lb. forward who's dynamic, fast, and highly dangerous anytime the puck's near his stick. Eaves, who also played with the U.S. Under-18 Team in the Five Nations Tournament in Finland in February, has played in 43 games for Shattuck this season and has a 43-68-111 line. That's an average of 2.58 points per game. There's more to the team than just Ben Eaves, however. Let's start with 5'9" sophomore Zach Parisé, the son of Shattuck's Director of Hockey Operations and former NHLer J.P. Parisé. Zach, who's been invited to join the National Team Development Program in Ann Arbor next fall, has a 38-52-90 line in 64 games. Kenosha, Wisc. speedster Vinnie Pulera, a junior, has put up 61 points. Senior Ben Barr has 59 points. Freshman Brady Murray, the son of former Shattuck coach Andy Murray, has 57 points. Sophomore Patrick Eaves, Ben's younger brother, is a forward who's been switched back to defense for most of the season. Eaves, also a National Program invitee, has 42 points in 45 games. Shattuck also has a couple of defensemen who have size, can skate, and can handle the puck -- 6'3", 198 lb. Chris Martin (7-19-26), a junior out of Guelph, Ont.; and 6'2", 173 lb. Nick Hamm (1-15-16) of East Lansing, Mich. The goaltenders are recent Miami of Ohio recruit Nick Petraglia (43 games played, .921 save %), and junior Jordan Parisé (32 games played, .901 save %). Shattuck's first game is today at 4:00 pm EST. They'll be playing the Edgewood (R.I.) Hawks, the tournament's New England entry. Other players and teams to watch in Pittsburgh include the Eastern Mass. Senators, who have UNH-bound Stephen Saviano as well as his Reading High linemate of the past few seasons, Sean Collins. On D, keep an eye on Winchester High's Danny Spang. The Dan Lerg coached HoneyBaked squad has an explosive duo in its own right with Chris Conner and Jason Tejchma. Like Collins and Saviano, Tejchma and Conner are small, highly-skilled players, who know each other's every move. They're fun to watch, too. The Pittsburgh Hornets, coached by Joe Gaul, have the tournament's top goaltending prospect in Dwight LaBrosse. Defensemen Dylan Reese and Nate Guenin and forward John Zeiler are other Hornets to keep an eye on. The Cleveland Barons boast explosive 5'6" center Tommy Goebel, who'll twist opposing defensemen into pretzels, defenseman Peter Harrold, and goaltender Kris Mayotte. The Chicago Chill, coached by Larry Pedrie, is a sleeper team. They don't boast superstars, but they have depth and play a good team game. The other teams in the tournament look to be outclassed. Players to watch include forwards Jeremy Hall and Chris Lawrence of the Philadelphia Jr. Flyers; goaltender Kellen Briggs of the Vail Avalanche; forward Chris Chaput of the Edgewood (R.I.) Hawks; and goaltender Erik Hokum, defenseman Keith McWilliams, and forward Brett Sterling of the LA Jr. Kings.
4/5/00 The Nationals, in Real Time Real time. Don't you just love that new expression? Like, what other kind of time is there? Anyway, enough of that. While the words are dubious, the technology is fine. And today USA Hockey is taking a feet-first plunge into the 21st century by introducing, yes, real-time coverage of the National Championship Tournaments. Both Pittsburgh, for the midgets, and Bloomington, Minn., where the National Bantam Tournament opens today, have phone lines to the penalty box and, barring glitches, will be offering real-time updates. Some venues being used for other tournaments don't have lines to the penalty box. They'll be offering the next-best thing by posting the info shortly after the conclusion after each game. In addition, the site offers rosters of every team, updated individual stats for each player, and other useful stuff. Check it all out at www.usarinks.com
4/4/00 Stoned In an opening round upset, the Twin Cities Vulcans swept the Sioux Falls Stampede out of the USHL playoffs, winning all three games in the best-of-five series by identical 3-2 scores (one of the games went to OT). The difference? Twin Cities goaltender Adam Berkhoel, who kicked out 102 of 108 shots, and posted a 1.90 gaa and .944 save percentage. Former Minnesota-Duluth backup goaltender Tony Gasparini, now an assistant coach with Sioux Falls, said his team was still in shock. "We carried the play in every game. We outshot them in every game," but, he added, "Berkhoel was phenomenal." A butterfly-type goalie who stands 5'11", Berkhoel is quick, agile, technically sound and a tough competitor. He's from Woodbury, Minn., played at Stillwater HS, and will be going to Denver University next season. "They (Denver) got a steal. They were on him early, before anyone else was," Gasparini said. "Berkhoel could go anywhere now." The NHL? Maybe someday. Berkhoel, a May '81 birthday has moved himself up to the point where he's a legitimate prospect for the NHL draft, to be held in Calgary June 24.
4/4/00 Tapper Mulls Over his Choices RPI leading scorer Brad Tapper, a junior, will be leaving the Engineers to turn pro. Tapper has offers from the Atlanta Thrashers, Toronto Maple Leafs, Nashville Predators, St. Louis Blues, and Tampa Bay Lightning. Each offer is for the full amount allowable under the NHL salary cap, which amounts to a $975K signing bonus, and then $487.5K per year for two years. If Tapper doesn't make the parent club and gets sent to the minors, he'll receive $75,000 a year. Tapper, from Scarborough, Ont. and the Wexford Raiders, notched 25 points as a freshman at RPI, 40 as a sophomore, and then 51 (31 goals, 20 assists) this season. He's represented by Steve Bartlett's Sports Consulting Group, as is Colgate forward Andy MacDonald, who just signed with Anaheim. MacDonald, a Hobey Baker Award finalist, will, like Tapper, be getting the full amount allowable under the salary cap. Also like Tapper, MacDonald has posted increasingly higher numbers in each of his four years at Colgate. In 34 games this year, MacDonald led the Red Raiders with a 24-34-58 line.
4/3/00 Omaha, Danville, Green Bay Lead the Way With the regular season completed in both the USHL and NAHL, here are the organizations that led the way in sending players on to Division I schools this season. (The number following each organization's name represents either verbal commitments or signed letters of intent.)
The U.S. National Team Development Program in Ann Arbor has had 22 players (17 seniors, 5 juniors) make DI commitments this season.
4/3/00 He'll Play a Lot Lincoln Stars goaltender Wayne Russell has committed to Michigan Tech. Russell, who's 5'8" and 160 lbs., is an '80 birthdate and hails from Burrillville, RI. Before going to the USHL three years ago, Russell played for Bishop Hendricken High School as a freshman, then moved on to the NECDL Classics and the Walpole Stars (EJHL). He's posted excellent numbers for Lincoln, this year finishing the regular season with a 2.28 gaa, second only to Omaha's Dan Ellis. Russell's save percentage of .918 was fourth in the league (trailing Ellis, Twin Cities' Adam Berkhoel and Rochester's Adam Coole). Michigan Tech finished 4-34-0 this season. The three goaltenders, juniors Jason Milanen and Todd Weninger, and freshman Brian Rogers, combined for an .857 gaa. To say Russell has an opportunity to win a starting job would be a huge understatement.
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