Senior Simon Kowal scored a second period hat trick to help Victor open up a 6-2 lead on their way to a 6-3 victory marking their first since 2022 and first since dropping back to Class B since 2016.
The Blue Devils jumped out to a 2-0 first period lead as senior Nathan Romeis banged in the rebound of a Kowal shot from the left circle at 7:10. Then it was senior Caleb Clark also scoring a rebound goal off of senior defenseman Ian Kloiber’s point shot at 12:09.
In a wild second period, Batavia United cut the lead to one at 4:05 as senior Jameson Motyka’s shot from the blueline bounced off the end boards and off the goaltender and in.
On the next shift Kowal scored his first of the game on a give-and-go with Clark, but Batavia again clawed back on their next shift as Liam Berger got behind the defense and backhanded the puck in at 5:14 to again cut the lead to 3-2.
But Kowal scored two goals less than two minutes apart before the period was over making it 6-2 Blue Devils. Batavia’s Motyka scored the only goal of the third period.
“It feels unbelievable; it’s a dream of mine playing here at Polisseni,” Kowal said. “I had the opportunity to do that freshman and sophomore year…and to score a hat trick just lights me up even thinking about it.
“Definitely had some butterflies before the game and I knew this wasn’t going to be my last time putting on this jersey.”
“I’m so proud of these kids; these 12 seniors have been on an absolute journey, trusted the process the entire season,” Victor head coach Mike Ferreri said. “They played a complete game tonight.”
Victor entered the postseason on a five-game losing streak but are getting hot at the right time. They qualify for the state tournament and will play Section VI champion Williamsville East Saturday at 3pm at Harborcenter in Buffalo.
Lancaster opened the scoring in the 25th Super Sunday Section VI DII Championship Friday night. Tony Grimm scored, assisted by Max Hochulski with seven minutes left in the first period. Orchard Park answered that goal with four more to close out the first period 4-1.
Scoring for OP were Gavin Reashor, assisted by Sean Robertson and Alexander Saeli; Cameron McCarthy, assisted by Barret Anstett on the powerplay; Brennan O’Hara, unassisted and with 1:53 left Reashor, assisted by Saeli and Robertson dropped in the last puck of the first period.
Justin Relosky, assisted by McCarthy opened the scoring in the second period with 6:50 left. Just 12 seconds later Robertson added one, assisted by Cole Purrenhage. Lancaster switched Goaltender Dylan Gerth for Austin Williams. That didn’t stop Orchard Park as Purrenhage dropped one in assisted by Brady Ciano. Lancaster came back with two goals in the last 54 seconds of the game. Cooper Dee, assisted by Joey Wisniewski and Parker Serio scored with 54.5 seconds left and Carter Mendzyk added another with 3.1seconds left, assisted by Wisniewski. Second period ends 7-3 in favor of Orchard Park.
Anstett scored an empty netter with 1:59 left of the third period, unassisted.
Orchard Park takes their fourth consecutive Section VI Championship 8-3.
Goaltender Gerth faced 20 shots, saving 14 in 28 minutes of play for Lancaster and Austin Williams stopped 13 of 15 for Lancaster in 21 minutes.
For Orchard Park Matthew Schwarzott received the Miguel Rodriguez Outstanding Goaltender of the Game. He stopped 16 of 19 shots on goal.
(Photo gallery by Janet Schultz; all rights owned by NYHOL. Permission to copy or use can be obtained by emailing [email protected])
After a scoreless first period in the 25th Annual Super Sunday Championships, St. Francis Brady Rakoski scored the first goal with just over 4 minutes left in the second period, assisted by Liam Fattey. That ended the second period.
Third period opened with another St. Francis goal by Fattey, unassisted. Then it was all St. Joes with Niko Mackiewicz scoring St. Joe’s first goal on the power play, assisted by Nicolas Rivet and James VanEgmond. Charlie Myszka added another, assisted by Zachery Sullivan and Rivet. The final goal of the day came when Mackiewicz scored another assisted by Anderson Cornwell and Liam Woeppel.
St. Francis Goalie Gabriel Waterman stopped 35 of 38 shots-on-goal and St. Joe’s Matteo Mancini stopped 17/19 for the 3-2 St. Joe’s victory.
Waterman received the Miguel Rodriguez Outstanding Goaltender of the Game award and Mackieweicz was named MVP Player of the Game by the MMHSAA.
St. Joes 2024-25 Champions, MMHSAA
(Photo gallery by Janet Schultz; all rights owned by NYHOL. Permission to copy or use can be obtained by emailing [email protected])
The Professional Women’s Hockey League made it’s first appearance in Buffalo bringing it’s “Takeover Tour” with the Boston Fleet and New York Sirens competing in Key Bank Center Arena last week.
The game provided fans with a lot of action, physicality and an overtime with shootout; everything a hockey fan could ask for. Susanna Tapani scored the shootout winner for Boston, extending their winning streak to four games and the New York Sirens to a seven-game losing streak.
New York’s Sarah Fillier scored in the first period to put the Sirens up 1-0. Just a little over four minutes later the Fleet responded with a goal from Loren Gabel. With a minute left New York’s Jessie Eldridge scored and ended the first 2-1 in favor of New York.
Boston tied the game at 2-2 late in the second period with a goal by Amanda Pelkey, her first this season.
After a scoreless third period and overtime, Tapani scored on Goalie Kayle Osborne to take the “W.” Boston beat New York 3-2. Attendance in Buffalo was 8,512.
Aerin Frankel made 37 saves on 39 shots to earn her tenth win this season and New York’s Osborne stopped 30 shots in the loss.
“She’s the best goalie in the world,” said Fleet Head Coach Courtney Kessel on Frankel. “Countless times she’s kept us in games, kept us rolling through playoffs last year and facing so many shots.
“She’s just so stead, never too high, never too low.”
“We were a hard team to play against today,” said Sirens Head Coach Greg Fargo. “I think there’s more examples tonight of some things we can continue to build on.
“Moving forward, starting with our effort from start to finish, we won’t hang our heads on this one.
The three stars of the game were Aerin Frankel (BOS); Susanne Tapani (BOS) and Jessie Eldridge (NY).
The Takeover Tour game wasn’t just about the game. It was about promoting the sport of ice hockey for women. Family and friends of players came out to cheer on their favorite player and girl’s youth teams were in attendance to witness ice hockey at the professional level. This was the first professional women’s hockey game played since the PHF (formerly NWHL) Buffalo Beauts called Buffalo their home with the final in March, 2023.
Thirteen players on the Boston and New York rosters developed in NCAA programs in New York State including Clarkson’s Loren Gabel, Jamie Lee Rattray and Ella Shelton, Colgate’s Sydney Bard, Jessie Eldridge, Kayle Osborne, Allyson Simpson and Olivia Zafuto, Cornell’s Jaime Bourbronnais, Jill Saulnier and Michal Zandee-Hart, St. Lawrence’s Kayla Vespa and Syacuse’s Jessica DiGirolamo.
In addition to Zafuto and Bard, Aerin Frankel is a native of Chappaqua and Abigail Levy is from Congers.
In some notables following this game:
The Fleet have won both of their “Takeover Tour” games this season with a shootout. New York has lost seven consecutive games, but ended their five-game streak of regulation losses.
Frankel recorded her league-leading tenth win of the season and her 39 saves are just one off her season-high of 40, recorded against Toronto in the Fleet’s first game of the season.
Sarah Fillier tallied her sixth goal of the season moving her into sole possession of second place in league scoring with 19 points.
Tapani scored her second shootout goal of the season.
Hannah Brandt played in the professional women’s hockey game that took place in Key Bank Center on December 29, 2018.
The New York State Public High School Athletic Association Girls Varsity State Championship is in the books with Adirondack United taking the title for the second consecutive year.
Four teams took to the ice at the Utica University Nexus Arena this past weekend (Feb. 21/22) to vie for the title. In addition to ADK representing Section 2; it was Skaneateles, Section III; Frontier/Franklinville/LakeShore/Orchard Park (FFLOP), Section VI and Beekmantown, Section VII.
In the Semi-finals it was FFLOP vs Skaneateles with the Skaneateles Lakers opening the scoring in the last 5 minutes of the first period. Layla Smith scored to end the period 1-0 Skaneateles.
Just seconds into the second period Smith scored again and the second period remained 2-0 Lakers until the whistle.
FFLOP’s Peyton Forcucci scored at 12:56 of the third to put Section VI on the boards. Skaneateles’ Makayla Barron, assisted by Elizabeth Schneid closed the period with the final goal of the night and Skaneateles takes FFLOP 3-1 and moves to the Championship game.
Rachael Fix of FFLOP faced 40 shots on goal and Skaneateles’ Brooke Coffey stopped 24 of 25 SOG.
FFLOP’s Maya Griffin and Skaneateles’ Barron were presented with the Sportsmanship Award for the game.
In the second semi-final matchup, Adirondack took on Beekmantown. In a fast paced game, the first period ended at 0-0, as did the second period.
It was looking like an overtime was coming with no one scoring until 30.3 seconds left in the third Lillian Willis gets one off and scores the first goal of the game and secured a win for the United. ADK moves on to face Skaneateles in the Championship game.
ADK’s goalie Aurora Graham-Hayes faced 27 SOG and the Eagles Bailey Barnett faced 30.
Beekmantown’s Avery Parker and Adirondack’s Alyssa Temple received the Sportsmanship Award for the game.
Photo Gallery: Semi-Final Game#2: Beekmantown vs Adirondack United
Skaneateles and Adirondack faced off at Noon with Cora Major opening the scoring for Skaneateles at 5:25 of the first period. That goal would remain throughout the first period and Skaneateles has the 1-0 lead at the whistle.
The second period was fast paced up and down the ice but no score until Adirondack’s Aubrey Lozier scored, unassisted, with 3 minutes left in the period to tie it. But wait, just a minute later United’s Kady Duffy scores and the United end the period 2-1.
It seemed that was the end but with just 44.2 seconds left in the third period, United’s Gianna Marcantonio scores and empty-netter and Adirondack is the 2025 NYSPHSAA Girl’s Varsity Ice Hockey Champion.
SOG: ADK, 25; Skaneateles, 39.
Adirondack United is made up of six schools in the Section 2 region including Corinth, Glens Falls, Hudson Falls, Saratoga Springs and South Glens Falls. Skaneateles is made up of schools in the Skaneateles School District including Waterman Primary, Skaneateles High School and State Street Intermediate School.
Beekmantown’s team is comprised of players from West Chazy, Beekmantown Elementary, Beekmantown Middle School and High School.
FFLOP’s teams include players from Fronter, Franklinville, Orchard Park and LakeShore school districts.
In order to make it to the States, these teams had playoffs against the other sections in New York State. Adirondack (Section 2) played the North Avalanche (Section 1); FFLOP (VI) vs Webster (V); Ithaca (IV) played Skaneateles (III) and Potsdam (X) played Beekmantown (VII).
Championship Photo Gallery
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Holy Cross assistant captain Liam McLinskey is in familiar territory atop the Crusaders and American Hockey Association scoring chart just like last year with 18 goals and 35 points through his first 31 games this season.
His father played soccer at West Point and his brother is a baseball player with Notre Dame right now. But he and a handful of his cousins, New York Rangers draft pick Drew Fortescue, C.J. McGee, who is currently playing in the ECHL after winning a national championship with Quinnipiac, William Fortescue, playing club hockey at the University of Tampa and 18-year old Jack Fortescue with the Jersey Hitmen, decided hockey was their path.
“My uncles growing up were all hockey players and my mom’s sisters live pretty close, so we all grew up playing hockey together,” McLinskey said. “We always said it was my grandpa; he gave us the good genes.”
The 6’3”, 185 lb. right wing picked up his 100th career point Feb. 2 against Canisius surpassing the milestone in just three seasons and is playing in all situations as his team vies with Sacred Heart for first place in the conference.
“Mainly just focusing on our team…we’re on a little bit of a streak right now, so taking it one game at a time, win a league championship and hopefully win the playoffs.”
McLinskey was a Hobey Baker top ten finalist last season and is a nominee again this year along with being one of 26 finalists for the Walter Brown Award, given to the best American-born Division I player in New England.
“It means everything; it’s a huge honor and there’s no words for it . I can’t thank my teammates and family enough.”
The soon-to-be 24-year-old (Feb. 20) spent many of his development years with Don Bosco Prep and the New Jersey Hitmen programs. His final season with the Hitmen, he exploded with 24 goals and 67 points over 44 regular season games and added three more points in four postseason contests.
“I went there (Jersey) when I was a bantam minor, trusted in the program and played high school close to it so I was able to do both. And got to play with my friends in high school hockey and club hockey, the best of both worlds. Trusted the process…and made a commitment out of it.”
Then it was off to Quinnipiac University as a 20-year-old freshman, where he played just two games before transferring to Holy Cross.
“It was mainly just that I needed an opportunity to play, came here and it worked out,” he said about his transfer.
Now the Economics major is winding down what is probably his final collegiate season. Though he will leave his name in the Crusaders record book, he is not sure what is next or what comes after hockey.
“Not too sure to be honest. Just trying to make it last as long as I can.”
Frontier/Franklinville/LakeShore/Orchard Park (FFLOP) is heading back to the New York State Girls Varsity Ice Hockey Championships after defeating Webster 4-1 Wednesday (Feb. 19) evening. This will be FFLOPs fourth appearance at the States, winning the State Championship in 2017-18.
Typical for WNYGVIH Championships this season, the first period ended in a 0-0 tie. FFLOP’s Rachael Fix and Webster’s Mia Wambach kept the pucks at bay and the period scoreless.
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First recorded statistic was a tripping penalty against Webster with 6 minutes left in the second period. However at 1:1 of the third period Jocelyn Smaczniak got one by Wambach and FFLOP goes up 1-0 as the whistle ends the second period.
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Webster was not going to let go and became very physical in the third period with Molly Meyer dropping in the first goal for the Lakers just 40 seconds into the period. It took five more minutes before FFLOP’s Peyton Forcucci scored and then just 14 seconds later she dropped in another goal and took FFLOP to a 3-1 lead. With 6:48 left Gabby Sojda dropped in her own rebound and the period ends 4-1 FFLOP.
FFLOP now goes on to face Skaneateles at 4 p.m. in the semi-finals of the State Championship on Friday at the Utica Nexus Center. Adirondack and Beekmantown face off in the second semi-final at 6 p.m. Winners of those games advance to Saturday’s Championship at Noon.
Digital tickets are required and can be obtained by going to [email protected].
The Professional Women’s Hockey League will be bringing their Take-Over Tour to Buffalo this weekend (February 22-23).
The Take Over Tour is a way for the PWHL to promote professional women’s hockey, build their audience and bring the league to new fans and generate excitement for the league and for the future of women’s ice hockey.
The league is made up of six teams including the New York Sirens and Boston Fleet who will be playing in Buffalo.
Ella Shelton and Allyson Simpson of the New York Sirens and Jill Saulnier and Sydney Bard of the Boston Fleet met with members of the media via Zoom this week to discuss the Tour.
Bard, a native of New Hartford, NY, is very excited to be bringing the PWHL to Buffalo.
“I am super excited. Being from upstate New York it will be exciting to have family and friends here,” said Bard. “Plus New York is our rival.”
“Hockey is part of the culture of Western New York,” said Shelton. “We expect a great, rowdy crowd.”
Fans will see an intense, fast-paced game. There is a rivalry between Boston and New York, with Boston coming out on top, that will make the game more intense.
“We all bring our A game to each game and are refreshed every morning,” said Saulnier, who played for Cornell University.
“Fans will see a fast game, defense to offense,” continued Saulnier. “Shots are fast, puck passing is fast and it is physical.”
They all agree that this is a way to bring young girls, and boys, to see a hockey game played by the best women players.
It’s also a way to show young players that you can have fun, chase your dreams in a sport you love.
There is no harm in trying something you love, have fun and if you fail, you get back up and try again.
This is the story that reflects the PWHL. Several tries for a professional women’s league were made and while they didn’t succeed the organizers kept trying.
The PWHL was launched January 1, 2024, after Mark Walter and the Kimbra Walter’s Mark Walter Group purchased the PHF (formerly NWHL) in June 2023. The league is made up of six teams in Boston, Minnesota, Montreal, New York, Ottawa and Toronto. The PWHL has broken multiple attendance records and holds the worldwide all-time record for a women’s hockey game.
Players are paid to play and the average salary is $56,500.
The teams coming to Buffalo are rivals, as mentioned.
Statistically Boston Fleet are in the middle of the pack after playing 17 games they have a 9-8 record and the New York Sirens are 9-8; but with overtime wins and losses they are six points apart putting New York at the bottom of the standings.
Boston is carrying three native New Yorkers with Olivia Zafuto of Niagara Falls; Bard from New Hartford and Aerin Frankel of Chappaqua. Bard and Zafuto played at Colgate University.
New York has Goalie Abigail Levy of Congers. Add to that their coaching staff has recognizable names in Greg Fargo, who coached the women’s team at Colgate University and assistant coach Josh Sciba who coached the women’s teams at Niagara University and Union College.
Siren’s Micah Zandee-Hart played at Cornell and Kayle Osborn played for Colgate.
The Buffalo schedule includes the New York Sirens holding an Open Practice on Saturday, February 22 from 10 a.m. to Noon at LeCom HarborCenter followed by an autograph session from 12:20 to 12:40 p.m.
The Fleet take to the ice for an Open Practice Noon and upon that ending at 2 p.m. they will hold an autograph session from 2:20 to 2:40 p.m. This will also be held at LeCom HarborCenter.
The Boston Fleet vs New York Sirens game will be held at 4 p.m. Sunday, February 23 at Key Bank Center.
Tickets for the event can be obtained by going to https://www.ticketmaster.com/event/0000617194991C52?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiAn9a9BhBtEiwAbKg6fjP9C1UEUyQOZOWlcFeDlq89KM5LzUqm8wo51oXHRsbookPpEv_MPRoCB7kQAvD_BwE
Frontier/Franklinville/LakeShore/Orchard Park (FFLOP) has returned to the victory platform in the WNYGVIH Federation by defeating Hamburg/Eden/West Seneca (HEWS) and taking the Championship. It’s been six years since their last Championship, a three-peat after winning in 2017, 2018 and 2019.
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However, this is not the end of the road. FFLOP faces Webster for the Western Regional Championship and a spot at the NYSPHSAA States. Who they will face is still being determined due to a weather cancellation of two games.
FFLOP took the NYS Championship (then known as a Regional Championship) in 2017-18, their third appearance in the States. Williamsville won it in 2018-19.
FFLOP battled all season with KenGiPort and LIDA to make it to the finals. At the end of the regular season they placed second to KenGiPort with LIDA in third. Only 2.5-3 points separated them. In Quarterfinals FFLOP beat Williamsville, moved on to play LIDA and then to the Championship against HEWS.
WNYGVIH 2024=25 Season 15
The game opened with the first period ending in 0-0, much like the game previously played for the Private School Championship. In the second period Sophia Phillips scored an unassisted goal at 9:51 and the period ends 1-0 HEWS, and with a penalty that carried over.
After the teams returned to the ice for the third period. FFLOP came out flying and determined to take a win for their Assistant Coach Chelsie Sereday, home recovering from surgery. It was all FFLOP when just 24 seconds in Peyton Forcucci scored. Seven minutes later Gabby Sojda scored, unassisted and then sank in a second one. Chloe Gearhart scored an empty netter and the game ends 4-1 FFLOP. Credit goes to both goaltenders who “stood on their heads” at times to stop the puck from entering…Rachael Fix for FFLOP and Ella Buczynski for HEWS. (Sorry I was unable to obtain the stats for this game).
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FFLOP ends the season with a 11-2-3 record. Maya Griffin and Gabby Sojda lead the scoring this season with 26 goals and 27 assists for Griffin and 25 goals and 26 assists for Sojda. In addition to leading the league this season, Griffin has moved to #8 in the WNYGVIH All Time Scoring list with 58 goals and 70 assists in 80 games played. Also in the top ten this season are Peyton Forcucci with 13 goals, 17 assists and at #10 Jocelyn Smaczniak with 4 goals and 24 assists.
FFLOP’s goaltending has Rachael Fix with 907.12 minutes played, stopping 346 of 376 shots for a .920 save percentage. She served as goalie for all games played this season.
HEWS Sophia Phillips comes in at #6 with 18 goals and 14 assists. HEWS goaltender Ella Buczynski is in the top of the goaltender list for this season with 867.20 minutes played, stopping 417 of 451 shots and a .925 save percentage. She also played in all games this season.
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FFLOP heads to Webster Ice Arena to face Webster in the Regional Quarterfinals. The game is scheduled for Wednesday, February 19 at 7 p.m.
In other regional games Potsdam is facing Beekmantown.
Section 5/6 (FFLOP or Webster) has to play Section 3/4 (Skaneateles) and Section 2 (Adirondack) has to play Section 7/10 (Potsdam or Beekmantown) in the State Semi-finals on Friday, February 21. Those games are at 4 and 6 p.m. at the Utica Nexus Center, respectively. For those who have followed the girls varsity leagues, all of these teams have been in the States and all but Webster have taken home a State Championship at some point, most recently Adirondack last season.
The NYS Championship game is scheduled for Saturday, February 22 at Noon at the Nexus Center.
Tickets are required for all of these games. Go to https://gofan.co/app/school/NYSPHSAA and that will direct you to the ticket page.
St. Mary’s of Lancaster is the 2025 Private School Champion in the WNYGVIH Federation. They didn’t get it easily with Monsignor Martin keeping the puck moving and Goalie Kate Kelley stopping 48 of 51 shots on goal.
WNYGVIH 2024=25 Season 15
Monsignor Martin and St. Mary’s played to a 0-0 tie after the first period and throughout most of the second. Avery Szczesek dropped in the first goal, assisted by Lauren Gilano, with 5:21 left in the second period to go ahead 1-0. Just seconds into the third period Danielle Cottrell gave St. Mary’s their second goal, assisted by Meghan Donnelly and Shea Hall. It looked like that may have been the end but with 6:56 left in the third, Shea Hall, assisted by Cottrell and Gilano, added the third and the season ends with St. Mary’s 3, Monsignor Martin 0.
Goalie Avery Hall stopped 7 of 7 for the shut-out victory.
St. Mary’s ends the season 6-6-3-1 and the Championship. Szczesek was their leading scorer with 17 goals and 3 assists for 20 points. In goal Hall shared duties with Betsy Accurso. Hall played 217.23 minutes with a .917 save percentage and Accurso played 608.43 minutes with a .895 save percentage.
Kelley was the only goalie who played for MonMar with 775 minutes between the pipes. She faced 825 sog/saving 735 for a .891 save percentage. MonMar’s leading scorers were Addison Cherry with 3 goals and 3 assists, Ellie Black and Gabby Kazmark, each with 3 goals and 2 assists.
Looking a head, St. Mary’s had six seniors this season and Monsignor Martin graduated one.
St. Mary’s is coached by Marty Gilano, assisted by Bri Colucci, Rich Hall and Deanna Ventura. Colucci played for Lancaster/Iroquois in the first season of the WNYGVIH Federation. Mt. St. Mary’s took the Private School Championship last season.
Monsignor Martin is coached by Darren Palezewski, assisted by Ed Guzdek, Joe Kazmark, Julia Duquette and Guy ModicaAmore. Duquette played for Monsignor Martin in the first year of the WNYGVIH Federation. Monsignor Martin won Federation Championships in 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2021 and 2022.
Hard to believe that it’s playoff time already and the season comes to an end in another week. As always, no one can predict what team will advance to the Regionals. That question won’t be answered until after Monday night and then off to Section V to play for the State position.
Monday night’s Quarterfinals pitted #7 Williamsville against #2 Franklinville/Frontier/LakeShore/Orchard Park; #7 Niagara County vs #3 Lancaster/Iroquois/Depew/Alden and #5 Clarence/Amherst/SweetHome against #4 Hamburg/Holland/Eden/West Seneca. #1 Kenmore/Grand Island/Lockport had the Bye.
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FFLOP opened the scoring four minutes into the game and then struck five more times with Williamsville’s Gen Illos getting their single goal at 3:50 of the first period, assisted by Scarlet Canna and Jaylee Kochan. First period ended 6-1 FFLOP and stayed that way through the second period. FFLOP added three more in the third, including one with 47.4 seconds left in the game and ended with a 9-1 victory. Rachael Fix took the “W” stopping 13 of 14 SOG and for Williamsville Anna Bacon stopped 7 of 12 and Olivia Lookman came in to stop 20/24. FFLOP moves on to the semi-finals.
Scoring for FFLOP were Gabby Sojda (2), Hannah Favata (2 including the game-winner), Chloe Gearhart, Maya Griffin (2 including an unassisted), Kayli Tefft and Olivia Waterman. Assisting were Griffin, Lilah Cudney, Jocelyn Smaczniak, Gearhart, Waterman, Campbell Rutz, Susanna Hollander, Sophia Quinn, and Peyton Forcucci.
With a 4 point night, Maya Griffin moved to 8th overall in Scoring for the WNYGVIH Federation with 52 points.
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NICO faced LIDA in game two with LIDA victorious. Emily Lysiak opened the scoring for LIDA with just 39.5 seconds left in the first period. Just over 2 minutes into the second Caitlin Sinclair dropped one in and that stayed with LIDA leading 2-0 after two. NICO’s Molly Martin scored the first goal on a powerplay, assisted by Abbey Zimmerman, in the third period to stop a possible shutout. LIDA’s Leah Dowling answered back with an unassisted goal with 1:18 left and then scored an empty-netter with 19 seconds left to seal the victory 4-1. Iris Schimenti stopped 16/17 SOG for the “W” and Lilia Jones stopped 10/13 for NiCo. LIDA moves on.
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The third Cashew Bowl (CASH vs HEWS) of the season and it was a HEWS victory. HEWS Sophia Phillips, assisted by Brynn Holland, scored the only goal of the night at 5:33 of the first period. It was up and down the ice for the rest of the night with the outcome 1-0 HEWS. Ella Buczynski stopped 11 of 11 for her fifth shutout of the season. In goal for CASH, Ella Celej stopped 26 of 27.
After a day off, the Semi’s had HEWS facing KenGiPort and LIDA facing off with FFLOP.
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Holland opened scoring for HEWS, assisted by Morgan Cooper and the first comes to a 1-0 end in favor of HEWS. Alexa Denning scored for KenGiPort minutes into the second period, with Phillips answering back with an unassisted goal two minutes later. Second period ends 2-1 HEWS. Once again Phillips found the back of the net and then added two more in the third, one an empty-netter, for a 5-2 win and a four point night for herself. KenGiPort’s Isabella Burt scored, assisted by Isabella Jayme and Isabella Bourgeault. Buczynski stopped 25 of 27 for the W and for KenGiPort, Ella Johnston stopped 17 of 21. HEWS moves to the Championship round.
Next up LIDA faces FFLOP with that game ending in a 5-1 victory for FFLOP.
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First period found FFLOP’s Waterman, P. Forcucci and Gearhart scoring, assists by Smaczniak, Gearhart, Sojda and Favata. P. Forcucci’s being the game-winner. In the second period, FFLOP’s Cudney scored, assisted by Sojda and Rutz. LIDA answered that goal with one by Leah Dowling, assisted by Lucia Lawrence. Second period ends 4-1. The final goal of the night was scored by Kayli Tefft, assisted by Brooklyn Forcucci and Smaczniak. In goal Fix stops 17 of 18 and for LIDA Schimenti stops 21 of 26. Game ends 5-1 FFLOP and they move to the Champions round.
On to the Championships. Yes, two.
First up on Monday, February 17 is the Private School Championship pitting St. Mary’s of Lancaster against Monsignor Martin. St. Mary’s ended in sixth place in the League with a 6-6-3-1-0 record (Wins, loss, ties, overtime win, overtime loss) and Monsignor Martin was in the basement with 14 losses and 2 ties.
Hall
The top scoring for St. Mary’s came from Avery Szczesek (16g/3a), Meghan Donnelly (5/11) and Lauren Gilano (6/7). With two goaltenders St. Mary’s has stopping power in the net with Betsy Accurso and Avery Hall. Accurso played 608.43 minutes stopping 314 of 351 shots. Hall played just 172.23 minutes but stopped 104 of 114.
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For Monsignor Martin their power is in Goaltender Kate Kelley who has faced 439 SOG and stopped 389 in 730 minutes of play. Their scoring comes from Addison Cherry, Ellie Black and Gabby Kazmark.
The Section VI Championship will find HHEWS facing FFLOP.
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HEWS has fire power in Sophia Phillips with 18 goals and 13 assists this season followed by Brynn Holland, 11/9 and Clare Sokolowski, 6/5. Ella Buczynski has protected the net for the entire season, playing 823 minutes and stopping 395 of 426 shots on goal. They do have a back up in Madelyn Wojcik, but she has played in no games this season.
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FFLOP is no stranger to the championship round and has also won a State Title. They have goal scoring in Maya Griffin, who has had 26 goals and 26 assists putting her in second place in All-Time Scoring in the League. Adding more goals to their record are Gabby Sojda with 23/26, Peyton Forcucci 12/17 and Jocelyn Smaczniak with 4 goals but 23 assists. Their goaltender has also been a key in their victories. Rachael Fix has played 862.12 minutes and stopped 330 of 359. FFLOP also has a back-up goalie in Keira Keaton, but she has not played in a single game this season. This game will be a nail-biter.
Tickets are needed for these games, which will be played at Buffalo State’s Ice Arena at 6 p.m. for Private and 8 p.m. for Section VI. There is a fee of $7 Presale and $10 at the Gate. Your ticket will be on your phone! You can stay for all games. https://www.section6.e1b.org/Page/1436?fbclid=IwY2xjawId4v9leHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHZwCHLWIB1sUlLSGOElOXl34j7lZxbB8eDk1aW3ZVPwS4whomm1lRTRQ0Q_aem_BoQ8Vcdpc1Csy6zURaYR_A#calendar175/20250212/month
Note that this is not the end-all for a State Seed. The winner of the HEWS/FFLOP game must play Webster in Section V to determine who goes on to represent Section V and VI at the States. The Far West Regional will be played Wednesday, February 19 at 7 p.m. at the Webster Arena.
The Winner of that game will move to the NYSPHSAA Championships in Utica on February 21 and 22.
The semi’s are Friday at 4 p.m. with the winner of Section 5 playing winner of Section 6 and at 6 p.m. its Section 2 Adirondack playing winner of Section 7 and Section 10.
The Championship is scheduled for Noon on Saturday, February 22.
Tickets are also required for the States at the Utica Nexus Center. Visit NYSPHSAA Ticketing FAQ page or contact [email protected].
“I’ve been an underdog my whole life; I was never drafted to any junior leagues and never made any festival teams. Always the alternate, so I definitely have a chip on my shoulder.”
Niagara captain Jay Ahearn is more than proving everyone wrong as he sits atop the Purple Eagles scoring list with 15 goals and was a point-per-game player with 30 points over the first 29 games this season.
But college hockey did not start well.
“My first year I had to medically redshirt; I tore my labrum and they had to put nine anchors in and I was out for nine months,” Ahearn said. “And then my second year I played four games before I broke my arm in practice off of a slapshot. Freak accident so that was unfortunate.”
Last season, wearing the “C,” Ahearn posted 26 points in 34 games. Now he is listed as a senior on the roster, but due the time lost with injuries, he has one year of eligibility remaining next season. He will use that to enroll in a finance graduate program.
“My dad works on Wall St. and my grandfather worked on Wall St. so that has potential.”
Before Niagara, the Staten Island native split three years between his Monsignor Farrell high school team and Mercer Chiefs in the AYHL before moving away from home to play with the North Jersey Avalanche for two seasons.
“They allowed that (playing for two teams) back then. My Mercer team was good; we were always a top 20 team, but my high school team wasn’t very good but I got to play with some of my best friends and those are memories that I’ll have forever.”
“My 18-U team (North Jersey) lost in the national championship and then the next year we were number one all year and covid shut us down.”
Then came a breakout campaign in the NAHL with the Johnstown Tomahawks where Aheran netted 31 goals and 31 assists over 52 games that put him on many coaches’ radar.
“I got a call from (assistant) coach Mark Phalon on I believe it was Dec. 8, 2020, and we talked up until February. I got my offer February 8th and then I committed February 17th of that year. It was a really cool process.”
Aheran also leads the team this season in shots and first goals and is tied for the team lead in shorthanded tallies as he sees ice time in all situations.
Still proving them wrong and maybe one of the few in Niagara hockey history to wear the “C” for three seasons.
KenGIPort has taken the 2024-25 Federation League Championship after posting a 13-2-1 record and 40.5 points. Coming in second was last year’s Fed Champion, Niagara County with a 11-2-3 record for 37.5 points.
This also means the seeding for the Section VI Championship is set. KenGiPort gets a bye in the first round. The schedule for Tuesday, February 11 at Buffalo State College’s ice arena is #2 FFLOP takes on #7 Williamsville at 4 p.m.; #3 LIDA faces #6 Niagara County at 6 p.m. and #4 HEWS plays #5 CASH at 8 p.m.
Winners of those games move to the Semi-finals on Thursday February 13 with KenGIPort playing the fourth seed at 4:30 p.m. and the 2nd and 3rd seeded facing off at 6:30 p.m.
Kate Kelley
Finals for the private schools, St. Mary’s of Lancaster vs Monsignor Martin will be played Monday, February 17 at 6 p.m. and the Section VI finalists will play at 8 p.m.
With the addition of a team from Section V, Webster, there will be a Far West Regional to determine if a team from Section V or Section VI will present the West in the States. That game will be played in Webster on Wednesday, February 19 at 7 p.m.
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A team from Section 5/6 will face a team from Section 3/4 at 4 p.m. on Friday, February 21 at the Utica Nexus Center. At 6 p.m. Section 1/2 will faceoff with Section 7/10. The winners of those two games will play for the NYS Championship at Noon on Saturday February 22.
This past week proved to be a very busy one, especially for LIDA, who played every night to make up some rescheduled games and play a scheduled one.
On Monday it was LIDA at MonMar with a 7-2 victory for LIDA. They played at Northtowns. LIDA scored in the first two periods but MonMar made a mark in the third with two goals, one from Captain Addison Cherry and the other from Claire Kloetzer. Cherry’s was unassisted and Ellie Black and Avery McDonald assisted on Kloetzers. For LIDA it was Claire Whiteford, Brynn Cafferty(2), Leah Dowling, Anna Maki, Caitlin Sinclair and Emily Lysiak scoring. Iris Schimenti faced 10 SOG, stopping 8, for the W. MonMar’s Kate Kelley faced 48SOG.
Schimenti Faces The Puck
FFLOP played HEWS and took away a 3-1 victory with Jocelyn Smaczniak and Maya Griffin scoring. Griffin had the game-winner plus one and Smaczniak managed to assist on both Griffin goals. Rachael Fix stopped 22 of 23 for the W. Brynn Holland had a power-play goal for HEWS to put them on the boards. Ella Buczynski stopped 33 of 36.
CASH headed to Cheektowaga to play St. Mary’s of Lancaster and they ended in a 1-1 overtime tie. For CASH it was Cecilia Bizub, assisted by Georgia Mango and Polina Stremiakova and for St. Mary’s Danielle Cottrell on the power-play, assisted by Gabe Lowell. Stopping 46 of 47 for CASH was Ella Celej and for St. Mary’s Avery Hall stopped 25 of 26.
Tuesday KenGIPort headed to NiCo to solidify their League Championship. They did that with a 6-1 victory. Three goals in the first, three in the second and no scoring in the third and they brought home the trophy. NiCo’s single goal came in the second off the stick of Abbey Zimmerman, assisted by Myla Chopyak. For KenGiPort it was Isabella Jayme with two, including a power-play; Erin Krawczyk with the game-winner, Madelyn Jagow, Isabelle Bourgeault and Zoey Dettbarn. Ella Johnston stopped 16 of 17 and for NiCo, Jaylin Beaver stopped 13 of 19.
Jayme heads for a goal
Williamsville beat Monsignor Martin in as 4-0 shutout with Anna Bacon stopping 18 shots. Putting the puck past Kate Kelley (22/26) were Genevieve Illos, Sophia DePrima and Allison Besancon with two.
A tight came between LIDA and HEWS and it was a LIDA 3-2 victory. LIDA’s Caitlin Sinclair had two goals, including the game-winner and Lysiak had the other. Schimenti stopped 17 of 19 for the W. For HEWS it was Holland scoring, along with Morgan Cooper; while Buczynski made 21 of 14 saves.
Webster and Williamsville braved the elements in a cold, windy day at Riverworks on Wednesday. The visitors took home the 4-1 victory with scoring from Fanale(2), Cullen, Maddie Meyer. In goal Wambach stopped 8 of 9 SOG. (Apologies for no first names, no roster). Besancon scored for Williamsville, assisted by Jaylea Kochan. Lookman made 30 saves on 34 SOG.
Across town, KengiPort faced NiCo for the second consecutive night and came out with a 4-0 shutout victory. Scoring were Bourgeault with the game-winner, shorthanded and unassisted. Alexa Denning, Isabella Burt, Teagan Willats. Hadley Dahlgren played 30 minutes and took the W stopping 9 SOG and Jillian Hager played 15 minutes stopping 5 SOG. Lila Jones was in for NiCo and faced 33 SOG, stopping 29.
Jayme moved to #2 in All Time Scoring in the WNYGVIH with her assist in this game.
CASH took a 2-0 win from LIDA with Mila Dominik scoring the game-winner, assisted by Celia Watson and then Watson scored an unassisted for the W. Celej made 31 saves for the shutout. Schimenti stopped 21/23.
Celej
CASH celebrated Georgia Mango on Senior Night but came away with a 5-2 loss to LIDA. CASH scored both goals in the third, one with 1:28 left and the final goal of the night with 9.2 seconds left, stopping LIDA from a shut-out. For LIDA it was Lysiak, unassisted; Lawrence, at 41 seconds of the second period; Cafferty with the game-winner and Whiteford and the last from Lysiak. Schimenti stopped 21 of 23 for the W. For CASH it was Jenny Wild, assisted by Watson and Maya Adimey; Adimey from Wild and Kiley Breeze. Celej faced 33 shots.
FFLOP shut out MonMar 8-0 with the game-winning goal scored by Favata, Griffin had two goals; Gabby Sojda had a hattrick and goals were added by Olivia Waterman and Peyton Forcucci. Fix stopped the two shots by MonMar. MonMar’s Kelley stopped 65 of 73 SOG.
HEWS took an 8-1 victory from NiCo with scoring by Holland (2, one on the power-play), Waszkielewicz (a hattrick), Sophia Phillips(2) and Ellie Grabowski on the power-play. Buczynski stopped 40 of 41 for the W. For NiCo it was A Lawrence scoring, assisted by Mainstone and Jones splitting goaltending with Beaver. Jones played 4 minutes stopping 3 of 6 and Beaver played 41 minutes, stopping 24 of 29.
In regular season play, FFLOP’s Griffin and Sojda sit at top of the Scoreboard with 48 and 41 points respectively. Griffin has 24 goals and 24 assists; Sojda, 19 goals and 22 assists. The top five are rounded out by NiCo’s Sam Latini, 20/15 for 35; NiCo’s A.Zimmerman with 23/11 and LIDA’s Lysiak with 17 goals and 14 assists.
KenGiPort’s Hager sits with a 1.00 save percentage after playing 105 minutes. KenGiPort also has Dahlgren on top in second with a .958 save% in 120 minutes of play. CASH’s Celej has a .931 save% with 555.90 minutes of play, stopping 326 of 350 shots. HHEWS Buczynski has played 733 minutes with a .925 save%, stopping 359 of 388.
In related WNYGVIH news, two of the alumni are now New York State Troopers. CASH’S Emma Faso and FFLOP’s Abbey Lillis just completed and graduated from the NYS Troopers Academy. We congratulate them and wish them well, as well as thank them for their service.
February 3-7 Photo Gallery
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As I sat in the press box located in the upper level of the KeyBank Center watching Rob Ray being inducted into the Buffalo Sabres Hall of Fame, I found my mind wondering back some 37 years. That’s how long Ray has been with the Sabres organization.
Rob Ray Speaks to Media
It’s hard to believe that it’s been 37 years. During that time I watched Ray become an enforcer with the Sabres for 14 of his 16 seasons in the NHL, brought fans in Buffalo to their feet every time he fought while accumulating 3207 minutes in penalties.
The one other thing I remember about Ray the player is that, win or lose, he was always available for a comment after a game. And usually a good one.
That’s why I wasn’t totally surprised when the late Sabres broadcasting great, Rick Jeanneret, talked Ray into becoming his broadcast partner and continue his career with the Sabres.
During his acceptance speech, Ray spoke of the legendary broadcasting great saying, “I miss you buddy. We all do.”
Probably the most important side of Ray that fans saw Friday night was Ray the husband, father and son. On hand for the celebration were Ray’s wife, daughter, son as well as his mother and father, who travelled to Buffalo from the Rays hometown of Stirling, Ont.
Razor and his family
And if there was one thing that Ray made clear to those in attendance is that Buffalo is now his home and will remain so for the foreseeable future.
His charity work in the area is well known, especially with the Sabres alumni association and always being a part of the distribution of toys to underprivileged children on Christmas Eve. And over the years Ray has made and still makes unscheduled visits to local hospitals, arriving unannounced in many cases.
If there was one thing I saw in Ray Friday night is a soft side. Following standing ovations as well as verbal tributes to Ray, there came a moment when Ray quickly wiped his eyes. Crying is not a part of Rays makeup.
But the Hall of Fame tribute brought him very close to tears. But in typical Ray fashion, he “fought” them back. He wouldn’t have it any other way.
Razor with FamilyRay and parentsInductedGreeting his fansMiller and RayMiller Congratulates RayFormally InductedSpeaking to fansBrad May introduces RayBrad May speakingHe has entered the ArenaPlaque on WallWith Alumni and ParentsWith Alumni
