Allentown, PA – The Lehigh Valley Phantoms have loaned goaltender Parker Gahagen to the Reading Royals of the ECHL.
Gahagen, 30, has played in nine games with the Phantoms this season going 4-3-2, 2.63, 909. With Reading this season, Gahagen has played in three games going 0-2-0, 2.37, .927. The Army Black Knights product has played in 21 career games in the AHL going 9-7-2, 3.02, .897 and also 103 games in the ECHL going 58-28-5, 2.30, .920. Last year, with the Jacksonville Icemen of the ECHL, he played 33 games with an 18-8-3 record and 2.66, .912.
When you only register 30 points in 74 games over two junior hockey seasons as a 5’9” forward, not many college programs will show interest. In this case, the college Brooklyn born John Lundy had committed to rescinded their offer due to players having an extra pandemic year of eligibility and the transfer portal.
But everything happens for a reason.
“John Lundy is an amazing story,” American International head coach Eric Lang said. “We were all set with out roster…and I got a call from his junior hockey coach (Jamestown’s) Joe Coombs who said, ‘take him and thank me later.’ We never had an opportunity to see him live.
“I called him up and said, ‘I’m running a clinic for 15-year-old kids in Stamford, Connecticut…if you show up at this clinic, I will take a quick peek at you, and we’ll go from there.’ The kid showed up at the clinic and I kind of fell in love with him as a person and saw that he was willing to do anything to make it work. Last year he kind of struggled to get in our line-up and this year as well a little bit early—shame on me.
“He gets what he deserves; he’s the hardest working, greatest teammate and one of the best things to happen at AIC hockey in a few years here. He’s a line driver so we can put him with anybody right now and everybody wants to play with him. He just said I want a spot and I’ll earn everything I get, and that’s what he did.”
To the tune of the now-sophomore being tied for the team lead in goals at the holiday break with nine and is fourth in points with 13. He also leads the third place Yellowjackets with five power play goals.
Lundy spent two seasons with the North Jersey Avalanche before jumping to the USHL with Tri-City. The pandemic sent him to the BCHL before he jumped back to the states in the NAHL with Amarillo and Austin in 2020-21 and Jamestown in 2021-22, where he exploded for 32 goals and 57 points in 60 games to get back on the Division I radar.
“I really enjoyed my year in Jamestown (where he holds the team record for goals in a season). I wasn’t performing the way I wanted to my first two years of juniors and with covid and everyone being pushed back a year (of eligibility) I’m sure played a factor, but I’m just super-grateful that coach Lang gave me a chance to play here and I wouldn’t change the path of my journey for a thing.
“I played AA until I was about 13 and there’s not any AAA organizations in the city, so I bounced between Long Island and New Jersey and I thank my parents for the toll money and the mileage on the car and all they did for me bringing me to every practice three times a week.
“Playing Division I has been my goal and my dream since I was five or six years old, so I was doing my best my last year searching for a place to play.”
Lundy uses his skating and stick-handling skills to create space in the offensive zone and is trusted with one of the point positions on the top power play unit.
“When I play confident and believe in myself, I think it helps me a lot out on the ice. When I’m confident in my skating I feel that plays a factor for the rest of my game and I’ve been blessed to play with great teammates, and they’ve been the biggest x factor in improving and getting better.
“Just taking advantage of the opportunities our coaching staff gave me,” Lundy said. “Just being ready whenever my name is called and whoever I’ve been playing with out there have been putting it on a tee for me.”
Despite all the pressures of playing Division I hockey, Lundy hasn’t forgotten where he came from, taking the time during the game warm-up to collect a puck and give it to a young fan in the stands even though it was a road game.
“I try to do it every game…I love the game of hockey and I try to put myself in a young fan’s shoes. I loved to get a puck, so I think that’s the least I can do to try to make their experience better and maybe spark a love or interest for hockey.
“I’ve had a couple of pro players do that for me. (I was) at (NY) Rangers games banging on the glass and, I already love the game, but it made me love the game even more, so I try to do that in warmups. My favorite player, Patrick Kane, actually gave me a puck and that was pretty special.”
Creating stories to remenber for others while continuing to build on his own bestseller.
WNYGVIH hosted two New York teams, including first-year Webster, just prior to the Holiday break.
Niagara County played Webster first with the Warriors coming away with a 10-4 win over the visiting team. NiCo’s Madison Mallone had 5 goals and 3 assists, followed by Abby Zimmerman with 2 goals, Sam Latini, 2; Marina Mansfield, 2; one each for Liala Ferguson, Ashley Mainstone, Natalee Lawrence and Sam Draper. Kennedy Ruest stopped 14 of 18 for the win. For Webster it was Teide Hill with the first goal, unassisted at 14:35 of the first period. Maddie Meyer scored an unassisted goal with just 25.4 seconds left in the first. Second period Webster’s Jessica Nappi scored with Viv Kinkead assisting. NiCo opened scoring in the third but Webster’s Eve Pagano scored at 9:01 and then Niagara County’s Mallone finished the scoring at 9:39. Webster’s Mia Wambach stopped 15 of 25 SOG.
Oswego Girls Varsity met NiCo the following day at opened the scoring in the first period with a goal by Nora Cole, assisted by Jordan Devendorf and Hailey Workman. Niagara’s Sam Draper scored and the first period ends in a 1-1 tie. NiCo’s Julia Hoffman and Sam Latini scored in the second with Hoffman getting the game-winner and Latini n a short-handed ending the second 3-1 in favor of the home team. It was all Niagara in the third period as Latini drops in another and Mansfield scores, assisted by Draper to end the period and the game at 5-1 in favor of NiCo. In goal for NiCo, Kennedy made 23 of 24 and for Oswego, Emma Duval made 15 of 20.
Oswego then traveled to Holiday to play FFLOP with a tight 4-3 victory for FFLOP. Scoring for FFLOP were Maya Griffin with a goal and two assists in the game; Emily Patton with two goals; Lilah Cudney with an unassisted goal and Peyton Forcucci with an assist. Keira Keaton stopped 11 of 13 for the win and Kerrigan McCarthy stopped 14/15 in 30 minutes of play. For Oswego is was Mackenzie Battelle stopping 24 of 28.
Webster will be playing several non-league games with Section VI. The next game will be December 28 at 4:30 p.m. against KenGiPort at Webster’s arena. Other games will be:
Tuesday, January 9, 5:05 p.m. vs Monsignor Martin at Dwyer Arena on the Niagara University campus
Thursday, January 11, 6:00 p.m. vs HHEWS at Webster
Tuesday, January 23, 5:05 p.m. vs CASH at Dwyer
Thursday, January 25, 6;00 p.m. vs Williamsville at Webster
Tuesday, January 30, 7:30 p.m. vs FFLOP at Brighton
These photos and more will be available for viewing (and purchasing) at www.smugmug.com under Janet Schultz.
The St. Mary’s of Lancaster girls high school hockey team is entering it’s third season of play in the Girls High School Varsity Ice Hockey Federation.
There has been improvement shown in each of their first two seasons of play. In that maiden season of play, which saw the Lancers go winless (0-14-1) and finish in ninth place in league standings, to last season which saw St. Mary’s finish 2-12-0 and an eighth place finish.
This season sees nothing but continued improvement for St. Mary’s. And that is the way St. Mary’s coach, Marty Gilano, sees it as well.
Gall
“When we play our game which is high intensity, play our system, trust each other, get the pucks deep, put a lot of pressure on the opposition and get a lot of shots on goal.
“That is our recipe for winning.”
There is more to Gilano’s coaching philosophy.
Vitez
“The first thing is to stay healthy,” continued Gilano. “I want the players to be good to each other and be good teammates.
“I think if we play for each other and fight for each other and really build the culture that we’re going to win the Lancer way. It starts in the lockerroom and goes from the inside out.”
Like many coaches, Gilano believes experience can help any team. He believes that the experience many of these players have received over the past two seasons can only help to improve his team this year.
First Period Donnelly
“I’d say these players have grown up quite a bit over the past year,” stated Gilano. “A year makes a big difference.
“Plus, we have two freshmen on the team this year in Shea Hall and Meg Donnelly. Plus, we got one transfer student, Emma Babcock. These three will help the team.”
The veterans the coach referred to are returning juniors Gabby Bellacose, Riley Kumrow, Danielle Cottrell, Alanah Pagano and Samantha Hatt, as well as the lone senior on the team, Reece Gall.
Add to that the sophomores returning who include Gabe Lowell, Lauren Gilano, Avery Szczesek, Brooklyn Vitez and Julia Durkin.
The one position Gilano feels solid about is goaltending.
“We feel very fortunate to have two number one goaltenders on our team with Avery Hall and Betsy Accurse.” Said Gilano. “Whoever gets hot is going to play more.
“It’s exciting to know what whomever I put in goal for a game we’re going to be good.”
Celebrating first goal
(Photos by Janet Schultz Photography/NY Hockey OnLine)
The Niagara County Lady Warriors are ending 2023 on top in the League standings. However, HHEWS is following closely behind and KenGiPort will also be a threat to that top lineup.
NiCo has an undefeated record at 7-0-0 with 7 games played and 21 points. HHEWS is 6-2-1 with 19.5 points and KenGiPort is 6-2-0 with 18 points.
With that said, other teams could move up as we look at some very good goaltending and scorers. FFLOP sits in fourth with a 4-3-0 record; St Marys, 3-5-1; Monsignor Martin, 3-3-0 and LIDA, 2-5-0. CASH and Willamsville sit with 3 points each and very young teams. CASH is 1-6-0 and WMSL 1-7-0.
The top scorers are coming from NiCo and KenGiPort with Madison Mallone sitting first with 11 goals and 7 assists and 18 points; Isabelle Bourgeault, 5 goals, 9 assists; Isabella Jayme, 8 goals 5 assists and Marina Mansfield, 9 goals 3 assists. Abbey Zimmerman, Sam Latini and Sophia Phillips are tied at fifth with 11 points each. Mallone, Latini and Zimmerman are “on the radar” for the All-Time Scoring list.
Goalies have been the key as we head into the second half of the season. Kennedy Ruest of NiCo has 405 minutes in the net and a .932 save percentage. Ruest, Betsy Accurso and Ella Buczynski have two shutouts each. Other noteable goaltenders include Rachel Fix, Irzycki and Avery Hall. All who have .920 save percentages or better. Olivia Lookman of Williamsville has payed 403.22 minutes in goal.
Opening Week Four was NiCo at St. Mary’s and that proved to be a close game ending 3-2 i favor of Niagara County. Scoring for NiCo: Mallone, Zimmerman and Mansfield with Zimmerman, O’Connor, Mallone and Draper all having assists. Ruest was in the net stopping 21 of 23. St. Mary’s Avery Szczesek and Gabe Lowell scored with assists from Brooklyn Vitez and Danielle Cottrell. Avery Hall stopped 21 of 24.
NiCo had a return performance the following night facing HHews. Once again the Lady Warriors came out on top 6-1. Mallone had the game-winner plus the first goal of the night. Other scoring came from Frankie Williamson, assisted by Latini and O’Connor; Natalee Lawrence, unassisted; Marina Mansfield, unassisted and finally one from Lawrence, assisted by Zimmerman and O’Connor. Ruest takes the win making 25 of 26.
For HHEWS it was Lillian Drzazgowski assisted by Sophia Phillips and Kelsey Barrett.
KenGiPort beat CASH 3-0 with scoring from Savannah Samplinski, Jayme, Teagan Willats, assisted by Bourgeault and Marzec. Samantha Horne was in net for the 15 save shutout. CASH’s Celej made 45 of 48 sog.
FFLOP took LIDA in a close 3-2 at Holiday. Scoring were Kayli Tefft, two from Lilah Cudney with assists coming from Cudney, Campbell Rutz and Griffin. For LIDA it was Brynn Cafferty, unassisted and Emily Lysiak assisted by Caitlin Sinclair. McCarthy gets the shutout win stopping 27 of 29 and in goal stopping 25 of 28 for LIDA was Irzycki.
HHEWS was at Williamsville and topped them 3-2. HHEWS’s Kennedy Reiford had the game-winner plus the first goal of the night and Phillips had a goal. Assists coming from Drzazgowski, Hailey Cooper, K. Barrett, Samantha Miller, Kayla Pelc and Charlotte Rak. Gigi Rakoski stopped 15 of 17 SOG. For Williamsville it was Scarlette Canna, assisted by Sophia DePrima and Alena Lombardo; Allison Besancon, assisted by DePrima. Lookman stopped 18 of 20.
In non-league action Webster came to Cheektowaga to play St. Mary’s of Lancaster. It was a 5-0 shut-out for the host team with Riley Kumrow getting the game-winning, first goal of the night on the powerplay. Brooklyn Vitez assisted. Other scoring came from Captain Reece Gall, unassisted; Alanah Pagano, unassisted; Samantha Hatt, assisted by Gall and the final from Pagano assisted by Szczesek. Betsy Accurso was in net and made 25 stops for the shut-out victory. In goal for Webster was Maddie Strelick, stopping 7 of 12.
The final games of the week found Williamsville at CASH, both playing on their home ice at Northtowns. Williamsville comes away with their first victory of the season. It was 2-1 with Addison Stachura scoring both goals, one unassisted and one assisted by Besancon. CASH’s goal was scored by Tessa Kwiatowski, unassisted. Goalie Lookman stopped 20/21 for Williamsville and Celej stopped 19/21 for CASH. This was also Lookman’s first Varsity win in goal for Williamsville. We also thank Bill Pavone for filling in for commentator Randy Schultz on WNY Athletics NFHS broadcast.
FFLOP beat Monsignor Martin 1-0 in overtime. Game was tied through three periods bedore Emily Patton dropped i the game-winner, assisted by Dalton and Griffin. Rachel Fix in goal for FFLOP made 25 saves for the win. Kelley stopped 39/40 for Monsignor Martin.
Another single goal victory and this from the KenGiPort at LIDA game. Madelyn Jagow scored for KGIP, assisted by Alexa Denning and Willats. Willats had the game-winning-goal, unassisted. Horne in for KGIP stopping 28 of 29 for the win. LIDA’s Miller scored their single goal, assisted by Claire Whiteford and Emily Lysiak. Irzycki stopping 26 of 28. Both goalies were named Players of the Game by their respective teams.
Another shut-out this week with HHEWS beating St. Mary’s 3-0. Scoring were Phillips, the game-winner on the powerplay; assisted by H. Barrett and M. Cooper; Holland on the powerplay, assisted by Reiford and M. Cooper and Phillips scoring an empty-netter, assisted by the Barrett girls. Buczynski in net for HHEWS and Hall for St. Mary’s. (Scorers did not keep track of SOG).
There is a game rescheduled from January for NiCo and Monsignor Martin. It is scheduled for December 28 at 4:40 p.m. at North Buffalo.
Ithaca native Jack Parsons certainly has the size that most professional hockey organizations are looking for in a goaltender in this era standing at 6’3” and 184 lb. Add that he is playing against high-level competition every night competing with four other goalies as part of the U.S. National Team Development Program playing against USHL junior players and against Division I colleges and he is well on his way.
“I feel like it’s allowing me to almost take that step a year early,” Parsons said in early December. “My first year I played in the USHL…I may have had a down year because I wasn’t used to the level of play and I’m getting that now and I’m more used to it.
“It makes it a lot easier to make that jump next year, if I make that jump next year. It’s much more seamless for me and I’m able to step in and have success a lot quicker.”
That jump could be to play at Providence College in Rhode Island, but only if he and the Friars coaching staff feel the soon-to-be 18-year-old is ready.
“I just love the campus. I’m not the kind of person who I feel would thrive on a big campus; I like kind of a small, tight-knit community. From who I’ve talked to, they are better than some NHL places, so it was definitely high on my list.”
“Making sure I’m ready. I don’t want to go in and not play, so just making sure that I’m ready to take that next step and, if I have to take another year (of junior development), it is what is it, but I want to make sure that I’m able to make that jump and have success. I want to play games and, if I’m not having success, I’m not going to play (in) games.”
He left Ithaca at 14 years old to play with Mount St. Charles Academy in Woonsocket, Rhode Island for two seasons and put up solid numbers in his 14U and 15U years prior to joining the national program.
Parsons at the holiday break had a 3.78 goals against average In the USHL contests with a .845 save percentage through six games in net. In a game at St. Lawrence Dec. 5 Parsons allowed four goals on 32 shots, but one goal was a power play marker and another with an extra attacker on for a delayed penalty.
He is eligible for this summer’s NHL Entry Draft to be held in Las Vegas in late June.
“Getting used to the speed with my skating, because I feel like I’m a pretty good skater, it’s just about getting comfortable so it’s that much easier to use my skating because when I use my skating, I’m most effective.
“Also working at improving my post play, which has gotten a lot better I feel this year. It’s definitely allowed me to make that jump and see the improvement in my game.”
Most goaltenders come with at least a few quirks and one that jumps out from Parsons’ player profile is that he likes salted caramel ice cream.
“My grandma honestly, she got me into it. That would be the only thing she would have at her house, so I just got used to it and liked it. You kind of have to search for it a little bit or go to ice cream shops to get it, but when I see it, I get it for sure.”
Hopefully, someone in the family scouts out an ice cream shop in Las Vegas where he and the family can celebrate his draft selection in June.
The WNYGVIH League headed into week two with a full schedule. Opening up on Monday night it was a 4 goal shutout for St. Mary’s of Lancaster over Williamsville. Shea Hall had two goals including the game-winner and Reece Gail scored an unassisted goal with Avery Szczesek and Alanah Pagano each having one. In goal Betsy Accurso had the shutout making 14 saves. Williamsville’s Olivia Lookman stopped 26 of 30.
Tuesday night it was St Mary’s 1, NICO 4; HHEWS 2, LIDA 0 and KengiPort 4, FFLOP 3.
Sam Latini had two goals for NiCO with Abby Zimmerman adding two for the win. Scoring for St. Mary’s was Meghan Donnelly. In goal was Kennedy Ruest stopping 15/16 for the win and Avery Hall for St. Mary’s with 38 saves on 42 shots.
HHEWS goals came from Kennedy Reiford and Brynn Holland. Ella Buczynski stopped 17 shots for the shutout win. Carly Irzycki stopped 27/29 for LIDA.
It was a close one with KengiPort getting one more goal than FFLOP for the 4-3 win. Isabella Jayme had two goals for KengiPort, Teagan Willats, Alyse Alberalla added one more each and Samantha Horne made 13 saves on 16 shots.
Monsignor Martin came up with a 6-0 shutout win over Williamsville on Wednesday evening. Six different players scored including Gabby Kazmark, Addison Cherry, Dylany Dee, Becca Sander and Mary Kate Christ with Reese Honadle scoring the empty netter, unassisted. In goal Kate Kelley stopped 14 sog for the win. Williamsville’s Lookman stopped 30 of 36.
Thursday nights are a busy one for the WNYGVIH League. Four games on tap starting with Niagara County at CASH and a 6-0 win for NiCo. Scoring were Marina Mansfield with a hattrick; Zimmerman with one, Madison Mallone with two and Ruest making 10 saves for the shutout. CASH’s Ella Celej made 20 saves on 26 shots.
It was a 3-2 victory for KGIPort with Willats, Bourgeault and Jayme scoring and Horne stopping 24/26 shots. Holland, H. Barrett scored for HHEWS with Buczynski in net stopping 13 of 16. Jayme’s goal at 11:26 sealed the win.
St. Mary’s kept it close to beat FFLOP 5-4. Scoring for St. Mary’s were Lowell, Szczesek, Hall, Cottrell and Donnell with Accurso stopping 29 of 33 for the win. For FFLOP it was Dalton, Griffin with two and A Pagano. Fix was in goal stopping 20/25.
LIDA had their first goal of the season with Rosslyn Miller scoring, assisted by Claire Whiteford and Lucia Lawrence. However they couldn’t get another one and lost 2-1 to Monsignor Martin. Reese Honadle and Alexandria Franke scored with Kelley making 22 saves for the shutout win. Irzycki made 20 saves on 22 shots.
LIDA finds a W in Week Three.
Two games on tap for Monday night including a 4-0 shutout for HHEWS over Monsignor Martin and a 5-1 win for KengiPort over St. Mary’s.
Holland had the game-winner for HHEWS, assisted by H.Cooper. Then it was Pelc from H. Barrett and Phillips; Holland again with assist credited to Reiford and Pelc scoring assisted by H. Barrett. Buczynski had 15 saves for the shutout. In goal for Monsignor Martin was Kelley who stopped 15 of 19.
At Cheektowaga it was KengiPort 5; St. Mary’s 1. Isabella Bourgeault had the game winner while Isabelle Burt got on the board first, unassisted. Jayme, Chadima and Denning scored and Horne stopped 11 of 12 shots for the win. St. Mary’s Samantha Hatt had St. Mary’s lone goal, assisted by Szczesek. Hall made 36 stops on 41 shots.
On Tuesday KengiPort hosted Niagara County and the visitors won 4-2. No scoring in the first period led to NiCo’s Latini scoring first in the second and then with 1/10 of a second left Mansfield scored the second goal of the night ending the second period 2-0. Kenmore opened the scoring in the third when Willats dropped one in unassisted. Then it was NiCo’s Mallone and Mansfield adding two more. However KengiPort had one more say with a goal at 4:22 by I Bourgeault ending the game 4-2. In goal for NiCo, Ruest stopping 34 of 36 and for KengiPort Horne with 21/25.
LIDA gets their first win of the season with a 2-1 victory over St .Mary’s. Emily Rodriguez dropped in the first goal, assisted by Hailey Kenyon. The second came from Brynn Cafferty, the game-winner, unassisted. Carly Irzycki stopped 21 of 22 for the win. For St. Mary’s it was Szczesek scoring, assisted by Lauren Gilano and Accurso stopping 23 of 25.
FFLOP beat Williamsville 5-1 on Wednesday as Maya Griffin had two goals, as did Gabby Sojda and Jocelyn Dmaczniak added one more. Rachel Fix stopped 15 of 16 for the win. Williamsville’s Anna Meyer scored their only goal…if you remember Anna was Williamsville’s go-to goalie last season. This was her first varsity goal as a Forward. She was assisted by Caydence Curran and Jaylee Kochan. Lookman made 34 saves on 39 shots.
NiCo upset CASH 5-1 with CASH’s Kiley Breeze having the lone goal. NiCo’s scoring came from Mallone (2), Draper (2), and Zimmerman. Ruest made 17 saves on 18 shots.
CASH took home the 4-3 win over Monsignor Martin. CASH’s goals came from Tessa Kwiatowski (2), a powerplay goal by Polina Stremiakova plus the game-winner. Mya DeSantis, Alexandria Reed, Jenny Wild and Sara Ablove had assists that evening. Monsignor Martin’s Reese Honadle scored a short-handed goal unassisted to put them on the boards. Then it was Becca Sandler and Kazmark scoring. Assists went to DeSantis, Wild, Kwiatowski and Ablove. In goal for MMAA was Kelley who stopped 10 of 14 sog and for CASH, Celej with 25 of 28 for the win.
LIDA took home their second win of the season with a 5-1 win over Williamsville. First period had penalties for no scoring. Second period it was two for LIDA off the sticks of Emily Rodriguez on the powerplay and Leah Dowling. Third period it was LIDA with three goals just minutes in by Cafferty and Sanchez, followed by a goal from Williamsville’s Besancon on the power-play. Dowling secured the win with a goal with 1:54 left on the clock. Irzycki stopped 15 of 16 for the win and Lookman stopped 36 of 41.
The third week ends with Niagara County in first place with a 5-0 record and 15 points. They are followed by HHEWS (4-1-1), KengiPort (4-2-0) and St. Mary’s of Lancaster (3-3-1). After that it’s FFLOP, Monsignor Martin, LIDA, CASH and Williamsville.
On the scoring NiCo’s Mallone tops the list with 13 points on 8 goals and 5 assists in 5 games. KengiPort’s Jayme and Bourgeault follow with 12 points each and the top five lists rounds out with NiCo’s Mansfield and Latini with 10 points each.
In goal NiCo’s Ruest has the most minutes in net at 315 followed by Williamsville’s Lookman with 314.83 minutes. Ruest has the most wins and two shut-outs. HHEWS Buczyski has a .944 save percentage with two shut-outs and a 4-1-1 record.
Week 3 didn’t end on Thursday. NiCo hosted Section V’s first Varsity Girls Hockey Team, Webster. Then Oswego came in to play NiCo and FFLOP. The Oswego vs Williamsville game has been postponed.
Other changes to the schedule include The January 11 game between NiCo and Monsignor Martin being moved to December 28 at 4:40 p.m. at North Buffalo and Williamsville at HHEWS playing Monday, January 22 at 4:30 p.m. at Riverworks.
New York Rangers 2019 seventh round draft choice Eric Ciccolini worked his way through youth hockey in Ontario, Canada before arriving at the University of Michigan and this season is wearing a Clarkson University jersey in an effort to put up some larger offensive numbers and hopefully attract an entry-level contract.
And it seems to be working.
After scoring 15 goals and 34 points in 85 games over three-plus years as a Wolverine, the 6’0”, 185 lb. right wing already has four goals and four assists as the 13-games first half of the season came to a close with the Golden Knights.
“To just get a bigger role and just be a leader and I think I’ve been trying to do that every game,” Ciccolini said in early December. “And I think it’s been working, and I’ve been gaining momentum the last couple of games.”
“Just needed to gain more confidence and coach has a lot of confidence in me and my teammates. “(I’ve been given) “the opportunity that I was told I would be given, and I knew a couple of guys from home, so that helped the transition and it’s not too far from home.”
About 130 fewer miles for his family to drive from Woodbridge outside of Toronto.
“They’ve been here almost every weekend—my dad and my grandfather come so it’s pretty cool and exciting to see them all the time.”
The year prior to college, Ciccolini showed he can put up offensive numbers with the Toronto Jr. Canadiens with 27 goals and 62 points over 48 games.
“I can compare it to this (season) a little bit. I had a big opportunity to be a leader and coming from the year before where I was able to play with a guy like Jack McBain and see where he is now in the NHL, I think helped me for sure. Feeding off him and there were a lot of scouts at our games and stuff like that. Got that same experience the next year, had a good year and it obviously helped me commit to Michigan as well as get drafted.”
But roster competition and opportunity didn’t replicate as a 19-year-old freshman with one goal and ten assists in 26 games.
Ciccolini turns 23 years old on Jan. 14, but is consciously not looking too far beyond that.
“I am just focusing on right now and what I can do and try to prove myself (like) maybe I wasn’t able to do at Michigan as much and see what happens at the end of the year, but that how I’m looking at it right now.
“Try to produce more and more and have a bigger role was my reason. (Michigan) was a great school and I’ll never forget that, but just the opportunity here was good for me.
“Playing with those guys like (Owen) Power, (Ryan) Johnson, (Matt) Berniers; I could list so many. Just learning from them and what they do every day and trying to bring it to my game and feed off of them.”
Ciccolini injured his shoulder just prior to starting his college career and later missed most of his third year at Michigan with a torn ACL and MCL.
The move to Clarkson for Ciccolini is turning into a good situation and story, but there are several stories about his choices of jersey numbers along the way.
“I was a family friend with Gordie Howe and the Howe family…my grandfather was a pretty good friend of his growing up and stayed in contact with him. So, whenever he would come to Toronto he would stay at my father’s house, so I figured to wear #9 in Michigan just because of how close it is to Detroit.
“And I switched to #93 last year just because I wanted to change something up because of injuries and what I’ve been doing, and I got #39 here. I didn’t have much of a choice, but it’s a reverse #93, so that’s alright.”
Superstitious—maybe a little, but if he is able to continue the story after 2023-24, why not?
(Photos provided by Clarkson Men’s Hockey Program)
The 2024 U-20 World Junior championship kicks off Dec. 26 in Gothenburg, Sweden and New York State residents have plenty of reasons to pay attention this year to several of the participating teams.
For instance, there are five players with New York ties dotting the roster for Team USA.
Akwesasne’s Carey Terrance, a second-round draft pick of Anaheim in 2023, will take time away from his Ontario Hockey League schedule with the Erie Otters with pre-tournament speculation of using his speed in a third or fourth line role at forward.
Pearl River native and New York Rangers 2023 third round draft pick Drew Fortescue is on the Team USA blueline and Boston College teammate Gabe Perrault, selected by the Rangers in the second round in June, is at forward.
Team USA’s roster also features two New York Islanders draft selections in University of Wisconsin forward Quinn Finley (’22 third round) and Notre Dame freshman forward Danny Nelson (’23 second round).
On Team Canada, Buffalo Sabres 2022 first round draft pick Matt Savoie will be one of the main forwards again this year and the Sabres fifth round selection in 2023, Scott Ratzlaff, is one of three goaltenders.
Buffalo also has two draft picks at forward with Team Sweden in ’22 first rounder Noah Ostlund and ’23 second rounder Anton Wahlberg.
Team Czechia will feature the return of Sabres ’22 first round draft choice Juri Kulich, who scored nine points in the tournament a year ago and currently leads the American Hockey League in goals.
Rangers 2022 second round draft pick Adam Sykora will join Team Slovakia for the tournament after a successful start to his professional career with AHL affiliate Hartford.
Islanders 2023 fourth round selection Jesse Nurmi was set to play a top-six role with Team Finland but will sit out due to injury.
Youngstown Phantoms player photo shoot on October 3, 2022.
Tomas Machu, defenseman, 2
By Warren Kozireski —
When NHL teams get to the later rounds of the NHL Draft each year, many turn their focus to what can be described as project players. These are those with size or skating ability or great hands or compete level who may take some extra time to develop into professional prospects.
The New York Islanders have one of those in their 6’4”, 194 lb. right shot defenseman Tomas Machu, who they selected in the seventh and final round of the 2021 draft.
Now in his third season after arriving in the U.S. at 18 years old from his native Czechia, Machu is wearing an “A” this season for the defending Clark Cup Champions.
The Youngstown Phantoms win 3-1 against Team USA NTDP U-17 on April 21, 2023.
Tomas Machu, defenseman, 2
“I was real interested in playing college hockey…I’m still deciding (where),” Machu said. “(Last year) was great; we had a great team, but it’s in the past so just trying to focus on this year to defend the championship. We have a great team again this year and we’ll do everything we can to win the Clark again.”
“It’s been an honor to wear an “A” for this team, so I’m trying to help the younger guys.”
Likely more of a defensive defenseman going forward who can use his great reach, Machu had four goals with ten assists last season over 57 regular season games and added a pair of assists during the playoff run.
He was out for the vast majority of the final four minutes helping his team defend a one-goal lead against Muskegon.
“Just try to do my job and shut other teams down,’ Machu said in early December. “Obviously I want to be very good at defense and move the puck well, so yeah, obviously doing my job.
“I understand my role to play good defense. (Working on) my skating, my shot and puck touches and moving the puck well to try to (create) offense.”
Machu did not attend the NHL Draft when he was selected by the Islanders, but will forever remember the moment, though it happened in the wee hours of the morning back home.
The Youngstown Phantoms win 3-1 against the Cedar Rapids Rough Riders in game 2 of the USHL Clark Cup Playoffs to advance to the conference finals on April 30, 2023.
Tomas Machu, defenseman, 2
“ I was watching with my parents and then got a call from the Islanders, so it was real nice and it’s been an honor to get drafted so trying to work as hard as I possibly can.”
Machu turns 21 years old in March and will begin the next phase of his hockey development likely with a Division I college program yet-to-be-determined as of early December. He will bring a team-first, championship pedigree to whichever program that is.
This is just a quick note to say “Thank You” to all of you who congratulated me on winning the “Community Champions” award that was presented to me at “Hockey Day In Lockport by the Lockport Ice Board of Directors.
To say that I was surprised was an understatement. I’m still wondering how I was selected to win such a great award.
I was truly humbled and truly honored by the award and presentation. It is something that I will never forget.
Again, thank you to all who sent messages to me.
Best Wishes to all for a wonderful Holiday Season, Christmas and New Year.
You would never know it from watching him play for Team USA in the USHL as their mix schedule also features games against Division I college programs. You would also never guess from talking with the player some see in the mix as a potential number one overall NHL draft pick in 2025.
He is only one month into his 17th year.
And as this is written, he was the youngest player invited and was competing for one of 25 roster spots for Team USA at the U-20 World Junior Championships that begin Dec. 26 in Sweden.
“I’m going to go there and try to put everything I have on the ice and hopefully it’s enough to make that team, so I know that I’m going to give it my all and put everything on the line,” Hagens said after a game at St. Lawrence University. (Unfortunately, Hagens didn’t make this year’s team as of this article.)
Hagens began his development with his brother Michael on the Long Island Royals for one season before moving on to Mount St. Charles for two years before they split and is now in his second year with the U.S. National Team Development Program.
He will rejoin his brother, currently playing with Chicago in the USHL, at Boston College this coming fall.
“My parents are kind of sick of taking flights to two different states, so they love that we’re (going to be) together and I really just want to be with him again.
“It’s going to be cool to be on the same ice as him, being in the same classes and the same dorm, so it’s going to be really fun.”
The 5’10”, 170 lb. left shot center is wearing an “A” this season. During games against some college hockey programs, he is competing with players as much as eight years older than he is.
“You don’t really think about that when you’re on the ice, but it’s definitely helpful having those bigger guys bear down on you.
It is all part of the plan. Hagens already skates well, sees the ice with the best of them and prefers the left faceoff dot after opponent icings, but continues to focus on his development going forward.
“I’m working on everything to be honest. Every day I’m working on my shot trying to get that better so that I can be a threat from anywhere on the ice. And you always have to work on your skating. You’re never perfect at anything, so I just try to work on everything every day.”
Last season with the National program, Hagens accumulated a combined 59 goals with 82 assists over 115 regular season and international tournament games. This season, he already had 53 points over the first 33 games.
As good as he has been against players older than he is, Hagens is on another level when competing in his own age group. At the U-17 World Championships in British Columbia in November ’22, he set an event record for points with 21 over seven games before winning gold in Switzerland this past April.
“The best memory though is probably to win the gold there and how we did it being able to go over there and win every game with those guys.
“There’s no better feeling than to be able to sing that song after your win in the locker room with the guys, so that was probably my favorite memory and I’m sure it’s everyone else’s.”
Over the last decade-plus, the New York Rangers have hit on (played 100 or more NHL games) two sixth round draft choices in Jesper Fast in 2010 and Morgan Barron in 2017. Their 2023 selection, Ty Henricks of the Muskegon Lumberjacks in the USHL, could be the next.
The 6’5”, 210 lb. left wing from Mission Viejo, California left home at 13 years old to pursue his dream with Shattuck St. Mary’s for three seasons.
“When I was about 11, I went to the Shattuck camp for younger kids and it’s kind of a bite-size experience of the school and I did that twice and fell in love with the program and I knew that it was one of my goals to attend the school,” Henricks recalled.
“When I got the opportunity to play up on the U14 at13, there is no way I would turn that down. My parents weren’t too pleased with the idea, but after some thought they said if this is what’s best for him in his hockey career, then let’s let him do it.”
Then it was back home with the Jr. Ducks for the 21-22 campaign where he exploded for a combined 87 goals and 68 assists in 80 games for the 16-U program.
Henricks committed to playing college hockey at Western Michigan in March 2021.
“I really like the way they play; they play physical, they play hard, they have a presence that a lot of teams don’t have. They have a physical presence where, if somebody picks the puck up along the boards, they know they’re going to get hit every single time…so that’s why I picked it, they play more of my style, so I think I’ll fit in really well.”
But first it was off the USHL. His first stop was in Fargo before a mid-season trade last year to Muskegon. This season, Henriks has four goals and four assists through his first 21 games.
“It (the trade) was good for both organizations I think, and it worked out for me; getting drafted by the Rangers really improved my work this summer.”
Henricks did not travel to Nashville for the 2023 NHL Draft but stayed home.
“I was watching it (the NHL Draft) with my dad and my mom and all of a sudden, I turned my head one way and I get drafted. My dad sees it before I do, and he starts jumping and I look at the screen and it was such a surreal moment, and it really was a dream come true.
“Multiple calls—all my friends, family, teammates, coaches and then New York called me—it was a great day.”
Then it was off to Rangers Prospect Camp with his future teammates.
“Definitely a learning experience, learning from the older guys and how they go about their exercises, on the ice, how hard they work and how they take care of their bodies is something I can take for my own game.”
Henricks is hoping to add his name to what is fast-becoming a long line of California-born players to make his mark on the game.
“California hockey is on a boom right now. There’s going to be a lot of players coming out (over) the next four or five years. All these younger guys are going to have so much skill and so much poise with the puck. The amount of ice that’s available in California compared to six or seven years ago is crazy.”
