With the hockey season officially underway, the prep team traveled to Byfield, Massachusetts to play their first two games against the Middlesex Bears at Governor’s Academy on September 30th and October 1st. They came out victorious for an undefeated weekend. With those two wins, the prep team was the only team at Northwood to still be undefeated.
Junior Alex Ray in recent Prep team action at the Olympic Center.
In the first game, the Huskies had a bit of a slow start, but gained the 2-0 advantage with Rico DiMatteo ‘20 in net. The game winner from Alexander Ray (2019, Forward) was the icebreaker and Trevor Souza (2019, Defense) then netted the second goal of the game to make sure the Huskies had the first win safely in hand.
“I thought the boys had a good weekend and there were good vibes in the locker room,” said junior defenseman Trevor Souza. “The boys love to win so we weren’t leaving without the W’s. Some good goals this weekend and some great goaltending by Wyatt and Rico, bailing us out at some critical moments of the games. Overall, good start to the year and hopefully we can keep up the momentum in the weeks to come. The boys just love playing hockey!”
In game two, the Huskies got right on the horse and opened up the scoring early to take a 2-0 lead on the Bears. The Huskies took that lead to the locker room at the end of the 1st period. From that point on, it was just complete dominance for the Huskies for the rest of the game, which ended with Northwood victorious 5-2. Wyatt Friedlander (2019) was in net. The goals came from Alexsei Rutkovskii (2019, Forward), Sutton Allard (2019, Forward), John Biechler (2019, Forward), Cisco DelliQuadri (2020, Forward), and Finlay Ulrick (2019, Forward). All five players played a crucial role in the success for the Huskies, but it was an all around effort from everyone.
“I think our team is really coming together and we’re starting to play better and better after every game,” said junior forward Sutton Allard. “Winning the games against Middlesex will boost our morale and our will to win. That said, Middlesex is a great team and it’s gonna take everyone’s maximum effort to beat them every time. In addition, the boys are gonna be buzzing on Friday and Saturday against Rice!”
Coach Silengo is optimistic about his team. “The boys started off slow in the first game verses a competitive Middlesex Black Bears team,” he said. “Rico DiMatteo was able to hold off every shot that came his way, giving our club a chance to win the game. As we moved into the second and third periods, we scored two timely goals. One off a 3v2 rush from Alex Ray, and the other from Trevor Souza off a nice pass from Aleksei Rutkovskii. We held them to a 2-0 win,” said Silengo. “In game two, we had a stronger start, scoring two quick goals in the first,” the coach said. “We had production from several different players, allowing us to come away with a 5-2 win. Wyatt Friedlander played great in net.”
The Huskies are home during Family Weekend in a two-game series against the Knights of Rice prep hockey at the Olympic Center.
The Prep team now has its own snapchat account. To follow them throughout the season, its username is: Northwoodprep17.
