Billy Batten ’23 (Photo: Mr. Michael Aldridge)

With the FISU games occupying Northwood, the Prep Hockey team stayed on the road to get the scheduled competition in. The boys traveled from Salem, NH, to Merrimack College and Detroit and made a few stops in Buffalo. Here is what happened in January.

The boys came off winter break eager to participate in the True Prep Cup at Merrimack College, a tournament where the team came in second place the previous year. The Huskies had gotten a bit too comfortable on break because the first game back was difficult to watch. Despite the disappointing performance of the first game, the team achieved a notable victory against Mount Saint Charles. The Huskies had yet to come close to beating them this season. That win marked a highlight of the weekend, but an honorable mention must go to the excellent college hockey the group witnessed while attending a Yale vs. Merrimack game. The boys were grateful for these opportunities and made the most of the weekends.

The team also took this time off to catch up on their college applications and participate in a team reading of The Culture Code by Daniel Coyle. This read allowed the team to learn about the importance of culture in the environments of winning teams, such as the U.S. Navy Seals and the Quinnipiac Men’s Ice Hockey team. The book focused on how culture is ever so important for sports teams and all teams. A group of boys will soon present what they learned from the book, and we will get more insight into how helpful the book can be.

Next on the schedule was spending a week in Buffalo to prepare for the Detroit Prep Hockey Conference Event. During this week, the boys got great skating opportunities at Niagara and Canisius while meeting key members of both programs’ coaching staff. Along with the practices, they also witnessed both college teams practice to see what it looks like at the next level. After the preparation, the team traveled to Detroit to play at the Detroit Red Wings practice facility before the PHC event. The weekend started with a heartbreaking loss against St. Andrews College. The second game went a little better for the first two periods, where the Huskies were up 3-0 on the #1 team in the country, Shattuck St. Mary’s. That changed in the third period when sadly, Shattuck was able to complete the comeback. In the third game, the boys were fired-up by the previous losses and were able to knock off Culver, marking a 1-2 record on the weekend.

To wrap up the month of January, the boys had the annual Macpherson Tournament at St. Andrews College in Canada. This was by far the team’s best performance of the month. The Huskies beat Culver and St. Andrews, both PHC rivals. It showed how the Huskies could perform when they were giving their all. The boys won a stunning four games straight, earning them a spot in the championship game against the GOJHL All-Stars. Sadly, the game resulted in a Northwood loss, but it should not undermine the boys’ performance over the weekend.

It was a hectic month in January, and I wanted to get a player’s opinion on what it felt like to play all this hockey without worrying about being in school. “It was an awesome experience to spend all that time with the team and take advantage of the places we traveled to,” James Schneid ’19 said, “but I am happy to be back at Northwood to finish the season.”

As Schneid mentioned, the team had a blast being on the road, but it was also great to see them doing other things, such as watching college games and reading a book for the team’s benefit. If you see any of the team around, feel free to ask them about their experience. As always, I wish the team good luck as they move toward the season’s final games.

The Prep Team after the championship win at the USHL American Cup (photo provided).

After a few disappointing weekends before Thanksgiving break, the Prep team was finally able to catch a break. The boys fought hard against the New Jersey Rockets, Long Island Gulls, and BK Selects to mark the American Cup as their second tournament/showcase win. Here is how the memorable weekend played out.

The weekend started with an intense game against the New Jersey Rockets, which Northwood beat earlier in the season. The Rockets were a talented offensive team, but they did not want to play the gritty style that the Huskies play. The game was intense for all three periods, where regulation ended at 2-2, forcing overtime. The boys came out strong in OT, and Nikita Mescheryakov ’23 buried a great goal, giving the team the weekend’s first win.

The next game against the Gulls would not bear the same success. The boys had played the Gulls before and lost to them, but when the Huskies play to their potential, they have a great chance of beating them. Sadly, the team could not pull through in the second game, and the Gulls won 2-0.

Luckily this wasn’t just an elimination tournament, so the boys had a do-or-die game against Bishop Kearney Selects later that same day. This was perhaps one of the team’s best games of the weekend. They came out strong, the boys were yelling on the bench for each other, and the team fought back with ferocity despite giving up an early goal. This spirit gave the Huskies the lead and allowed them to close the game 4-2.

With another win under their belt, it was time for the semifinal rematch against the Rockets. The boys slaughtered them with ease and were able to advance to an exciting championship game against the Gulls.

The team could not lose again, especially tournament championship was on the line. The game had a fantastic atmosphere. You could feel the competitiveness in the air. The game went back and forth in a nail-biting fashion until it was 2-2 going into the last minute of play. With a stunning 19 seconds remaining, Cole Bauman ‘23 was able to send one home, giving the Huskies a 3-2 lead. In a heart-stopping few seconds, the boys were able to win the championship, beating the Gulls when it mattered.

The Huskies performed great this past weekend, and it will be fantastic to see if the team can make this a turning point in their season. From this point on, all the teams faced will be great opponents, and coming up this weekend is a league game against Mount St. Charles and the Overspeed Tournament.

We look forward to seeing how the boys perform this weekend, and we hope they can keep up the great work in making Northwood proud.

The boys wanted me to give a special Shoutout to Jeremiah’s Tavern in Rochester for a great pre-game meal on Sunday. As always, go Huskies!

The 2022-23 Prep hockey team during September action at the Olympic Center (Photo: Mr. Michael Aldridge).

Before a well-needed Thanksgiving Break, the boy went to Stanstead College in Quebec. There they play opponents Upper Canada College, Kimball Union Academy, and Ridley College. Within a day of coming off the break, the team also traveled to Berkshire School for a quick two games against Kent and Berkshire. Here’s how the games went down.

The boys started the weekend in Stanstead against Upper Canada College, a team they had not played against before. The game started slowly for the Huskies, and it was clear to see that they had more to give. In the second half of the game, the boys were able to pull together several goals allowing them to take the game 4-1. The next game against KUA had more weight on it because the team knew KUA would be a better opponent. The Huskies were able to come out much more organized in this game and dominated most of the game. KUA could muster up three goals, but the Huskies would not be stopped and scored a remarkable five goals, making it another win on the weekend, 5-3. The final game against Ridley College was perhaps the most important because the Huskies previously lost to Ridley in a contest that Northwood underperformed. The Huskies played a better game than the first time they played Ridley, but they could not pull out a victory. The Stanstead weekend sadly ended with a loss against Ridley, but still 2-1.

After a relaxing break, the boys had to bounce back quickly at the Berkshire Jamboree. They started with a practice Sunday night to work out some kinks before the two games on Monday. The team played Kent School first, and it seemed like a repeat of what happened after thanksgiving break last year. The boys were slow to react, and neither team could produce any goals. The game ended 0-0, a disappointing tie. After a short turnaround, the Huskies had to face hosts Berkshire School. They had to perform better since Coach Morris wasn’t happy with the earlier tie. The boys drove the net hard and pounded Berkshire. The team scored a stunning six goals and gave Jozef Zilinec ’24 a 6-0 shutout. It was an outstanding performance to get back into stride for the upcoming USHL classic next weekend.

The boys have had bumps in the road, but they hope to change for the better in this half of the season. As usual, we wish them the best of luck in reaching their goals and hope they post an excellent performance in Rochester this weekend. Go Huskies!

The Boys’ Prep Hockey team traveled to Rhode Island on November 11 to play in the first Prep Hockey Conference event of the year. They were set to face Shattuck St. Mary’s, Culver Academy, and Saint Andrews College, all elite teams who would be great competition for Northwood School. These games were also especially important since the team needed conference wins. The Huskies had a 0-2-2 record in the league and that needed to improve. Here is how the weekend played out.

The boys traveled to Rhode Island on Friday to get there in time to prepare for the Saturday morning game against Shattuck, a team that opponents must start quickly against. The game started with a dominant push by the Huskies. Shattuck could barely keep up with them. Shattuck’s slow start allowed the boys to score early. It wasn’t until late in the second period that the momentum started to swing away from the Huskies. A lucky shot from the corner trickled into the Huskies’ net with less than two minutes until intermission. As Coach Morris likes to say, “we do not give up goals late” and this is exactly why: it pumps life into the opposing team. The dominant first 2 periods were preceded by a weak third resulting in Shattuck scoring 3 goals to end the game 4-1. This was not the start that the boys wanted.

Due to some compressor failures at the Mount St. Charles Arena, the Sunday game against Culver was not only delayed but also switched to a completely different rink. This produced some confusion, but the team still made it with plenty of time to the new arena to play the game. The Culver game seemed to be a mirror image of the Shattuck game. Instead of allowing the team in late in the game, the Huskies had a slow start, letting Culver get an early lead. After the first intermission and for the next two periods, the Huskies dominated the Culver team as they had played against Shattuck. Sadly, this push by the team wasn’t enough to climb out of the hole they were in. The game ended in a heartbreaking 3-2 loss.

The last game of the weekend was on Monday against Saint Andrews College, a team that the Huskies dominated in all but one contest last year. The boys were fired up from the previous 2 losses and came out strong. The team held it together for two great periods, putting in a goal to give themselves a lead. SAC responded with two goals and the Huskies needed to act fast in the third period, so the game didn’t get away from them like the others. A spectacular goal by Cole Bauman ‘23 late in the third period allowed the team to even the score at 2-2. Not long after Cole tied the game, a miscommunication on a line change caused a too many men penalty to be called against the Huskies before heading into overtime. Being down a man going into overtime allowed SAC to put in the deciding goal. Although this was the most complete game the Huskies played, it wasn’t enough to tally a win on the weekend.

The team faced a true test at the event, and we can imagine that there are changes that need to be made so that the team can build the identity they desire. The team will face teams of this caliber for the rest of the season, and they need to find a way to overcome this slump. The boys will be heading to Stanstead College this weekend to play in a showcase, and the team must show its true might despite the previous weekend’s results.

We wish the team continued luck and give them continued support so that they can have the success they are looking for. Have a great Thanksgiving break and as always Go Huskies!