Coming off the holiday break, Northwood boys traveled to Merrimack College, where they would play in the True Prep Cup.

Starting off the weekend with a game against Nichols school, the boys looked to capture a win. The game began with both teams getting excellent opportunities, but both goalies kept the door shut for the entire first period. Going into the second period, Northwood knew that they needed to change their offense so that they could take the lead. Jack Schlifke (Forward, 2020) would do that for Northwood as he would score nine minutes into the second period. For the rest of the period, both teams would shut down in the defensive zone making the score 1-0 in favor of the junior team after two periods of play. Knowing that a one-goal lead would not be enough to win, the boys had to score more so that they could secure the win. Just minutes into the final period Elijah Devereaux (Forward, 2020) would double the teams lead with a goal of his own off a feed from Schlifke and Daniel Colabufo (Forward, 2020). Northwood would keep up their good play, until the last ten minutes of the game where they would take some bad penalties, which would cost them. During those penalties, Nichols was able to score two of their own goals to tie the game at two and send the game to overtime. Being in this situation many times before the boys felt comfortable that they could close out the game and get a win. That is what they did as Felix Trudeau (Forward, 2021) would find the back of the net off a beautiful feed from Jacob Guevin (Defenseman, 2022) and Nate Boak (Defenseman, 2020) to give Northwood a win in their first game of the tournament.

The team’s next challenge would be against Mount St.Charles, who they have seen once earlier in the year. Hoping to get a better result, the team was ready for another battle. Northwood didn’t come off to a good start as Mount would score the first goal of the game just two minutes after the puck dropped. Quickly responding would be Ray Fust (Forward, 2021) as he scored off a feed from Trudeau and Luke French (Defenseman, 2020). After tying the game at one apiece, Mount would then score two of their own goals to take the lead 3-1 in their favor. Just a minute before the period was over, Carson Hall (Forward, 2022) would tap home a rebound goal to cut the deficit to one. Looking to regroup and settle in on defense, the boys were ready for what would be a battle for the rest of the game. About halfway through the second period, French would feed the puck to Trudeau, who would take the puck down the ice and tie the game at three apiece. Less than a minute later, Mount would score another goal to retake the lead, and then again a few minutes later, they would score to make their lead two. After two periods of play, Northwood was down two goals, which meant they needed to bear down for the third. That is what the team did as Fust and Devereaux would both score to tie the game up at five apiece. With just under five minutes to play, Mount had an in-zone faceoff to the left of Northwood’s net.  After the puck dropped, Mount got their first shot stopped, but they would get a second scoring opportunity which they would score on to take the lead and eventually win the game.

After a tough loss the night before, Northwood was ready to get back on track and end the weekend on a good note. In this game, they faced off against Gunnery School. The team would get off to a slow start as Gunnery would find the back of the net to start the game, but then just minutes later, Schlifke would tie the game at one. Only 45 seconds later, Will Donato (Forward, 2021) scored another goal for Northwood to make the score 2-1. Gunnery wouldn’t let Northwood keep the lead for long as they scored another goal to tie the game at two. As the second period started at a tie, both teams would defend well until the last five minutes of the period. During those five minutes, Northwood got goals from Schlifke, Donato, Trudeau, and Mark Monaco (Forward, 2021) to take a 6-2 lead heading into the third. The third period would be the same for Northwood as they would get goals from Schlifke, Patrick Doyle (Forward, 2020), and Hall to finish the game with a 9-2 victory.

Northwood ended third in the tournament. Their next test will be at the Northwood Invitational in Lake Placid, NY.

While most students headed home for Christmas break, Junior Team traveled to St. Sebastian’s to play in their annual tournament.

Jack Schlifke ’20 in action at the Olympic Center earlier this season (Photo: Mr. Michael Aldridge).

In the first game of the weekend, the Junior Team faced off against Williston School. Starting the game with good pace was Northwood as they controlled the play, outworking Williston on both ends of the rink. The first goal of the game came from Felix Trudeau (Forward, 2021) and a feed from Elijah Devereaux (Forward, 2020). For the rest of the period, neither teams found the back of the net, giving Northwood just a one-goal lead heading into the second period.

Starting the second half, the Junior Team looked to defend their lead and take home a victory. Will Donato (Forward, 2021) found the back of the net to double the lead and make it 2-0 with twenty minutes to play in the game. But things would take a turn for the worst as Williston scored two power-play goals to send the game to overtime. At the start of overtime, Northwood looked to close the game off with some excellent opportunities but failed. After overtime, the game headed to a shootout where again Northwood wasn’t able to score and ended up facing a bitter loss.

The following morning, Northwood played against RIvers School. Neither teams scored until seven minutes left of the first period when Nate Boak (Defense, 2020) obtained a goal. Going into the half with a lead, Northwood looked to defend their lead and close out the game. But Rivers got a goal of their own to tie the game with one minute into the second half. Trudeau responded with a goal to take back the lead just minutes later, and then Jack Schlifke (Forward, 2020) found the back of the net to double the lead. The Junior Team defended well for the rest of the game and not let Rivers score again. Minutes before the game was over Zachary Sedlacek (Forward, 2022) scored to give Northwood a 4-1 win.

Coming off a good win, Northwood was ready to capture another win to go 2-1 on the weekend. The Junior Team would face off against Winchendon, where they would get off to a hot start from a goal by Cisco DelliQuadri (Forward, 2020). Winchendon responded quickly with a goal of just minutes later. Northwood scored again with a goal from Devereaux to take back the lead, but yet again, Winchendon struck back with another goal to tie the game going into the half. Going into the half, Northwood knew that they needed to shut down their opponent to win the game. That is precisely what they did for the entire half. They did not let Winchendon get any goals. Northwood also added goals from Trudeau, Devereaux, and Daniel Colabufo (Forward, 2020) to take the 5-2 victory to end the weekend.

Going 2-1 in the St. Sebastian’s tournament, Northwood will go on winter break and then head to Merrimack College for the True Prep Cup.

Looking to match the success of the previous weekend, the Junior Team faced off against Islanders Hockey Club this past weekend.

The Junior Team bench at a game at the Olympic Center in September 2019 (Photo: Mr. Michael Aldridge).

On Saturday night, Northwood traveled to Plattsburgh. Getting off to a good start was Ray Fust ‘21 (Forward), as he scored the first goal of the weekend. With a mere thirty seconds left in the first, Jack Schlifke ‘20 (Forward) scored a goal off a costly turnover from IHC. Heading into the second period with a two-goal lead, Northwood took full control of the game. Fust, Mark Monaco ‘21 (Forward), and Daniel Colabufo ‘20 (Forward) each scored, pushing the score up to 5-0. In the third period, Northwood built on their lead. More goals came from Fust, Colabufo, and Jacob Guevin ‘22 (Defense). Kannon Flageolle ‘21 (Goalie) shut the door for the entire match to record another Northwood shutout. Overall, the Huskies won 10-0. The highlights of the game were Fust’s scoring of four goals and Colabufo’s hat-trick in his first game back from injury.

After a dominating victory the night before, the Junior Team looked to defend home ice, where they would face off against IHC again. Keeping the momentum from the previous night, Fust capitalized on a shot from the slot to give Northwood an early lead. As the period went on, neither of the teams scored. In the second period, coming out with a spark, Guevin scored another goal for Northwood to double the lead. Just moments later, both Cisco Delliquadri ‘20 (Forward) and Guevin added two more goals, giving Northwood a 4-0 lead. Not giving up was IHC, as they shortly found the back of the net to cut into the lead. The momentum that they grabbed didn’t last long as Patrick Doyle ‘20 (Forward) scored with just a minute left in the period. Going into the third, Northwood knew that they needed to keep their game up and not let the Islanders get any chance at victory. Little over half-way through the final period, IHC was able to find the back of the net off a misplay by Northwood. Responding quickly was Colabufo as he scored from the slot, off a feed from Jack Schlifke ‘20, giving Northwood a 6-2 victory, and two wins on the weekend.

Before going off on holiday break, the Junior Team heads to St. Sebastian’s, where they will face off in the annual St. Sebastian’s tournament.

Each year, the Northwood ski racers launch their season with a training camp, and this year the team trained on a glacier in Austria. “Ski clubs, academies, and programs often train in other countries to get days of training before there’s enough snow here in the States,” Coach Terry DelliQuadri, Director of Alpine Skiing, explained.

Every day for two weeks, the ski racers in Austria woke up for breakfast at 6:30 AM, got on the bus to the mountain at 7:20 AM, had their first runs at 8:00 AM, and trained until 12:30 AM. After lunch, they trained some more and headed back to their hotel in the afternoon. In the midst of this tight schedule, the skiers continued to balance rigorous training and schoolwork. “Even though we did have study hall every day, many of the skiers were stressed out. They had to put in extra work to get caught up,” said Coach DelliQuadri.

On their way back, the athletes had a five-hour bus ride to Zürich, Austria, followed by a flight to Newark Airport, and then rode a bus back to school. They came back at around 2:00 AM but were back in class the next day.

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Facing the Junior Bruins in a pair of home games, Northwood’s Junior Team looked to build off of their win against the Chicago Mission a weekend ago.

Zachary Ellsworth ’20 in action (Photo: Mr. Michael Aldridge)

Starting the weekend off Saturday night, both the Huskies and the Junior Bruins got off to a relatively slow start. Neither team was able to find the back of the net for most of the first period until Mark Monaco (Forward, 2021) put the puck off the crossbar and in the net to give Northwood the 1-0 lead. The score remained the same heading into the final period. Starting off the final period hot was Ray Fust (Forward, 2021), as he scored just a minute into the third to double Northwood’s lead. As the period went on, the Junior Bruins got a goal of their own, but that wasn’t enough as the Junior Team added four more of their own. Goals by Daniel Colabufo (Forward, 2020), Johnny Cielo (Forward, 2021), Zachary Sedlacek (Forward, 2022), and William Rosen (Forward, 2020) pushed the final score to 6-1 in favor of Northwood.

The following day, Northwood hoped to close out the weekend sweep. Felix Trudeau (Forward, 2021) initiated Northwood’s scoring streak, scoring eleven minutes into the period. A minute later, Will Donato (Forward, 2022) score made the score 2-0. Before the period was over the junior bruins, cut the lead in half as they would score a goal of their own and take some of the momentum back. As the second period started, the junior team looked to build on their lead, which is what they did as Donato would score again to make it a two-goal game. Getting another quick strike would be Monaco as he would score off a won faceoff to make the lead three goals. The Bruins would not give up as they would score two more of their own to close out the second period with a score of 4-3 in favor of Northwood. Both of the teams would play in a defensive battle for most of the third period as neither team would score until Donato would score again, giving him a hat trick and Northwood the weekend sweep.

Northwood looks to continue their hot steak by heading to Stanstead College, where they will play a game against Upper Canada College and Kimball Union Academy.

The Junior team cut their Thanksgiving Break short to travel to Berkshire School, where they would face off against prep foes Salisbury and Berkshire.

Ray Fust ’21 in action against Stanstead College at the Olympic Center in October 2019 (Photo: Mr. Michael Aldridge).

Their first game was against Salisbury, where they hoped to get off to a quick start Northwood looked to apply early pressure. But a good start was not in the cards for Northwood, as they would let up two goals in the first half of the game. The squad looked to respond in the second period led by Ray Fust (Forward, 2021), who would score the first goal. Moments later, Carson Hall (Forward, 2022) would find the back of the net, coming off the rush, to tie the game at two apiece. Salisbury would respond as they got a goal a minute later to retake the lead. As the second half went on, Northwood did their best to battle back into the game, but it wouldn’t be enough as Salisbury would get one more goal before the game was over to make the final 4-2.

Just a few hours later, Northwood hoped to redeem themselves from their lousy loss earlier in the day as they faced off against host Berkshire. This time the Huskies got off to a good start. Fust would score the first goal of the game and give Northwood the 1-0 lead. Berkshire would then respond with two goals of their own to take the lead. Midway through the second half, Hall. would score to tie the game at two apiece. With just minutes left and the game tied, Northwood looked to take advantage of a late power-play opportunity. Zachary Sedlacek (Forward, 2022) would get a good chance on the power play, but the Berkshire goalie made a big save to keep the game at two apiece. As the final moments went on, Northwood tried to get another goal to break the tie, but they would not be able to, and the game would end in a tie. Leaving Northwood 0-1-1 on the weekend.

The junior team next faces off against the Northern Cyclones in a pair of home games.

After beating the Jr. Bruins in a home game series the junior team traveled to Stanstead College, where they faced off against Upper Canada College and Kimball Union Academy.

Elijah Devereaux ‘20 (Forward)) (Photo: Mr. Michael Aldridge)

Their first game was against UCC on Saturday afternoon, as the match started Northwood didn’t start the way they wanted too. UCC would strike first just four and a half minutes into the first period. Responding quickly was Felix Trudeau (Forward, 2021) as he would score a wrist shot from the mid-slot to give Northwood their first goal of the weekend.  The rest of the period was quiet as neither team would find the back of the net, making the score 1-1 after the first period of play. Looking to get their first lead of the game was Northwood as the game was still tied in the second period, a power-play would give them the perfect opportunity to take the lead. Nate Boak (Defensemen, 2020) took advantage of the powerplay as he would score off a shot from the point to give Northwood the edge. With the score being 2-1 in favor of the junior team after two periods, they knew that they needed to defend their lead coming into the third. Will Donato (Forward, 2022) added an early third-period goal for Northwood to give them a 3-1 lead, but just a few minutes later, UCC looked to make a comeback as they scored a goal just moments later. Not letting them think they could come back was both Ray Fust (Forward, 2021) and Zachary Ellsworth (Defensemen, 2020) when they both added a goal of their own to give the junior team a more significant lead and the eventual win. With the final score being 5-2 in favor of Northwood.

Coming off a good win, Northwood was ready to take on an even tougher opponent, Kimball Union Academy. Knowing that they needed to play a lot better than they did the night before, the junior team came prepared and ready for a battle. Starting off the game hot would be Johnny Cielo (Forward, 2021), as he scored less than two minutes into the game to take the early lead. Responding shortly after was KUA when they scored a goal of their own to bring the game back even. Keeping the early steak of goals alive would be both Donato and Cielo when they scored two more goals for Northwood before the period was over, to make the score 3-2 in favor of Northwood after one period of play. As the second period started, the junior team knew that they needed to expand their lead, which is what Michael Leone (Defenseman, 2021) would do when he scored off a shot from the blue line. After that goal, KUA responded quickly, making the score 4-3 halfway through the second period. Extending the lead again would be Fust when he scored yet another goal to give Northwood a two-goal edge. Both teams battled hard for the rest of the second period, as not much would go on until KUA scored to make the score 5-4 after two periods. The last period of the weekend would be a battle to the end as Fust would score a goal, and KUA would score two goals of their own to send the game to overtime with a score of 6-6. As the overtime started, both teams were getting excellent opportunities to put the game away, but neither team could capitalize. After a big stop in the defensive zone, Jack Schlifke (Forward, 2020) skated the puck up the ice where he would find Elijah Devereaux (Forward, 2020) alone to put him in on a breakaway. After receiving the puck, Devereaux would skate down the ice and bury another overtime winner and give Northwood their second win on the weekend.

Before Thanksgiving Break starts, the junior team will travel to Cushing Academy, where they faceoff against three excellent opponents.