California Rubber Magazine - December 2016

VOLUME 10

ISSUE 4

DECEMBER 2016

HIGH SCHOOL INLINE TEAMS READY TO LEAVE THEIR MARK LONG BEACH’S RUSSELL PICKS NCAA DIVISION I REDHAWKS JR. SHARKS’ PEE WEE SQUAD PREPPING FOR QUEBEC TRIP FORMER KING ARMSTRONG GUIDING LAKHSHL COACHES

The newest NHL team now has a name – the Vegas Golden Knights – a season ticket waiting list, a growing youth hockey community and a chance to show North America that Las Vegas can indeed be a hockey hotbed

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3

FROM THE EDITOR Make it the most wonderful time of the year at the rink, at home

I

t’s hard to believe, but December means the lights are shining, the tree is lit, family get-togethers are planned, wrapping paper is everywhere and people seem to be smiling a little bit more than the other 11 months.

Yes, the holidays are here.

And while some teams at all levels of hockey may get a brief break, the game and the training that goes along with it, never stops.

But take time to enjoy the goings on away from the rink and the gym. Enjoy your family, make those special memories, take selfies with ugly Christmas sweaters, plunk one another with snowballs, sit on Santa’s lap, keep smiling.

If everything goes as planned, your joy will carMatt Mackinder ry over into 2017 and back into your locker room and rink where the second half of many seasons will commence.

From all of us with California Rubber Magazine, Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!

California Titans alum Danny O’Donnell is making waves in junior hockey circles.

The 20-year-old Ventura native was named the Bauer Hockey NA3HL Defenseman of the Month for November as a member of the Great Falls Americans.

With four goals and eleven assists, O’Donnell was a force on the blue line and was plus-10 through six games last month. He also registered a game-winning goal to close out the month.

“Danny continues to excel for our team as we make our way into the halfway mark of the season,” said Great Falls assistant coach Erik Gatson.

The Los Angeles Kings recently announced a change to the club’s 2016-17 Legends Night Series.

As scheduled, the Kings will honor Tomas Sandstrom on Jan. 7 and Jari Kurri on Jan. 14, but Ziggy Palffy will not be honored on Dec. 31 due to a family situation.

“I am very sorry I can’t join the fans in LA this 50th year for Legends Night,” said Palffy. “This is a very tough and important time for me and my family and I appreciate the understanding. I will look forward to joining the organization for a Legends Night during the 2017-18 season.”

On Dec. 31, the Kings are now scheduled to host a reunion of Miracle on Manchester goal-scorers as that historical event approaches its 35th anniversary. Slated to be recognized pregame are five of the six players – Daryl Evans, Steve Bozek, Doug Smith, Charlie Simmer and Jay Wells -- who scored goals in the third period and in overtime (Evans) in the Kings-Edmonton postseason game on April 10, 1982 at the Forum in Los Angeles in what remains the largest comeback in NHL playoff history.

In another example of how young hockey players continue to garner notice and exposure, Roseville native Dylan Peterson recently committed to NCAA Division I powerhouse Boston University of Hockey East.

Oh yeah, Peterson is only 14 years old. Yeah, as in two years from driving.

He currently skates for the Canadian International Hockey Academy and as an assistant captain for the Bantam AAA team there, Peterson has 15 points in just nine games.

It’s expected Peterson will wind up in Beantown for the 2020-21 season.

We’ll be keeping tabs on this ultra-talented stud for sure!

In great news for fans of the San Jose Sharks, defenseman Brent Burns will be around long into the next decade as the bearded wonder signed an eight-year extension with the club last month.

“Brent is one the most dynamic players in the National Hockey League and we’re very excited to get this deal done,” Sharks GM Doug Wilson said. “He has worked extremely hard to be an elite defenseman and at 6-foot-5, 230-pounds, his abilities on this ice are unique and rare.”

Burns led all NHL blueliners with 27 goals last season and was one of three finalists for the Norris Trophy, awarded to the NHL’s top defenseman.

Contact Matt Mackinder at matt@rubberhockey.com 4

California Rubber Hockey Magazine

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publisher: Brian McDonough senior editor: Matt Mackinder inline editor: Phillip Brents senior designer: Julie Wilson

TRAVELIN’ MAN

Long Beach native Rourke Russell, who played youth hockey in three states, is honing his craft in the United States Hockey League this year and has a college roster spot waiting for him at NCAA Division I Miami University. More on Russell on Page 5. Photo/Green Bay Gamblers

ON THE COVER The Las Vegas NHL franchise was officially christened the Vegas Golden Knights on Nov. 22 at the Toshiba Plaza outside T-Mobile Arena. Pictured, from left to right, are members of the Nevada Storm youth program, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, Golden Knights owner Bill Foley and Golden Knights GM George McPhee. Photo/Eric J. Fowler

Happy Holidays FROM ALL OF US WITH THE

California Amateur Hockey Association

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Pot of Gold

Arrival of NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights signals a positive trend for growth of hockey in Nevada

By Greg Ball

T

hose who think that Las Vegas and professional hockey make an odd pairing must not have been paying attention for the last 25 years.

The sport and Sin City have long been dancing partners, and it seemed only a matter of time before something big would happen there.

That time has come with the arrival of the NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights for the 2017-18 season, and while hockey has long been popular in Southern Nevada, that popularity appears poised to explode. The presence in Vegas of the first franchise in any of the four major North American professional sports is sure to drive public interest in the game, but beyond that, it’s expected to have a trickle-down effect that should grow the sport at the youth, high school, junior, college and even adult levels.

John Brooks runs the Nevada Storm youth program and Western States Hockey League’s (WSHL) Las Vegas Storm team along with his brother, Kirk. The two were instrumental in driving the season-ticket interest that was a significant factor in securing the NHL franchise, and John Brooks can see plenty of benefits for the kids he and his staff work with every day.

“Hockey has grown exceptionally in the Southwest in the last 10-15 years, with the influence of the Kings, Ducks and Coyotes,” he said. “Youth hockey, and hockey in general, has exploded in those areas. I think Vegas is going to be a unique market because kids who look up to professional athletes will only have one sport to look at - it’s not going to be football, baseball or basketball. It’s going to be an NHL player that they want to emulate.”

Las Vegas’s flirtation with hockey dates back to 1991 and the NHL’s then-revolutionary outdoor exhibition game between the Los Angeles Kings and New York Rangers in the shadows of Caesar’s Palace. In recent years, the league’s postseason awards show has been hosted there, and the Kings and Avalanche have played a preseason game there nearly every year since the late 1990s. And the city has been home to minor-league teams for the better part of the last two and a half decades - first the Las Vegas Thunder of the International Hockey League from 1993-99 and then the Las Vegas Wranglers of the ECHL from 2003-14.

Team owner Bill Foley began reaching out to the Vegas community in 2014 to gauge interest in bringing a team there, and the response was overwhelming. Fast forward to June 22, 2016, and those dreams became a reality when NHL commissioner Gary Bettman announced that the city would be awarded an expansion franchise.

“We are amazed at the level of excitement over the Golden Knights in Vegas,” said George McPhee, the team’s general manager. “Residents have demonstrated tremendous civic pride in having their very own NHL team.

We’ve had many events where we have gone beyond capacity in the number of people who have turned out to support the team, and our ticket and merchandise sales are very, very, strong.”

The team’s name and logo were revealed in late November (although not without controversy, as the franchise is appealing the denial of its trademark application due to a conflict with a Division II college in New York), and next on the agenda is assembling the roster and front office. While the expansion draft is still six months away, Foley and McPhee have already been hard at work putting together a staff of not only hockey people, but professionals in sales, marketing, operations and all the other key roles behind the scenes that make a modern professional sports franchise successful.

“The selection of our head coach is very important and is the last remaining 6

California Rubber Hockey Magazine

key decision to make in relation to personnel,” McPhee said. “We’ll hire someone who can lead a team and also teach individuals. Most of the other hirings in our organization will be done locally. There is lots of talent in Vegas, and we look to benefit from a Vegas pool of applicants. We are building the team and franchise by hiring talented, experienced, low-ego people who want to be part of something special.”

While the franchise has plenty of work to do before its first game, the impact of its impending arrival already has had a positive effect on the hockey community.

The Storm is the only remaining established youth hockey program in Las Vegas, with 10 teams between its youth program, Tier I and the WSHL club.

There are also approximately 200 kids playing in-house hockey with the Storm, who have grown quickly since icing just five teams a few years ago.

While nothing is official yet, informal discussions have started for the Storm to change their name and become the Jr. Golden Knights. The program and the NHL franchise have enjoyed a positive relationship, and Brooks expects that to continue and to benefit both parties.

“They have said they want to support youth hockey, and we’ve been included and communicated with all along the way,” Brooks said. “They’re building a new facility with two sheets of ice pretty close to ours, and I think it’s going to be great. The vision as I understand it is to build a really strong program using both facilities, as well as the Sobe Ice Arena.

We don’t have any contractual agreements with them, though everything has suggested that it’s going to be a very cooperative relationship.

“From the beginning, they’ve embraced us and our program. It’s going to be a great opportunity for Vegas, and I think youth hockey is going to explode.”

Greg Yochum is the president of the Nevada Amateur Hockey Association (NAHA), which last season had approximately 900 adult players registered and 500 youth players. While those numbers have been relatively flat over the last 5-10 years, he’s expecting a boost in participation, especially with two new sheets of ice being added that will increase the city’s available ice time by 67 percent.

“There’s a ton of excitement here in the hockey community and the community as a whole,” Yochum said. “Having had two kids play youth hockey for the past 10 years and having traveled to a lot of games and tournaments with them, I’ve seen the growth in Arizona and Southern California. I think we can expect the same kind of thing in Las Vegas, where five years from now you see better youth hockey and 10 years from now, we’re competing for Pacific District championships and things like that.

“We have a roadmap to follow, whereas some of the other Southwest cities were the pioneers in this area of the country.”

Yochum said NAHA’s immediate goal is to get its number of youth players over the 1,000 mark, and he thinks that’s a conservative estimate based on the level of excitement surrounding the NHL’s arrival. He envisions hockey growing in popularity quickly and Vegas becoming a destination for more than just fans of the professional game.

“Ten years from, we could surprise some people and put in a bid for the World Juniors or other similar events, because we have the hospitality backbone and the event background,” Yochum said. “One of our goals is to have a youth hockey Tier I or Tier II national tournament here. I could see us making our mark on the national stage quickly for hockey, because people want to come here.”

Continued on Page 19

Russell’s hockey journeys lead him to NCAA D-I RedHawks

By Chris Bayee

O

ne hour of public skating changed everything for young Rourke Russell.

Encouraged by his best friend, Hunter, and Hunter’s mom to try out for the Jr. Ice Dogs in the early 2000s, the Long Beach native first had to figure out to skate.

“I was only 4 or 5, and I’d never skated before,” he said. “My mom (Debra) took me to an open skate at the (Lakewood) rink an hour before tryouts.”

For the record, Russell made the Mite team and hasn’t looked back. His friend, Hunter Epson, eventually decided to pursue golf and plays collegiately at Pepperdine.

“I just loved hockey to death,” Russell said. “I wanted to succeed and try to play in college.”

That goal should become a reality in the fall as Russell, a Long Beach native who is playing this season for the Green Bay Gamblers of the United States Hockey League (USHL), has signed a National Letter of Intent with Miami University, located in Oxford, Ohio. There he will join another longtime friend, Ben Lown (Newport Coast), who is a forward for the USHL’s Omaha Lancers.

The 6-foot-1, 176-pound Russell started out as a defenseman and stayed one through a youth hockey career with the Jr. Ice Dogs, the Anaheim Wildcats, the Los Angeles Jr. Kings and the Anaheim Jr. Ducks.

He said former Wildcats coach Konstantin Lodnia (also the owner of KHS Ice Arena in Anaheim) had the biggest impact on his growth as a player in California, where he played through Bantam AAA. Russell then played one year of Midget with the

Arizona Bobcats and another with the Oakland Jr. “I love to jump into the rush, but I really love playGrizzlies in the Detroit area. ing defense and getting the puck up to our forwards,” “I wanted to expand my hockey world, so to he said. “The Gamblers are very good about keepspeak,” he said. ing us on a college work schedule. Every day we’re Expand it he did, and he in the gym before practice, kept expanding it in junior, and not every junior team preplaying last season with the pares their players that way.”

Wichita Falls Wildcats of Russell is equally excited the North American Hockey about his next step, which will League. He had 20 points see him donning a RedHawks in 55 combined regular- and jersey in the highly competipost-season games and was tive NCHC, a league that ana plus player. nually sends 4-6 teams to the Russell, a 1998 birth year 16-team NCAA tournament who appeared on the NHL and had two Frozen Four Central Scouting “Players to teams this past April, includWatch” list last month, joined ing national champion North the Gamblers full-time this Dakota. season (he made a two-game “I went on a couple of cameo for Green Bay during other visits, but once my dad the ’14-15 season) and has (Jeff) and I saw Miami, we just provided solid play for one of knew it was the school,” he the USHL’s top teams. said. “The tradition, the aca“Physically he does very After playing youth hockey in California, Arizona and demics, the setting. We liked well, but gaining puck con- Michigan and junior hockey in Texas and Wisconsin, everything about it.” fidence is the part that’s Rourke Russell will find himself playing college hockey That is how his teammates at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Photo/ Hickling Images still developing,” Gamblers in Green Bay feel about Ruscoach-GM Pat Mikesch said. “His strength is in 5 sell, Mikesch said. on 5. He’s not a power-play guy yet, but we will use “He’s a phenomenal kid, fun to be around,” said him on the penalty kill.

Mikesch. “A lot of his teammates like to hang out “He’s an elite skater. He’s learning his position with him at his billet’s house. He’s laid back off the and defends the position well.” ice.”

Russell wants to continue developing a versatile But Russell is very focused on it. Look no further game, and said he’s in a great place to do that. to where it’s taken him for evidence of that.

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Altered Flight Path

Concussion ends Edson’s hockey career, but California native still contributing at Air Force around.

“I liked how it’s right on the mountain side, ost-concussion symptoms have kept Max and (former Falcons goalie and fellow Hermosa Edson from taking a regular shift for four years, Beach native) Jason Torf was a longtime friend but they haven’t prevented him from contributing to who always had good things to say about it,” a successful college hockey program.

Edson said. “I realized it was somewhere I could The 24-year-old, once a highly-recruited forward play immediately. I knew it was a way different prospect from Hermosa Beach, has displayed a experience than just being at a normal school. rare perseverance while carving out an important “I also wanted to go somewhere that had good niche as a video coordinator for the Air Force academics in case I got hurt. So I guess it worked Academy. out in that sense.”

“He’s a great young man,” Falcons coach Edson’s skill set – David cited his skating, compete level and work ethic as calling cards – was welcomed at the Academy.

“We don’t have a lot of kids from the USHL on our roster,” Serratore said. “If he was playing today, he would be in that Tyler Ledford, Ben Kucera, Matt Serratore conversation. He’d be a top-six forward for us, and we have a pretty good team.”

The Falcons are coming off a 20-win season and came within an overtime goal of playing for a berth in the NCAA tournament last April.

Edson’s Air Force began – and After a concussion cost him his playing career, Hermosa Beach’s Max Edson decided to remain career part of Air Force’s team by filling a valuable role providing video support. Photo/Chris Bayee ended – after five games in 2012.

Frank Serratore said. “It was unfortunate the “It was a fluke accident in practice,” he recalled. concussions ended his hockey career, but he’s “I stepped on a stick, fell and hit my head on the going to be a great Air Force officer, and he’s boards.” going to do great things in life.”

Edson passed a concussion test and resumed Edson experienced several plot twists and turns playing, but he could tell something wasn’t right. in his hockey career.

“I thought my allergies were causing pressure He played for LA Hockey Club and coach Sandy on my head,” he said. “I played for a month and it Gasseau through Bantams then for Oliver David, got worse and worse. I finally had to tell them, ‘I’m now an assistant with Portland of the Western not doing this.’”

Hockey League, at Midget 16U AAA. After not His hockey season finished, Edson wondered if making an 18U AAA team the next season, he had his hockey career might be over when he returned an offer to play at Salisbury School in Connecticut to Southern California for the 2013-14 school year. for his last two years of high school.

“I wanted to resume my education, but I still “Max was a standout for us in a time of a lot had symptoms and I realized I couldn’t put myself of uncertainty,” David said. “Many members of in that situation again,” he said. “I’ve never fully his previous, very successful team had left town gotten over it, but I’ve learned how to manage it. to play elsewhere, so the combination of a lot of Some medical devices have helped me out, but new players and jumping up to Midget hockey was exercise still bothers me.” certainly a learning experience for all of us.

Yet hockey’s draw was too strong, and Edson “He was our captain, and he always had a smile missed the parts of the game that most fans don’t on his face.” get to see.

From Salisbury, Edson played two seasons for “We have a close-knit group at Air Force, and Waterloo of the United States Hockey League I wanted to get back into it,” he said. “I thought (USHL). maybe there was a chance I could play again, He had his eye on schools like Boston University but as time went by I realized I couldn’t. I started and Miami University, and the interest seemed helping with video as a way to stay close to the mutual. Air Force approached him before his senior guys. year at Salisbury, but he passed.

“It kept me in a routine and kept my mind off of “I had bigger hockey aspirations at that time,” what I’d lost. I didn’t want to let myself go, so I kept Edson said. busy and tried to stay as active as possible.”

Edson battled injuries in his second USHL That includes the occasional game of shinny season, something that changed his outlook. AFA’s during the offseason. continued pursuit made it a match the second time “It’s nice when I am able to get on the ice with

By Chris Bayee

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California Rubber Hockey Magazine

the boys,” he said.

Falcons senior forward Tyler Rostenkowski often studies with fellow economics major Edson, who has a second major in management and will work in acquisitions for the Air Force after he graduates.

Rostenkowski says his friend remains an integral part of the team.

“When I go on the ice and see him, I tell him, ‘Today is for you, Eds,’ because I know how much he wishes he could be out there,” Rostenkowski said.

“He’s such a talented player, you can see it when he just starts skating around. His skills and the abilities to see the ice and stickhandle might be the best on the team if he could play.

“As a hockey player, you’re going to be around the game or connected to the game somehow. He’s obviously not in the locker room, but we feel his presence. We want him around as much as possible.

“We definitely appreciate the insights he has because he has a different perspective and he’s a skilled guy. He’s always there to help guys, whether academically or on the ice.”

Edson’s help includes providing data to help the Falcons’ present, as well as their future. In addition to clipping games as Air Force plays to provide footage the coaches can utilize to make in-game adjustments, he and a team manager have created a set of statistics that measure data beyond the standard categories.

He also does legwork in preparing for future opponents and scouting potential recruits.

“On Sunday and Monday, I’ll gather video from the team we’re going to be playing from their games the past weekend and have that ready for the coaches Monday afternoon,” he said. “And they’ll let us know prospects they want to see clips of, so I’ll go to HockeyTV (formerly FASTHockey) and find those and compile them.”

Edson does it all with a smile on his face, just as when he played.

“Doing what he’s doing now demonstrates his love for the game,” David said. “It’s not surprising to

Max Edson would be one of Air Force’s most skilled players if he was able to play, Falcons coach Frank Serratore said.

Photo/Air Force Athletics

me his teammates enjoy having him around. Everyone I’ve talked to has always pulled for him because of the type of kid he is.”

Gulls stir the hockey development pot with ECHL call-ups

By Phillip Brents

J

ust as NHL teams pull talent up from their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliates to fill holes and cover injuries, so do AHL teams from the ECHL. “When you have injuries, have had guys called up, we’re looking for our guys who have been here to take on a bigger work load, to step up,” San Diego Gulls coach Dallas Eakins explained. “The guys who we have called up from our affiliate in Utah, we’re looking for them to help out and contribute. That’s their big opportunity to make a name for themselves and show what they can do.”

Gulls forward Zac Larraza has done just that.

The 23-year-old Scottsdale, Ariz., native received a call-up from the Grizzlies on Oct. 28 and has appeared in 10 games with the AHL team. Larraza has put his time with the Gulls to good use by tallying three goals and one assist as of mid-December.

He scored the game-winning goal in a 4-0 win over the visiting San Jose Barracuda on Nov. 19.

“I was happy to see the clock hit zero,” he offered with a smile.

This is Larraza’s second stint with the Gulls, the AHL affiliate of the Anaheim Ducks. He appeared in 12 games with San Diego last season with one goal and three assists to his credit.

His goal is the same as any of his AHL teammates: make the NHL. “It’s every kid’s dream who starts out playing hockey,” he said. “This past season, I was pretty happy to take the next step. I just want to keep developing and hoping to take the next step in a

year or two years, three years – whatever it takes.”

and Larraza elected to pursue a college hockey career with the University of Denver. He did not The Gulls have felt the need to dip into their sign with the Coyotes after graduating from DU in ECHL talent pool several times this season. Goal- 2015. tender Kevin Boyle and His four years with the forward Kenton Helgesen Pioneers proved productive are also recent call-ups – 35 goals, 66 points and from Utah.

117 penalty minutes.

Larraza admits it was not There also were some easy being a youth hockey humbling experiences. It player in Arizona. took Larraza 24 games to “Growing up, I was told score his first NCAA goal all the time by other kids in as a freshman. the area, ‘Why are you still His first professional playing hockey because season was a whirlwind. you’re not going to go anyHe played in 39 games for where?’” he recounted. the Manchester Monarchs “But it’s starting to grow of the ECHL, recording 20 and become a hot hockey goals and 30 points. He market and I’m excited to also played for three AHL see it develop that way.” teams: the Portland Pirates He obviously didn’t lis(two games with one asten to any of the naysayers. sist), Milwaukee Admirals At 16, he made the jump (10 games with two goals to the United States Naand three points) and the tional Team Development Gulls.

Program in Ann Arbor, He faced off the 2016Mich. There he played on Zac Larraza has spent time on several AHL and ECHL 17 season by recording U17 and U18 U.S. national teams in his two professional seasons, but is hoping a goal and assist in two teams. He noted that in Ann this season with the AHL’s San Diego Gulls will help games with the Grizzlies.

Arbor, every kid was “pretty boost him into an NHL-caliber player. Photo/Eric J. Fowler “It’s fun to be here,” he much” the best player on his team back home on said. “The competition in the AHL is pretty heavy. various youth teams across the country.

The guys are a lot bigger, a lot faster and stronger.

The hometown Coyotes drafted him in the sev- Just developing, getting stronger and faster every enth round of the 2011 NHL Draft (196th overall) game will help me in the future.”

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Jr. Kings’ Bantam Minor 03s take Miami Beach Invite title

AIHL readies for ‘16-17 season with rebranded Pacific South

By Brian McDonough

By Phillip Brents

The Los Angeles Jr. Kings’ 2003 Bantam Minor AAA team celebrated the championship at this year’s Miami Beach Invitational, which was contested earlier this month at Pines Ice Arena in Pembroke Pines, Fla. The Jr. Kings fashioned a 5-1 record at the prestigious event - it annually attracts a handful of the very best 2003 birth-year teams in the country - including a 5-0 victory over Philadelphia-based Team Virtua in the championship game.

“To come out on top against such a strong caliber of competition says a lot about both the character and work ethic of our entire group,” said Jr. Kings head coach Jeff Turcotte, who’s assisted behind the bench by James Gasseau and Glen Murray. “From a developmental perspective, it’s always nice to be tested against the best, and our kids responded to the challenge.”

Ranked No. 3 in the nation entering the invitational, the Jr. Kings opened pool play on Thursday with an 8-2 triumph over No. 9-ranked Minnesota Gentry Galaxy before falling to No. 2-ranked Detroit Belle Tire, which hosted the event, 4-2.

The Jr. Kings rebounded the next day, however, finishing pool play with a 5-0 victory over Virtua (No. 7 in the nation).

In Friday’s quarterfinal, the Jr. Kings cruised past Florida Alliance (No. 25) 6-0 before exacting revenge over Belle Tire in the semis on Saturday with a 3-2 victory and then besting Team Virtua again on Sunday in the finale.

“From the players to the parents to our coaches and support staff, this is such a great group to coach,” Turcotte added. “Everyone is fully committed to the team’s success, which is so important especially when we matchup against these powerhouse programs, both in the U.S. and Canada.”

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California Rubber Hockey Magazine

he American Inline Hockey League (AIHL) has returned for the 2016-17 season, though reorganized from four geographic divisions in 2015-16 to two geographic divisions this season.

The rebranded Pacific South Division includes both an Elite and Minor division component. Elite Division teams include the Arizona Ghostriders, Arizona Outcasts, Las Vegas Aces and OC Rocket Flex (which replaces the former OC Alliance).

The Alliance won the 2015 AIHL Champions Cup, while the Outcasts scored a runner-up finish last season to the Revision Delco Demons.

Seven teams are slated to play in the Pacific South Minor Division: Arizona Ghostriders, Arizona Lady Ghostriders, Arizona Outcasts, Las Vegas Aces Blue, Mavin Outlaws and two OC Rocket Flex teams.

The Alliance doubled by winning the 2015 Minor Tier 1 national championship.

League play faced off Dec. 10-11 in Irvine. Additional tournaments follow Jan. 7-8 in Las Vegas, March 4-5 in Peoria, Ariz., and April 14-15 in Irvine.

Teams will play 18 regular-season games.

The Elite Division expects to be particularly competitive. Besides finishing second at last season’s nationals, the Outcasts finished third two years ago.

“We return almost everyone this year with the exception of a few guys who are playing in Europe right now,” Outcasts player spokesman Alex Dodt said. “Our core is still the same as always, mostly guys who have played college or NARCh together for many years.

“Paul Linder and Will Heinze are top guys. We added Kevin and Kyle Mooney, brothers from UC Santa Barbara’s Division I college team. Hopefully, we can get back to where we were last year with a better result this time. That’s always the goal.”

The Outcasts’ Heinze (most valuable defenseman) and Clay Taylor (most valuable goaltender), along with the Aces’ Darren Corsatea (scoring leader), all picked up divisional awards in 2015-16.

Minor Division award-winners included the Las Vegas trio of Landon Grubb (scoring leader), Anthony Farrell (most valuable defenseman) and Colby Ashton (most valuable goaltender).

L.A. KINGS HIGH SCHOOL HOCKEY LEAGUE

Armstrong relishing role as LAKHSHL’s coaching director bara Royals to the league’s championship last year, and has the Royals leading the league again. He said uring his 14-year NHL career with the IslandArmstrong’s perspective has been invaluable. ers, Senators, Rangers, Kings and Blues, Derek “Just as he was as a teammate, Derek brings in a Armstrong was known as one of the most passionlove and enjoyment of the game that puts a smile on ate players in the league, playing with an exuberance everyone’s face,” Heinze said. “The kids are working that showed every time he stepped on the ice. hard, learning and getting better while having fun and The former standout center is bringing that same enjoying it. love for the game to his new role as the direc“Derek is a huge resource with his depth tor of coaching curriculum for the LA Kings of knowledge. He can help us solve problems, High School Hockey League (LAKHSHL). tweak drills or show us new ways to develop While he assisted with the league in an unofskills as well as systems. There is always a ficial capacity in its first season last year, he new or different way to teach passing or stick signed on for the new position in July and has handling or any skill, and Derek just has mulsince been sharing not only his passion, but titudes of ideas he can draw from. Derek’s his deep knowledge of the game with coaches ability to share his knowledge and expertise in and players throughout the growing league. a fun and engaging way may be his greatest “Hockey has been good to me my entire strength.” life, so I’m trying to give back as much as posHeinze said his players have raved about sible,” Armstrong said. “Especially at this age their sessions with Armstrong, wanting to group, kids are always looking for more coachknow when he was coming back and even going and guidance, and if I can spread my love Derek Armstrong (with hat) has jumped in with both feet as the director of coaching cur- ing as far as to tell their head coach that Armriculum for the LAKHSHL, lending a hand with team’s practices and offering insight to of the game that’s been so good to me, that’s coaches and players alike. strong’s practices were way better than his. something that I want to do. We want kids to Armstrong’s passion is clearly evident, and it’s “I try to run practices to give the coaches a break, keep playing hockey as long as they possibly can. I and I sort of se the expectations for how I think prac- not difficult to see that it’s having a positive effect on think that’s what’s so great about this league.” tices should be run on a day-to-day basis,” Armstrong players and coaches in the LAKHSHL. Armstrong’s duties involve overseeing coaching said. “I like to keep the kids entertained as well as “Part of my job is to grow hockey in Southern Calfor the league’s 15 varsity and junior varsity teams, teaching them the skills they need to improve.” ifornia, and I think this has been a great way to do it,” and he has taken an active role. He has already visSteve Henize was a linemate of Armstrong’s he said. “It’s been really rewarding to get out on the ited each varsity team once, and plans to see them during the 2002-03 Kings season and enjoyed a 12- ice with kids and see their smiles and their passion each once more before season’s end. He’ll also year career in the NHL. He coaches the Santa Bar- for the game.”

By Greg Ball

D

schedule three sessions with all of the junior varsity squads. His drop-ins with teams consist of him getting on the ice with the players, working on new skills and bringing a fresh and different approach to practices. He’ll also talk with coaches, consult with them on what has been working and what hasn’t, and offer his insight and ideas on how best to help the players improve.

LAKLeague.com

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TOYOTA SPORTS CENTER

Jr. Kings score pair of Youth Cup titles in Anaheim

By Brian McDonough

I

t might still be in its infancy, but the NHL Youth Cup tournament has wasted little time solidifying its footing on the national stage.

What started four years ago as an eight-organization, eastern-based event has since evolved into a nationwide festival with a number NHL-affiliated youth hockey programs competing against each other at the Squirt Minor through Bantam Major levels.

This year marked the NHL Youth Cup’s first-ever West Division event, which was held earlier this month in Dallas (2002, 04 and 06 birth years) and The Rinks-Anaheim Ice (03, 05 and 07 birth years); the New York Islanders and Philadelphia Flyers hosted the East Division showcase.

Pat Ferrill, the senior vice president of Flyers Skate Zone - the official training facility of the NHL club - who helped launch the Youth Cup with the support of the NHL, said incorporating the tournament’s presence out west was just a matter of time.

“It was a natural,” said Ferrill. “This event is a celebration of the sport and an opportunity to grow the game and the visibility of the game, so coming out to Dallas and Anaheim made perfect sense.”

The Los Angeles Jr. Kings made their presence felt at the Anaheim event, celebrating a pair of division championships while finishing runner-up in the other.

One of North America’s best in its age group, the Jr. Kings’ 2003 Bantam Minor AAA team ran the table with ease in its bracket, forging a perfect 5-0 record while outscoring its opponents 31-3 along the way.

Forward Arvega Hovsepyan led the Jr. Kings in up a couple of those wins, but everyone rallied together scoring with 10 points (four goals), followed by forward and we got the job done.”

Paul Minnehan, who connected for eight points on five And while it didn’t bring home a banner, the Jr. Kings’ goals.

2005 Pee Wee Minor AAA team finished runner-up in its Goaltenders Alex Bonrouhi (three wins) and Tyler division after posting a formidable 4-0-1 record.

Offensively, forward Alex Weiermair led the Jr. Krivtsov (two) took care of the rest at the other end of Kings in scoring with 17 points (nine goals), followed by the ice.

“It was a good weekend for the kids,” said Jeff Tur- forward Cullen Emery, who struck for six goals for 13 cotte, head coach of the Jr. Kings’ 03 squad. “Any time points.

Goaltender Cal Vachon the NHL gets behind an event manned the crease the entire you know it’s going to be a neat weekend for L.A. experience, and this was no exception.”

“It was a rewarding expeThe Jr. Kings’ 2007 Squirt A rience for sure,” said Jr. Kings 05 head coach Nick Vachon. team also proved flawless at the “To see the NHL get behind Youth Cup, fashioning a perfect the continued growth of youth 5-0 record, including two, onehockey on a national level is goal victories, in its division and always encouraging, and this outscoring its foes by a 30-9 event is a perfect example.” count.

And with 18 programs parForwards Jake Stuart (nine The Los Angeles Jr. Kings’ 2007 Squirt A team celebratgoals) and Masun Fleece ed the West Division championship in its division at this ticipating at this year’s Youth (eight) led the Jr. Kings’ scoring year’s NHL Youth Cup, which was showcased earlier this Cup, Ferrill wants nothing more than to see that number charge with 12 points apiece, month at The Rinks-Anaheim Ice. followed by forward Michael Battista, who connected grow in the coming years. for eight (five goals).

“Our goal is to have every NHL-affiliated youth proBetween the pipes, goaltenders James Keefer (four gram participating at some point,” said Ferrill, who exwins) and Ryan Denes (one) backstopped the 07s to pects the West Division event to return to Anaheim and the title.

Dallas in 2017 (the even birth years in Anaheim; the odd “The kids played hard,” said Turcotte, who also leads in Dallas). “If we can get them all next year, that would be the Jr. Kings’ 07 contingent. “We had to dig deep to pick awesome.”

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California Rubber Hockey Magazine

SAN JOSE JR. SHARKS

Jr. Sharks’ Pee Wee AAAs amped for upcoming Quebec trip

By Matt Mackinder

C

urtis Brown had only heard about the experiences previous San Jose Jr. Sharks teams had playing in the Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament.

As prestigious an event there is at the Pee Wee level, and it’s been going on nearly 60 years, Brown will get the chance to now tell of his experiences as he’ll take his Jr. Sharks Pee Wee AAA team to the Canadian province in February to partake in competition against teams from around the globe.

“Historically, our hockey director here, Robert Savoie, has taken the program’s second-year Pee Wee teams to Quebec,” said Brown.

“He is from there and has a great connection with that part of the world. I think as great as the hockey is for this tournament is that it’s a better culture event, not only for the people of Quebec, but for the people who visit. It is very special and until you go, you don’t understand what the whole experience is about.”

The Quebec event runs at several rinks in Quebec City and the surrounding areas from Feb. 8-19.

“Being the director of the Jr. Sharks for several years, I only got to hear about the event,” Brown said. “Not really getting the opportunity as a youngster growing up in Western Canada, it’s a pretty big commitment for these teams to get to Quebec as Pee Wees, from parents and schedules and finances and everything, it’s a big deal. The more that you heard the stories and hear the stories, it was just incredible

to have, especially in our case, kids from California experience winter. That was a huge difference for them.

And then on top of that, the outdoor skating and the many, many outdoor rinks where you can go at their leisure. There’s no fee to participate and you can set up your own games.

“There’s more rinks there than people, it seems. For people that love the game of hockey, it’s paradise. I grew up in that type of environment and to now see these kids get that

opportunity, I think that’s so incredible. We’re very thankful to have this opportunity again this season and to get to immerse our kids in that culture.”

Brown said that not knowing what teams his team

will play in Quebec means his expectations will change a bit from normal games played on the West Coast.

“We expect to learn more about the Canadian culture, Quebec as a whole – I think it will be a great learning experience for these kids,” said Brown. “The expectations that I have is that we’ll conduct ourselves with class, play the game the right way, treat others the way we want to be treated and we’ll see how the games go. If you go there with the mindset that it’s all about the wins and losses, I really think you have the possibility of missing out on an amazing life experience.”

The 2016-17 Jr. Sharks’ Pee Wee AAA team is made up of forwards Mitchell Birdsall, Myles Bivolcic, Edan Cho, Tyler Dysart, Benjamin Kim, Jacob Lize and Arthur Margot; defensemen Jonathan de Grandpre, Parker McDowell, Kyle Miller and Nicholas Savard; Garrett Brown, Nicolas Grabner, Aleksandar Klipa and Jack Odden, all of whom play both forward and defense; and goaltenders Nikolas Charles and Alexander Savard. Brown is joined on the bench by assistant coaches Ken Birdsall and Dragan Klipa. Team managers are Nancy Boaman and Danielle Jenkins.

“My favorite part about this group is that it’s really about the team,” Brown said. “We don’t have any egos that are looking to be treated special. I think all these kids are special in their own way and the way I believe is that they all have a role on the team and the expectation is that everybody does the best that they can.”

SJJrSharks.com

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PICTURE PERFECT The Nevada Jr. Wolfpack competed against the Las Vegas Sports Academy Storm in a game held in Mammoth Lakes, Calif., on Dec. 4 – the first time in the history of Nevada hockey that two in-state high school teams competed against each other in a game Photo/Jeffery Bruckner

The Ventura Mariners claimed the Squirt A division title Nov. 27 at the Arizona Hockey Club’s Thanksgiving Shootout at AZ Ice Gilbert in Gilbert, Ariz.

The Los Angles Jr. Kings’ Squirt B1 team took home the top prize in its division at this year’s Anaheim Jr. Ducks-hosted Fall Festival, which was showcased over Thanksgiving Weekend in Southern California.

A trio of Tri-Valley Blue Devils teams won International Silver Stick Pacific Region titles Nov. 27 at Solar4America Ice in San Jose. Pictured, from left to right, are coaches Joe Carranza (14U B), John Burgess (high school) and Bill Davis (12U B) with the championship banners.

The Wildcats Hockey Club’s Squirt B team triumphed and took home its division title at its own Wildcats Fall Classic tournament at LA Kings Icetown Riverside on Nov. 27.

Photo/Erik Wilt

The Los Angeles Jr. Kings celebrated the Mite Track II division championship at this year’s Jr. Kings-hosted Thanksgiving Extravaganza, which was showcased last month at four Southern California rinks.

Photo/ActionPhotos.net

The San Jose Jr. Sharks’ Squirt 2006-1 team went undefeated in the International Silver Stick Pacific District Regional tournament at Solar4America Ice in San Jose and clinched the championship Nov. 27 with a 6-0 victory over the Jr. Sharks’ Squirt 06-2 team.

The San Jose Jr. Sharks’ girls 10-1 team made it to the finals of the Lady Ducks Fall Classic in Anaheim, losing to the LA Lions 1-0 in a shootout Nov. 27 at The Rinks-Lakewood ICE, but still found time to smile while displaying the runner-up hardware.

The San Jose Jr. Sharks’ Squirt 2007-1 team went undefeated in the International Silver Stick Pacific District Regional tournament at Solar4America Ice in San Jose and clinched the championship with an 8-1 victory over the California Cougars on Nov. 27.

The LA Lions took home the top prize in the 10U division at this year’s Anaheim Lady Ducks-hosted Fall Classic, which was contested over Thanksgiving Weekend at The Rinks-Lakewood Ice.

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California Rubber Hockey Magazine

TAHOE HOCKEY ACADEMY

Tahoe Hockey Academy boasts solid marks at halfway point

By Greg Ball

A

s 2016 draws to a close, the leadership at Tahoe Hockey Academy is taking some time to reflect on the trials and tribulations of starting a hockey academy from the ground up, and the many successes they’ve encountered since opening their doors to their first class of student-athletes on September 12.

“Our goal from Day 1 was to build a hockey academy that rivaled what could be found in most junior and NCAA Division I programs throughout the country,” said academy president Leo Fenn. “This entailed more than just booking ice and scheduling games, and although it hasn’t been an easy task, we feel like we’re taking the right steps to build a foundation for lasting success.”

Lake Tahoe is an amazing location for athletic training. The U.S. ski team and recent winter Olympic medalists such as Jamie Anderson, Maddie Bowman and Hannah Teter made it their training base, and Fenn is fully aware of what makes it such an ideal area.

“We’re proud to be members of the Tahoe athletic community, as we understand the benefits of sportspecific, high-altitude training,” he said. “Lake Tahoe allows us the proper training environment that enables our student-athletes optimum results. Factor in a curriculum that mimics USA Hockey’s American Development Model, and the product on the ice is beginning to reap the rewards.”

Those rewards seem to be turning a few heads in the process. The team was recently invited by North

American Prospects Hockey League (NAPHL) director Lucas Trombetta to compete in a NAPHL tournament.

Tahoe went 3-1 in round robin play and lost by one goal to the eventual tournament champion, and head coach Michael Lewis felt that the results spoke volumes for the quality that Tahoe is already putting on the ice.

“To be in front of junior, college and NHL scouts as well as compete against some of the top high school and club teams in North America is all you can ask for,” Lewis said. “To see our team compete at such a high level with roughly two months of development under our belts was extremely rewarding.”

Of course, there’s more to Tahoe Hockey Academy than simply hockey, as academics play a huge role in the daily lives of the academy’s studentathletes. While plenty of time is spent developing better hockey players, an equal amount of time and energy is focused on producing excellence in the classroom.

“When we opened our doors in September, we started with students in grades 9 through 11, with each student having the opportunity to enroll in a number of advanced classes,” Fenn said.

“Partnering with U.S. Performance Academy (USPA) to serve as our educational component has allowed our

athletes a chance to train, travel and compete while staying on top of their studies.

“We would be hard pressed to provide the weekly hours of on-ice and off-ice training in a traditional club hockey environment. USPA was pivotal in taking our program to the next level, and helping our students increase their grade point averages to our 3.0 requirement speaks volumes about our program’s success so far.”

With 2017 right around the corner, the natural question for all those involved in this startup academy surrounds what’s next.

The academy has a load of hockey development planned for the upcoming months, with an individual testing combine, a full slate of games in the Anaheim Ducks High School Hockey League and their THA future prospect tournaments.

“We’ll be busy, and we’ll be spending considerable time fine-tuning each player’s development,” Lewis said.

Although it’s still a brand-new program, the leadership at Tahoe Hockey Academy is working hard to put itself on the map with the most prestigious academies in the country. It won’t be an overnight venture, but based on the past, present, and the future, those that call the academy feel like they’re right where they need to be.

TahoeHockeyAcademy.com

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ANAHEIM DUCKS

The Rinks: A breeding ground for future hockey stars

By Tanner Privia

F

ridays at The Rinks-Huntington Beach Inline are often filled with familiar faces and their happy smiles as the Top Flight Street Hockey League takes center stage.

Of these faces is the one of Peter Yencso, a 17-year-old boy hailing from Fountain Valley. He has a love for the sport of hockey that is undeniable. He is one of the few players who has participated in all three styles of hockey that The Rinks has to offer.

From first stepping onto the sport court in street hockey, to lacing up the inline skates for an Inline Learn to Play, to finally advancing to ice for the first-ever Top Flight on ICE event, Peter has done it all.

Yensco started his playing career at The Rinks-Huntington Beach Inline as one of the founding members of the Top Flight Street Hockey League, presented by Choc Childrens, a program designed to give individuals with special needs an opportunity to play hockey.

He has quickly soared to being one of the more dominant players in the league and now has made observers accustomed to seeing the occasional hat hit the floor after he nets his third goal in the game.

“The games are great, and I’ve learned more about stickhandling, teamwork, passing, and stealing the ball from my opponents,” Yencso said. “I’m still getting there. I’m going to have to keep on practicing.”

This attitude pushed Yensco to want to continue develop his skills and improve his game. When

he took the next step and joined the Saturday Street ter at them each time.”

Recently, Yencso stepped up once again when Hockey League, the transition was seamless. He instantly grasped the skills he learned during Top Flight The Rinks hosted its first-ever Top Flight on ICE event and used that advantage to become an effective play- last month at The Rinks-Lakewood ICE. The program er with the extra playing time he was getting. Coaches is another Rinks initiative designed to give special and teammates praised Yensco’s efforts and his skills, needs individuals a chance to learn how to ice skate including The Rinks-Huntington Beach street hockey or don the equipment for an ice hockey clinic. Yencso quickly potted his first goal very director Ron Alexander, who early on in the class despite it also coaches him during Top being harder to slow down in Flight. skates.

“Peter made the transition look so easy and even with the “I loved it,” he said. “It’s extra padding that he wasn’t something new, and I enjoyed used to, he continued his great it.” play and even found the back of The Top Flight Street Hockthe net despite the faster pace ey League starts its new season of the game in front of him,” said in January.

Alexander.

When asked about what his When the next opportunity favorite memory has been at arose for Yencso to move to the The Rinks so far, Yencso quicknext level, of course, he took it. ly responded: “November 22, 2014. On that day, we got to He was finally able to strap on Fountain Valley native Peter Yencso is a regular with a pair of inline skates during a the Top Flight Street Hockey League on Fridays at The play with Ducks players Ricksession of the Anaheim Ducks Rinks-Huntington Beach Inline and says “the games ard Rakell and Josh Manson in our game.”

Learn to Play program, powered are great.” Photo/The Rinks For more information on The Rinks and all of the

by Ducks NHL stars Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry.

Once again, he embraced it – the skates did not faze program offerings including, but not limited to birthday parties, public skating, ice skating, inline prohim at all as he flew around the rink with ease.

“Top Flight has taught me a lot of valuable les- gramming, and the Top Flight program, visit www. sons,” said Yencso. “Every time we do drills, I get bet- TheRinks.com.

AnaheimDucks.com

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California Rubber Hockey Magazine

ANAHEIM JR. DUCKS Jr. Ducks, Lady Ducks relish giving back to local communities

By Chris Bayee

T

he spirit of giving isn’t just a once-a-year, holiday feeling for the Anaheim Jr. Ducks and Lady Ducks.

Throughout the year, the clubs and The Rinks are committed to contributing to the community at large as well as those in need in their own circles.

The Lady Ducks recent undertook a shoe drive, collecting hundreds of pairs from players’ friends, families and neighbors to be refurbished and distributed to needy people around the world.

“The kids put up signs and go around their neighborhoods to collect the shoes,” explained Lady Ducks director Kathy McGarrigle. “Our players are spread out, so it’s something we can do in different areas.

“The 8Us did a really good job of organizing it, collecting and sorting the shoes.”

The spirit is contagious within the club, where families watch out for one another across team lines. Craig Johnson, the Jr. Ducks’ director of coaches and a Midget 16U AAA coach, told of a father of a player on one team who heard about a player on another team’s needs. The father stepped up and bought the young goaltender a new set of pads.

There are roughly a half-dozen families in the club who have opened up their homes to host players.

The giving spirit is not limited to current club members. Director of player personnel and Midget 16U AAA coach Alex Kim said a former Jr. Ducks player’s family has donated money to help families that need assistance during the season.

The Rinks also has launched a holiday equipment donation program in which it accepts new and used gear to distribute to players in need at all levels. Simply bring the gear to any Rinks location, including the ice rinks in Anaheim, Lakewood, Westminster and Yorba Linda and the inline facilities in Corona, Huntington Beach and Irvine.

JrDucks.com

CHALK TALK

Let’s sit back and discuss the performance bell curve R

ecently, during some down time at the rink, I happened upon a father I knew watching his son take a private lesson.

Whenever his son missed the net or lost the puck in a drill, the father would raise his hands up or pound the Dimitri Voulelikas table in frustration.

I approached him and asked him about what was going on. From his explanation, it was clear this parent expected his child to outperform at his maximum potential at all times. This expectation wasn’t malicious – it came from a place of love. The father wanted his son to find success in hockey, but most likely did not know how to express that desire in a more constructive, positive way. Because I am passionate about parent and player education, I proceeded to explain to this well-intentioned, but misguided parent, the concept of the mean and how it relates to athletic performance.

All parents want to see their children succeed.

Every instance that a parent watches their player play below the level of performance that they are capable of has the potential to elicit strong emotion and frus-

tration. It is important for parents and players to understand that athletic performance on a specific day or shift may have very little to do with effort. There is a plethora of factors that influence performance, among them diet, sleep, and the cumulative amount of energy they expend day to day. These can all come together to create an “off” day.

The reality is, if we charted a player’s performance over many occurrences on a histogram, the result would be a normal distribution, otherwise known as a bell curve. Performance is symmetrical about the center, which is the mean, or average performance level of the player. This means that 50 percent of the time, your player will be performing below his or her mean level of performance, and 50 percent of the time above his or her mean. Additionally, we see that 95 percent of a player’s performance occurs within two standard deviations of the mean - meaning that 2.5 percent of the time, a player will demonstrate exceptional performance, and 2.5 percent of the time, a player will exhibit very poor performance. This is normal and prevalent in all kinds of performance and population samples. The math is just as true for you or I, and most people know this instinctively.

A bad performance does not necessarily mean your player is not working hard, or not taking it seriously. Younger, less skilled and experienced athletes will show a larger standard deviation, while older,

more developed athletes will exhibit a steeper bell curve due to their higher consistency and lower standard deviation in performance.

The key here for the positive-minded parent should be to help the player raise his or her average level of performance, and through repetition after repetition over a long period of time, lessens the standard deviation from the mean. Even so, it is important to understand that your player’s athletic performance will always continue to fluctuate based on his or her mental and physical skill level and capability at the time - some peaks, some valleys, some at either extreme. Be supportive and don’t let emotion overtake you - you are not responsible for your player’s athletic performance, but you are responsible for how your player grows throughout his or her time at the rink.

How you approach a bad day on their performance bell curve and how you help your child approach it will lead to character traits that will last a lifetime. While it is true some athletes do respond to pressure, most of the time, unrealistic pressure by a parent will impair their player’s game in some manner, or worse yet, lead to diminished interest in the sport.

Keep a focused eye on long-term development and prioritize the goal of raising your player’s average performance. Having fun, improving confidence, and being better, more often is the goal.

Dimitri Voulelikas is a coach for the LA Jr. Kings and a regional scout for the Almaguin Spartans, Temiscaming Titans and West Nipissing Lynx of the Greater Metro Hockey League.

Interested in being a Chalk Talk columnist? E-mail Matt Mackinder at matt@rubberhockey.com.

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17

NEVADA STORM

Storm sees ‘huge honor’ in hosting annual WSHL Shootout

By Matt Mackinder

E

ach year, the Western States Hockey League (WSHL) converges on Las Vegas for the annual Western States Shootout, a showcase-style event that is a bona fide smorgasbord for college and professional scouts alike.

The past few years has seen the Las Vegas Storm skate on home ice at the event, something coach-GM Gabe Gauthier is elated to do again Dec. 17-21.

“It is a huge honor to be the host of the showcase,” said Gauthier. “The ability to have a major event like this at your home rink definitely brings a sense of pride as an organization and a sense of comfort for the players.”

The showcase will be held at the Las Vegas Ice Arena and Sobe Ice Arena.

And while the event has been in Las Vegas for many years, Gauthier said it has grown and improved in lengthy strides.

“The production and the talent has improved tremendously in the three years the Storm has been involved in the WSHL,” Gauthier said.

“There are more players being recognized and advancing in their play career. The league has grown not only in volume, but talent and professionalism. The WSHL has really made some huge improvements in the quality of

coaching and recruiting, which has improved the quality of play.

“The WSHL has been and will continue to gain recognition for good hockey.”

Gauthier also noted why Las Vegas is a prime location for the Western States Shootout.

“Vegas offers so many attractions to for all ages and is known worldwide for entertainment and fun times,” he explained. “The travel by airline is virtually direct from every major city in the United States and worldwide.”

All the games in Las Vegas count in the league standings and that is a fact not lost

on Gauthier, who has a strong outlook for his club at the event.

“Our expectations are the same as every game – compete harder than the other team and to play together as a team,” said Gauthier. “Last year was a very disappointing showcase as we were only able to earn two of a possible eight points. Our team this year has been a major improvement from last year.”

NVStorm.com

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California Rubber Hockey Magazine

So far, more than 75 schools had confirmed their attendance at the event – a sign that colleges see the Shootout as a serious recruitment setting.

“The showcase offers players that unique opportunity to perform for their future as a student-athlete,” Gauthier said. “With so many schools confirmed for this year, the stage will be theirs to have – four games to make a first impression for most schools and in other cases to prove their value as a player.”

The Storm plays the Vancouver Rangers, Wichita Jr. Thunder and Superior RoughRiders at this year’s showcase, in addition to an all-star team from the CPJHL. Hitting again on the success of the WSHL, Gauthier explained how the league is sustainable on the West Coast, Las Vegas included.

“The teams that occupy the Western Division are located in major cities that have very talented hockey players,” Gauthier said. “The teams in the West offer an experience for players to play very good hockey and not leave home.”

After the showcase, the Storm is off until Jan. 6 when they head to Peoria, Ariz., to start a three-game series with the Arizona Hawks.

“We are very optimistic once the second half starts,” said Gauthier. “We have made changes in the lineup and are at a point where the team has chemistry and is playing together as one. Our goal as an organization this year was to obtain home-ice advantage for the playoffs. Our coaching staff has been instilling their professional experience into these young men.”

Golden Knights will have positive impact on all of Nevada Continued from Page 6 At the college level, UNLV has established itself as one of the strongest programs in the western United States and also stands to benefit from the arrival of the Golden Knights. Currently ranked first in the ACHA Division II West Region rankings for the first time in the program’s history, the Rebels were also recently approved to move up to Division I starting next season.

“In Vegas, the buzz around the city is great,” said Anthony Vignieri-Greener, UNLV’s second-year head coach. “The hockey community here is small, but tight-knit. UNLV already has an established brand in the city, and with the NHL team here, it’s going to be a beneficial relationship for both us and them.”

Vignieri-Greener spent most of his childhood in Vegas, playing for youth programs like the Icemen, Mustangs and Rebels. He moved away to play junior hockey, then returned and became an All-American at UNLV after the program started in 2005.

Next season, UNLV will move into the Golden Knights’ brand new practice facility for all their practices and most of their games, with the exception of three highly anticipated games at the brand-new T-Mobile Arena.

“The program has taken off, and with the NHL team here, it will be a selling point for us to kids that we’re recruiting all across the country,” Vignieri-Greener said.

“I’ve seen the good and the bad, but really have a lot of faith that this will work here. Everybody has really embraced it.”

McPhee said he can see similarities between what

he’s hoping to build in Vegas and the efforts he and his staff made to grow the game during his time as the Washington Capitals’ general manager from 19972014. While the D.C. area is considered more of a

Vegas Golden Knights principal owner Bill Foley speaks to the crowd gathered outside the T-Mobile Arena on Nov. 22 when the NHL team’s name and logo were unveiled for the first time to the public. Photo/Eric J. Fowler

traditional hockey market than Las Vegas, the Caps’ run to their first Stanley Cup Finals in McPhee’s debut

season, and a subsequent run of playoff appearances, helped generate great interest in hockey there.

He can also draw comparisons to the Coyotes just a few hundred miles away in Phoenix. While the franchise has had its ups and downs in its 20-year history, there’s no debating the impact that it has had on the growth of interest and participation in hockey there.

“The presence of the NHL in Vegas and Nevada will increase the visibility of the NHL around the world, as Las Vegas is a worldwide brand, but just as important will increase the visibility of the NHL and hockey in Vegas and Nevada, and help us grow the game,” McPhee said.

“We will develop strong hockey programs at the grassroots level for boys, girls and adults. We expect the number of house league, travel team, high school and adult leagues to mushroom as they did in Washington during our time there. We expect to have kids who are playing other sports to give hockey a try, learn how much fun it can be, and enjoy a life-long journey with the game. Finally, we expect that we will one day soon produce our own Auston Matthews in Nevada.”

Brooks said his program has been booming in recent years, with numbers growing quickly in the Storm’s learn to skate and learn to play hockey offerings. He believes he has only seen the tip of the iceberg, though.

“I think our growth has been the result of a combination of things we’re doing well and the impending arrival of the NHL team, but I think the real growth is going to happen when they’re finally on the ice,” Brooks said. “Things are going well here, and we’re really excited about the NHL’s arrival.”

FROM THE TRAINER’S ROOM How to diagnose, deal with, treat groin injuries in hockey G

roin strains are common injuries in the game of ice hockey.

Previous reports in the NHL have shown than up to 10 percent of all injuries sustained have been due to strains of the groin or adductor muscle group.

The main groin muscles include the adductor longus, magnus and brevis and the gracilis. Their primary function is to bring the leg back towards the middle of the body or adduct the hip. Groin injuries can be debilitating as the muscle group is Chris Phillips elongated on the skating stride and contracted on the recovery phase, so it is constantly being stressed. Strains of this nature can cause an athlete to miss significant time off the ice. The severity can differ from one injury to another and usually affects either the muscle belly, near the middle of the inside of the thigh, or the origin up near the pubic bone where the muscle turns into a tendon and attaches to the bone. Two noted factors that pre-dispose an athlete to a groin injury include decreased flexibility of the groin, hip flexor and glutes and weakness of the adductors/groin muscles.

When a groin injury occurs, it is important not to play through it and to seek medical advice from a qualified physician, athletic trainer or physical therapist who works with athletes with these types of injuries. If a strain affects your stride, speed or power on the ice, it will typically get worse if you continue to play with the injury.

Normal treatment will include rest, flexibility exercises of the adductors, glutes and hip flexors, which should all be pain free and strengthening of the adductors and hip flexors as they aid in the recovery phase of skating. A slow, gradual return to skating followed by return to practice is also a key to the recovery before returning to games. Once the pain has subsided, it is still important to maintain the flexibility and strength in your hips to help prevent future injuries.

Chris Phillips ATC, CSCS, is a former athletic trainer in the NHL with the Anaheim Mighty Ducks and Washington Capitals and currently owns Compete Sports Performance and Rehab.

CARubberHockey.com

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Patriot Act

Patrick Henry rolls out as newest member of CIF-Metro Conference scholastic inline league have sign-ups for student-run clubs. The clubs encompass many different interests – photography, surfing, drama, cooking, for example.

The younger Russell needed a treasurer for his club, which he had planned to turn into a club team at Skate San Diego. The choice was easy: his sister, Jenny, who also had played ice hockey since she was three. Although Jenny had never played roller hockey, she agreed.

Amazingly, 25 students signed up for the roller hockey club. Some had experience, but many were

On Nov. 3, the Russells heard from the Metro Conference that Patrick Henry had been granted atrick Henry High School played its inaugural admission.

CIF/Metro Conference roller hockey game Nov. “At this point, we looked at the hockey 30 against the defending Kiwanis Cup champion community to help us create a varsity program,” Westview Wolverines. the newly-minted coach said.

The fledgling Patriots came up short by a score There were several obstacles to overcome. of 13-1, but head coach Chuck Russell felt his Only five players who signed up had ever played team still came out winners. hockey. The team’s final roster included 13 players “It is amazing how strong the hockey community – eight, including the goaltender, who had never in San Diego is,” Russell explained. “Through the played a hockey game in their life. generosity and hard work of a committed Moreover, each player needed an entire group of students and adults, we have set of gear. been able to go from two hockey players “We put together an email and sent it to setting out a table on club day at their high all our hockey buddies in my contact list,” school to starting a varsity program.” the Patrick Henry coach said.

The story started two years ago when Donations came flooding in, according Russell’s son, Matt, sat down next to his to the elder Russell. father at the dinner table and announced “When my friends heard about what that he wanted to attend neighboring West Matt and Jenny were doing, sticks, gloves, Hills High School. roller hockey skates and even an entire set “This was a little bit of a shock to me of goalie gear appeared,” Chuck Russell because although West Hills is a great explained with excitement. “Each player school, Patrick Henry High School is was able to choose a full set of gently-used fantastic as well and our neighborhood gear for free.” school,” the elder Russell explained. “Like The Patriots also reached out to Skate many hockey players in California, it is rare San Diego rink manager Joe Norris, who that hockey players can represent their donated rink time, once or twice a week, school while playing the sport they love. to help teach some of the players how to “I, of course, told Matt no, but like any The Patrick Henry High School roller hockey team shows off its new uniforms on skate. good parent, I put it back on him. I asked opening night to face off the school’s first CIF-Metro Conference season.

Patrick Henry’s CIF debut was filled him why didn’t he start a roller hockey team at lacrosse players who were looking for a sport in with excitement despite the loss.

Patrick Henry High School. which would cross over and prepare them for the “The kids had a blast,” the Patriots coach said.

“He gave me a slight shrug and I didn’t hear upcoming season.

“We only had two players who had ever played in a much about it.”

“This was completely unexpected,” Chuck roller hockey game before. When we finally scored The younger Russell had played ice hockey Russell explained. with about three minutes left in the game (by Matt since he was three years old, but last summer, This is where this story comes full circle: the Russell, assisted by Clinton Allen), everyone played roller hockey for the first time at Skate elder Russell was asked to coach the team. went wild. It’s great to be a part of this league and San Diego in El Cajon. He immediately loved the “I had coached (ice hockey) at the Kroc Center we are looking improve on our first performance. idea of working on his skills in a slightly different in San Diego for five years and had grown up “We are hoping there are students out there environment. playing high school hockey in Massachusetts and who also want to play hockey for their specific high Thus, the seed was planted. was a player/manager/referee for the intramural school and that our story inspires them to start a Matt took it from there. Patrick Henry High program at UMass Amherst,” he said. “Of course, program at their school and expand this great sport School has a club day each fall where students I couldn’t say no.” to students who may never had the chance to glide set up a table in the courtyard of the school and There was also an unexpected turn of events. around the rink with hockey stick in hand.”

By Phillip Brents

P

High school inline champions crowned for fall season T

he Silver Creek Sportsplex (San Jose) High School matchup that was not decided until the final minute.

Hockey League held its fall season championship Chris Fisher led Pioneer Blue with two goals, while playoffs Nov. 19. teammates Alan MaupasA total of 23 teams Raigel and Alex Neverve participated in the fall season. each scored once. Goaltender All teams qualified for the Noah Cane picked up the win playoffs. by stopping 15 of 18 shots.

Second-seeded Silver Top-seeded Branham Creek Black edged topcapitalized on four unanswered seeded Bellarmine A 4-3 goals near the end of the in a tight back-and-forth Division 3 championship contest to win the Division 1 game to secure a 9-5 win championship. over Bellarmine B. Mike Henry Chavez III, Derek Applegate led Branham with Le, Robbie Lulich and Pete five goals, James Thompson Silver Creek Black captured the Division 1 championTaylor each scored goals for ship during the recently completed fall high school in- scored twice and teammates Silver Creek Black to support line hockey league season at San Jose’s Silver Creek Tanner Tibbils and Robert winning goaltender Ethan Sportsplex.

Cubbon each scored one Bach, who stopped 21 of 24 shots. goal. Donovan Clayton picked up the win in net.

Top-seeded Evergreen, playing a puck possession Top-seeded Pioneer Blue edged second-seeded Saints Blue 4-3 to capture the Division 2 title in a game, shut out second-seeded Sobrato White 5-0 to 20

California Rubber Hockey Magazine

win the Division 4 championship.

Ryan Sumibcay (two goals), Lorenzo Lacampagne, Kevin Lin and Eric Marsh led the Evergreen offense and goaltender Marcus Valdez posted the shutout by making stops on all 11 shots he faced.

Pioneer Blue, Branham and Evergreen all finished regular-season play with 9-1 records.

Game on

The Central Coast High School Hockey League faced off its 2016-17 season Dec. 3 at the Central Coast Sports Arena in Santa Maria with five teams competing in varsity play and two in junior varsity.

Eight games, including seven varsity tilts, took place on opening day.

“On the whole the teams looked quite evenly matched and we are looking forward to an exciting season,” league coordinator Ivan Girling explained.

- Phillip Brents

Wheels Up

UC Santa Barbara sets the pace among WCHL’s Division I teams as fall semester ends into thirds.”

Top-tier teams include Chico State, CSU Fullerton he Western Collegiate Roller Hockey League and the University of Arizona. The second tier includes (WCRHL) wrapped up its first semester with two Cal Poly Pomona and Northern Arizona University. regular-season events in November.

The third tier includes UC San Diego, UC Berkeley Teams are now off until second semester play and UC Irvine. resumes in January.

“It’s hard to tell, but when Arizona and NAU catch At the semester break, UC-Santa Barbara boasts up in games played, they may be up there with Chico an impressive 11-0-1 record against WCRHL and Fullerton,” Edwards said. competition to lead Division I teams. Meanwhile, The first semester was a successful one for Chico State (7-1-0) and CSU Fullerton (6-0-0) CSU Fullerton. The Titans’ Division II team sits in are separated by just two points in the Division II second place in the Division II standings (despite standings. being undefeated), while Fullerton’s Division III team Arizona State tops Division III teams with an 8-0finished 4-3-1 (good for third place in its division).

0 record.

New additions leading to success has been a trend for both teams, according to club president Ron Best.

Fast start “For Division II, Anthony Squirek and Griffin UC Santa Barbara swept the field (4-0-0) at the Cortes are new to the program this year and Nov. 12 regular-season event in Las Vegas to roll to both are in the top four in scoring for the team,” an 8-0 season start. The Gauchos were one of only Best noted. “For Division III, it has been Blake two Division I teams in the nation (Michigan State Kaprelyan and Matt Greene leading the charge being the other) with undefeated records through as both new players have double-digit points so far two tournaments. this season.

UCSB posted a 3-0-1 record at the Huntington “Going into the second semester, the Division II Beach Inline event Nov. 19-20. The Gauchos’ lone team looks to solidify its spot as the top team in the loss was in overtime, 7-6, to Arizona State. division, while our Division III team looks to improve “We went 9-0 in our first nine games – the team on the best start it has had in recent years.” has been working super hard and it is showing on Cal’s Ryan Daubenmire and Chico State’s the rink,” UCSB scoring leader Kyle Mooney said.

Cole Euell, both with 19 points, lead Division II “We have a lot of work to do over the Christmas break, but we plan to finish the season off strong UC Santa Barbara brothers Kevin and Kyle Mooney find themselves in point-getters, followed by Chico State’s Zachary and make a run for the WCRHL Regional Cup, as familiar territory -- at the top of the Western Collegiate Roller Hockey Claunch (18 points), Arizona’s Jesse Rooney League’s Division I scoring table.

(17 points) and Fullerton’s Kyle Alexander (15 well as the NCRHA national title.”

UC Santa Barbara holds a nine-point lead on leaders, with teammate Kyle Clements (26 points) points).

Euell paces the division with 14 goals, while Division I runner-up Arizona State (7-3-0). The Sun in third place ahead of Cal Poly’s Daniel Kumata Devils, in turn, are two points ahead of third place (19 points). UCSB’s Jack Mathews (17 points) is Fullerton’s Best leads division netminders with a 2.00 Cal Poly San Luis Obispo (6-6-0). The University of the fourth Gaucho among the top five scorers in the GAA. UC Santa Barbara teammates Justin Kirker and Nevada Las Vegas (2-5-0) and Long Beach State (1- division.

Kevin Mooney leads the division with 21 goals, Michael Uno are tied for the Division III goal-scoring 9-1) currently bring up the rear in the division.

WCRHL director Brennan Edwards suggests including seven game-winning goals. UCSB lead with 16 goals each. Kirker leads the division with there still could be some movement within the division. goaltender Colin Menz tops the division with 10 wins 25 points.

Fullerton goaltender Jason Silva paces the “UNLV should come on much stronger in the and a 3.57 goals-against average.

Edwards sees Division II, in his words, as “broken division with a 3.80 GAA. second half as they had several scheduling conflicts

By Phillip Brents

T

with their ice team, which was recently promoted to NCAA Division I for next season,” Edwards said.

“ASU is a strong No. 2 in the division, but knocking on the door is Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, which after a disappointing 2015-16 season, came out strong and has already exceeded its point total from last year.”

The Gauchos are easily No. 1 right now.

Kyle Mooney (44 points) and younger brother Kevin Mooney (39 points) top Division I point-

Lindenwood goes undefeated in California homecoming A

highlight of the Western Collegiate Hockey League’s (WCRHL) Huntington Beach Inline event Nov. 19-20 was the appearance of Lindenwood University from St. Charles, Mo., perennial national championship contenders.

The Lions brought their Division I and Division III Gold teams to Southern California for the weekend.

The HB event, in fact, served as a homecoming for Lindenwood’s large contingent of California players.

Lindenwood’s Division III Gold team, six-time reigning national champions, is buttressed by 10 Californians: San Jose’s Spenser Marquiss, Chad Wolterman and Chris Visico; Saratoga’s Daniel Higa; Chico’s Jason Novak and Charles Robinson; San Diego’s Jon Gauthier; and Escondido’s Jake Escarcega, Mark Birchall and Thompson Teague.

San Jose’s Trevor Borja and Dana Point’s Cody Page represent the Golden State on the Lions’ Division I squad while Marquiss, Escarcega and Robinson have also earned playing time on LU’s top team.

Both Lindenwood teams finished 4-0 against to LU hurt us,” UCSB senior Kyle Mooney said.

The Lions’ Robinson earned first star honors in WCRHL competition, but that isn’t to say they the win with 25 saves and a .926 save percentage. weren’t tested.

Lindenwood’s Division III squad faced similar Lindenwood’s Division I team defeated Cal Poly San Luis Obispo 7-3 and skated past Long opposition, but defeated Arizona State’s Division I team by a score of 5-2.

Beach State and Arizona LU also defeated UCSB’s State by scores of 9-0 and Division III squad 12-1, 8-1, respectively. However, Arizona State’s Division Lindenwood had to pull out III squad 11-0 and Long a 3-2 come-from-behind Beach State 8-5. win against WCRHL “Lindenwood’s Division Division I leader UC Santa III team is still in a class of Barbara. their own in this division,” The Division I WCRHL director Brennan Lindenwood team has Edwards noted. made appearances in 13 Four Californians national championship games since 2001. The Jon Gauthier (left) and Thompson Teague. Photo/Phillip Brents topped LU’s Division III team in scoring through 13 Gauchos thus have reason to be optimistic about what the future might hold. games: Escarcega (26 points), Gauthier (22 points), UCSB held a 1-0 lead through the opening four Novak (21 points) and Marquiss (20 points). minutes of the second period.

“A few bad penalties and a short bench compared - Phillip Brents CARubberHockey.com

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2016-17 CALIFORNIA/NEVADA ALUMNI E-mail all additions, deletions and corrections to alumni@rubberhockey.com

CALIFORNIA

COLLEGE HOCKEY

PROFESSIONAL HOCKEY

NCAA DIVISION I – MEN

NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE Beau Bennett (Gardena) – New Jersey Devils Emerson Etem (Long Beach) – Anaheim Ducks Shane Harper (Valencia) – Florida Panthers Alec Martinez (Santa Clara) – Los Angeles Kings Kevan Miller (Los Angeles) – Boston Bruins Matt Nieto (Long Beach) – San Jose Sharks Bobby Ryan (El Segundo) – Ottawa Senators Jason Zucker – Minnesota Wild *

ATLANTIC HOCKEY Chris Buchanan (San Jose) – Bentley University Taylor Maruya (Westchester) – U.S. Military Academy Jared Pike – American International College % Blake Weyrick (Los Angeles) – Canisius College

AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE Sena Acolatse (Hayward) – Springfield Thunderbirds Chase Balisy (Fullerton) – Springfield Thunderbirds Mitch Callahan (Whittier) – Grand Rapids Griffins Eric Comrie (Newport Beach) – Manitoba Moose Pheonix Copley – Chicago Wolves + Chase De Leo (La Mirada) – Manitoba Moose Thatcher Demko (San Diego) – Utica Comets Matthew Ford (West Hills) – Grand Rapids Griffins Rocco Grimaldi (Rossmoor) – San Antonio Rampage Nic Kerdiles (Irvine) – San Diego Gulls Kyle MacKinnon (Walnut) – San Diego Gulls Stefan Matteau – St. John’s IceCaps !

Trevor Moore (Thousand Oaks) – Toronto Marlies Gustav Olofsson – Iowa Wild !

Zach Pochiro – Bakersfield Condors % Chad Ruhwedel (San Diego) – Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins Brett Sterling (Los Angeles) – Chicago Wolves Matt Tennyson (Pleasanton) – Charlotte Checkers Scooter Vaughan (Placentia) – Chicago Wolves Matt White (Whittier) – Milwaukee Admirals ECHL Kyle Bigos (Upland) – Idaho Steelheads Dennis Brown (Cypress) – Tulsa Oilers Matt Caito (Coto de Caza) – Toledo Walleye Taylor Crunk (San Jacinto) – Fort Wayne Komets Chase Golightly (Temecula) – Florida Everblades Garrett Haar (Huntington Beach) – Rapid City Rush Miles Koules (Los Angeles) – Atlanta Gladiators Dennis Kravchenko (San Clemente) – Adirondack Thunder Matt Leitner (Los Alamitos) – Manchester Monarchs Brandon Marino (Riverside) – Brampton Beast P.J. Musico (Orange) – Greenville Swamp Rabbits Max Nicastro (Thousand Oaks) – South Carolina Stingrays Darren Nowick (Long Beach) – Missouri Mavericks Sean O’Rourke (Alta Loma) – Kalamazoo Wings Troy Redmann (Brea) – Utah Grizzlies Steve Weinstein (Los Angeles) – South Carolina Stingrays SOUTHERN PROFESSIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE David Gandara (Canyon Lake) – Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs Daniel Gentzler (Hermosa Beach) – Macon Mayhem Josh Harris (Torrance) – Peoria Rivermen Steven Hoshaw (Vista) – Evansville Thunderbolts Mark Pustin (Northridge) – Knoxville Ice Bears Jake Rivera (Pacific Palisades) – Knoxville Ice Bears Jeff Sanders (San Jose) – Macon Mayhem Brantley Sherwood (San Anselmo) – Mississippi RiverKings John Siemer (Baldwin Park) – Macon Mayhem Matt Zenzola (San Diego) – Pensacola Ice Flyers FEDERAL HOCKEY LEAGUE Lester Brown (Citrus Heights) – Berlin River Drivers Daniel Chang (Woodland Hills) – Danbury Titans Darius Cole (Aurora) – Danville Dashers EUROPE Taylor Aronson (Placentia) – Russia Jonathon Blum (Rancho Santa Margarita) – Russia Robbie Earl (Los Angeles) – Sweden Ryan Hollweg (Downey) – Czech Republic Brandon Kozun (Los Angeles) – Russia Ryan Lasch (Lake Forest) – Switzerland Colin Long (Santa Ana) – Italy Rhett Rakhshani (Huntington Beach) – Sweden Brian Salcido (Hermosa Beach) - Germany Liam Stewart (Hermosa Beach) – United Kingdom C.J. Stretch (Irvine) – Germany Mitch Wahl (Seal Beach) – Finland Casey Wellman (Brentwood) – Sweden NATIONAL WOMEN’S HOCKEY LEAGUE Kourtney Kunichka (Fullerton) – Buffalo Beauts Kaliya Johnson – Connecticut Whale $ Rachel Llanes (San Jose) – Boston Pride Elena Orlando (San Jose) – New York Riveters Jenny Scrivens (Camarillo) – New York Riveters Cherie Stewart (Lake Forest) – New York Riveters Alyssa Wohlfeiler (Saugus) – Connecticut Whale

22

California Rubber Hockey Magazine

BIG TEN Will Johnson (Santa Barbara) – University of Wisconsin Patrick Khodorenko (Walnut Creek) – Michigan State University Jake Slaker (San Diego) – University of Michigan ECAC Max Becker (Orange) – Princeton University Arthur Brey (Yorba Linda) – St. Lawrence University Brett Gervais (Corona) – Clarkson University Sean Lawrence (Granite Bay) – Quinnipiac University Merrick Madsen (Acton) – Harvard University Alec McCrea (El Cajon) – Cornell University Tyler Moy (San Diego) – Harvard University Gavin Nieto (Yorba Linda) – Brown University HOCKEY EAST Collin Delia (Rancho Cucamonga) – Merrimack College Garrett Gamez (Chino Hills) – Providence College Niko Hildenbrand (Vacaville) – University of Massachusetts Michael McNicholas (Manhattan Beach) – University of New Hampshire Matt O’Donnell (Fountain Valley) – University of Vermont Andrew Oglevie (Fullerton) – University of Notre Dame Nikolas Olsson (Escondido) – Boston University Ryan Ruck (Coto de Caza) – Northeastern University Scott Savage (San Clemente) – Boston College Nolan Stevens – Northeastern University % Ryan Tait (Santa Clarita) – Providence College NCHC Lawton Courtnall (Westlake Village) – Western Michigan University Grant Gallo (San Diego) – University of Nebraska-Omaha Robby Jackson (Alameda) – St. Cloud State University Tyson McLellan (San Jose) – University of Denver Patrick Newell (Thousand Oaks) – St. Cloud State University Austin Ortega (Escondido) – University of Nebraska-Omaha David Radke (Orinda) – Colorado College WCHA Brandon Carlson (Huntington Beach) – University of Alabama-Huntsville Niko DellaMaggiore (Gilroy) – University of Alaska-Fairbanks Nate Kallen (San Diego) – Ferris State University Troy Loggins (Huntington Beach) – Northern Michigan University Chandler Madry (Bakersfield) – Minnesota State University Nicholas Rivera (Pacific Palisades) – Minnesota State University Tomas Sholl (Hermosa Beach) – Bowling Green State University Shane Sooth (Canyon Country) – Northern Michigan University NCAA DIVISION I – WOMEN CHA Hannah England (Simi Valley) – Penn State University Lillian Marchant (Tustin) – Lindenwood University Megan Whiddon (Redondo Beach) – Mercyhurst University ECAC Hana DeClerck (Menlo Park) – Brown University Keiko DeClerck (San Jose) – Princeton University Kara Drexler (Manhattan Beach) – Yale University Monica Elvin (Penryn) – Brown University Kendra Farole (Irvine) – Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Lydia Grauer – St. Lawrence University $ Kayla Nielsen (Laguna Hills) – St. Lawrence University Erin Ozturk (Huntington Beach) – Harvard University Justine Reyes (Chino Hills) – St. Lawrence University HOCKEY EAST Bridget Baker (Los Gatos) – University of Vermont Nicole Dunbar (Coto de Caza) – University of New Hampshire Alexandra Lersch (Manhattan Beach) – University of Connecticut WCHA Leila Kilduff (San Jose) – Minnesota State University Annie Pankowski (Laguna Hills) – University of Wisconsin

Luke Miller (Lancaster) – Suffolk University Cameron Randles (Santa Clarita) – Endicott College Haroutiun Sarkisian (Encino) – Nichols College Evan Schmidbauer (San Diego) – Salve Regina University Stanton Turner (San Francisco) – Suffolk University ECAC WEST Cory Anderson (Bakersfield) – Manhattanville College Ben Greiner (Newport Beach) – Hobart College Sean Haltam (Medina) – Lebanon Valley College Brian Hodges (Yorba Linda) – Stevenson University Cameron Mack (Long Beach) – Elmira College Brenden Manquen (Rolling Hills) – Lebanon Valley College Jon Neal (Encinitas) – Hobart College Jordan Watt (Riverside) – Stevenson University Chase Wilson (Riverside) – Lebanon Valley College Colin Woods (Yorba Linda) – Stevenson University Matt Zendejas (Upland) – Neumann University MASCAC Kyle Baker (Fresno) – Worcester State University Jake Carter (El Segundo) – Westfield State University Connor Cooley (Simi Valley) – University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth Khalil East (Los Angeles) – Worcester State University Drake Longaker (San Jose) – Plymouth State University Andrew McAvoy (Valencia) – Salem State University Connor McPherson (Lancaster) – Fitchburg State University Kyle Orgel (El Segundo) – Plymouth State University Josh Reinstein (Woodland Hills) – Worcester State University Cody Slocum (Temecula) – Worcester State University Crissostomos Villareal (Corona) – Worcester State University

T.J. Sneath (Chino) – Oswego State University Dylan Vander Esch (San Jose) – Potsdam State University WIAC Jono Davis (La Verne) – University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point David Henry (Foster City) – University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Eric Shand (San Dimas) – University of Wisconsin-Superior D-III INDEPENDENT Devin Day (Fontana) – Post University Kyle Matsumoto (Walnut) – Canton State University Jarrett Stark (San Bernardino) – Daniel Webster College Chris Timm (Dublin) – Daniel Webster College NCAA DIVISION III – WOMEN COLONIAL HOCKEY Danielle Comorre (Tujunga) – Endicott College Madison Maloney (Clovis) – Becker College Savannah Sommers (Corona) – Stevenson University Anastasia Thompson (Riverside) – Becker College ECAC WEST Bri Carroll – Buffalo State University $ Megan Crandell (Fullerton) – Plattsburgh State University Hannah Kiraly (Newport Beach) – Plattsburgh State University Eva Kristof (Pleasanton) – Cortland State University Jordan Lipson (Davis) – Plattsburgh State University Justine Silva (El Monte) – Buffalo State University Hannah Tarr (Los Angeles) – Buffalo State University Laura Thacker (San Jose) – Oswego State University

MIAC Peter Barral (Berkeley) – Bethel University Tyler Gonzales (West Covina) – Hamline University Dallas Marvin (Newbury Park) – Bethel University Chris Nuth (Trabuco Canyon) – Augsburg College J.T. Paine (Rancho Santa Margarita) – St. Olaf College Kyle Rimbach (Encinitas) – St. Olaf College Steven Sherman (San Diego) – St. Olaf College Cole Souto (Yorba Linda) – St. John’s University J.T. Walters (Escondido) – Gustavus Adolphus College

MIAC Valerie Brown (San Martin) – St. Thomas University Jessica Jones (El Cajon) – St. Mary’s University Kylie Kramer – College of St. Benedict $

NCHA Anthony Annunziato (Alta Loma) – Lake Forest College Henry Berger (Claremont) – Northland College Zach Feldman (San Diego) – Lake Forest College Kyle Gonzalez (Chino Hills) – Northland College James Mathias (Ontario) – Marian University Peter Megariotis (Anaheim Hills) – College of St. Scholastica Travis Meyer (Corona) – Marian University Sean Reynolds (Anaheim) – Lawrence University Nick Trefry (Upland) – Northland College Quinton Wunder (Simi Valley) – Lake Forest College

NEHC Alexandra Anderson (San Anselmo) – Salve Regina University Lizzie Aveson (West Covina) – University of Massachusetts-Boston Taylor Chisholm (Discovery Bay) – Salve Regina University Mackenzie Kennedy (Brea) – Plymouth State University Demi Latham (Redwood City) – New England College Brooke Maggy (Alhambra) – Plymouth State University Kateri McClellan (Rancho Palos Verde) – University of Mass.-Boston Kristi Peters (Newport Beach) – Manhattanville College Tori Polehonka (Chino) – New England College Maisie Tatum-Borich (Newport Beach) – New England College Tara Turcotte (Huntington Beach) – New England College

NEHC Sam Bloom (Davis) – Skidmore College Scott Cornfield (Brea) – New England College Conor Ferrera (Trabuco Canyon) – University of Southern Maine Keenan Haase (Mission Viejo) – New England College Bryan Hodges (La Palma) – University of Southern Maine Brett Kilar (Coto de Caza) – New England College David MacGregor (Azusa) – University of Massachusetts-Boston Jon Manlow (Murrieta) – New England College Bryce Nielsen (Laguna Hills) – New England College Will Platt (San Francisco) – New England College Mark Shroyer (Fresno) – Castleton State University Corey Sikich (Hermosa Beach) – Castleton State University NESCAC Nick Balboa (San Francisco) – Tufts University Kendall Culbertson (Laguna Niguel) – Bowdoin College Kai Frankville (La Jolla) – Colby College Ryan Glantz (Tarzana) – Connecticut College Chad Goldberg (Agoura Hills) – Tufts University Austin Ho (Chino Hills) – Amherst College Evan Johnson (Huntington Beach) – Williams College Marcus Mollica (Dove Canyon) – Williams College Ryan Mowery (Rancho Santa Fe) – Connecticut College Sean Ross (San Diego) – Wesleyan University Oliver Takacsi-Nagy (Los Gatos) – Tufts University Theo Tydingco (Newark) – Wesleyan University

NCAA DIVISION III – MEN

NORTHEAST-10 Matthew Toombs (Pleasanton) – Franklin Pierce University

COMMONWEALTH David Anderson (Stevenson Ranch) – Nichols College Matt Audet (Campbell) – Western New England University Stefan Brucato (Lake Elsinore) – Johnson and Wales University Adam Canepa (Santa Cruz) – University of New England Garrett Geane (Fullerton) – Wentworth Institute of Technology Carter Horwitz (Tustin) – Endicott College Nicholas McKee (Bakersfield) – Becker College Christian Merritt (Thousand Oaks) – University of New England

SUNYAC Max Blitz (Chino Hills) – Fredonia State University Kevin Chilton (Oak Park) – Brockport State University Michael Freeman (Rancho Cucamonga) – Fredonia State University Paul Fregeau (Los Angeles) – Cortland State University Doc Gentzler (Manhattan Beach) – Brockport State University David Jacobson (Calabasas) – Oswego State University Luke Rivera (Pacific Palisades) – Fredonia State University Zac Sikich (Oak Park) – Brockport State University

NCHA Jacqueline Audet (Campbell) – Lake Forest College Allie Girard (Folsom) – Lake Forest College Rachael Goodrow (Rancho Santa Margarita) – St. Norbert College Bailey Robertson (Orange) – Adrian College

NESCAC Candace Lu (Studio City) – Williams College Hailey Sholty (Malibu) – Wesleyan University Emily Williams (Fallbrook) – Hamilton College D-III INDEPENDENT Emilia Aguilar (Los Angeles) – Post University Sydney Conrad (Temple City) – Post University Anna Estes (Whittier) – Post University Victoria Lahey (Redwood City) – Lebanon Valley College Kalena Mueller (San Ramon) – Post University JUNIOR HOCKEY ALBERTA JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE Sam Anzai (Los Angeles) – Drayton Valley Thunder Alec Grollman (Laguna Niguel) – Grand Prairie Storm Robert Jacobson (Calabasas) – Bonnyville Pontiacs Tyler Levine (Laguna Beach) – Brooks Bandits BRITISH COLUMBIA HOCKEY LEAGUE Elijiah Barriga (West Covina) – Salmon Arm Silverbacks Austin Chavez (Corona) – Wenatchee Wild Devin Cooley (Los Gatos) – Wenatchee Wild Slava Demin (Cypress) – Wenatchee Wild Justin Dixson (Sunnyvale) – Chilliwack Chiefs Andre Ghantous (Glendale) – Trail Smoke Eaters Trevin Kozlowski (Santa Clarita) – Salmon Arm Silverbacks Jacob Modry (El Segundo) – Wenatchee Wild Eric Pinsky (San Jose) – Wenatchee Wild Dakota Raabe (Capistrano Beach) – Wenatchee Wild Tyler Rockwell (San Jose) – Wenatchee Wild Chad Sasaki (Cypress) – Wenatchee Wild Jack Sitzman (Redondo Beach) – Trail Smoke Eaters Julian Timba (Oceanside) – Salmon Arm Silverbacks Jared Turcotte (Moorpark) – Salmon Arm Silverbacks Brian Williams (San Diego) – Wenatchee Wild

EASTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE Michael Adelson (Claremont) – Boston Bandits (Elite) Adam Bedford (Hawthorne) – Boston Bandits (Premier) Paul Boutoussov (Dana Point) – Valley Jr. Warriors (Premier) Declan Curtis (Fontana) – New Jersey Rockets (Premier) Thomas Dyreng (San Jose) – Northern Cyclones (Elite) Jason Epperly (Lakewood) – Valley Jr. Warriors (Premier) Brendan Gilligan (San Jose) – Northern Cyclones (Elite) John Grealish (Bakersfield) – Boston Jr. Rangers (Elite) Nicholas Harris (Glendale) – Philadelphia Jr. Flyers (Premier) Tim Huxen (Bakersfield) – New Jersey Rockets (Premier) Jagr Larson (Palm Springs) – East Coast Wizards (Premier) Sean Lincoln (Orange County) – Valley Jr. Warriors (Premier) Sawyer Lockleis (Stanford) – Vermont Lumberjacks (Premier) Julian Madison (Pasadena) – New York Applecore (Premier) Robby McClellan (Palos Verdes) – Northern Cyclones (Premier) Ryan Miller (Manhattan Beach) – Valley Jr. Warriors (Premier) Zach Morel (Oceanside) – Boston Jr. Rangers (Elite) Tyler Nelson (Danville) – Hartford Jr. Wolfpack (Premier) Ryan Ng (Manhattan Beach) – New Hampshire Jr. Monarchs (Premier) Shane Noviello (Mission Viejo) – Northern Cyclones (Premier) Evan Nyhus (Dove Canyon) – Valley Jr. Warriors (Premier) Ricky Pacciorini (Winters) – Boston Bandits (Elite) Adam Papayoanou (Valencia) – Connecticut Nighthawks (Premier) Eric Phillips (Portola Hills) – Walpole Express (Elite) Sean Plonski (San Bernardino) – Walpole Express (Premier) Brian Sanzone (Santa Monica) – Northern Cyclones (Premier) Connor Schwarz (Oakdale) – Boston Bandits (Elite) Ryan Sheridan (Mission Viejo) – Northern Cyclones (Elite) Felix Takacsi-Nagy (Los Gatos) – Hartford Jr. Wolfpack (Premier) Jake Takashima (Torrance) – Valley Jr. Warriors (Elite) Chad Watt (Corona) – Valley Jr. Warriors (Premier) Eric Wright (San Diego) – Walpole Express (Premier)

Teagan Poliseno (Valencia) – Atlanta Capitals Tristen Poliseno (Valencia) – Atlanta Capitals Kane Toriumi (Westlake Village) – Willmar WarHawks Collin Tripp (Prunedale) – Chicago Bulldogs Alex Werdmuller (Laguna Hills) – St. Louis Jr. Blues

GREATER METRO HOCKEY LEAGUE Eric Bampenchow (Laguna Hills) – Bradford Rattlers Don Carter, Jr. (Antioch) – Bradford Bulls Brandon Chapin (Santa Clara) – Bradford Rattlers Steven Colombo (San Jose) – Seguin Huskies Bryan Hochberg (Woodland Hills) – Parry Sound Islanders Austin Kane (Milpitas) – Bradford Rattlers Mark Klasen (San Diego) – New Tecumseth Civics Nico Wilton (Redondo Beach) – Temiscaming Titans

UNITED STATES HOCKEY LEAGUE Jacob Acton (Livermore) – Omaha Lancers Joey Cassetti (Pleasanton) – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team Vincent de Mey (Los Angeles) – Madison Capitols Jake Durflinger (Walnut Creek) – Bloomington Thunder Cole Guttman (Los Angeles) – Dubuque Fighting Saints Jacob Hamacher (Corona) – Dubuque Fighting Saints Rory Herrman (Poway) – Green Bay Gamblers Ben Lown (Newport Coast) – Omaha Lancers Shane McMahan (Irvine) – Fargo Force Brannon McManus (Huntington Beach) – Chicago Steel Alec Mehr (Irvine) – Bloomington Thunder Jack St. Ivany (Manhattan Beach) – Sioux Falls Stampede Rourke Russell (Long Beach) - Green Bay Gamblers Eetu Selanne (Coto de Caza) – Madison Capitols Ethan Somoza (Simi Valley) – Bloomington Thunder

KOOTENAY INTERNATIONAL JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE Ethan Bock (Upland) – Golden Rockets Stephen Gaughran (Lake Elsinore) – Golden Rockets Ruslan Katsnelson (West Hills) – Golden Rockets Blake Norman (Redondo Beach) – Spokane Braves Mark Pretorius (San Diego) – Spokane Braves MANITOBA JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE Dylan Dix (Scotts Valley) – Winkler Flyers MARITIME HOCKEY LEAGUE Ezekiel Estrada (Anaheim) – Yarmouth Mariners NORTH AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE Connor Chilton (Oak Park) – Fairbanks Ice Dogs Jayson Dimizio (Goleta) – Corpus Christi IceRays Zak Galambos (Walnut Creek) – Johnstown Tomahawks Jack Gates (Oceanside) – Janesville Jets Cooper Haar (Huntington Beach) – Bismarck Bobcats Carson Kelley (Portola Valley) – Lone Star Brahmas Nick Klishko (San Diego) – Odessa Jackalopes Austin Koss (Huntington Beach) – Minot Minotauros David Marabella (Clovis) – Lone Star Brahmas Kyle Mayhew (Anaheim Hills) – Aberdeen Wings Robby McClellan (Rancho Palos Verdes) – Minot Minotauros Aaron Murray (Chino) – Northeast Generals Garrett Nieto (Yorba Linda) – Springfield Jr. Blues Ryan Orgel (El Segundo) – Wichita Falls Wildcats Jake Rosenbaum (Trabuco Canyon) – Topeka RoadRunners Evan Somoza (Simi Valley) – Northeast Generals Hunter Stanley (Camarillo) – Lone Star Brahmas Alex Stoley (Manteca) – Lone Star Brahmas Matt Wiesner (Newport Beach) – New Jersey Titans Connor Yawney (Orange) – Corpus Christi IceRays NORTH AMERICAN 3 HOCKEY LEAGUE Tristan Ayoubi (Orange) – Syracuse Stampede Brady Boudreau (Anaheim) – New Ulm Steel Ryan Brown (South Lake Tahoe) – Billings Bulls Zach Brunelle (Rancho Santa Margarita) – Louisiana Drillers Anthony Cathcart (Northridge) – Willmar WarHawks Chase Di Bari (Ladera Ranch) – Granite City Lumberjacks Bailey Dorf (Palm Springs) – Glacier Nationals Bradley Estrada (Chino Hills) – Helena Bighorns Hayden Funk (Valley Glen) – Willmar WarHawks Daniel Goodwin (Fresno) – Euless Jr. Stars Ryan Gridley (Santa Monica) – Atlanta Capitals Nicholas Gustafson (Walnut Creek) – Point Mallard Ducks A.J. Hoyt (Yorba Linda) – Breezy Point North Stars Campbell Jackson (Hermosa Beach) – Northeast Generals Ben Kottmeier (San Francisco) – Helena Bighorns Malik Lamotte-Stokes (Westminster) – Syracuse Stampede Michael Lempiainen (Corona) – New England Stars Nick Nast (Oxnard) – Great Falls Americans Matt Newberger (South Lake Tahoe) – Billings Bulls Ryan Newman (Bakersfield) – Northeast Generals Danny O’Donnell (Ventura) – Great Falls Americans

NORTHERN ONTARIO JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE Arshia Mitchell (Aliso Viejo) – Blind River Beavers Joseph Thielen (Huntington Beach) – Cochrane Crunch Riley William (Manhattan Beach) – Elliot Lake Wildcats ONTARIO HOCKEY LEAGUE Sasha Chmelevski (Huntington Beach) – Ottawa 67’s Ivan Lodnia (Anaheim) – Erie Otters ONTARIO JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE Rock Boynton (Lomita) – Lindsay Muskies Kyle Moore (Sunnyvale) – Burlington Cougars QUEBEC MAJOR JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE Matthew Boucher (Los Angeles) – Quebec Remparts SUPERIOR INTERNATIONAL JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE Christian Bundschuh (Orange County) – Thief River Falls Norskies SASKATCHEWAN JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE Aaron Aragon (Whittier) – Melville Millionaires Dakota Delbridge (Tracy) – Flin Flon Bombers Coby Downs (Montclair) – Battlefords North Stars Michael Maple (Fullerton) – Nipawin Hawks Brett Pickler (Villa Park) – Flin Flon Bombers Evan Plotnik (Capistrano Beach) – Melville Millionaires Nick Schultze (San Diego) – Melfort Mustangs

UNITED STATES PREMIER HOCKEY LEAGUE Jonathan Aguilar (Pasadena) – Islanders Hockey Club (USP3) Pierce Bartolo (Belmont) – Atlanta Jr. Knights (Elite) Nash Berkowitz (San Jose) – Eugene Generals (USP3) Brendan Burns (San Carlos) – Islanders Hockey Club (USP3) Jordan Carrasco (San Jose) – Islanders Hockey Club (USP3) Nikolai Cherednichenko (Berkeley) – PAL Jr. Islanders (Premier) Severin Corallo (San Diego) – Tampa Bay Juniors (USP3) Paul Daley (Bakersfield) – Forest Lake Lakers (Elite) Hayden Day (Oak Park) – Boston Jr. Bruins (USP3) Sean Dickson (Millbrae) – Hampton Roads Whalers (Elite) Tyler Dill (South Lake Tahoe) – Charlotte Rush (Elite) Jason Footlick (Redondo Beach) – River Falls Renegades (Elite) Andrew Frojelin (San Marcos) – Charlotte Rush (Elite) Cody Fulkerson (Los Angeles) – Florida Jr. Blades (USP3) Liam Gallant (Santa Barbara) – Atlanta Jr. Knights (Elite) John Garrity (San Francisco) – Islanders Hockey Club (Elite) Ethan Gill (Santa Clarita) – Florida Eels (USP3) Dylan Gluck (San Juan Capistrano) – Jersey Hitmen (Elite) Brooks Hatfield (Tracy) – South Shore Kings (Elite) Sam Hernandez (Fontana) – Islanders Hockey Club (USP3) Frank Horowitz (Beverly Hills) – Connecticut Jr. Rangers (Premier) Adam Hulsey (Bakersfield) – Atlanta Jr. Knights (USP3) Bryce Hunt (Rancho Santa Margarita) – Richmond Generals (Elite) Rob Ivy (Bermuda Dunes) – Richmond Generals (Elite) Austin Lechtanski (Rancho Cucamonga) – Syracuse Stars (Elite) Jeremiah Levitt (Simi Valley) – West Sound Warriors (USP3) Daniel Luyten (Chino Hills) – Atlanta Jr. Knights (Elite) Colin Markoski (Corona) – Hampton Roads Whalers (USP3) Joshua Miller (Paramount) – Kalkaska Rhinos (USP3) Brennan Newton (Santa Fe Springs) – West Sound Warriors (USP3) Sven Nilsson (Culver City) – Florida Eels (Elite) Robert Norwalk (Fremont) – Islanders Hockey Club (USP3) David Quast (Long Beach) – River Falls Renegades (Elite) Dylan Robello (Salida) – Florida Eels (USP3) Dalton Teeter (Dublin) – Bay State Breakers (Elite) Taylor Urch (Anaheim) – Richmond Generals (Elite) Tristan Waechter (Fairfield) – Bay State Breakers (Elite) Jacob Ward (Murrieta) – Hampton Roads Whalers (USP3) Nick Wardstrom (San Francisco) – Islanders Hockey Club (Elite) Michael Wiggins (Temecula) – Atlanta Jr. Knights (Elite) VANCOUVER ISLAND JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE Colton Rhodes (Coachella) – Campbell River Storm WESTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE Blake Bargar (Torrance) – Victoria Royals Jake McGrew (Orange) – Spokane Chiefs Steven Owre (Rocklin) – Medicine Hat Tigers Evan Sarthou – Tri-City Americans %

Carl Stankowski – Seattle Thunderbirds # Murphy Stratton (Los Angeles) – Calgary Hitmen Keoni Texeira (Fontana) – Portland Winterhawks Brayden Watts (Bakersfield) – Moose Jaw Warriors Evan Weinger (El Segundo) – Portland Winterhawks Kailer Yamamoto – Spokane Chiefs % Keanu Yamamoto – Spokane Chiefs % WESTERN STATES HOCKEY LEAGUE Joseph Aguirre (Los Alamitos) – Ontario Avalanche Joseph Allegrini (Valencia) – Las Vegas Storm Wolfgang Boehringer (Fresno) – Fresno Monsters Domenic Bosetti (Long Beach) – Long Beach Bombers Rhett Bruckner (Huntington Beach) – Las Vegas Storm Brad Budman (Foothill Ranch) – Bellingham Blazers Sean Buffardi (Westminster) – Long Beach Bombers Evan Camba (Orange) – El Paso Rhinos Thomas Campbell (Riverside) – Ontario Avalanche Carter Dahl (Fresno) – Colorado Jr. Eagles Quinn Deshler (Torrance) – Ontario Avalanche Blake Duarte (Mission Viejo) – Ontario Avalanche Michael Dwyer (Clovis) – Fresno Monsters Morgan Diamond (Moorpark) – Arizona Hawks Michael Fary (Anaheim) – Utah Outliers Greg Figg (Valencia) – Valencia Flyers Jake Fleischman (Valencia) – Valencia Flyers Sage Fleming (Costa Mesa) – Ogden Mustangs Nicholas Gary (Palo Alto) – Fresno Monsters Tadeh Grigorian (Burbank) – Ontario Avalanche Tyler Hagen (Granada Hills) – Valencia Flyers Taylor Hiatt (Fresno) – Fresno Monsters Jackson Hill (Monterey) – Ontario Avalanche Jonathan Holguin (Fresno) – Fresno Monsters Riley Hummitsch (Chino Hills) – El Paso Rhinos Logan Jalynski (Riverside) – Ontario Avalanche Taylor Jolly (Saugus) – Valencia Flyers Cody Key (Fresno) – Fresno Monsters Thomas King (Rancho Cucamonga) – Ontario Avalanche Garret Kingsbury (Bakersfield) – Valencia Flyers Mason Kohn (San Diego) – San Diego Sabers Jason Lee (Thousand Oaks) – Valencia Flyers Nathan Lloyd (Los Alamitos) – Arizona Hawks Gabel Longshore (Davis) – Lake Tahoe Icemen William Ma (Anaheim) – Ontario Avalanche Manny Mancha (Rosemead) – Ontario Avalanche Alexander Marbach (Stevenson Ranch) – Valencia Flyers Connor Melton (Chico) – Colorado Jr. Eagles Luis Mendoza (Newark) – Lake Tahoe Icemen John Moffatt (South Lake Tahoe) – Lake Tahoe Icemen Cole Parker (San Diego) – San Diego Sabers Andrew Pellegrino (Fresno) – Fresno Monsters Michael Perez (Fresno) – El Paso Rhinos Jonathon Pichedwatana (Lakewood) – Long Beach Bombers Connor Rickabus (Rancho Santa Margarita) – Tulsa Jr. Oilers Dylan San Agustin (Santa Clarita) – Valencia Flyers Nicholas Short (Los Angeles) – Long Beach Bombers Christopher Sohl (Riverside) – Ontario Avalanche Sam Taferner (Santa Clarita) – Valencia Flyers Braydon Thompson (Roseville) – Lake Tahoe Icemen Bryan Verna (Lake Forest) – Phoenix Knights John Wilshire (Temecula) – Arizona Hawks Aleksandr Zendejas (Mission Viejo) – El Paso Rhinos PREP SCHOOL Alan Austria-Garcia (Redwood City) – Tahoe Hockey Academy Lucas Bafoner (Los Angeles) – Albany Academy Cayla Barnes (Corona) – New Hampton School Brandon Bedient (Stevenson Ranch) – Tahoe Hockey Academy Grady Birk (Carlsbad) – Shawnigan Lake School Noah Dahlen (Orange) – Tahoe Hockey Academy Liam Dauphinee (Newport Beach) – Tahoe Hockey Academy Jared Day (Orange) – Brooks School Zachary Dill (Tahoe) – Tahoe Hockey Academy Tanner Ensign (Tustin) – Holderness School Riley Fenn (Newport Beach) – Tahoe Hockey Academy Ryan Fischer (Anaheim Hills) – South Kent Shane Gilbert (Newport Beach) – Tahoe Hockey Academy Jonah Gold (Rolling Hills Estates) – Groton School Niko Grollman (Mission Viejo) – The Gunnery Nicholas Kent (Ladera Ranch) – Delta Hockey Academy Noah Kim (Fullerton) – Cushing Academy Indigo Kinzey (Pacifica) – Tahoe Hockey Academy Matt Kors (Los Angeles) – Shawnigan Lake School Jordan Labbe (Pasadena) – Tahoe Hockey Academy Erik Larsson (Los Altos) – Tahoe Hockey Academy Nicholas Lee (Los Angeles) – Salisbury School Noah Lee (Los Angeles) – Salisbury School Tae Lee (Irvine) – The Governor’s Academy Tyler Leibl (Del Mar) – Shawnigan Lake School Roan Linvill (Berkeley) – Tahoe Hockey Academy Jack Lippis (Mission Viejo) – The Gunnery Mathias Long (Marina del Rey) – Lake Forest Academy Kyle McElhaney (Yorba Linda) – Tilton School Nolan McElhaney (Yorba Linda) – Cushing Academy Adam McGill (Rancho Santa Margarita) – Tahoe Hockey Academy Keely Moy (San Diego) – Kent School Matthew Odom (Elk Grove) – Tahoe Hockey Academy Zach Pires (Villa Park) – Tahoe Hockey Academy Steven Plante (Valencia) – Tahoe Hockey Academy Casey Rhodes (Huntington Beach) – Albany Academy Brett Roloson (Newport Beach) – Shawnigan Lake School

Ross Roloson (Newport Beach) – Shawnigan Lake School Hunter Sansbury (Lomita) – The Gunnery Chase Sechrist (Santa Rosa) – Tahoe Hockey Academy Blake Selden (Santa Clara) – Tahoe Hockey Academy Jordan Skahill (San Dimas) – South Kent Daniel Thomas (Irvine) – Hotchkiss School Daniel Ton-That (Laguna Hills) – Tilton School Jackson Tuszynski (Valencia) – Tahoe Hockey Academy Lukas Uhler (Upland) – New Hampton School Brent Valentine (Newport Beach) – Choate Rosemary Hall Cam York (Anaheim Hills) – Shattuck-St. Mary’s Prep Billy Zegras (San Diego) – The Berkshire School

NEVADA PROFESSIONAL HOCKEY NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE Jason Zucker (Las Vegas) – Minnesota Wild AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE Zach Pochiro (Las Vegas) – Bakersfield Condors ECHL Kenny Brooks (Las Vegas) – Colorado Eagles Chris Francis (Las Vegas) – Quad City Mallards Gage Quinney (Las Vegas) – Wheeling Nailers Jacob MacDonald (Fernley) – Toledo Walleye Ross McMullan (Las Vegas) – Wheeling Nailers Cory Ward (Las Vegas) – Manchester Monarchs SOUTHERN PROFESSIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE Chris Rial (Las Vegas) – Columbus Cottonmouths COLLEGE HOCKEY NCAA DIVISION I – MEN ECAC Joe Sullivan (Las Vegas) – St. Lawrence University D-I INDEPENDENT Joey Raats (Las Vegas) – Arizona State University NCAA DIVISION I – WOMEN CHA Sarah Robello (Las Vegas) – Mercyhurst University NCAA DIVISION III – MEN COMMONWEALTH Joseph Kaszupski (Henderson) – Endicott College Alec Mono (Las Vegas) – Curry College NCHA Derek Sutliffe (Las Vegas) – College of St. Scholastica SUNYAC Ryan Chiasson (Henderson) – Plattsburgh State University D-III INDEPENDENT Tanner Todd (Henderson) – Daniel Webster College JUNIOR HOCKEY BRITISH COLUMBIA HOCKEY LEAGUE Brendan Harris (Las Vegas) – Wenatchee Wild GREATER METRO HOCKEY LEAGUE Richard Prekop (Las Vegas) – South Muskoka Shield NORTH AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE Dom Garcia (Las Vegas) – Aston Rebels NORTH AMERICAN 3 HOCKEY LEAGUE Michael Cichy (Las Vegas) – Atlanta Capitals Kyle Truax (Las Vegas) – Gillette Wild NORTHERN ONTARIO JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE Adrian Nicholas (Las Vegas) – French River Rapids QUEBEC MAJOR JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE Landon Quinney (Las Vegas) – Saint John Sea Dogs UNITED STATES PREMIER HOCKEY LEAGUE Spencer Poscente (Henderson) – Tri-City Icehawks (USP3) Gage Roberts (Las Vegas) – Carolina Eagles (Elite) Ethan Van Muyden (Henderson) – Tri-City Icehawks (USP3) WESTERN STATES HOCKEY LEAGUE Seth Bergeron (Las Vegas) – Las Vegas Storm Vito Carlo (Las Vegas) – Las Vegas Storm Brenden Fehlig (Las Vegas) – Las Vegas Storm Reed Lequerica (Reno) – Lake Tahoe Icemen Jake McKenna (Las Vegas) – Las Vegas Storm Kyle Molony (Las Vegas) – Las Vegas Storm Eric Williams (Henderson) – Ontario Avalanche % former LA Jr. King + former California Titan * former LA Select

! former San Jose Jr. Shark # former Anaheim Jr. Duck $ former Anaheim Lady Duck

CARubberHockey.com

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24

California Rubber Hockey Magazine

New NARCh season gets early start for Nor Cal Cup

By Phillip Brents

N

orthern California travel tournament teams got a jump on the 2016-17 NARCh season by competing in the annual Nor Cal Cup Thanksgiving Weekend event Nov. 26-27 at San Jose’s Silver Creek Sportsplex.

Division championship games took place in seven age divisions that were further divided into Gold and Silver subdivisions.

NARCh president Daryn Goodwin called the event “a tradition” for teams in the region.

“It was a great event,” Goodwin explained. “The Nor Cal teams are very excited that the NARCh Finals are back at Silver Creek Sportsplex next summer. Almost every team in this event will also be traveling down to the NARCh Winternationals in Huntington Beach on Jan 13-16.”

Gold Division champions included the Silicon Valley Quakes (Atom and Mite), San Jose Inline Sharks (Squirt), NCR Elite (Pee Wee), Revision Revolution 01 (Bantam), Revolution 99 (Midget) and NorCal Extreme (Junior/Men’s).

Runner-up teams included Revolution (Atom), Bend Bullets (Mite and Junior/Men’s), Quakes (Squirt), Sharks Black (Pee Wee), Sharks (Bantam) and Verbero Voltage (Midget).

Silver Division champions included the Verbero Voodoo (Mite), Revolution 03 (Pee Wee), Norcal Jokes (Bantam), NCR Elite (Midget) and Voltage (Junior/Men’s).

The tournament attracted teams from outside the Golden State. The Bullets, from Bend, Ore., sent two teams to the Bay Area. Both earned second-place Gold Division finishes.

The Revision Revolution entered 10 teams in the division and had at least one team competing in each division.

Ryan Newens (NorCal Extreme) led the Junior/Men’s NCR Elite’s three teams – Pee Wee (14U), Bantam (16U) and Midget (18U) — compiled a solid 11-4-1 record Division with five goals and six assists for 11 points and captured two division championships (Pee Wee Gold Top goaltenders and Midget Silver).

Andres Lacrosse (Bend Bullets) led the Mite Division NCR Elite teams will attend the upcoming NARCh Winternationals, Winter Wars West (Feb. 24-26 in with a .907 save percentage.

Alex Smith (Sharks) led the Squirt Division with a Huntington Beach), NARCh regional tournaments in San .861 save percentage.

Jose (March 11-12) and Irvine Derek Bauch (NCR Elite) (March 31 to April 2), various led the Pee Wee Division with a local tournaments and both the .886 save percentage.

NARCh West Coast Finals (San Ethan Bach (Revolution 01) Jose) and NARCh East Coast led the Bantam Division with a Finals (Toronto). .903 save percentage.

“The (Northern California) Nicholas Leacox (Voltage) market as a whole seems to led the Midget Division with a continually get deeper in talent .889 save percentage. and more competitive,” Goodwin Gokalp Gurer (NorCal added in an online blog. “I’m sure it’s a combination of variables NCR Elite faced off the 2016-17 season by winning Extreme) led the Junior/Men’s that attribute to this. Playing more the Pee Wee Gold division at the Nor Cal Cup Thanks- Division with a.937 save percentage. competitive tournaments and giving event. Photo/NARCh Leacox is a two-time member of Team USA’s junior more kids from the ice converting are two that come to mind.” men’s national team that competed in the FIRS inline hockey world championship tournaments in 2015 (Argentina) High point scorers Seth Sween (Bend Bullets) led the Mite Division with and 2016 (Italy). He posted a 2.33 goals-against against average as the Americans posted a fourth-place finish at three goals and six assists for nine points.

Caden Ghioss (Quakes) led the Squirt Division with the 2015 tournament.

Newens competed for Cal Poly San Luis Obispo seven goals and two assists for nine points.

Jay Dolmo (Revolution 03) led the Pee Wee Division (2010-15) in the Western Collegiate Roller Hockey League. He earned honorable mention selection on the with six goals and four assists for 10 points.

Alexandre Lavoie (Sharks) led the Bantam Division National Collegiate Roller Hockey Association (NCRHA) national championship tournament all-tournament team with seven goals and two assists for nine points Ian Duffy (Voltage) led the Midget Division with seven in 2015 after pacing the Mustangs with 24 points in 11 playoff games. goals and one assist for eight points CARubberHockey.com

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MITCH WAHL

Position: Forward, Vasterviks IK (Sweden) Hometown: Seal Beach Youth teams: Huntington Beach Lightning, Anaheim Jr. Ducks, California Wave and L.A. Jr. Kings

H

ockey has taken Mitch Wahl many places in parts of eight professional seasons. Wahl, a second-round draft choice of the Calgary Flames in 2008, was a co-captain of the 2004-05 California Wave Bantam AAA team featured in the DVD “In the Crease,” Wahl later won a Memorial Cup with the Western Hockey League’s Spokane Chiefs in 2008 and represented Team USA at the World Junior Championship.

California Rubber: You headed overseas last season to continue your pro career. Can you give us an update on how things are going?

Mitch Wahl: I am really enjoying my time here. Sweden is a nice country and has been a great experience. I am located near the southeast in Sweden. I enjoy the hockey culture here. The fans are passionate.

CR: What is your favorite hockey memory from your time growing up in California?

MW: My favorite hockey memory from California is probably playing my last season of minor hockey with the Jr. Kings. It was a very fun and memorable season for me.

We had a great group of players (including AHL players Matt White and Jake Newton and ECHL player Dennis Brown).

CR: Who have been some of your biggest influences?

MW: The biggest influences on me and my hockey career are definitely my parents (Mitch Sr. and Michelle), and all of my family for that matter. Without them, I certainly wouldn’t be able to be where I am today. I am forever grateful to each of them.

CR: When you talk to young players, what advice do you have for them?

MW: The best advice I could give to young players is work very hard, but most importantly have fun and enjoy playing while putting in the work. It makes the hard work a lot easier when you’re really enjoying yourself.

CR: Did you play other sports growing up? Do you still play any of them?

MW: I did play other sports growing up, such as golf. I did and still do surf, a little football and even some basketball, too. But hockey from a young age was always the most important to me though.

CR: Are you particular about any of your gear?

MW: I am extremely particular about my sticks. I need them to be right and feel good.

Length, curve, lie, pattern, etcetera. I need to go to battle with the right weapon.

CR: Do you have a go-to meal when you’re home in California?

MW: The one type of food that I miss very much when I am away is Mexican food.

Obviously in Southern California, it is very good. You can’t really get the genuine Mexican food here in Europe. Super Mex is a go-to spot for me when I get back for the summer.

CR: Did you have a favorite team or player when you were growing up?

MW: My favorite team growing up was definitely the Anaheim Ducks. I went to most of their games as a kid with my dad. I always loved Paul Kariya and Teemu Selanne as players.

CR: If you weren’t a pro hockey player, what do you think you’d be doing?

MW: I would definitely love to pursue golf. It’s definitely a passion of mine. I play as much as possible during the offseason.

CR: What is the most challenging part of playing pro hockey?

MW: As kids, we play strictly because we love the game and it’s fun. At the pro level, it is a business and guys are fighting for their jobs every day and every game. I always try my best to realize that it’s a privilege to play and to enjoy the moment.

- Compiled by Chris Bayee

Photo/David Wall/Denhef Digital

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California Rubber Hockey Magazine

Attracting the very best youth hockey programs under the bright lights of Los Angeles!

LABOR DAY WEEKEND

THANKSGIVING WEEKEND

PRESIDENTS’ DAY WEEKEND

MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND May 26 -29, 2017

Midget Open . 2003 Elite & AAA February 17-20, 2017 2004 Elite & AAA . 2005 Elite & AAA & AAA . 2007 Elite & AAA Application Deadline: January 20, 2017 2006 Elite2008 Elite & AAA November 24 - 27, 2016 2009 Mite Track I (Half Ice) . & II 2010 Mite Track II (Half Ice) .

Wee AA, A, BB, B . Squirt A, BB, B Mite Track I

September 2 - 5, 2016 . Bantam AA, A, B Pee .

Midget 18U AA/A - Midget 16U AA/A High School

For more information, contact tournament director Brian McDonough at (612) 220-4402 or brian@jrkingshockey.com

Registration for our two remaining tournaments is now open!

Tinseltownhockeytournaments.com