Author: chucklevine

In what was his signature game at the junior varsity level, Upper Montgomery junior goaltender Landon Bernard stole the show Wednesday afternoon. His goaltending performance in the Lightning’s game against top ranked Walter Johnson was superb. Bernard stopped 37 of 39 shots on goal including five breakaway chances in Upper Montgomery’s 3-1 loss to the Wildcats. Both Wildcats goals were scored on two additional late third period breakaway chances. The final score was not representative of how the game played out as Upper Montgomery was winning with less than six minutes remaining in the game.

Going into the contest the coaching staff was expecting the game against Walter Johnson to be challenging. The Wildcats had only given up three goals in their four previous games. Upper Montgomery responded by playing better and tougher than they had in several games and that effort is what kept the team in the game in the opening period. Outshot 9-1 in the frame and having to kill off two Wildcats powerplay chances limited the team’s ability to get into the flow of the game. Still, finishing off the first period tied gave the Lightning confidence that they could compete against Walter Johnson.

Upper Montgomery jumped to the lead very early in the second period. Wildcats forward Sam Mayster was called for hooking 19 seconds into the period. The Lightning would capitalize immediately only ten seconds later while on the ensuing powerplay. Steven Shkeda won the faceoff directly behind him in the right faceoff circle. TJ Gottesman nudged the puck back a few feet to the right point. Behr Schickler was able to collect the puck at his defensive position along the blueline. He took one stride to the center of the ice and fired a wrist shot toward the net. The shot deflected off of a Wildcat defender and then Wildcats goalie Joseph Villatoro’s goalie stick. The puck ricocheted up in the air and into the far side of the net. For 9th grade defender Schickler, it was his first career high school goal and put Upper Montgomery in front 1-0.

From there it was the Landon Bernard show. The ice was tilted, and Walter Johnson dominated the rest of the period. Among his 17 saves in the second period, Bernard stopped three Wildcat breakaway chances and he made several additional acrobatic saves. Meanwhile, after Schickler’s goal, Upper Montgomery managed just two shots on goal over the remainder of the period. This included spending time on a short lived 5-3 powerplay opportunity that was wiped out by a tripping penalty called against Lightning defender Cole Howerton.

The Lightning had a powerplay early in the third period as well when Gianluca Megna was called for roughing. Upper Montgomery could not capitalize. As Megna’s penalty was expiring, Shkeda was called for roughing on a good hard back check that should not have been ruled a penalty. The Lightning and Bernard held strong and limited the Wildcats to puck possession around the perimeter and long range shots from the points.

Halfway through the third period Walter Johnson would finally break through against Bernard. Walter Johnson defender Patrick Murphy blocked a Lightning shot attempt deep in the crease area in front of Villatoro. Unassisted, Murphy skated the puck up ice on the right wing. He skated past the Lightning defense and curved in alone on Bernard. A lefty shot, Murphy flicked a wrist shot far post above Bernard’s leg pad and past his blocker to tie up the game.

With 3:07 left in regulation, Wildcats defender Jaden Luskin was called for interference as he tussled with Lightning forward Jason Woodman. The late powerplay was an opportunity for the Lightning regain momentum. Possibly, if they could put a late goal past Villatoro, maybe come away with the upset win.

A weak Wildcat clearing attempt went toward the left point where Howerton had a bead on the puck. As he skated in, he attempted to one time the puck toward the net. In one of those hockey plays, the puck slid under his stick and out into the neutral zone. With Howerton’s momentum heading into the offensive zone, Wildcat forward Megna was heading out of the zone in the same direction as the puck. Megna collected the puck and raced up ice by himself. Lightning defender Jake Roth skated hard up the ice and he tried to impede Megna from getting off a clean shot on Bernard. With Roth bothering him, Megna was still able to get off a backhanded shot that somehow got between Bernard’s glove side and his body. The puck barely tricked over the goal line before Bernard could turn and keep the puck out of the net. The shorthanded goal put the Wildcats in front with 2:09 left in the game.

The late shorthanded goal was demoralizing, but the Lightning kept up the pressure for the second half of the powerplay and continuing with Bernard pulled for the extra attacker. With timing running down, Wildcat defender Lucas Chang was able to gain possession of the puck deep in the Wildcat defensive zone and bang the puck up the right wing boards. Megna won a puck battle at the defensive blue line. He skated up over the red line before shooting from next to the boards into the empty net to seal the Wildcats’ hard fought victory.

The effort from the Lightning junior varsity student athletes was non-stop throughout the entire game. Although more talented, Walter Johnson barely escaped with the victory thanks to Bernard’s performance. The last three games, all against the top teams in the Montgomery Hockey Conference, should prepare Upper Montgomery for the remainder of the schedule which begins this upcoming Sunday versus bottom dweller Churchill. The Lightning will need to avoid complacency and playing down to Churchill’s level. The team needs to bring it right from the start of the game and not let up to rack up the two standings points.

Game Notes:

• The Lightning were badly outshot by the Wildcats by a wide 40-8 margin.
• Behr Schickler scored his first career high school goal, a powerplay goal early in the second period.
• TJ Gottesman extended his personal career high points streak to all five games he has played in this season (5GP, 1G, 6A). His seven points on the season leads the Lightning junior varsity.
• Upper Montgomery killed off all five Wildcat powerplays and has now successfully killed off ten straight opponents’ powerplay opportunities.
• The Upper Montgomery junior varsity next returns to action on Sunday afternoon against lowly Churchill. Game time is 1:30 pm at Laurel Ice Gardens.

Three Stars of the Game:

First Star—Landon Bernard—Upper Montgomery Goalie—37 Saves, 2 GA, .949 Save Percentage
Second Star—Gianluca Megna—Walter Johnson Forward–2 Goals including SH GWG
Third Star—Lucas Chang—Walter Johnson Defense–1 Assist

In a rematch of last season’s junior varsity championship game, the Upper Montgomery Lightning dropped a tight game against the Richard Montgomery Rockets Sunday morning at Wheaton Ice Rink. Absent a consistent offensive attack, the Lightning lost 3-1 after Richard Montgomery scored into an empty net with twenty seconds left to clinch the victory. For the Rockets, it was a measure of revenge after their undefeated season last year was ruined by the Lightning in the junior varsity championship game. Junior goaltender Landon Bernard played well once again stopping 22 of 24 shots. As with the last few games, he was let down by the team’s play in front of him on both Richard Montgomery goals.

The start of the game got off to a sleepy start. Not surprising considering the 9:15 am Sunday morning start time. Richard Montgomery was able to get their legs going first and broke on top a little over three minutes into the game. Off a faceoff in the Lightning defensive zone, the puck was won sideways to the left wing boards by Rockets forward Jack Evans. Connor Rosier sent the puck from the side boards into the low slot on a shot or pass that went right to Jaxson Hartle. Hartle was unguarded at the back post. He had plenty of time, enough to settle the puck and push it into the open far side of the net. Upper Montgomery musted just one shot during the opening period.

In the second period, the Lightning played better and began to take the body more frequently. The game stalemated for most of the period which was mainly played in the neutral zone. Each team failed to convert on their lone powerplay opportunity. Just after the Rockets killed off a tripping penalty to Evans, a defensive breakdown gave the Rockets the break they needed to extend their lead. Evans controlled the puck in the Rockets defensive zone along the left wing boards. He skated up ice and was able to clear the Lightning defense at the offensive zone. He cut toward the net from the left wing boards in alone on Bernard. His forehand shovel shot was a body blow that squirted between Bernard’s glove hand arm and his side, just nudging over the goal line for an unassisted goal.

Two minutes later Upper Montgomery cut the lead in half. Similar to the Rockets first goal, Upper Montgomery scored off of a faceoff from the left wing circle. Stephen Shkeda won the face off to the left wing boards. TJ Gottesman controlled the puck and sent it around the boards behind the net to Shkeda. Shkeda sent a perfect centering pass from the right corner boards out front. Standing alone in the slot was Branson Hughes. Hughes had his stick on the ice and fired a quick snap shot along the ice five hole through the pads of Rockets’ netminder Gregory Saffell to bring Upper Montgomery to within one.

The third period was a quagmire with neither team able to generate many high quality scoring chances. Richard Montgomery had the better of play simply because of two powerplay opportunities over the first half of the third period. The Lightning killed off both penalties with Bernard making a few nice saves to keep the score 2-1. With a late powerplay opportunity of their own, Upper Montgomery was not able to capitalize. Needing to push at the end to tie up the game, the Lightning were not able to generate much offensive flow finishing the third period with just three shots on goal. A late empty net goal scored by the Rockets’ Benjamin Giblin cemented the win for the Richard Montgomery.

The Lightning’s collective team play was much better against Richard Montgomery. The game followed a practice session where the coaching staff focused on body checking, positional play, and being more responsible with the puck. Competing hard against the second place team in the conference was a step in the right direction for the young junior varsity squad. The effort and compete factor will need to ramp up even further for Upper Montgomery in the upcoming week. Next up on the schedule is a non-conference game against Walter Johnson’s top ranked junior varsity team.

Game Notes:

• The Lightning were outshot 25-8 by the Rockets.
• TJ Gottesman extended his personal career high points streak to all four games he has played in this season (4GP, 1G, 5A).
• The Lightning penalty kill had its best performance of the season killing off all three Rockets’ powerplay opportunities.
• The Upper Montgomery junior varsity next returns to action against Walter Johnson in a non-league game on Wednesday afternoon. Game time is 1:45 pm at Rockville Ice Arena.

Three Stars of the Game:

First Star—Jack Evans—Richard Montgomery Forward—GWG Goal, 1 Assist
Second Star—Landon Bernard—Upper Montgomery Goalie—2 GAA, 22 Saves, .917 Save Percentage
Third Star—Jaxson Hartle—Richard Montgomery Forward–1 Goal

The Upper Montgomery Lightning junior varsity dropped their second consecutive game on Tuesday afternoon 4-2 against BCC at Rockville Ice Arena. The game seemed headed toward a tie until a late defensive miscue cost the Lightning a chance at a point. In the non-conference game, BCC controlled play from the outset and Upper Montgomery seemed to be chasing the game for the better part of two and a half periods. Junior goaltender Landon Bernard played well and was let down by the team’s play in front of him.

Halfway through the opening period BCC would score first. On the powerplay with Lightning center and team captain Josh Nadler in the penalty box for high sticking, BCC worked the puck around the perimeter off of a faceoff win in the offensive zone. From the right point, Luke Burns passed the puck across the blue line to Alex Elias at the left point. Elias’s low snap shot was saved by Bernard’s leg pads. The rebound went directly to an unguarded Peter Lanpher just outside the crease and he easily smacked the puck into the open side of the net.

Upper Montgomery battled right back tying the game just 45 seconds later. In a corner battle in the Lightning defensive zone, Cole Howerton knocked the puck free to the side boards where the puck was collected by Henry Honacki. Honacki used his speed to race out of the Lightning defensive zone all the way into the offensive zone. He cut from the left wing boards into the center of the ice. From the top of the circles, Honacki fired a wrist shot by Baron’s netminder, Vivienne Boyle, high to the blocker side for his fourth goal of the season. Upper Montgomery was able to use momentum from that goal combined with a too many skaters on the ice penalty to the Barons to finish the period tied at one. Shots on goal for both teams during the period were low, BCC had five and Upper Montgomery had only two.

The Lightning spent the beginning of the second period on the penalty kill after Nadler was called for a double minor penalty for slashing and roughing. It was a double whammy for Upper Montgomery as the team follows a protocol of sitting student athletes when they have picked up three penalties in a game. This is done to prevent that student athlete from inadvertently taking a fourth penalty within the same game and thus being suspended from the next upcoming game. Losing Nadler for the remainder of the game hurt the team. Line combinations needed to be juggled and Upper Montgomery did not have the services of a high quality center for the final two periods.

On the ensuing powerplay, BCC would strike again. It was their second powerplay goal of the game. On the skater advantage, Barons forward Evan Williams scored the first of what would be his three goals in the game. He took possession of the puck on the side boards and muscled through a check by Honacki skating into the slot area. His first shot was blocked by the Lightning defense, but unluckily the puck bounced right back to him. Bernard had committed to make the initial save and was unable to reposition quickly enough to prevent Williams’s second wrist shot from sliding along the ice into the empty side of the net.

Upper Montgomery was able to kill off the second half of Nadler’s four minutes in the box and another penalty at the beginning of the third period to Howerton for interference. Preventing BCC from scoring another powerplay goal enabled the team to hang around and remain in the game. After a penalty to the Barons Evan Rich for roughing, Upper Montgomery would tie the game with seven and a half minutes left in regulation. Off of a faceoff in the defensive zone, Stephen Shkeda lost the draw a few feet behind the Barons center. TJ Gottesman hustled to the puck and pushed it forward a few feet where Shkeda controlled the puck. He skated the length of the ice into the offensive zone along with Jason Woodman on a two on one break. Shkeda elected to shoot the puck. His shot was saved by Boyle’s leg pads. The rebound caromed directly into the crease where Woodman had charged toward the net. Woodman beat the Barons’ defense and Boyle to the puck pushing a backhanded shot into the net to tie the game and record his first career high school goal.

Shortly thereafter, the Lightning had a golden opportunity to take the lead when Barons forward Michael Butkiewicz was called for high sticking. Unfortunately, the Lightning were unable to mount any significant chances with the extra skater advantage. With just over two minutes remaining in the game, disaster struck.

Williams collected the puck deep in the BCC defensive zone at the right circle after a drop pass from Burns. He skated up the left wing board and avoiding an ill-timed pinch on by a Lightning defender. Then, as he approached the attacking blue line, another Lightning defender was beaten by a head and shoulder fake. Williams found himself on a breakaway from the blue line in alone. He faked a forehand shot and got deeper toward the net before shooting high over Bernard’s glove hand into the top right corner of the net. BCC had the lead with only two minutes left in regulation. The disappointing feeling on the goal was that the Lightning had two of their more experienced defenders on the ice for that shift and both badly misplayed the individual rush up ice by Williams.

With Bernard pulled for the extra skater and time trickling down, Williams would salt away the game with an empty net goal. He was assisted by Benjamin Lyons who started the play by blocking a Lightning shot behind the net and Elias who passed the puck up to Williams who had fled the zone early. Williams skated in uncontested for the tap in hat-trick goal.

The Lightning’s collective team defensive and physical play was lacking. There was too much stick poking and swinging in an attempt to win the puck and transition to offensive play. BCC controlled play as evidenced by the wide margin in their shot advantage for the game, 25-9. Upper Montgomery played too much on the perimeter and did not get into the tough areas of the ice. The schedule for the junior varsity does not ease up. The next two games Upper Montgomery will face off against the top two teams in the Montgomery Hockey Conference, Richard Montgomery and Walter Johnson. Much better efforts will be needed if the Lightning are to be competitive in either game.

Game Notes:

• The Lightning were outshot by the Barons 25-9, including 11-3 in the pivotal third period.
• Jason Woodman scored his first career high school goal, the Lightning’s first powerplay goal of the season.
• Henry Honacki scored his team leading fourth goal of the season.
• TJ Gottesman has a point in all three games he has played in this season.
• The Upper Montgomery junior varsity next returns to action against Richard Montgomery on Sunday morning, December 4th, at 9:15 am at Wheaton Ice Rink for a showdown (and rematch) of last season’s junior varsity title game won by the Lightning.

Three Stars of the Game:

First Star—Evan Williams—BCC Forward—3 Goals
Second Star—Luke Burns—BCC Defense—2 Assists
Third Star—Henry Honacki—Upper Montgomery Center–1 Goal

The Upper Montgomery Lightning junior varsity was wiped out on Friday afternoon by Wootton 9-2 in a game that was not competitive. Upper Montgomery struggled all game long to contain Wootton’s run and gun offensive style. The defense played poorly and left Lightning junior goaltender Landon Bernard out to dry throughout the entire game. Just as troubling was Upper Montgomery’s inability to generate much offense with Wootton not focused at all on the defensive side of the game and with Wootton skater Mitchell Golub playing in goal for the Patriots. It was just Golub second career start in net.

Upper Montgomery mustered just three shots on goal in the first period. No shots on goal during a 1 minute and 29 second 5-3 powerplay. Two defensive breakdowns led directly to both Wootton goals and the Patriots had a 2-0 lead after the first period of play. The second period was just as bad as the Patriots would skate around and past Lightning defenders poking and waiving sticks at the puck. The Patriots played with pace while a stationary Upper Montgomery side watched and chased the Wootton forwards around the ice. The score had jumped to 5-0 with eight minutes remaining in the second period before Upper Montgomery would get one back.

Adam Levine dumped the puck in from center ice to the left corner of the offensive zone. He outraced the Patriots defense and backhanded the puck sharply around the net. The puck deflected off a Wootton defender in the right corner, a sharp change of direction which took the puck over to Henry Honacki at the top of the right faceoff circle. Levine had curled into the slot and set a perfect screen as Honacki sent a wrist shot just past Levine’s legs five hole on Golub to put Upper Montgomery on the board. Off the ensuing faceoff, Honacki and Levine forechecked hard. Honacki’s pressure caused a bad Wootton pass that was intercepted by Levine. Levine sent a smooth pass ahead to Honacki who skated around the defense and sent a sharp, low backhander that amazingly went right into Golub’s glove as the goalie slid across the crease badly out of the play. The Patriots outshot Upper Montgomery 15-4 in the second period, illustrating just how much Wootton had outplayed the Lightning.

In the third period, the Lightning’s substandard play continued as the Patriots scored three more uncontested goals. Chris Hassett was inserted into the game in goal simply to give Bernard a break as the Upper Montgomery position skaters had played so poorly in front of him. One nice moment in the middle of the third period was an outstanding hustle play by senior center Stephen Shkeda. Shkeda lost a faceoff in the left circle of the Lightning defensive zone. He outhustled the Wootton defense to the puck. He skated up ice along the left wing alone against two Wootton defenders. As he entered the offensive zone, he attempted to go wide around the Wootton left defender. As he pulled even with the defender, he fumbled the puck. Battling to regain control of the puck, he was able to get off a shot low to the short side. The puck slid along the ice between Golub’s pad and the near post for an unassisted goal, his first goal of the season.

The Lightning know they will have to play significantly better if they want to be competitive against the top junior varsity teams in the Montgomery Hockey Conference. The team needs better puck movement, better positional play, to be better at taking the body to separate the opposition skaters from the puck, to make better decisions with the puck, to play with more intensity, and to have a better understanding of what is needed to be successful. With that said, it is incredibly hard to win eight straight games in a row so the team needs to quickly put this clunker versus Wootton out of mind.

Game Notes:

• The Lightning were outshot by the Patriots 29-10.
• Henry Honacki scored his team leading third goal of the season.
• The Upper Montgomery power play was 0-5, including a lengthy 5-3 advantage early in the game.
• The Lightning will be looking to bounce back from this poor performance in a non-conference matchup versus the BCC Barons on Tuesday, November 22nd at 2:30 pm at Rockville Ice Arena.

Three Stars of the Game:

First Star—#49—Wootton Forward—5 Goals, 2 Assists
Second Star—Justin Heller—Wootton Forward—1 Goal, 4 Assists
Third Star—Matvei Shaposhnikov—Wootton Forward–2 Goals

The Upper Montgomery Lightning junior varsity increased their winning streak to eight games (dating to last season) with an impressive 4-2 road victory over the Glenelg Gladiators on Monday afternoon. In the non-conference game, Upper Montgomery controlled play from the outset and was never really threatened. Junior goaltender Landon Bernard had one of his easiest outings as Glenelg rarely mustered offensive pressure. The victory keeps the Lightning undefeated on the season with their two consecutive victories to begin the 2022 – 2023 campaign.

Upper Montgomery dominated the first period and could have scored many more goals than just the two late ones that found their way past Gladiators goaltender Gavin Coons. Upper Montgomery possessed the puck in the offensive zone for much of the period but had trouble finishing. It wasn’t until just over two minutes remained in the period that the Lightning were able to finally break through. Patrick Sell took possession of the puck in his defensive zone along the left wing boards. He chipped the puck up the boards to left winger James Hyman, who was just inside the defensive zone blue line. Hyman fired a perfectly timed pass to TJ Gottesman cutting up the middle of the ice from his right wing position. Gottesman received the pass at the red line and powered his way through the neutral zone past both Gladiators defenders coming in alone on a breakaway. Gottesman did not make much of a move, but fired the puck past Coons’ glove hand, up high, for his first goal of the season.

A minute later the Lightning would gain full control of the game. In the defensive zone, Cole Howerton won a race for a loose puck along the right wing boards. He shoveled the puck on to Gottesman at the blue line. Gottesman passed the puck left into the center of the ice to Henry Honacki. The pass was well timed and sprung Honacki on a two on one break with left winger AJ Marks. Honacki’s pass for Marks was just out of his reach and slid into the left wing corner in the offensive zone. Marks won the race to the puck and while being tied up by a Gladiators defender, he kicked the puck loose to Honacki. Honacki brought the puck into the left circle, swung around and fired a wrist shot short side and high, upstairs above Coons’ stick and blocker.

The second period was almost a carbon copy of the first period. Upper Montgomery dominated and spent most of the period in the offensive zone. With many open looks shot high or wide, the Lightning again scored just two goals. Halfway through the second period the Lightning would increase their lead to 3-0. Cole Howerton intercepted a pass in his defensive zone. From his location on the right side of the defensive zone, he advanced the puck to TJ Gottesman. Gottesman skated around a pinching Glenelg defender at the blue line which created another two on one break with Marks. Gottesman carried the puck and entered the offensive zone. He then passed the puck across to Marks. Gottesman’s pass was behind Marks who has to contort his body to bring the puck into shooting position. Once he had control in the mid-slot area, Marks fired a wrist shot high blocker side past Coons.

Glenelg continued to play hard and was able to eventually get one past Bernard on a nice individual play. Stephen Killorin picked up a loose puck at his own blue line and raced up ice. He split in between two Lightning defenders and beat Bernard with a wrist shot high blocker side from in tight. That goal gave Glenelg some life and the Gladiators had a momentary push. However, just 16 seconds before the second period’s conclusion, Upper Montgomery added to their lead. A bad turnover in the defensive zone doomed Glenelg. Honacki intercepted a stretch pass that was headed up the high slot area. He immediately fired a wrist shot five hole past Coons before the goalie could get into position to make the save. For Honacki, it was his first career high school two goal game.

The third period saw the high school goaltending debut of Lightning varsity center Chris Hassett. With only one goaltender in the program, Upper Montgomery needs an emergency goaltender to play in junior varsity games if Bernard is unavailable. Once Hassett entered the game, the Lightning defense began to struggle giving up way too many high quality chances. Hassett made more saves in the third period than Bernard did in his two period of play, including stopping a breakaway and an uncontested shot from the low slot. With five minutes left in the game, Glenelg did score on Hassett to make the game interesting down the stretch. Off of a face off loss in the defensive zone, the Lightning failed to possess or clear the puck. The puck entered the left corner where Dylan Hubbard took possession and began to skate around the net. Before he went around the net, Hubbard passed the puck into the slot to Eliot Horwath. Horwath’s shot beat Hassett along the ice toward the far post and just inside the goal to cut the Upper Montgomery lead to 4-2.

The Lightning’s collective team defensive and skating then took over and prevented Glenelg from having many more good chances, squashing any hope of a Gladiators comeback. A good win for Upper Montgomery, but an effort that the team knows will need to improve as the Lightning face stiffer league competition beginning later this week.

Game Notes:

• The Lightning outshot the Gladiators 34-20 for the game, including 22-9 over the first two periods of play.
• AJ Marks scored his first career high school goal.
• TJ Gottesman set a career high with three points.
• Chris Hassett made his high school goaltending debut stopping 10 of 11 shots in the third period.
• There were no penalties called in the game, a first for the Lightning junior varsity.
• Upper Montgomery junior varsity next returns to action on Friday, November 11 at 4:00 pm for an MHC conference matchup against Wootton at Rockville Ice Arena.

Three Stars of the Game:

First Star—Henry Honacki—Upper Montgomery Center—2 Goals
Second Star—TJ Gottesman—Upper Montgomery Forward—1 Goal, 2 Assists
Third Star—AJ Marks—Upper Montgomery Forward–1 Goal, 1 Assist