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Upper Montgomery Lightning 2021-2022 Season End Coaches Report

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The 2021-2022 high school ice hockey season is now complete. The Upper Montgomery Lightning coaching staff took some time to reflect on the program’s progress this season and they look ahead to the upcoming 2022 – 2023 season.

Question—What are your thoughts on the second half of the season and how the season concluded?  How would you evaluate the Upper Montgomery Lightning hockey program at the conclusion of the 2021-2022 season?

Answer—Overall, the coaches are very happy with how the season went and we are excited about the direction of the program.  The varsity squad qualified for the Montgomery Hockey Conference Division 1 playoffs for the first time in program history and competed toe-to-toe with a very good and more experienced Richard Montgomery team.  Similarly, in the Montgomery Hockey Conference Division 2 playoffs a senior laden Wootton team was just a bit better at the end of the game. Even though the outcome was not what we had hoped for, the team showed they can compete with some of the best teams in the county.  We may not yet have the most talent in the league and we may not have the most depth in the league, but we outworked many of the teams we played and made the league take notice of Upper Montgomery.

Question—And for the junior varsity?  

Answer—The results speak for themself.  Montgomery Hockey Conference Junior Varsity Champions in only the second year the program has fielded a junior varsity team.  The junior varsity played well during the regular season, but admittedly most of the teams in the conference did not pull down from varsity their better junior varsity eligible student athletes.  When we watched the junior varsity playoff game before we took on Northwest in the first round of the playoffs, we immediately noticed that those teams pulled down everyone eligible. The pace of the playoff games were much faster and more physical.  While we also pulled down a couple of student athletes from varsity who were junior varsity eligible, everyone picked up their play throughout the playoffs.  Even though our varsity players helped control the pace of the games and played great, seven of the nine goals that we scored in the junior varsity playoffs were scored by student athletes who primarily played junior varsity.  The entire junior varsity playoffs were a great team effort from all our student athletes.

Question—What does winning the Montgomery Hockey Conference Junior Varsity Championship mean to the program?

Answer— Winning the Junior Varsity Championship means the world to everyone; the student athletes, the program, the coaches, parents, family and friends, alumni, you name it.  Our hope is that how the team came together and competed shows our student athletes (and all of the future incoming student athletes) that hard work and playing together as a team is imperative to becoming a consistent winning program.  The coaches couldn’t be happier with how well the team played.  One of the goals of the coaches since we took over was giving these young men and women that “high school experience”.  In the junior varsity championship game, they were able to play in front of a good crowd, not only parents and family members, but also groups of classmates from their schools who showed up to cheer them on.  There is a different feeling playing for your school and your classmates. Then, celebrating a championship is something these student athletes will remember for the rest of their lives.  Winning the junior varsity championship was important for the program, but the everlasting memory for our student athletes was even more important.

Question—What areas of the team or team play need the biggest improvement and focus over the summer months for the team to continue its development next season?

Answer—Varsity level student athletes need to continue to work on improving their skating, their overall knowledge of the game, and their conditioning throughout the spring and summer.  It will be important for varsity student athletes to begin the fall being in shape, stronger, and better on the ice. This way, we can focus more on team/zone concepts during practice once we get back on the ice as a team in the fall.  Our practice time on the ice is very limited, so we cannot afford to spend too much time working on getting the student athletes back into shape and re-teaching the basics.  We need to focus on defensive zone coverages, breakouts, offensive zone entry, offensive zone positioning, penalty kill, and power play, and we can only do so if the student athletes hit the ice in the fall ready to play.

Question—And for the junior varsity?

Answer—Skating, skating, and more skating. The legs feed the wolves.  The best way for our junior varsity student athletes to make noticeable improvements in their game is to improve their skating.  Our team concepts of aggressively pursuing the puck defensively and pushing the puck up the ice with movement in the offensive zone requires our student athletes to be able to skate effectively.  Some improvement will come by spending more time on the ice practicing their edges, crossovers, and things they are not as comfortable with, but they can also improve their conditioning, getting stronger, and working on their foot speed off the ice.  Student athletes who are willing to put in the time will notice the difference once we hit the ice again in the fall.

Question—What can student athletes do to prepare themselves for next season?

Answer— Work hard on and off the ice.  It is important for the student athletes to get away from the game some to re-energize.  Several of our student athletes have turned to lacrosse this off-season.  Lacrosse is a great cross-over sport as there are many of the same concepts as there are in ice hockey and it is great for conditioning and footwork.  Several student athletes who had never picked up a lacrosse stick before a couple of months ago were able to make their high school junior varsity or varsity lacrosse teams.  Most high school teams in the area need lacrosse players so even if you haven’t played before, think about trying out for your high school lacrosse team next spring.  We have student athletes that play for Seneca Valley, Clarksburg, Damascus, and Gaithersburg high schools so more than likely you will know someone on your team.  Other members of the program have joined their high school track team to get in better shape and to get faster.  Over the summer, put in the work.  Stay in shape and go running regularly.  Work on your foot speed, do short sprints, ladder drills, cone drills, etc..  Get stronger.  You don’t need to go to the gym and lift heavy weights.  Do pushups, squats, situps, planks, and jump rope.  Here is the key though, you cannot do this once a week or wait until the summer is almost over to start.  Start now and put in the effort several times a week throughout the off-season and you will notice the difference.

Question—For those rising 9th grade student athletes and other student athletes currently in middle school who will come into the program over the next several years, what are they able to do to connect with the team?  Are there any skills development that they should be working on as they play over the next couple of years?

Answer—Attend as many Upper Montgomery team activities as you can.  We start off with spring hockey which is a good time to come out and meet and play with your new teammates.  Coach Todd offers an inexpensive summer high school boot camp.  The Premier Hockey Camp is completely optional, but it is another great way to get in work on the ice and off the ice with many of their new teammates over the summer.  Starting in mid-August the team starts with off-ice workouts twice a week. The program reserves the roller hockey rink at Ridge Road for a couple of these workout dates to go over basic zone coverages, breakouts, zone entries, etc.. so these are really important for the younger student athletes.  Read through the team playbook that was provided to all student athletes.  There are concepts that you need to know and the coaching staff does not have a lot of time on the ice to be walking through the basics.  Skills development is always important whether it is working on your skating, edges, stick handling, passing, shooting, etc.. and you can work on these skills on your own or through clinics, but the most important detail is that you give 100% every time you are working out and really push yourself.  Don’t go through the motions and expect big changes.  Put in the time and effort.

Question—What are the team’s realistic and stretch goals for next season?

Answer—This is a hard question as there are so many different variables to consider.  Some of the historically great upper teams in the county like Churchill, BCC, and Walter Johnson are losing many seniors, but these programs have deep teams and seem to fill these voids each season.  Some of the better teams in the lower division like Quince Orchard, Blair, and Rockville/Magruder aren’t graduating many student athletes and their higher talented student athletes will be seniors next year.  We are returning almost the entire varsity team from last year and these student athletes will be a year older, stronger, and better. In addition, we have some incoming 9th grade student athletes that will be able to immediately help out on varsity.  The coaches would like to see progress in our program each season.  It is no longer a successful season just to qualify for the division one playoffs. We are striving to advance in the playoffs.

This could mean making it past the first round of the division one or division two playoffs. We are also looking for the progress we can see and feel out on the ice.  Two years ago, we were in most games. But in reality, that was due to having Jonas Clark in net.  We worked hard, but the other teams normally controlled the games with their better talent.  This past season, we competed hard and played well going toe-to-toe with some of the better teams in the county. We often controlled play for long stretches of the game, but it seemed the other teams were able to take advantage of one or two good opportunities while we were not able to capitalize on our chances. This was often the difference in the games we lost.  Next year, it is time to take the next step, to be able to compete with all the teams in the county and be the team that takes advantage of these opportunities rather than giving them up. We want to beat some of the upper teams in the county next season.  We all want to win more and make it further in the playoffs but judging progress solely on wins and loses can be difficult.  Overall, our record this year was similar to our record two years ago, but this past season’s team played so much better and competed at a much higher level. Next season, we will again be looking for the team to take another step forward in that progression.

Question—And for the junior varsity?

Answer—The obvious answer is to win a second straight junior varsity championship, but it is hard when you set the bar that high and there are many variables that go into play.  No team will look past us next year. They will all give us their best shot.  It looks like we will have more junior varsity level student athletes next year. More of our varsity student athletes will play a higher level of travel hockey and will not be junior varsity eligible next season. The progress the coaches will be looking for is for our junior varsity level student athletes to step up, help control the games like our more experienced roster did this past year, and to still be able to compete at a high level. When the junior varsity playoffs begin, we want to make a run at another championship.

Lightning Junior Varsity Dominate Rockville/Blair

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The Upper Montgomery Lightning junior varsity played their most complete game of the season Monday evening in beating the Rockville/Blair Rams 6-2 at Cabin John Ice Rink. The Rams entered the game in second place in the Montgomery Hockey Conference junior varsity standings, but were badly outplayed by Upper Montgomery from the opening faceoff. With the victory the Lightning improve to 3-4-2 on the season and 3-3 in conference play.

After controlling play for the first five minutes of the game, the Lightning went shorthanded after a roughing penalty to Greg Felder. However, it was Upper Montgomery that capitalized. Joshua Miller controlled the puck along the left wing boards in the defensive zone and sped up ice past the defense in alone on a breakaway. He deked Rams goalie Lily Bendavid and scored easily on the forehand for his team leading fifth goal of the season. The Lightning killed off the balance of the penalty to extend their excellent penalty kill to 22-24 on the season.

Three minutes later the Lightning were again on the penalty kill after an interference penalty to George Benedick. This time the Rams broke through and tied the game. Jackson Martindill released a shot from the right circle that was saved by Landon Bernard. The rebound bounced into the slot where Ari Gardner snapped a quick shot past Bernard far side into the open net. The score would not stay tied for long. Just 34 seconds later on the next shift, the Lightning would re-take the lead. Bradley Cupples advanced the puck from his left defense position to Brandon Bernard in center ice. Bernard skated the puck down the right wing boards into the offensive zone and whipped the puck from along the right wing boards toward the net. Before Bendavid could get to the puck, the stick of Lucas Eyman got there first. Eyman who had skated hard into the zone on the left wing side, made a bee-line to the back post and he knocked the puck along the ice past Bendavid for his first goal of the season.

A minute and a half later the lead grew to 3-1. TJ Gottesman passed the puck over to Brandon Bernard who quickly shot the puck from the right wing circle to the net. Bendavid made the save but was beaten to the puck by James Hyman who crashed the net looking for a rebound and was rewarded with his second goal of the season. The Rams closed out the entertaining first period with a late goal with 25 seconds left in the period. George Marcolin skated from his defensive position into the middle of the ice and entered the Lightning defensive zone. His long-range shot was saved by Bernard but William Martindale collected the rebound in the left faceoff circle and his quick shot beat Bernard before he could locate the puck and get back into position. The shorthanded goal was the fourth shorthanded goal given up by the Lightning this season and gave the Rams a lift entering the second period.

The second period was dominated by the Lightning. Although the shots on goal in the period were 6-2 in favor of the Lightning, Upper Montgomery controlled the play. An early unassisted goal by Bradley Cupples again gave the Lightning a two goal lead. Cupples collected the puck in the defensive zone and skated solo up ice around three Rams defenders and beat Bendavid with a wrist shot from in close for his second goal of the season. With three and a half minutes left in the second period Brandon Bernard was called for roughing. The Upper Montgomery penalty kill foursome of Josh Nadler, Adam Levine, Andrew Gean, and George Benedick controlled the play for the entire penalty kill and did not allow the Rams to gain possession of the puck. The one, three penalty kill set up kept control of the puck with dump ins and puck retrievals and cycles for the entire two minute shorthanded situation.

The third period was again controlled by the Lightning with the Rams mustering only four shots on net in their attempted comeback. Three minutes into the third period Upper Montgomery would extend the lead to 5-2 and end the competitive portion of the game. Joshua Miller had control of the puck along the left wing boards in the offensive zone. His contested shot toward the net glanced off of Jordan Lynch in the slot and bounded over to the right wing faceoff circle where it went directly onto the stick of Henry Honacki. Honacki’s wrist shot beat Bendavid high stick side for his second goal of the season. As the game wound down, the Lightning kept up the pressure. Cupples finished out the scoring with another unassisted goal, similar to his tally at the beginning of the second period. Cupples had the puck deep in the defensive zone. He skated up ice through the neutral zone and into the Rams’ defensive zone. He stopped at the top of the faceoff circles and fired a sharp wrist shot from the mid-slot area that Bendavid had no chance of saving. For Upper Montgomery it was by far their most complete game of the season. The coaching staff will be looking for the team to use this game as a springboard toward the playoffs and to continue to play with confidence.

Game Notes:

  • The Lightning outshot Rockville 27-17 and gave up only six shots on net in the final two periods of the game.
  • The Lightning have scored 11 goals in their last two games.
  • The Lightning again gave up a shorthanded goal, their fourth shorthanded goal against in nine games.
  • Joshua Miller scored his team leading fifth goal of the season.
  • Jordan Lynch had an assist, her first career high school point.
  • The Lightning will look to continue their hot play of late on Sunday night, January 23rd when the team travels to Frederick to take on the Northwest Jaguars. Game time is 7:20 pm.

Three Stars of the Game:

First Star—Bradley Cupples—Upper Montgomery Center—2 Goals, 1 Assist
Second Star—Joshua Miller—Upper Montgomery Forward–-1 Goal, 1 Assist
Third Star—Lucas Eyman—Upper Montgomery Forward—1 Goal

Lightning Strike Blog—March 2022

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The Upper Montgomery Lightning hockey program begins spring league play tomorrow. It will be an opportunity for the coaching staff to take a look at some different line combinations and defensive pairings ahead of fall practices and to see where some of the new student athletes are at. The Rockville Ice Arena High School Spring League is a great way for the student athletes not participating in another high school spring sport to continue to work on their game and develop their individual skills in a competitive team environment. Upper Montgomery has nine new student athletes joining the program for the spring 2022 season.

For the first time in program history Upper Montgomery will have two teams competing; Team Green and Team White. The teams are relatively evenly split with varsity and junior varsity student athletes playing on both teams. All levels of talent AAA / AA through house / rec play together and the age ranges are high school seniors through next year’s rising 9th graders. The league is structured as a way for the student athletes to have fun in a safe environment as there is absolutely no checking allowed during the spring season.

The Upper Montgomery Lightning are proud to recognize and honor the 18 Lightning student athletes who will be awarded the Maryland Student Hockey League Academic Achievement Award at the team’s end of season party in early May. These 18 student athletes exemplify what it is to be a student athlete, excellence in the classroom and high character. The award is given to a student athlete competing in high school ice hockey who has a weighted grade point average of 3.50 or higher during the first semester of each season. Five student athletes—Andrew Botti, James Botti, Nathan Cassel, Henry Honacki, and Olivia Robbins earned straight A’s. Congratulations to all on your excellent academic performance!

Congratulations also go out to the Churchill Bulldogs of Montgomery Hockey Conference for winning their 10th state championship with a 3-2 double overtime victory over Oakdale in a memorable state final. Depending upon which team a spectator was rooting for, it was either a thrilling victory or a crushing defeat. Churchill forced overtime with a six on five pulled goalie goal with just 13.1 seconds remaining in the third period. For Churchill fans, it was a brilliant faceoff play that led to the tying goal. For Oakdale, it will forever be viewed as an absolutely catastrophic failure in defensive coverage seconds away from an upset victory in the state championship game. Also, a shout out to the Blair Blazers for winning the Montgomery Hockey Conference division two championship with a 6-5 victory over the Whitman Vikings.

Lightning Strike Blog—February 2022

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The Upper Montgomery Lightning hockey program made major strides during the 2021-2022 high school hockey season. The coaching staff is extremely pleased with the team’s accomplishments and big achievements are in store for the program moving forward. This season the program had one objective—that the varsity team qualifying for the Montgomery Hockey Conference division one post season playoff tournament. The program had never before qualified for the division one playoff tournament.

Not only did the team qualify for the division one playoffs, earning the 10th seed out of the 12 teams that qualified, it battled Richard Montgomery all game before falling 4-2. In the division two playoffs, the Upper Montgomery jumped out to an early two goal lead and were tied with perennial hockey power Wootton 3-3 with six minutes left in the game before succumbing late. The young Lightning will be losing only three seniors to graduation and the team is trending upward. Next season, expect the goals for the team to be much loftier. The coaching staff will be looking for the experiences of this season to carry over. With an entire (fingers crossed) COVID free offseason, Upper Montgomery should be poised to take another giant leap forward in the fall of 2022.

Congratulations go out to the Churchill Bulldogs, Walter Johnson Wildcats, St. John’s Cadets, and Quince Orchard Cougars who were the four Montgomery County teams who made the Maryland Student Hockey League state playoffs. Also, a shout out to the Blair Blazers for winning the Montgomery Hockey Conference division two championship with a 6-5 victory over the Whitman Vikings.

The Lightning offense was led all year by the first line of Chris Hassett (15 GP, 17 goals, 16 assists), Ryan Jacobson (11 GP, 7 goals, 10 assists), and Nathan Cassel (12 GP, 11 goals, 6 assists). All three student athletes are in 9th or 10th grade. The future is very bright for this trio. Depth scoring is an area of immediate need for the team next season. The second line started to find its scoring touch later on in the season. Hunter Cameron had (15 GP, 6 goals, 7 assists) and Bradley Cupples (15 GP, 1 goal, 11 assists). Against the top tier division one teams, the Lightning found it more difficult to find the back of the net.

On defense, James Botti led the group offensively with (13 GP, 5 goals, 10 assists). Through 2/3rds of the season, the Lightning had given up the fewest goals in the Montgomery Hockey Conference, thanks in part to the stellar play of Will Mellen in net. One of the primary reasons for the five game winning streak in the middle of the season was the Upper Montgomery penalty kill which was excellent during the regular season, killing off 44 of the 48 opponents’ powerplays, 91.7%. In the playoffs, the penalty kill fell off somewhat. Along with James Botti, George Benedick, Ethan Hockey, Andrew Gean, and Andrew Botti worked hard in the defensive zone to limit the opposition from getting many high danger scoring opportunities. The team found an identity when they clogged up the ice and mucked up the game making it difficult for teams to get many good looks at the net. In games that were played with more of an up and down the ice style of play, the young Lightning struggled against AAA travel level senior and junior student athletes.

Three Upper Montgomery Lightning student athletes were recognized by the conference for their outstanding play this past season. Andrew Botti, 9th grade defender and Will Mellen, sophomore goaltender were both named to the Montgomery Hockey Conference 2nd team division two team. Chris Hassett was an honorable mention at the forward position.

In an unexpected development, the Upper Montgomery Lightning junior varsity completed a turnaround for the ages. Finishing dead last in the Montgomery Hockey Conference junior varsity standings last season in its first year of existence, the team was looking to play competitive hockey this year against the more established programs. After battling to a 2-4-2 record over the first half of the season and hovering in the middle of the conference standings, Lightning struck. The team found some additional offensive firepower and won its final three regular season games. The hot finish to the season landed the junior varsity in second place in the conference standings by virtue of a tiebreaker over Rockville/Blair. Three inspiring playoff performances later (a come from behind shootout win over Northwest in the quarterfinals, easily handling Rockville/Blair 6-2 in the semi-finals after falling behind early in the contest, and then the program defining 2-1 win over undefeated (10-0), top seed Richard Montgomery in the final and the Upper Montgomery Lightning were the 2021-2022 Montgomery Hockey Conference Junior Varsity CHAMPIONS!!!

The offensive leaders for the junior varsity were Brandon Bernard (13 GP, 6 goals, 9 assists), Joshua Miller (14 GP, 8 goals, 4 assists), Bradley Cupples (10 GP, 6 goals, 6 assists), and Josh Nadler (12 GP, 5 goals, 2 assists). Landon Bernard had a terrific second half of the season and finished with an outstanding 2.69 goals against average. The team received depth scoring from James Hyman, Lucas Eyman, and Henry Honacki who were all integral parts of the team. Adam Levine scored two incredibly important goals in the playoffs, the Lightning’s first goal of game in both the semi-final game and then again in the championship final. Cole Howerton, Patrick Sell, Andrew Gean and Stephen Shkeda formed a defensive core that gave up only eight goals over the final six games of the regular season. As the season continued, the team got better and better and played more as a team and for each other. The goal will be to ramp it up right from the start of next season in an attempt to defend the title.

Lightning Junior Varsity Wins 2021-2022 Montgomery Hockey Conference Championship.

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The Upper Montgomery Lightning defeated top seeded and undefeated Richard Montgomery 2-1 at Laurel Ice Gardens in the Montgomery Hockey Conference junior varsity championship game. The win completes a stunning turnaround from last season when the Lightning finished dead last in the conference standings and were not very competitive. This year, the Upper Montgomery Lightning are CHAMPIONS!

Upper Montgomery was a heavy underdog coming into the game to Richard Montgomery even while finishing second in the regular season conference standings. The Rockets had blown through the regular season and their first two playoff games to arrive at the championship final with a 10-0 record and having outscored their opponents 53-12. It was clear from the beginning of the game that the Lightning would not be intimidated. The Lightning competed all over the ice and did not allow Richard Montgomery many good scoring opportunities. A rather uneventful first period ended with no score and low shot totals for both teams. The feel of the game was that the first goal would be critical to deciding the eventual champion.

As the game went along in the second period, Upper Montgomery continued to gain confidence. After a failed powerplay opportunity, Upper Montgomery would score first in what would be the monumental moment of the game. Lightning defender Geroge Benedick controlled the puck in the offensive zone. While skating left, he passed the puck deep into the left corner to Bradley Cupples. Adam Levine who had been covering for Benedick at the right point, broke down the center of the slot and received a nice pass in stride from Cupples. He shot low, stick side back across where Rockets’ netminder Ian Hutchinson has just moved across the goal crease. Levine’s shot slid just inside the left post giving Upper Montgomery the lead late in the second period.

With just over five minutes left in the game, the Lightning would receive a very important insurance goal. Stephen Shkeda kept the puck in the zone at the left point. He fired a wrist shot at the net. It appeared to be a harmless shot that Hutchinson was following all the way in. As the puck went past him in the faceoff circle, Joshua Miller stuck his stick out waist high and deflected the puck. The trajectory of the shot changed just enough that the puck floated over the catching glove of Hutchinson and into the top right corner of the net. Now up 2-0, Upper Montgomery faced a very nerve wracking five plus minutes of high drama.

Richard Montgomery turned up the pressure and was able to cut the lead to 2-1 with 3:22 left in the game. Tyler Senko found the puck loose in a pig pile in front of the crease and fired it past Landon Bernard (19 saves, .950 save percentage, one goal allowed). The final three minutes of the game were intense with Richard Montgomery pressing to score the tying goal. Upper Montgomery forwards and defenders were sliding all over the ice giving everything they had to get the puck across the blue line out of the defensive zone. Once at the red line with possession, pucks were dumped deep into the Rockets end of the ice. With 47 seconds left, Richard Montgomery pulled Hutchinson for an extra skater. Upper Montgomery continued to defend and prevented the Rockets from getting good looks at the net. One last clearing effort into the neutral zone as the clock reached zero coincided with the Lightning streaming off the bench. Sticks and gloves were thrown into the air as they swarmed around Bernard celebrating the first championship in Upper Montgomery history.

Wootton—Division Two Playoff—Quarterfinal Game Preview

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The Upper Montgomery Lightning face off against division one foe Wootton on Friday evening in a quarterfinal game in the division two playoffs. Game time is 6:00 pm at Rockville Ice Arena. Upper Montgomery has never beaten Wootton but has a very good chance on Friday as Wootton is not nearly as formidable as they have been in past seasons. Expect a very close game as the Lightning try and advance to next week’s semi-final round against the winner of Blair versus Northwest, likely Blair.

Upper Montgomery will be looking to end a five game losing streak with each loss coming against a division one opponent or a higher caliber opponent in the case of the recent game against Washington County. All of the pressure is squarely on the Patriots who have never before played down in the division two playoff tournament. A loss to Upper Montgomery would render this season a total loss for the Patriots who are former three time state champions. The young Lightning should be able to play free and loose as all of the prognosticators are picking Wootton to easily win and advance to play Blair next week for a spot in the division two championship game. Wootton clearly boasts a more experienced lineup with 14 seniors, but something with the chemistry of the lineup has prevented the Patriots from excelling this season. The Patriots come into the game with a record of 4-8-2 after opening the season with three consecutive victories. Upper Montgomery enters the game with a record of 5-8-1.

The Lightning are expected to start Landon Bernard in net. Bernard is fresh off of leading the Upper Montgomery junior varsity to the Montgomery Hockey Conference championship. He has one career varsity win but has been playing the best hockey of his high school career. Wootton will start senior AA level travel netminder Julien Piche. Piche has a 4-3-1 record on the season and a 3.88 gaa. His play in net is much better than his individual statistics represent, and Upper Montgomery will need to work extremely hard create enough high quality scoring chances to beat Piche. Routine shots on goal will not be good enough.

On defense Upper Montgomery will need to be careful of Wootton’s speedy forwards. The Lightning defense can’t get caught flat footed or pinching in at the blue line. Wootton’s forwards are too fast and will skate around the defense into odd numbered rushes up ice. The defense will have to quickly pass the puck up to the forwards for quick zone exits with little individual stick handling or skating with the puck. The forwards will have to work hard and play complementary defense coming back into the defensive zone to help negate the Patriots’ scoring chances. If Upper Montgomery can muck up the game and smother the Patriots, it will even the age gap and talent difference. The Patriots have three main scoring threats; Nathan Barrow, a student athlete who plays AAA level travel hockey, (10 GP, 10 goals and 6 assists), Conor Harris, a student athlete who plays AA level travel hockey (13 GP, 10 goals, 6 assists), and IIhom Abdulaev, a student athlete who plays AA level travel hockey, (9 GP, 2 goals, 6 assists). Senior James Botti will be looking to extend his career with the Lightning and experienced defenders George Benedick and Ethan Hockey and 9th grade defender Andrew Botti will all see a lot of ice time. In a precursor of what might be next season, Stephen Shkeda will also play back on defense against Wootton.

In four of the last five games the Lightning’s offense has been non-existent, scoring a total of ten total goals in those five games. Breaking the scoring drought will be an even bigger task on Friday night as Upper Montgomery will be playing without high scoring forward Ryan Jacobson who will miss the game. The hope is that the Lightning are able to get a few more past Piche by pressuring the Patriots into turnovers or beating the back checking forwards up ice creating odd numbered rush situations. The top line will be Chris Hassett (14 GP, 15 goals, 16 assists), Nathan Cassel (11 GP, 11 goals, 6 assists), with maybe James Botti (12 GP, 4 goals, 10 assists) skating some shifts at forward…. The second line will feature Bradley Cupples (14 GP, 1 goal, 11 assists), centering Hunter Cameron (14 GP, 5 goals, 7 assists), and Olivia Robbins (10 GP, 1 goal, 3 assists). On the third line, expect Brandon Bernard to center Josh Nadler and a rotation of depth forwards. Depending upon the flow of the game, it is likely that the first and second lines may get double shifted with a few shifts picked up by other forwards.

An Upper Montgomery win versus Wootton would be a signature victory for the Lightning program. It would be a major upset and a breakthrough statement to all programs in the Montgomery Hockey Conference. Good things are on the horizon for the program. The Lightning hope to continue to play smothering defense on Friday night in an effort that would move the team into the semi-finals of the division two championship tournament and another game next Friday night at Cabin John Ice Rink.

Junior Varsity Richard Montgomery Championship Game Preview

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The Upper Montgomery Lightning junior varsity will be playing for the Montgomery Hockey Conference (MHC) championship on Thursday afternoon versus the undefeated and heavily favored Richard Montgomery Rockets. Game time is 4:15 pm at the Laurel Ice Gardens. The championship will be a rematch of a game from early November won by the Rockets 5-2, in a game that was closer than the final score would indicate.

Richard Montgomery has had an incredible season. Undefeated at 10-0 and outscoring opponents by a margin of 53-12, the Rockets appear to be unstoppable. However, lately during the playoffs, their games have become tighter. The Rockets will start junior netminder Ian Hutchinson in goal. Hutchinson gave up two goals in four regular season games playing to a paltry 0.83 gaa and a .952 save percentage. In the playoffs, he gave up two goals to Quince Orchard/Sherwood before shutting out Whitman. He has been a stalwart in net all season.

The Rockets will dress seven skaters who also play regular minutes for the Richard Montgomery varsity squad. The Rockets will dress four seniors, six juniors, and five sophomores. Led on offense by Nicholas Saffell (9 GP, 8 G, 4 A), Tyler Senko (8 GP, 5 G, 8 A), and Jaxson Hartle (8 GP, 5 G, 6 A) the Rockets led the MHC in goals with their 53 tallies. On defense, the Rockets have no shortage of talent in Noe Masurel (8 GP, 8 G, 1 A) and John Yang (7 GP, 5 G, 2 A). Jack Evans was second on the team with seven assists in seven games. Upper Montgomery is going to have to figure out a way to slow down this juggernaut.

The Lightning are coming into the championship game on a five game winning streak and have not lost since prior to the winter holiday when they lost to Wootton 1-0. It was a game in which Wootton played an ineligible varsity goalie. Key to the Lightning’s recent run has been a complete team defensive effort that has given up only seven goals in those five games. Landon Bernard has played very well in net of late. He has a Maryland Student Hockey League leading seven wins this season. He comes into the game with a 2.81 gaa and an .875 save percentage. He will need to play outstanding once again and outduel Hutchinson for the Lightning to have a chance at the upset victory.

On defense, the Lightning will have experience to go along with youth. George Benedick, Ethan Hockey, Andrew Gean, and Stephen Shkeda will join regulars Cole Howerton and Patrick Sell on the blueline. The defense should be able to skate with the Rockets and should have no issues keeping up with the pace of play. The pairings will likely be Benedick with Sell, Hockey with Howerton, and Gean with Shkeda. In the semi-final game versus Rockville, Sell set an Upper Montgomery program record with four assists and tied the junior varsity program record with four points.

On offense the Lightning will likely start the game with the same line combinations as yesterday. Expect the coaching staff to shorten the bench late in the game as the score dictates. Brandon Bernard (12 GP, 6 G, 9A) will center Adam Levine and Henry Honacki. Bradley Cupples (9 GP, 6 G, 5 A) will center James Hyman (13 GP, 3 G, 3 A), and Joshua Miller (13 GP, 7 G, 4 A). Josh Nadler (11 GP, 5 G, 2 A) will center Adarsh Nair and Lucas Eyman/TJ Gottesman. All three lines scored yesterday, with the first and second line putting multiple goals behind Rockville/Blair goalie Sean Connelly. It may be an unlikely source from the forward group that provides the depth scoring that the team has needed all season.

The keys to the game may turn out to be special teams play. On the penalty kill the Lightning have excelled all season killing off 41 of 46 opponents’ powerplay opportunities, good for an 89.1% kill rate. The team has also scored five shorthanded goals matching the number of powerplay goals given up. As good as the penalty kill has been, the powerplay has been absolutely downright terrible. Upper Montgomery has converted just 3 of 42 powerplay opportunities for a 7.1% success rate. The team has given up four shorthanded goals this season, so they are a net minus one while playing with an additional skater.

Tomorrow’s game should be an exciting nail bitter. The Rockets will be looking to cap off an undefeated season with a championship. Upper Montgomery will be looking accomplish a first; going from last place in the league standings last season during its inaugural campaign to league champions in just its second season. The longer the game stays tight, the more confidence the Lightning will have. Getting the first goal will be ultra critical in what will likely be a low scoring and dramatic contest. Tune in tomorrow afternoon where a champion will be crowned.

Lightning Junior Varsity Advances to Championship Game with Dominating Win Over Rockville/Blair

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The Upper Montgomery Lightning junior varsity advanced to the Montgomery Hockey Conference junior varsity championship game with a dominating 6-2 win over Rockville/Blair on Wednesday. The Lightning will play undefeated and highly favored Richard Montgomery tomorrow afternoon at Laurel Ice Gardens. Game time is early at 4:15 pm.

After falling behind early on a fluky goal, the Lightning roared back with a complete team effort. Six different student athletes scored goals and only three student athletes had more than one point; Joshua Miller with one goal and two assists, Adam Levine with one goal and one assist, and Patrick Sell setting an Upper Montgomery program record with four assists.

Levine started the onslaught with a wrist shot from the lower portion of the left wing faceoff circle. Three minutes later James Hyman tapped in a rebound that snuck behind Rockville/Blair netminder Sean Connelly. Just before the end of the period Brandon Bernard followed with a wrist shot from the top of the slot that beat Connelly high stick side. With the majority of play in the offensive zone, at the end of the first period the Lightning had a 3-1 advantage and were outshooting Rockville/Blair 10-2.

Upper Montgomery extended the lead to 4-1 early in the second period when Bradley Cupples knocked in a rebound off of a Joshua Miller semi-breakaway. For the rest of the second period, the Lightning played responsible defensive hockey. Landon Bernard did not face many high quality scoring chances throughout the entire game.

After an early Rockville/Blair goal to start the third period, the Lightning caught a break as Patrick Sell’s wrist shot from the point hit TJ Gottesman in the back. Somehow, the puck tricked over Gottesman’s shoulder and into the net to provide Upper Montgomery some breathing room with nine minutes left in the game. A late goal by Joshua Miller provided the final margin of victory in a game that showcased how well the junior varsity progressed from the beginning of the season. Tomorrow, the biggest challenge awaits the team in the championship game, finding a way to conquer the Richard Montgomery Rockets who have outscored their opponents 53-12 on the season on the way to their 10-0 undefeated record.

Junior Varsity Rockville/Blair Semi-Final Round Playoff Game Preview

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After a thrilling shootout victory over the Northwest Jaguars in the quarterfinal round of the junior varsity playoffs, the Upper Montgomery Lightning will host third seeded Rockville/Blair on Wednesday evening at Laurel Ice Gardens. By virtue of its 6-2 victory over Rockville/Blair in mid-January, Upper Montgomery won the tie-break over Rockville/Blair and finished the regular season in second place in the conference standings. The win also determined which team would be the home team if they met in the playoffs. As the home team, the Lightning will have last line change and will be able to create the matchups that the coaching staff believes will give the team an advantage.

Upper Montgomery has been playing its best hockey of the season since the start of January. The team won its last three games of the regular season with convincing victories over Rockville, Northwest, and Churchill. The Lightning then again prevailed over Northwest in a gritty and hard fought defensive smothering in last week’s 2-1 shootout victory in the quarterfinals. Upper Montgomery finished the regular season with a 5-3 conference record and now has a 6-4-2 overall record. The team is guaranteed a final record over .500 when the season concludes, a sharp turnaround from last season’s 1-6-1 record in its first year of existence. But, beware, the talent level in junior varsity is very close and winning games often comes down to which team executes and plays better in that particular game. Wednesday’s semi-final game against Rockville/Blair will be no different.

In net for the Lightning will be Landon Bernard who is in the middle of a stretch where he is playing the best hockey of his high school career. Bernard has a 2.88 goals against average and an .876 save percentage. His individual statistics would be even better if the game versus Landon School was not included. Landon School’s junior varsity team is equivalent to a varsity team.

On defense the Lightning will have a full complement of defenders. George Benedick, Ethan Hockey, and Andrew Gean will play down from varsity to provide experience and to be a stabilizing influence for the Lightning’s two young junior varsity defenders, Patrick Sell and Cole Howerton. The defense will need to shut down the high flying Rockville/Blair offense. In Rockville/Blair’s playoff victory over Walter Johnson, the team was led by Brendyn Iliff with two goals and an assist and George Marcolin with two goals. Over the course of the regular season, Chance Hostletter scored five goals and both Ari Gardner and JJ St. Aubin scored three times in limited action. In net for Rockville/Blair will be Sean Connelly. Connelly stopped 29 of 32 shots he faced against Walter Johnson to grab the playoff win. Goaltending could be an area that determines which team wins this game, and with Landon Bernard playing so well Upper Montgomery would seem to have the advantage between the pipes.

The Lightning’s offense ticked up as the regular season went on. With 20 goals over its last four games, the team finally began getting more balanced scoring to take the pressure off the defense and Landon Bernard. Brandon Bernard leads the team in scoring (11 GP, 5 G, 9 A). Bradley Cupples, coming off several strong games in a row, is next with (8 GP, 5 G, 5 A). Joshua Miller leads the team with six goals in 11 games including several outstanding solo breakaway goals. Josh Nadler has chipped in with five goals in his first high school season. The Upper Montgomery powerplay was downright awful during the regular season (2 for 35, 5.7%), but did score late versus the Jaguars to get the game into overtime before eventually winning the shootout. The penalty kill was excellent this season (39 of 43, 90.7%), but failed in its one shorthanded opportunity versus Northwest. Lately though, the Lightning have owned puck possession during their opponents’ powerplays.

Upper Montgomery is looking to advance to the junior varsity championship game for the first time in program history. The Lightning will need every student athlete to play their best and contribute to a complete team victory. Controlling play throughout the game by pressuring the Rockville/Blair defense into turnovers and special teams play will be the two primary keys to victory. The chase for a championship continues and let’s hope Wednesday evening brings the Lightning one step closer.

Breaking News: Lightning Junior Varsity Wins First Ever Playoff Game in Thrilling Shootout!

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The Upper Montgomery Lightning won its first ever junior varsity playoff game late Friday night with a come from behind 2-1 shootout victory over the Northwest Jaguars at Cabin John Ice Rink. With the win, Upper Montgomery advances to the junior varsity semi-final round hosting Rockville/Blair on Wednesday evening at 6:40 pm at Laurel Ice Gardens.

In a gritty and tightly contested game, Upper Montgomery defended all over the ice and limited the Jaguars to just nine shots on goal through regulation and overtime. The Lightning defended well on Jaguars leading scorer Brady Graham holding him to a single assist. Graham had entered the game scoring 11 goals in six junior varsity games and his 11 goals led the Montgomery Hockey Conference by a wide margin.

With less than five minutes to go in the game, Upper Montgomery scored a powerplay goal draw even at 1-1. Josh Nadler collected a shot by George Benedick that was wide of the net and scored on a wrap around attempt that banked in off the skate of Jaguars’ goalie Joseph Dean with traffic out in front.

After a wild, but scoreless five minute overtime period played three on three, Upper Montgomery excelled in the shootout. Joshua Miller, Bradley Cupples, Josh Nadler, and Brandon Bernard all scored for the Lightning. Landon Bernard was huge in net stopping the breakaway attempts of Graham and Benjamin Linteris to secure the victory.

The remaining teams alive in the junior varsity playoffs are:

Whitman (5) versus Richard Montgomery (1)

Rockville/Blair (3) versus Upper Montgomery (2)