Author: chucklevine

The Upper Montgomery Lightning entered Friday’s season opener well prepared for how the Whitman Vikings were going to play the game. The Vikings defend very well and play a structured team game with their forwards coming back hard on the backcheck. To beat Whitman a team needs to play dump and chase hockey and muck it up along the boards. The games against Whitman rarely are visually pleasing with a significant amount of fighting for every inch all over the ice and then converting on scoring chances when they present. For two periods the Lightning and Vikings battled in a game of evenly matched squads. Then, a backbreaking goal scored with one second remaining in the second period completely turned the game. Losing composure and playing with a condensed lineup, the Lightning collapsed in the third period turning an even game into a foul looking lopsided 7-2 Whitman decision. The game was much closer than the final score would indicate.

The first period opened with both teams eager to show the other squad that they were serious contenders in the upper division of the Montgomery Hockey Conference. The opening shift saw big hits delivered on both sides. A minute into the contest Vikings forward Samuel Van Leeuwen was called for a two minute penalty for head contact and he was also given a ten minute misconduct for the foul. The penalty was a marginal call against Van Leeuwen, and maybe a signal to both teams to focus on playing hockey rather than running around throwing body checks. Whitman had no trouble on the penalty kill and prevented the Lightning from controlling play in the offensive zone even though Upper Montgomery had the extra skater on the ice.

With 3:30 left in the opening period, Whitman went on the powerplay after an elbowing penalty was assessed against Upper Montgomery forward Nathan Cassel. Although Whitman pressed play with the extra skater, Upper Montgomery was able to kill off the powerplay keeping the game scoreless. Thirty seconds after the powerplay ended, Whitman jumped out in front. Vikings defender Nicholas Huguely dumped the puck in deep behind the Lightning net. Whitman forward Andrew Fou outraced the Lightning defense to the puck. He centered out front to Vikings center Charles Ingis in the slot. Ingis wasting no time was ready to unleash a snap shot and he banged the puck past Upper Montgomery goalie Landon Bernard for the game’s opening tally. The first period ended with Whitman in front by one goal while shots on goal were relatively even, Upper Montgomery with seven and Whitman with six.

Three minutes into the second period, the Lightning would tie up the game. Upper Montgomery senior co-captain Hunter Cameron playing defense this season intercepted a bad Whitman clearing attempt. The puck had been sent up the center of the ice in the Whitman defensive zone. Cameron made a quick stick handle and ripped a wrist shot stick side past Vikings goaltender Ryan Graf for the unassisted goal. For Cameron it was a quick start to the 2023 – 2024 season after struggling offensively last year to find the back of the net. With the game tied at one, both teams dropped back and played strong defense. There were many dump ins to the offensive zone, pucks lobbed back out to center, rush attempts with shots taken from long range, blocked shots by each team’s defense, and harmless shots from the perimeter by the outside edges of the faceoff circles.

Then, with time running down in the second period, with just ten seconds remaining before the second period intermission, the entire complexion of the game instantly changed. Upper Montgomery cleared the defensive zone with six seconds left in the period. The puck was retrieved by Van Leeuwen in the neutral zone and carried into the offensive zone along the left wing boards. Van Leeuwen was ridden off the puck in the left corner where Vikings defender Mason Cohen slung the puck toward the net. Bernard made the save with the puck shooting into the air and into the slot area with time running out. The puck neared Whitman forward Benjamin Luo who smacked the puck out of mid air with his stick below shoulder height toward the net. The puck crossed the goal line just prior to the buzzer sounding to end the period. It was a jarring end to the period for the Lightning after the teams had played evenly through the first thirty minutes of game action.

With Upper Montgomery now trailing entering the third period, several of the team’s student athletes tried to do too much individually to help the team get back even. This was counterproductive and led to a loss of focus on the game plan resulting in a meltdown in the third period. First, two minutes into the third period, Cohen advanced the puck up the right wing boards in his defensive end. A poor decision by the Lightning defense to pinch at the offensive blue line led to a full ice breakaway for Ingis. He skated in on Bernard before lifting a wrist shot high over the netminder’s glove hand to extend the Whitman lead to 3-1. It was Ingis’ second goal of the game.

Whitman’s third goal started an onslaught. With 9:30 left in the game, a turnover just inside the Lightning defensive blue line led to a quick transition counter attack. Huguely poke checked and intercepted the puck. He quickly passed down low to an unguarded Luo who easily put the puck past Bernard for his second goal of the game. Twenty second later the score would balloon to 5-1 when Jacob Lerman let loose with a slap shot that went low past Bernard’s leg pads. Huguely picked up his third assist of the game on the play with Zack Krauss also assisting on the goal.

A few minutes later Lightning defender Owen Robbins was called for roughing. While shorthanded the Lightning would temporarily claw closer. At neutral ice, Cameron stole another errant Vikings pass exiting the Whitman defensive zone. He passed to the right wing to Cassel. Cassel skated into the offensive zone down the right hand side of the ice. He fed the front of the net where Cameron was charging down the slot and cutting in front of the net. Cameron buried the feed for the shorthanded goal, his second goal of the game.

Upper Montgomery could not take advantage of the momentum. Down three goals with 6:45 to play the Lightning were able to finish off the successful penalty kill. Then, back to back quick in succession Whitman goals with 4:30 left in the game ended the scoring. First, Fou passed from the left circle to the center point area of the blue line. Kraus received the pass and shot from long distance past several skater’s legs into the far side of the goal past Bernard’s leg pads. Off the ensuing center ice faceoff, Whitman advanced the puck to the right faceoff circle where Fou scored off of a feed from Kraus.

Upper Montgomery will need to quickly put the disappointment of this game in the rear view mirror. Up next is a critically important contest against the much improved DC Stars. Upper Montgomery will need a victory before a highly anticipated non-conference matchup against private school foe Good Counsel. Losing the season opener is not a severe blow as the Lightning learned last year when the team rebounded from a dreadful start to the season to come oh so close to qualifying for the state playoffs. The same is true this year. While the final score may have looked lopsided, the Lightning were certainly in the game and played Whitman even for two periods. A full three periods will be needed to fight past the DC Stars next week.

Game Notes:

• Whitman outshot the Lightning by a 31-16 margin.
• Cameron’s two goals equaled his total goals scored for the entire season last year.
• Upper Montgomery’s penalty kill shut down both Whitman powerplay opportunities with Cameron scoring while Upper Montgomery was shorthanded.
• Upper Montgomery returns to action next Friday, October 20th versus the DC Stars. Game time is 10:00 pm at Cabin John Ice Rink.

Three Stars of the Game:

First Star—Charles Ingis—Whitman Forward—2 Goals
Second Star—Benjamin Luo—Whitman Forward—2 Goals
Third Star—Hunter Cameron—Upper Montgomery Defense—2 Goals, Including Shorthanded Goal

The Upper Montgomery Lightning junior varsity faced off on Thursday afternoon against the Churchill Bulldogs. Instead of facing the Bulldogs regular junior varsity squad, the Lightning played against three quarters of the Bulldogs varsity two team. All of the Churchill student athletes were eligible to compete at the junior varsity level, and many would say that the Churchill two varsity team is really a junior varsity team competing against varsity competition. Maybe it was the fear of facing off against one of the best junior varsity teams in the county in the Lightning. Maybe it was respect for Upper Montgomery and wanting to put forth a more challenging game, but the Lightning played a vastly different Churchill junior varsity team than the rest of the teams in the Montgomery Hockey Conference had faced. AND, Upper Montgomery should have easily won the game. The Lightning played one of their most frustrating games of the season before settling for a 4-4 tie.

If nothing else, the game was entertaining with rushes up and down the ice. Unfortunately for the Lightning, that is not a style of play that is most effective for the team. Upper Montgomery needs to defend well, clog up the neutral zone and the defensive side of the ice, and make it hard for the opposition to score goals. The game against Churchill turned out to be just the opposite with free flow skating up and down the ice and too many offensive chances.

The first period was up and down the ice. Both teams had chances. Most of Upper Montgomery’s shots were directed right into the pads of Bulldog netminder Lucas Petrosyan who played a stand up style of goaltending. He was credited with twelve saves in the first period, with many of the Lightning shots simply hitting off of him rather than Petrosyan making good saves. At the other end of the ice, Lightning netminder Ilan Shterenberg made eight saves of his own. Each team had a powerplay opportunity in the scoreless period with Upper Montgomery failing to score when Ahmed Elkousy was called for unsportsmanlike conduct at the 9:30 mark of the period. Churchill failed to score when Upper Montgomery forward AJ Marks was called for slashing with 2:30 remaining in the period. For the Lightning it was the team’s 21 straight successful penalty kill to begin the season.

It was during the second period when the fireworks began. Just one minute and eight seconds into the middle period the Bulldogs would jump in front. Churchill defender Samuel Lifsey cleared the puck in his defensive zone up the right wing boards. A missed pinch by the Lightning defense at the offensive blue line allowed Churchill center Joseph Ahn to head up ice unimpeded along the right wing boards. Elkousy joined the rush and made it a two on one chance with Lightning defender Jake Roth the only defender back. When Ahn reached the right faceoff circle in the offensive zone, Roth pressured and closed on him. Ahn was able to slide the puck past Roth to Elkousy charging down the slot with no other Lightning defender able to get back into the play. Elkousy deked and went to his forehand to tuck the puck around the right leg pad of Shterenberg for the breakaway goal.

On the next shift the Lightning would answer right back. Off of a faceoff to the left of Petrosyan, Adam Levine pushed the puck forward attempting a step through play. The Bulldog defense got to the puck first but under pressure from Levine, did not get enough on the clearing attempt to clear the zone. Lightning defender Patrick Sell kept the puck in at the right point. His long range shot was blocked with the puck deflecting down into the right corner right onto the stick of Lightning forward TJ Gottesman. Gottesman’s pass to the slot was behind Levine, with Levine able to touch drag the puck further into the low slot to Marks. Marks’ shot was low along the ice and Petrosyan made a stick save. The puck bounded up in the air behind the net where Gottesman captured the puck exiting the corner. Gottesman continued around the net from right to left and sent a pass into the slot that was collected by Marks. Marks’ second shot of the sequence was a backhand shot that was also stopped by Petrosyan’s stick, but not covered. Gottesman continuing around the net was right there at the left post to shovel the puck over Petrosyan’s right leg pad and into the net to even the score. For Gottesman it was his career high fifth goal of the season. For Levine, it was his team leading seventh assist of the season.

Six minutes later, the Bulldogs would jump back in front. Off of a faceoff in the left faceoff circle in the Lightning defensive zone, Upper Montgomery got the puck to center ice. Bulldog defender Michael Dong banked the puck off the right wing boards at his defensive zone blue line. The puck was collected by Ahn coming over the offensive blue line. Ahn fired a wrist shot from the right faceoff circle. The harmless shot looked like it was going to be an easy save for Shterenberg, but the puck deflected off the stick of Lightning defender Avery Evans and quickly changed directions, fluttering higher and to the left of its original flight path. The puck settled over Sheterenberg’s blocker and into the top left corner of the net.

Three and a half minutes later, the score would be deadlocked at two. Churchill pressured in the Lightning defensive zone with Roth defending on the puck. The Bulldog forward attempted a pass toward the net from the left corner which clicked off Roth’s skate over to Marks deep along the red goal line extended. Marks flung a well timed clearing attempt / pass out of the defensive zone in the direction of Gottesman on the left wing. Gottesman raced after the puck crossing the offensive blue line just ahead of the Churchill defender trying to hustle back to slow him down. With no one between him and Petrosyan, from the mid-slot area, Gottesman fired low far side past Petroysan’s glove to again knot up the contest, this time at two. The pretty evenly played period ended with each team firing eight shots on goal and each team scoring twice.

The third period started exactly as the second period had, with an early Elkousy goal. Upper Montgomery cleared the puck to the Bulldog defensive line. Churchill defender Adam Klewans banked the puck up the left wing boards to Elkousy in the neutral zone. Elkousy skated into the Lightning defensive zone and approached the top of the left faceoff circle. His snap shot ramped up off of Evans stick and launched higher than Shterenberg expected finding its way into the top corner of the net short side over Shterenberg’s catching glove. Upper Montgomery was now down one goal with 12:42 left to go in the game.

Two minutes later the score would be tied for the third time in the game. Levine won a neutral zone faceoff to the right wing boards for Gottesman. Gottesman lost control of the puck, but it was recovered by Roth and shot into the offensive zone. The Churchill defense arrived at the puck first and rimmed the puck around the boards to their right wing inside the defensive zone. The puck took a strange bounce off the boards and caromed into the area of the ice between the top of the left faceoff circle and the blue line. Levine was first to the puck, and he gathered possession of the puck. He stickhandled through and around three Bullddog defenders into the high slot where he fired a low wrist shot back across the direction he had just skated in from. His shot went along the ice past Petrosyan’s right skate and into the far side of the net.

With six and a half minutes left in the third period, the Lightning would take their only lead of the game. Churchill had possession of the puck in their defensive zone. The Bulldog defender shot the puck off the boards into the neutral zone where it was picked up by Marks. Marks skated down the right wing and from the lower portion of the right faceoff circle fired a wrist shot short side high past Petrosyan’s left shoulder for the unassisted goal.

All that remained was for the Lightning to play lock down defense over the remainder of the third period to walk away with their eighth straight victory to begin the season. It was not to be. On the very next shift Churchill would tie the score on a goal that Shterenberg felt he should have saved. Churchill defender Jacob Wiederhorn skated the puck out of his defensive zone into neutral ice. Along the right wing at the benches, Wiederhorn skated into Marks and the puck was left behind. Churchill forward Tye Glazer snagged the puck. Glazer continued the rush up ice and crossed over the offensive blue line before launching a long range slap shot on net. The puck hit a crouching Shterenberg low and continued over his stick and body into the air behind him before settling into the net to once again tie the game with just under six minutes remaining.

The action did not stop. Instead of each team playing solid defense to earn points for a tie, the game opened up with Upper Montgomery having half a dozen incredibly high quality chances to win the game. With just over four minutes left in regulation, Churchill forward Victor Levonenko was called for tripping. The Lightning had several grade A chances on the powerplay around the net with two Levine deflections hitting an unsuspecting Petrosyan and somehow staying out of the net. Just after Levonenko’s penalty expired and the Bulldogs returned to equal strength, Levine sprung Marks with a nifty pass. From the inside edge of the lower left faceoff circle, Marks’ hard wrist shot hit Petrosyan who did not move. The puck just rebounded off the netminder and into the slot.

Upper Montgomery caught another break when they ended regulation and began overtime on the powerplay after Ahn was called for interference with 22 seconds remaining in regulation time. Levine won the faceoff too strongly and the puck leaked out of the offensive zone concluding regulation play knotted at four apiece. Starting overtime with a four on three powerplay, there was lots of open ice. Upper Montgomery controlled play while on the powerplay with Levine having two more good looks at the doorstep. The first was a deflection in front that hit Petrosyan’s leg pads. The second was a shovel shot with Petrosyan trying to cover the puck that also would not go over the goal line. After the powerplay ended, each team had possessions with the puck to suddenly end the game. As time ticked out in overtime, the Lightning’s unbeaten streak remained intact, 7-0-1. The chance to win the Montgomery Hockey Conference regular season junior varsity championship took a hit, but other more lofty goals remain.

Next up for the Lightning junior varsity is a game against the highly touted Oakdale Bears. The coaching staff intentionally scheduled this game to allow the junior varsity students to get a sense of what the upcoming Montgomery Hockey Conference playoff tournament will be like. The Lightning will be an underdog in the Oakdale game and will likely play without two key components, Shterenberg and junior defender Cole Howerton. With a first round bye secured for the Montgomery Hockey Conference junior varsity playoffs, Upper Montgomery awaits the results of the opening round of action before their quarterfinal opponent will be determined. Expect that most teams who have varsity student athletes eligible for junior varsity action to drop those student down to participate in the junior varsity playoffs. This tactic is allowed if a student athlete has played in four of the seven junior varsity league games. To prepare for the more talented skaters that the team will face in the playoffs, Upper Montgomery intentionally scheduled the Bears as a means of preparation. The Frederick County junior varsity teams have different rules regarding who may play in junior varsity games. The Lightning expect the non-league contest will feature some very talented Bears upper level skaters.

Game Notes:

• Adam Levine scored a goal and added an assist for the second straight game. He now has points in five straight games.
• Adam Levine leads the team in assists with seven.
• AJ Marks set a career high in points in one game with three against the Bulldogs.
• TJ Gottesman took over the team lead in points with nine on six goals and three assists. His six goals are a career high.
• The four goals given up by the Lightning were the most allowed in a game this season. Prior to the Churchill game, the Lightning had given up only eight goals on the season in seven games, with only two of those goals allowed during the third period of games.
• Shots on goal for the game were basically even, Upper Montgomery with 34 and Churchill with 29.
• Upper Montgomery killed off their only shorthanded situation in the game and remain a perfect 21-21 on the season.
• Upper Montgomery failed on two key powerplay opportunities late in the game and during overtime.
• The Lightning need to win their final conference game of the season to secure a top two seed in the Montgomery Hockey Conference junior varsity playoffs.
• The Upper Montgomery junior varsity returns to game action on Tuesday evening, January 2nd for a non-conference game against top junior varsity program Oakdale. Game time is 8:35 pm at Skate Frederick.

Three Stars of the Game:

First Star—AJ Marks—Upper Montgomery Forward—1 Goal, 2 Assists
Second Star—Ahmed Elkousy—Churchill Forward—2 Goals
Third Star—TJ Gottesman—Upper Montgomery Forward—2 Goals

The Upper Montgomery Lightning junior varsity had yet something more to prove on Wednesday evening. Although undefeated to start the season winning its first six games, the Lightning would be shorthanded against the DC Stars having to play without its top two scorers. Josh Nadler was serving his one game supplemental discipline for his fight in the Richard Montgomery game, and TJ Gottesman missed the game for undisclosed reasons. Between the two forwards, they had scored eleven of the 21 goals tallied by Upper Montgomery. Even though shorthanded, Upper Montgomery played ‘its’ style of hockey, and the complete team effort propelled the Lightning to a thrilling 3-0 shutout victory. With the win, the Lightning need to win one of their final two conference games to secure a first round bye in the upcoming Montgomery Hockey Conference junior varsity playoffs. The victory also puts the team in sight of setting the Upper Montgomery junior varsity single season record for wins in a season.

From the outset it was clear that Upper Montgomery was going to lean on Shterenberg to shut down the Stars. The team focused on the defensive side of the game and rarely penetrated into the Stars offensive zone. The Lightning protected the high danger regions in front of Shterenberg. The team settled for clearing the puck out of the zone and making quick line changes to stay as fresh as possible. The DC Stars played their system well and kept up the pressure for the entire period. With three minutes to go in the frame, Lightning forward Jason Woodman was called for cross checking a DC Stars skater prone on the ice. It was not a good penalty to take as the play was not anywhere near the Upper Montgomery defensive zone. As the team has done all season long, the Lightning penalty kill snuffed out the late first period DC Stars powerplay. Although outshot badly in the first period, eight to one, the teams entered the first intermission scoreless.

The first twelve minutes of the second period were a repeat of the first period. The DC Stars controlled the tempo and pace of the game, and Upper Montgomery throttled the Stars in the defensive zone. Shterenberg was there to make timely saves when needed. He finished with seven in the period. The Stars had another crack at the powerplay when Lightning defender Patrick Sell was called for tripping at the twelve minute mark of the second period. Again, the strong Lightning penalty kill prevailed and ran its season long kill streak to a perfect twenty for twenty on the season. With three minutes left in the second period Upper Montgomery had increased its shots on goal total to three. Upper Montgomery had begun to generate a few more chances, but Cole Howerton kept firing wrist shots wide of the net.

With two and a half minutes remaining in the period, Upper Montgomery’s patience and defensive tenacity paid dividends. Lightning defender Avery Evans held the neutral zone along the left wing boards. A DC Stars attempted dump into the Lightning zone ricocheted back toward the DC Stars defensive zone. Lightning forward, senior Sean Levine, coming off the bench on a line change found himself behind the Stars defense. He came in all alone on Stars netminder Liam Parkinson from the blue line in. He faked a shot, and then moved left to his backhand elevating the shot over Parkinson’s right leg pad. It was a sweet finish and the nicest junior varsity goal scored to that point of the season. It also gave the Lightning a lead in yet another tight defensive contest.

Sean Levine’s goal gave the Lightning a jolt of energy. On the very next shift Upper Montgomery would push the lead to two with an amazing highlight reel goal scored by Lightning center and senior co-captain Adam Levine, no relation. A failed Stars clearing attempt up the right wing boards was kept in at the point by Evans. She pushed the puck forward a few feet into open space. Levine tracked the puck from behind the goal, secured the puck, and then curled toward the net from high in the offensive zone. As he neared the top of the left faceoff circle, he faked as if he was going down the slot. He then curled the puck back to the outside of the circle and pushed the puck through the onrushing Stars defender. The juke completely faked out the Stars defender who twirled wildly past Levine. The moment Levine was clear of the defender, he snapped a shot from the bottom of the left circle far side high. The puck whizzed above Parkinson’s glove hand into the crux of the corner of the net. The Lightning bench erupted in hoots and hollers with the varsity student athletes in attendance also celebrating the goal.

With a two goal lead heading into the third period and with tired legs, the Lightning seemed to relax. It was a mistake as the DC Stars upped the pressure around Shterenberg. He made several strong saves to keep the Stars at bay. The first five minutes of the period looked like the Lightning were stuck in quicksand with the Stars getting to every loose puck and continuing to apply pressure. It was an effort for the Lightning just to get the puck to neutral ice and clamber to the bench for a line change.

With nine minutes remaining in the game, Stars forward Eli Schwartz was called for holding. Upper Montgomery had its first powerplay of the game. The penalty took some of the momentum away from the Stars as they focused on the penalty kill rather than continuing to attack offensively. It would eventually be their downfall. A faceoff play originating from just outside the Lightning defensive zone along the right wing boards put Upper Montgomery up three to nothing. Adam Levine, who once again killed it on faceoffs in the game (15-5), intentionally won the puck to the open wing to Aiden Zheng. Zheng received the puck and began racing up ice. As he hit the offensive blue line, he cut toward the slot inside the left defender. As he found space, he unloaded a wrist shot that went far side past Parkinson’s blocker. The Lightning powerplay goal took the steam out of the Stars. The Lightning just needed to hold on over the final eight minutes of the game to remain undefeated.

With the three goal lead Upper Montgomery just sat back and played defense. With seven minutes to go in the game, a checking from behind boarding penalty to Stars forward Adam Chilbert put Upper Montgomery back on the powerplay. With the three goal lead and an incredibly tired group of skaters, the Lightning played safe hockey. They focused on keeping the Stars from skating the puck into the defensive side of the ice. As time wound down, each defensive zone clear provided a chance to stream for the bench and a line change to get more rested skaters back onto the ice surface. Over the last two minutes of the game, the Lightning barely moved outside their defensive blue line clogging up the ice and limiting the Stars from entering the offensive zone. At last, the final buzzer sounded. The worn out Lightning skaters slowly moved around Shterenberg to offer congratulations while hunched over. It was an excellent team effort to gut out yet another win.

Up next for the Lightning junior varsity is a game against the Churchill Bulldogs. The game is one where Upper Montgomery will be favored, but will only win if the team plays hard, aggressive defensive hockey. A win will earn the team a first round bye in the Montgomery Hockey Conference junior varsity playoffs and a top two seeding. Upper Montgomery will see the return of its top two scorers for the contest and if the squad is focused on the task at hand, the team should be able to pull through and earn another victory. As he has been all season long, Shterenberg is the difference maker that the team will lean on once again. A win will keep the Lightning in striking distance of winning the Montgomery Hockey Conference regular season title which would be a first in program history.

Game Notes:

• The victory over the Stats was the junior varsity’s seventh consecutive victory to start the season.
• Ilan Shterenberg set a program record with his third shutout of the season. Shterenberg’s personal statistics are a 7-0 record, a 1.16 goals against average, and a .950 save percentage.
• The Lightning have given up only eight goals on the season in seven games, with only two goals allowed in the third period of games.
• Shots on goal for the game were lopsided in favor of the DC Stars, 25-10. Upper Montgomery had only three shots on goal with three minutes remaining in the second period.
• Upper Montgomery’s top two leading scorers, Josh Nadler and TJ Gottesman both missed the game.
• Upper Montgomery again went 2-2 on the penalty kill and remains a perfect 20-20 on the season.
• Upper Montgomery scored on the powerplay and increased is powerplay success rate to 25.0%.
• The Lightning need to win one of their final two conference games to secure an opening round bye in the Montgomery Hockey Conference junior varsity playoffs.
• The Upper Montgomery junior varsity returns to game action on Thursday afternoon, December 21st against the Churchill Bulldogs. Game time is 4:00 pm at Cabin John Ice Rink.

Three Stars of the Game:

First Star—Adam Levine—Upper Montgomery Center—Highlight Reel Goal, 1 Assist, 15-5 on Faceoffs
Second Star—Ilan Shterenberg—Upper Montgomery Goalie—25 Save Shutout Victory
Third Star—Sean Levine—Richard Montgomery Forward—Game Winning Goal

The Upper Montgomery Lightning junior varsity had something to prove on Friday evening. Although undefeated to start the season winning its first five games, the Lightning had not played an arduous schedule. That changed on Friday night facing the top ranked Richard Montgomery Rockets. Upper Montgomery played its style of hockey, and the complete team effort propelled the Lightning to a thrilling 3-2 victory. With the win, the Lightning need to win two of their final three games to secure a first round bye in the upcoming Montgomery Hockey Conference junior varsity playoffs. The victory also guarantees that the Lightning will finish the season with a winning record.

From the outset it was clear that the Rockets possessed the more talented individual skaters. Richard Montomery rushed the puck up ice and Upper Montgomery was forced to defend. This type of game is familiar for the Lightning junior varsity as they have come to rely on the strong goaltending of 9th grade netminder Ilan Shterenberg to backstop the team. Upper Montgomery’s defensive system of keeping play to the outside, chipping pucks out of the defensive zone, icing the puck to slow down play, and getting the puck to the center red line and dumping it into the zone has nullified the play of the opposition’s top skaters. Timely goal scoring has not hurt either.

With just over six minutes remaining in the first period, the Rockets would jump out in front. Richard Montgomery senior defender Jack Evans took control of the puck in neutral ice along the Lightning blue line. He entered the offensive zone on the left wing. When he reached the left faceoff circle, he fired a pass across the crease to a streaking Connor Myers who had slipped inside of the Lightning defense. Myers was ahead of the Upper Montgomery defense, and he tapped the puck in from the back post past Shterenberg who had to make sure that Evans did not unleash a shot on net.

A minute later the Lightning were forced to kill a roughing penalty to forward Jason Woodman. As they have all season long, the Upper Montgomery penalty killers did an outstanding job and prevented the Rockets from extending their lead. Sheterenberg was strong on the penalty kill making three saves while Richard Montgomery had the extra skater. The opening period concluded with Richard Montgomery outshooting the Lightning by a thirteen to five margin with Upper Montgomery never really testing Rockets goaltender Gregory Saffell.

The second period started similar to the first. Richard Montgomery controlling pace of play and Upper Montgomery defending and executing on the defensive side of the puck. Just over halfway through the period, Upper Montgomery broke through and tied up the game. Lightning junior co-captain Josh Nadler dumped the puck from neutral ice down into the left wing corner. The puck was played by Saffell behind his net. Lightning forward Aiden Zheng crashed in hard on the forecheck. Zheng swung his stick and smacked at the puck making contact. The puck ramped up the stick of the Richard Montgomery defender and popped into the air. The flight of the puck tumbled up over the back side of the cage, hit the netting on top of the goal, and caromed forward. The puck banked off Saffell’s back and landed across the goal line. It was a fortuitous flight path the puck took to settle into the back of the net. In Upper Montgomery’s case, it was par for the course as the ugly, gritty goal was right up its alley and fitting for its style of play. The second period ended tied with the Rockets firing eleven shots at Shterenberg and Upper Montgomery being credited with four shots on Saffell. The two period shots on goal total was 24-9 in favor of the Rockets and was a true indication of how the game was playing out.

The third period became fifteen minutes to determine the top of the conference standings. With the score tied at one, Upper Montgomery was in a very familiar position. A low scoring tight game in the third period. In five of the six games this season, the Lightning junior varsity have either been tied or in one goal games. The flow of the first half of the third period was similar to the opening two frames. Then, Upper Montgomery’s only rush sequence of the game broke the tie. At his own blue line, Lightning forward TJ Gottesman stopped the defensive zone exit pass. He knocked the puck over a few feet to Cole Howerton. Howerton exited the zone and then skated diagonally across the ice to the right wing boards entering the offensive zone. He carried the puck wide and skated around the Rockets defender. From the bottom of the right circle he sent a pass into the slot for Nadler. Nadler wasted no time sweeping a wrist shot from the low slot five hole on Saffell. The Lightning had battled all evening on the defensive side of the puck and now had the lead with eight minutes remaining in the game.

With just over five minutes left in the game, a key insurance goal would prove critical for Upper Montgomery. Off of a missed pass which caused a Richard Montgomery icing, the faceoff came back into the Rockets defensive zone. Adam Levine, who crushed Urbana in the faceoff dot leading to three Upper Montgomery goals last game, was at it again. He won the faceoff back behind him, but not deep enough for either Lightning defender to reach the puck. He fought off a Rockets defender and pushed the puck back to Behr Schickler at the right point. With the puck on its way to the point, Levine pivoted and headed toward the high slot area. Schickler’s slapshot was deflected by Levine out front at the inside edge of the right faceoff circle. The puck changed directions hitting into Gottesman’s skate and ricocheting past Saffell’s right leg pad. For Gottesman, it was what has become a regular refrain, being in the right spot at the right time to collect points. It was also Upper Montgomery’s fourth goal off of a faceoff play over the past two games.

The Lightning had five minutes to continue to stifle Richard Montgomery to walk out with the victory. It took only thirty seconds for the game to once again become a nailbiter. A failed clear by the Lightning defense was kept in at the right point by Evans. He skated down into the right corner stepping around the Upper Montgomery defender. His pass out front to the slot was blocked but bounced directly back to him. His second pass evaded the Lightning skaters and settled into the slot where high scoring forward Aaron Hwang shot from in front while being checked. The puck beat Shterenberg to close the score to 3-2 with just under five minutes remaining in the game.

Far from out of the woods, Upper Montgomery had to sweat through a difficult close to the game. First, Nadler and Rockets forward Edward Bernard got into a skirmish along the end boards behind the Lightning goal. The referees determined that both skaters engaged in a fight which disqualified each skater from the remainder of the game and automatically comes with a three game suspension under USA Hockey’s supplemental discipline system. After the game, league officials subsequently determined that the skirmish was not a fight, and the student athletes will only miss one additional game not three.

In addition to the fight, the referees called a fictitious cross checking penalty on Nadler. The Lightning were forced to kill a Rockets powerplay with 3:30 remaining in the game. Kudos to Levine, Zheng, Howerton, and defenders Miles Wendland, Jake Roth, Patrick Sell, and Avery Evans for clearing pucks, blocking shots, getting in shooting lanes which forced shots wide of the net, and getting the puck out of the zone. But, the job was still far from done. With 1:23 remaining in the game and an offensive zone faceoff, Richard Mongomery pulled Saffell their goalie creating a six on five skater advantage. The final minute of action was a scramble of action as Richard Montgomery controlled the puck in the Lightning defensive end sending shot attempt after shot attempt at Shterenberg to try and tie the score. Upper Montgomery did a terrific job not giving the Rockets any high danger chances and survived until a defensive zone clear with five seconds remaining sealed the victory for Upper Montgomery.

Up next for the Lightning junior varsity is going to be a tough game against an improved DC Stars squad. The Stars have a 3-2 record this season. The Stars play a low scoring grind it out type of game, a style similar to the Lightning’s. Upper Montgomery will be playing without its top goal scorer in Nadler and will need all of the student athletes to step up and contribute. It will likely be a low scoring affair, a game that Upper Montgomery needs to continue their undefeated season. As always, Shterenberg will need to make some huge saves, and the Lightning will have to commit to stopping the Stars with all five skaters playing with incredible effort and hockey IQ in order to defeat a well coached opponent. A win will keep the Lightning in striking distance of winning the Montgomery Hockey Conference regular season title.

Game Notes:

• The victory over the Rockets was the junior varsity’s sixth consecutive victory to start the season.
• Shots on goal for the game were lopsided in favor of Richard Montgomery, 37-13.
• Josh Nadler scored for the sixth consecutive game. He has scored in each game this season and leads the Lightning junior varsity with seven goals.
• Upper Montgomery went 2-2 on the penalty kill and remains a perfect 18-18 on the season.
• Upper Montgomery did not have a powerplay opportunity in the game.
• Nadler will be suspended for the Lightning’s next junior varsity game as he will serve a one game suspension as supplemental discipline for his fight at the end of the game.
• The Lightning need to win two of their final three conference games to secure an opening round bye in the Montgomery Hockey Conference junior varsity playoffs.
• The Upper Montgomery junior varsity returns to game action on Wednesday night, December 13th against the DC Stars. Game time is 8:00 pm at Wheaton Ice Rink.

Three Stars of the Game:

First Star—Ilan Shterenberg—Upper Montgomery Goalie—Win, 2 GAA, 35 Saves, .941 Save %
Second Star—Jack Evans—Richard Montgomery Defense—2 Assists
Third Star—Brody Evans—Richard Montgomery Defense