Category: Lightning Strike Blog

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.

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.

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.

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.

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)

We’ve reached the end of the 2021-2022 high school hockey regular season. For the Upper Montgomery Lightning, the young team is trending upward and there is much to be excited about over the next couple of seasons. The young Lightning squad was much more competitive this season while playing against a higher level of competition. After three straight one goal defeats to begin the season, and then a tie, the team turned its season around by winning five straight games in the middle of the season. Included in this stretch was a hard fought, signature win over the Whitman Vikings. Although encountering a rough patch at the end of the season, the team was competitive against more experienced teams from the top division of the Montgomery Hockey Conference (MHC). For the first time ever in program history, the Lightning qualified for the MHC division one playoffs. A first round game versus the favored and veteran Richard Montgomery Rockets is upcoming next Friday night.

In the upcoming division one playoffs and then likely in the division two playoff tournament, the team will need to improve in several areas; defensive structure, powerplay efficiency, depth scoring, and team based play. Additionally, relying on the top line of Chris Hasset, Ryan Jacobson, and Nathan Cassel to carry the offensive load will not be enough. If the team begins to struggle offensively, expect the coaching staff to quickly change up the lines to try and jump start the offense.

Congratulations go out to the Churchill Bulldogs (Varsity) and the Richard Montgomery Rockets (Junior Varsity) for winning the 2021-2022 Montgomery Hockey Conference regular season championships. Although both squads will be favored in the upcoming playoffs, there are sure to be some surprises in both post season tournaments.

The Lightning offense was led all year by the first line of Chris Hassett (13 GP, 14 goals, 15 assists), Ryan Jacobson (10 GP, 7 goals, 9 assists), and Nathan Cassel (10 GP, 11 goals, 6 assists). Hassett finished 13th in the Maryland State Hockey League statistics in scoring with his 29 points. All three student athletes are in 9th or 10th grade. The future is very bright for this trio. The second line started to find its scoring touch later on in the season. Hunter Cameron (13 GP, 5 goals, 7 assists), Bradley Cupples (13 GP, 1 goal, 12 assists), and Olivia Robbins (9 GP, 1 goal, 3 assists) began to chip in and take some of the pressure off the top line. Against the top tier division one teams, the Lightning found it more difficult to find the back of the net. It was difficult for the third line to achieve chemistry with different line combinations dressed throughout the season.

On defense, James Botti led the group offensively with (11 GP, 4 goals, 9 assists). All four of James’ goals came in the same game versus Wilson. While other defenders chipped in with points, it was the Lightning’s defensive abilities that stood out. Through 2/3rds of the season, the Lightning had given up the fewest goals in the MHC. One of the primary reasons why was the Upper Montgomery penalty kill which was excellent during the regular season, killing off 44 of the 48 opponents’ powerplays, 91.7%. 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 goal, Will Mellen led the way. Mellen led all goalies in the Montgomery Hockey Conference who played in at least half their team’s games with a 2.36 goals against average and a .900 save percentage. He also shared the MHC lead with two shutouts. Landon Bernard saw more extensive varsity action this season picking up his first career high school varsity win in the game against the West Virginia Vipers. He also played extremely well in the road game versus highly ranked Washington County. If the strong goaltending keeps up, the Lightning will be in every game this post season and will have a chance to create some noise with an upset or two in the varsity playoffs and a long run in the junior varsity playoffs.

The Upper Montgomery junior varsity squad recovered nicely from an inconsistent start of the season to finish second in the regular season standings behind Richard Montgomery. The team finished with a 5-3 conference record and a 5-4-2 record overall on the season. Over the final three games of the regular season, the team jelled and played excellent hockey, giving up only four goals against while scoring 15 goals in dominating wins against Rockville, Northwest, and Churchill. The coaching staff’s message of relentless effort and consistency sunk in mid-way through the season and the team responded. The junior varsity team was vastly improved over last season’s team which finished last in the conference with a record of 1-6-1 while being soundly outplayed in many of the games. Not so this season, and it is a testament to the student athletes who came together as a team and found ways to win games. Several late goals against and an atrocious powerplay prevented the team from having an even better season as both non-conference ties and one of the conference losses really should have been wins.

In goal, Landon Bernard started each game. He played well finishing the season with a 3.08 goals against average and an .876 save percentage. However, those individual statistics are misleading and skewed by the game that the junior varsity played against Landon School. The local private school teams are a step up in competition and are similar to playing against a varsity team in the Montgomery Hockey Conference. Omitting that game, Bernard’s individual statistics would be a very stout 2.57 goals against average and an .892 save percentage.

On defense, both Cole Howerton and Patrick Sell improved as the season went along. As 9th grade defenders they frequently played against forwards two grades more experienced. Several varsity student athletes dropped down to help out on defense and provide a calming influence. Andrew Gean, George Benedick, Stephen Shkeda, and Bradley Cupples played several games on the back line for the junior varsity providing much needed leadership and guidance.

Offensively, the team was led by four student athletes; Brandon Bernard led the team in scoring (10 GP, 5 G, 9 A). Bradley Cupples was next with (7 GP, 5 G, 4 A). Joshua Miller led the team with six goals in 11 games including several outstanding solo breakaway goals. Josh Nadler chipped in and scored four goals in his first high school season. The Upper Montgomery powerplay was downright awful during the regular season (2 for 35, 5.7%) and with just an average level of performance would have added goals and wins for the program. A bright spot was the penalty kill. The Upper Montgomery junior varsity penalty kill was excellent this season (39 of 43, 90.7%) and lately the Lightning have owned puck possession during their opponents’ powerplays.

The next few weeks will be fun. A varsity division one playoff game followed by a division two playoff tournament. For the junior varsity defending turf and looking to play deep into the junior varsity playoff tournament. Go Lightning!

The Upper Montgomery Lightning have qualified for the Montgomery Hockey Conference division one playoff tournament for the first time in program history. The Lightning received the 10th seed and will play at 7th seed Richard Montgomery on Friday night at Rockville Ice Arena. Game time is 9:20 pm. The playoff game between Upper Montgomery and Richard Montgomery will be a rematch of a game played last month, won by Richard Montgomery 4-1. The game was tied 1-1 late in the second period and was much closer than the final score indicates. Upper Montgomery played the first game against Richard Montgomery without senior defender James Botti and 9th grade forward Nathan Cassel. Upper Montgomery generated many scoring changes without two of its top four offensive weapons but could not put the puck behind Rockets netminder Henry Darko.

The full playoff bracket is below:

Montgomery Hockey Conference Division One Varsity Playoffs—-Round 1

All games will be played on Friday, February 11.

Whitman (9) at Wootton (8)—8:15pm—Cabin John—Winner plays at (1) Churchill on Friday, February 11th.—Whitman wins 2-0.

Sherwood (12) at Blair (5)—8:45pm—Rockville Rink 3—Winner plays at (4) Quince Orchard on Friday, February 11th.—Blair wins 5-4 (shootout 4-3).

Rockville (11) at St. Johns (6)—9:00pm–Rockville Rink 1–Winner plays at (3) BCC on Friday, February 11th.—St. Johns wins 2-1 (shootout 3-0)

Upper Montgomery (10) at Richard Montgomery (7)—9:20pm Rockville Rink 2—Winner plays at (2) Walter Johnson on Friday, February 11th.—Richard Montgomery wins 4-2.

Montgomery Hockey Conference Division One Varsity Playoffs—-Winner Advances to State Playoffs

All games will be played on Friday, February 18.

Whitman (9) at Churchill (1)

Blair (5) at Quince Orchard (4)

St. Johns (6) at BCC (3)

Richard Montgomery (7) at Walter Johnson (2)

As the Upper Montgomery Lightning have reached the mid-point of the 2021-2022 season, the coaches reflected on how they view the team’s progress thus far and look ahead to the remainder of the season. After soundly beating the Wilson Stars coming out of the winter break, the team now has a 5-3-1 record on the season and is poised to earn its first ever division one playoff appearance.

Question—What are your thoughts about the first half of the season?  How would you evaluate the Upper Montgomery Lightning hockey program?

Answer—Overall we are very happy with how the team has played and progressed during the early portion of the season.  Starting off with three hard fought one goal losses to three very good teams and then coming back to have a six game unbeaten streak, 5-0-1 since then shows the team’s growth and determination.  If you look at our varsity roster, about 2/3’s of our student athletes are 9th or 10th graders. While everyone playing is high school aged, there is still a large difference in size and strength from when you are 14/15/16 years old to when you are 17/18 years old.  On top of that, we have had a very limited number of practices and with student athletes coming from six different high schools and several different hockey clubs it takes a while to jell. Not having had very much time to play together it took a bit of time for everyone to play as a coordinated team.  Our goal from the beginning of the season has been to qualify for the division one playoffs and with continued hard work, we should get there.

Question—And for the junior varsity?

Answer—Our junior varsity student athletes and the junior varsity games have been so much fun.  We love that the junior varsity student athletes come out and just love to play the game of hockey.  They go out when called upon and play hard. It seems like everyone on the bench is just as happy when we score as the student athlete who actually scored the goal.  Junior varsity student athletes work hard and give it their all each shift of every game.  The coaches have been using the junior varsity games to coach up the student athletes since we have not had many practices. The team is growing, and the student athletes have been really listening to the instruction they have been provided and they have been trying to implement what we are teaching them.  Lately, we have been talking about playing smarter rather than harder and anticipating the game rather than reacting when on the ice.  This is much different than how many of them have been coached in their prior seasons. We are encouraged watching the team go out each game as they learn to incorporate what we are coaching them into game play.

Question—What, or who, has been the biggest surprise thus far?

Answer—Everyone has progressed nicely since last season or since spring hockey.  The entire team dynamic has changed since last year.  Last year’s games would normally be somewhat close on the scoreboard, but we would be outplayed and outshot considerably, sometimes as much as five to one in shots on goal. The team survived with Hall of Fame netminder Jonas Clark in net keeping the games respectable.  This year, we have controlled the games that we won in all aspects (offense, defense, and in net) and even controlled the play for good parts of the games that we have come up just short.

Question—And for the junior varsity?

Answer—We don’t usually like to point out any student athletes in particular, but the two Josh’s come to mind.  Josh Nadler is a 9th grader and looked good in spring hockey. He has really stepped up on the ice and as a leader for the junior varsity team.  Joshua Miller is a senior but did not play last season in our first year coaching the team, so we hadn’t seen him play before.  He has come in and really added a spark to the junior varsity team with his speed and anticipation. It is good for the younger student athletes to see how he plays.  We are happy with how everyone has progressed overall.

Question—What area needs the biggest improvement for the team to reach its full potential in the second half of the season?

Answer—The coaches have been talking with the student athletes about playing with a sense of urgency every second of every shift regardless of what the score is or who we are playing.  We ask the team to visualize the last couple of minutes of the Blair game, when we flew around the ice, pulled our goalie, and scored two goals with several chances to get the third goal and tie the game, and to take that sense of urgency and play every shift that way.  Other teams may have older, and higher level, travel team student athletes, but as Coach Scott says every game, “Hard work will beat better talent”.  We need to be the team that outworks everyone else.

Question—And for the junior varsity?

Answer—Same thing for the junior varsity.  We need to improve playing with that sense of urgency every shift.  We need to try and win every shift, every race, every battle.  We also want to see the team play with more confidence out there on the ice.  Other than the Landon game, we have won or been in every game and can absolutely compete with all the other junior varsity teams in the league.  Let’s play with the confidence of one of the better junior varsity teams in the league.  Lastly, we need to work on anticipation rather than reacting.  High school hockey is so much bigger and faster than what most of our young student athletes are used to playing and there is not enough time to react to the play on the ice.  We need to anticipate what may happen to be in better position to make plays.  The coaching staff would rather the team anticipate and be wrong, rather than be standing around playing it safe trying not to make a mistake.

Question—What are the team’s goals for the remainder of the season?

Answer—In all regards, we are a young team.  We have a couple of seniors and juniors who have been a huge part of this team for the past three to four years, but the majority of our student athletes are 9th graders and 10th graders. We have heard of current middle school students that should be coming into the system and we continue to build towards the future.  With that being said, our stated goal this season has been to make the division 1 playoffs this year. We want to face the best teams we can to finish out the season.  We get better by playing the better teams, not by beating inferior teams.

Question—And for the junior varsity?

Answer—Our overall goal is to develop our junior varsity student athletes into future varsity contributors and that will continue to be our focus.  Teaching and coaching the junior varsity how to play the right way, how to improve their game, and continue to develop up through the end of the season as we enter into the junior varsity playoffs.  Each game is a valuable teaching tool so getting to play a couple of junior varsity playoff games and getting a sense of what is necessary to win in the playoffs is important for the development of our junior varsity student athletes.

Question—How big was the Whitman victory in terms of the growth of the program?

Answer—There is a stigma in the Montgomery Hockey Conference about the disparity in levels of the teams in division one versus division two. It was important for our team and our student athletes to see firsthand that they can compete with teams in the upper division.  Even though Blair and Quince Orchard are in our division and are really good teams that we competed with toe to toe, it was important for our players to beat a good Whitman team who is in division one to know that we belong and that we have a bright future.  The confidence from that win was invaluable.

Question—What would you tell student athletes eligible to participate with Upper Montgomery to get them excited for joining the team next season or playing with Upper Montgomery during the upcoming spring 2022 season?

Answer—First, taking away the game of hockey, the most important thing to be excited about is getting to come in and become teammates and friends with the rest of the students.  Our student athletes are great young people, and they all get along so well.  We have student athletes from six different high schools so it is a chance to meet and make new friends and play with teammates who you may not have had the chance of playing with before.  From a hockey perspective, we are excited about where our program is headed.  Two years ago, the team barely had enough student athletes to field a varsity team.  We now have a full varsity team and almost a complete junior varsity team. We are working to develop our student athletes over the coming years to be one of the best high school programs in the county.  Spring hockey is a great opportunity for new student athletes of the program and rising 8th graders to get a sense of the level of play in high school hockey. They can get a feel for the team and our style of play, start meeting your teammates for years to come, and allow the coaches to evaluate your game and start coaching you up before you actually start high school. 

Question—What message would you like to communicate to the Upper Montgomery Lightning supporters and fan base?

Answer—Over the years our sons would leave MYHA practices early on Friday evenings just as the crowds of high school teams would be arriving to watch their classmates play hockey.  We would stay and watch the high school games and you got such a sense of how different the atmosphere is with your classmates and friends in the stands cheering on your school and it was just incredible.  We want our student athletes to get this same feeling.  Last year was a season played under Covid restrictions and most games were limited to just one parent and no other fans.  We are still in the midst of the pandemic, and everyone needs to be careful, but we can start to see things building this year.  The first couple of games our supporters were mostly family a good amount of our junior varsity student athletes.  We then noticed the next couple of game, more friends and classmates with green jerseys in the stands.  Then we got to the Northwest game.  Northwest is known for having a lot of fans at their games, but we looked over from the bench and saw a large crowd, mostly in green and white and even some signs posted around the glass.  We can’t tell you how much of a boost this gave our student athletes and really gave us a big advantage. And it showed on the ice as well as we dominated against Northwest. It was no longer just about our team playing for themselves and their parents, but for their classmates, for their schools, and for the Upper Montgomery community.  Please continue to come out and support, bring more friends and classmates, and cheer our student athletes on as we push to qualify for the division one conference tournament and then participate in the division two playoff tournament.

We’ve reached the mid-point of the 2021-2022 high school hockey season. For the Upper Montgomery Lightning the young team is trending upward and there is much to be excited about. After three straight one goal defeats to begin the season, and then a tie, the team has turned it around and is currently on a four game winning streak. The Lightning have also moved into playoff position following a signature victory over the Whitman Vikings in their last game before the winter break.

The second half of the season begins on Friday, January 7th with a game against the winless Wilson Stars. The Lightning will be heavily favored in the game and will need to make sure that complacency does not set in. A win versus Wilson coupled with a DC Stars loss to Sherwood would put the Lightning on the precipice of their first ever division one playoff appearance. A second victory in one of the last three conference games of the season against either Richard Montgomery, Sherwood, or St. Johns, would guarantee a playoff berth for Upper Montgomery. To prepare for the Montgomery Hockey Conference playoffs, the team will be travelling to Hagerstown for a non-conference away game versus the very talented Washington County Northstars.

The Lightning offense has been led all year by the first line of Chris Hassett (10 goals, 10 assists), Ryan Jacobson (5 goals, 9 assists), and Nathan Cassel (10 goals, 3 assists). All three student athletes are in 9th or 10th grade. The future is very bright for this trio. The second line has started to find its scoring touch of late. Hunter Cameron now has 4 goals and 3 assists, Bradley Cupples has a goal and 6 assists, and Olivia Robbins has chipped in with a goal and two assists having missed multiple games playing with her external travel team. The third line has been a revolving pair of wingers along with Brandon Bernard at center. It has been difficult for the third line to achieve chemistry although Stephen Shkeda has provided the line with tenacity and energy.

On defense, James Botti leads the team in points with 7 assists in 7 games, but other defenders have chipped in with points; George Benedick a goal and two assists, Andrew Botti a goal and two assists, and Andrew Gean has a goal and an assist. Together with Ethan Hockey, the Lightning have given up only 20 goals in 8 games, for a team goals against average of 2.50 goals per game. If you exclude the 7-6 shootout versus the Blair Blazers, the team’s goals against average would be even lower at 1.86 per game. Even with the non-conference game versus the West Virginia Vipers included, the Lightning have given up the fewest goals of all 15 teams in the Montgomery Hockey Conference. The hard work and effort of the defense, as well as the backchecking forwards, have really limited the opposing teams’ scoring opportunities.

In goal, Will Mellen has led the way. Mellen leads all goalies in the Montgomery Hockey Conference who have played at least three games with a 1.40 goals against average and a .932 save percentage. Landon Bernard has also seen some varsity action, picking up his first career high school varsity win in the game against the West Virginia Vipers. If the strong goaltending keeps up, the Lightning will be in every game and will have a chance to win the cross over games against the division one teams.

The Lightning special teams have been uneven. The power play percentage is good at 23.3% (7 for 30), but it is the way the power play has looked that is not so good. The power play looks disjointed most of the time, with perimeter passing and not many high quality looks. The Lightning scored four power play goals in the high scoring Blair game but have only three other power play goals in the other seven games of the season (3 for 23, 13.0%). On the other hand, the Upper Montgomery penalty kill has been fantastic, killing off 27 of 30 opportunities (90.0%) on the season. The Lightning have killed off the last 16 extra attacker chances and this success has given the team a major boost.

The Upper Montgomery junior varsity squad has had its ups and downs, reaching the mid-point of the season with a 2-3 conference record and 2-4-2 overall. The coaching staff has been preaching effort and consistency. Thus far, the junior varsity team is vastly improved over last season has shown spurts of what the coaching staff is looking for. Unfortunately, the team has been prone to long stretches of inconsistency from game to game and even from period to period within games. Several late goals against have forced the team to settle for ties instead of much needed victories. In perhaps the most complete game the junior varsity has played, a 1-0 loss against Wootton, the only reason the junior varsity lost was that Wootton received emergency permission to play a varsity AA level travel goalie because of the current COVID circumstances in Montgomery County. Otherwise, the junior varsity would have easily won that game.

In goal, Landon Bernard has started each game. He has played well. He has a 3.70 goals against average and an .858 save percentage. However, those individual statistics are misleading and skewed by the game that the junior varsity played against Landon School. The private school teams are a step up in competition and are similar to playing against a varsity team from the Montgomery Hockey Conference. Omitting that game, Bernard’s statistics would be a 3.09 goals against average and a .876 save percentage.

On defense, both Cole Howerton and Patrick Sell are improving. As 9th grade defenders they are frequently playing against forwards two grades more experienced. Several varsity student athletes have dropped down to help out on defense and provide a calming influence. Anrew Gean, George Benedick, Stephen Shkeda, and Bradley Cupples have played several games on defense for the junior varsity providing leadership and guidance.

Offensively, the team has been led by three student athletes; Brandon Bernard who leads the team with 4 goals and 4 assists, Josh Miller who has tallied 4 goals, and Josh Nadler who has scored 3 goals. Eight other student athletes have scored once on the season. With only 19 goals in 8 games (2.375 average), the team has a very small margin for error because it is not scoring enough. Even if you exclude the two games played against varsity goalies (Landon School and Wootton), the team’s goals per game average would be only 3.17. Depth scoring has been an issue all season for the Lightning junior varsity and needs to improve quickly if the team hopes to make a deep run in the upcoming junior varsity playoffs. Three games remain in the regular season for the junior varsity against Rockville, Northwest, and Churchill, and those games will determine the team’s playoff seeding.

The first month of the season has been uneven for the young Upper Montgomery Lightning ice hockey program. The team is much more competitive this season that last season, however the progress on the ice has not yet transferred to points in the league standings. The varsity squad’s record is 0-3-1, with the coaching staff firmly believing that the team has given away a couple of points and the team’s record could easily be 1-2-1. A late goal against versus Rockville turned a certain tie into a loss. Another a late goal against versus the DC Stars turned a certain victory into a tie. The junior varsity team has started the season 1-1-1. As with the varsity squad, the coaching staff firmly believes that the recent tie against Glenelg should have been a Lightning victory. Another late goal against resulted in a certain victory turning into a tie.

The late game defensive issues and the loss of potential standings points has overshadowed what has been a competitive start to the season. The varsity squad has suffered three one goal defeats to begin the season with each game against the top three teams in the division. The next two contests versus Wilson and Northwest will be key to the Upper Montgomery Lightning’s playoff chances. Both games are must win games for the Lightning as the team attempts to qualify for the Montgomery Hockey Conference post-season playoff tournament. The coaching staff will be looking for progress in turning the corner from being competitive against the more experienced teams to winning games.

The varsity’s offense has begun to come around after two low scoring games to begin the season. Led by the top line of Nathan Cassel (4 goals, 1 assist), Ryan Jacobson (3 goals, 3 assists), and Chris Hassett (2 goals, 5 assists) the Lightning have averaged 4.5 goals over the past two games. Depth scoring continues to be an issue as no other varsity student athlete has more than two points through the first four games of the season.

Defensively, the team has been much more responsible. With the exception of the second period against Blair, the team has played much better defense overall. There have been a few mistakes by individual student athletes, but the goals against are way down from last season. Each Lightning defender has several years of varsity experience with the exception of newcomer Andrew Botti who has impressed the coaching staff with his quick puck movement and skating ability. Expect better play from the defense as the season continues.

The goaltending for the Lightning has been uneven. Some games good, other games less so. Some periods really good, other periods less so. Some remarkable saves, some soft goals allowed. The coaching staff is looking to see if either Will Mellen or Landon Bernard takes the reigns and locks down the starting goaltender position.

The junior varsity has worked really hard and has been competitive in every game this season. The Josh’s have led the way offensively. Josh Nadler has three goals and Josh Miller has two pretty breakaway goals. Other student athletes who have chipped in with multiple points in the young season are Bradley Cupples, Ethan Hockey, and Adam Levine. More offensive output would greatly help the Lightning junior varsity as it looks to win its first ever playoff game at the end of the season. The junior varsity dominated Glenelg in its most recent game and was disappointed to settle for a tie. Landon Bernard has been in net the entire way for the Lightning.

The first month of the high school hockey season has been tarnished by two ugly incidents, one local and the other national. At the conclusion of the St. Johns / BCC game, a full brawl broke out with student athletes leaving the bench area to join in the fracas. Multiple suspensions were handed out and both programs have been placed on probation for the balance of the season.

Nationally, the Upper Montgomery Lightning stand united in support of the young lady playing goal in the Pittsburgh area. The disgusting taunts she had to endure and the lack of action by the adults in supervisory capacity is entirely reprehensible. See the Upper Montgomery statement below.

You, and/or your student athlete, may learn about the disgusting and shocking incident that occurred just prior to Halloween at a high school hockey game outside of Pittsburgh.  This disgusting and shocking incident, which involved verbal abuse and harassment, occurred in a high school ice hockey league that is organized very similar to how the Montgomery Hockey Conference is organized.

Along with Coach Todd and Coach Scott, we wanted to reinforce USA Hockey’s zero tolerance stance and reassure all families participating within the Upper Montgomery Lightning hockey program that abuse and trauma such as what this student athlete suffered WOULD NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES HAVE BEEN TOLERATED BY THE UPPER MONTGOMERY LIGHTNING.  THE PROGRAM’S LEADERSHIP WOULD HAVE IMMEDIATELY REACTED AND ADDRESSED THE SITUATION IN REAL TIME, unlike what occurred in Pittsburgh.

The safety and well-being of the student athletes in our program is the top priority of the organization.  As a co-ed/dual gender team, we are very sensitive toward the types of harassment that student athletes in our program may unfortunately experience, and we have ZERO TOLERANCE for behaviors that are not in line with the Upper Montgomery Lightning’s mission and values.