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Junior Varsity Whitman Game Preview

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On Friday the Upper Montgomery Lightning junior varsity plays their final Montgomery Hockey Conference regular season game of the season against the Whitman Vikings. The two teams are separated by one point in the conference standings. The winner of the contest will finish in fourth place in the conference standings and the loser will finish in sixth place in the standings. Finishing in fourth place guarantees a home playoff game against Churchill, while the sixth place finisher will host an opening round game against the non-competitive last place team in the league, almost certainly Richard Montgomery. Then, the sixth place team would advance and play the third seeded team which will be the loser of Friday’s game between Walter Johnson and BCC. Upper Montgomery lost to Churchill in overtime playing with a depleted roster. The Lightning also lost to BCC by a score of 4-3 as the Barons came back in the third period to win in a very evenly played contest.

In goal for the Lightning junior varsity will be ninth grade netminder Porter Stutsrim-Lyons.  Stutsrim-Lyons plays for the Caps Academy 14U Lower A external travel team. He has begun his high school career in excellent style with a 3-2-2 record, a very low 1.98 goals against average, and an eye popping .928 save percentage. Stursrim-Lyons has allowed more than two goals in a game during regulation only two times this season. He also has two shutouts to his credit. The Vikings are expected to play sophomore Alex Minkoff in goal. Minkoff has been outstanding this season posting a 3-1 record, a miniscule 1.00 goals against average, and a .935 save percentage. To be fair, Whitman has played a very, very weak junior varsity schedule with all four of its wins coming against Blair, Northwest / Quince Orchard, Richard Montgomery, and Rockville / Magruder. These are the bottom four teams in the county standings.

Because of the varsity game later in the evening, Upper Montgomery will play the junior varsity game against Whitman with a roster management rotation in place. Some of the more experienced students will be held out of the junior varsity contest or have their minutes severely restricted to rest them for the varsity game which begins just after the conclusion of the junior varsity game. In addition, the coaching staff will need to play certain students in order to have them meet the minimum game requirement to be junior varsity playoff eligible.

On defense the Lightning will play with four defenders. Cole Howerton, Miles, Wendland, and Lillian Robbins will likely sit out against the Vikings. Ninth grade 14U Lower A Matt Rivera (7GP, 5A) and sophomore Max Curtusan, who is fresh off his debut performance for the Lightning against Annapolis / Arundel, will play together. Senior Patrick Sell will play with 16U AA Avery Evans (4GP, 1G, 4A). Always a stout defensive squad, the Vikings are led by senior Mark Buckley. He is a hulking defender known for playing excellent defense. Sophomore Aaron Zhang is his likely defensive partner. Several ninth grade 14U Lower A defenders will also see action for Whitman; Jackson Klessman, Nicholas Naum, and William Betancourt. Bentancourt has lit it up offensively for the Vikings from the back line with (5GP, 3G, 5A). Anticipate a very low scoring game on Friday as Upper Montgomery will be looking to hang back and protect Stutsrim-Lyons and Whitman will play its usual tough defensive style of hockey. Overall, Whitman has given up only ten goals in their six games. Some of the lack of opposition scoring is due to the competition they have faced. Meanwhile, Upper Montgomery has given up only fourteen goals in its seven games for an average of two goals against each game.

On offense, the Lightning will be looking to see some depth scoring emerge on Friday. Several of the Lightning’s top scorers will be held out of action against Whitman; sophomore Jake Hudson (6GP, 5G, 3A), sophomore 16U Lower A Aiden Zheng (5GP, 5G, 1A), and ninth grade 14U Lower A Siddy Bhasin (5GP, 4G, 4A). Senior center AJ Marks who leads the team in scoring with (7GP, 4G, 6A) will center the top line playing along side Max Israfilbek, who scored his first career high school goal against Annapolis / Arundel, and Jason Woodman, who returns from a lengthy suspension to get back into game action prior to the start of the playoffs. The second line is likely to feature ninth grade forward Decklin Hughes centering sophomore Mason Jagoz and sophomore Jackson Schickler, who will be making his 2024 – 2025 season debut after returning from a long injury absence to rejoin the Lightning.

Sophomore forward Mason Brundige leads the Vikings in scoring with ten goals in six games. He scored five goals against Northwest / Quince Orchard. Ninth grade 14U AAA Grace Luo has faired well offensively this season having scored (4GP, 3G, 3A). Ninth grade 14U Upper A Dashiel Caruso has (3GP, 3G, 2A). Sophomore Henry Schadler has (4GP, 3G, 1A). Whitman’s other primary scorer is ninth grade 14U Lower A Atticus Davis who has scored four goals in five games played.

Friday’s game will be a good test for the depth of the Lightning junior varsity and an opportunity for several students to see extended game action. As the junior varsity regular season winds down, preparations for the playoffs are ramping up. A victory over the Vikings would guarantee the Lightning finish the 2024 – 2025 season with a winning record. It would be the second consecutive season the junior varsity would post a winning record after last year’s record breaking undefeated regular season. It is also a step up in competition for Upper Montgomery which always helps leading into the junior varsity playoffs which are expected to begin just after the turn of the new year.

#UML, #Bleed Green, #Go Bolts!

Junior Varsity Annapolis / Arundel Game Preview

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On Monday, the Upper Montgomery Lightning junior varsity plays their first game in six weeks when the team matches up against the Annapolis / Arundel Wildcats. The non-conference game is scheduled for 6:10 pm at Laurel Ice Gardens. With Skate Frederick closed due to ice surface issues for several weeks, Upper Montgomery was forced to push back several scheduled junior varsity games until later in the season resulting in the long gap in the schedule.

In goal for the Lightning junior varsity will again be ninth grade netminder Porter Stutsrim-Lyons.  Stutsrim-Lyons plays for the Caps Academy 14U Lower A external travel team. He has begun his high school career in excellent style with a 3-1-2 record, a miniscule 1.64 goals against average, and an eye popping .939 save percentage. If Stutsrim-Lyons maintains his current save percentage it would break the junior varsity program record set last season by Ilan Shterenberg (.927). Stursrim-Lyons is coming off his second shutout of the season in the Lightning’s last game against the Blair Blazers. The Wildcats are expected to play 16U Lower A goalie Solomon Abramson. He has started all three of the Wildcats games this season with a 1-2 record. He has a 4.00 goals against average and a .769 save percentage.

On defense the Lightning will have a full complement of defenders for the first time this season. Senior Cole Howerton (4GP, 2G, 2A), sophomore 16U Lower A Miles Wendland (4GP, 3A), senior Patrick Sell, ninth grade 14U AA Lillian Robbins (2GP, 1G, 3A), ninth grade 14U Lower A Matt Rivera (6GP, 5A), sophomore 16U AA Avery Evans (3GP, 1G, 3A), and sophomore Max Curtusan who will be making his season debut. The Lightning will be well stocked on the back end with all seven defenders in attendance. Expect one of the defenders to skate up as a forward in the game. Likely defensive pairs against Annapolis / Arundel are Wendland with Curtusan, Evans with Sell, and Howerton with Rivera. Robbins might be the defender moved up to play forward. Defensively, the Wildcats have one point on the season from their collection of junior varsity defenders; Kylee Kulawiak, Robert Levin, Matthew Keys, Alexander Hillman, and Peter Back.

On offense, the Lightning will be looking to maintain their average of 4.5 goals per game. The Lightning’s top four scorers should be in action against the Wildcats. Senior center AJ Marks leads the team in scoring with (6GP, 4G, 4A). Newcomers sophomore Jake Hudson (5GP, 5G, 2A), and ninth grade 14U Lower A Siddy Bhasin (4GP, 3G, 4A) will look to continue to stay hot at the offensive end of the ice. Returning sophomore 16U Lower A Aiden Zheng (4GP, 5G, 1A) is coming off a hat-trick versus the Blazers and is tied with Hudson for the team lead in goals. Rounding out the forward rotation will be varsity goalie Ilan Shterenberg skating out as a forward, sophomore Mason Jagoz, and ninth grade forwards Decklin Hughes. Luke Hudson, and Max Israfilbek. It would help the confidence of this group of skaters to find their name on the score sheet. Jackson Schickler remains out with an upper body injury but is close to his return and Jason Woodman is serving the final game of his lengthy suspension.

Offensively, the Wildcats feature four primary forward threats who all play at the Lower A external travel level. William Woodson-Potter leads Annapolis / Arundel in scoring with (3GP, 2G, 2A). The team leader in goals scored is Kyler Porzillo with three goals in three games. Gavin Hare is averaging a point per game (3GP, 1G, 2A) and Kayleb Haley has scored twice.

Monday’s game will be a good test for the Lightning and a tune up for next Friday’s important final regular season Montgomery Hockey Conference league game against the Whitman Vikings. A win over the Wildcats would likely guarantee the Lightning would finish the 2024 – 2025 season with a winning record. It would be the second consecutive season the junior varsity would post a winning record after last year’s record breaking undefeated regular season.

#Rep MoCo, #UML, #Bleed Green, #Go Bolts!

Wootton Surges Past Upper Montgomery into First Place

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The Upper Montgomery Lightning entered Friday night’s contest against Wootton knowing that they would need to excel defensively in order to slow down Wootton’s high powered offensive attack. Wootton had scored fourteen and ten goals in their first two games of the season. Upper Montgomery largely succeeded in holding Wootton down by surrendering only three goals. However, Upper Montgomery was unable to convert on several net front scrambles and other prime scoring opportunities flittered away in a 3-1 loss to the highly ranked Patriots. It was a good showing by the young Lightning squad in their first test against a highly rated team.

The contrast in styles made for a very busy night in net for Upper Montgomery sophomore goalie Ilan Shterenberg, who made a career high 49 saves during the game. Upper Montgomery was outshot 52-26 for the game with Shterenberg having to make save after save on Wootton fast break rushes up ice. The game played out exactly how the Upper Montgomery coaching staff prepared the Lightning. Wootton would gain possession of the puck in their defensive zone and all of their skaters would fire up ice looking to outnumber the Lightning defenders. Upper Montgomery countered with a defensive game plan seeking to frustrate the Patriots by clearing the defensive zone and forcing the Patriots to constantly rewind at center ice and re-enter the Lightning defensive zone time and again with layers of green shirted defenders protecting the net.

The opening half of the first period was played entirely in the Lightning defensive zone. Wootton had long stretches, shift after shift, of offensive zone time with frequent shots fired at Shterenberg. At times it looked like a shooting gallery. As the game neared ten minutes of action, Upper Montgomery cleared their defensive zone. The Patriots all world senior defender Sam Hosier collected the puck in his own zone and circled around with possession. His pass up ice was broken up by Lightning sophomore forward Aiden Zheng. Zheng dumped the puck back into the Patriots defensive zone to the right corner. Wootton advanced the puck to neutral ice and the puck was again slammed back into the Wootton defensive zone by Upper Montgomery ninth grade defender Matt Rivera. Hosier gained the puck behind his own net. He dumped the puck out the defensive zone and immediately Upper Montgomery sent the puck deep for a third consecutive time.

At that point, Hosier had had enough. He jumped up and intercepted the last dump in on the left wing at his own defensive blue line. Hosier circled in his own zone to the right and headed up ice. He individually advanced the puck out of the Wootton defensive zone, through neutral ice, and then into the bottom of the left faceoff circle in the Lightning defensive zone. He unleashed a rocket of a wrist shot that went high to the far side of the net. As the puck went past Shterenberg blocker it hit the bottom of Shterenberg’s water bottle sitting on the top of the net.

Forty seconds later the Patriots were on the powerplay after Lightning senior center Josh Nadler was called for tripping. The target practice continued with shot after shot attempt directed at the Lightning’s goalie. With Shterenberg’s fine goaltending display, and a few shots sent just wide, Upper Montgomery survived the penalty kill. The final three minutes of the first period ticked away enabling the Lightning to reach the end of the period down by only one goal even through they had been outshot seventeen to four in the first fifteen minutes of game action.

The second period was more of the same. Target practice, with 25 more shots fired on Shterenberg who was excellent again in the middle period making several outstanding saves. Upper Montgomery was becoming a little more comfortable with and adjusted to the pace of play. Wootton’s speed advantage while noticeable no longer fully controlled the action. Upper Montgomery was able to counter with some goal mouth flurries that produced nine shots on goal. The Lightning were helped by an early second period powerplay opportunity when Wootton sophomore defender Jayden Ahn was called for a roughing penalty just over three minutes into the period. While Upper Montgomery was unable to cash in, the extra skater and Wootton’s focus on the penalty kill momentarily interrupted their go for broke fast pace style of play.

Halfway through the period, Wootton went to their second powerplay of the game when Lightning junior forward Philip Shkeda was called for roughing. Complicating matters was that Upper Montgomery junior center Owen Robbin, a primary penalty killer for the Lightning, was whistled for a cross checking penalty with forty second remaining on Shkeda’s penalty. The rest of the Lightning penalty killers rose to the challenge and Shterenberg made a huge save to get through the five on three portion of Wootton’s powerplay to get Shkeda back on the ice.

As the clock ticked under five minutes remaining in the second period and with thirty seconds still remaining on Robbins’ penalty, Wootton broke down the Lightning penalty killers to increase their lead to 2-0. Upper Montgomery cleared the puck down ice to the Wootton defensive blue line. Hosier retrieved the puck and did his customary circle to generate some speed. He made a backhand pass to Wootton forward Owen Goozh on the right side of the defensive blue line. Goozh traveled through the neutral zone down the middle of the ice. He made a move around the Lightning penalty killers but in doing so lost the puck into the left corner in the Upper Montgomery defensive zone. With Goozh and Lightning senior defender Cole Howerton battling for the puck, Wootton forward Justin Heller jumped in and helped dislodge the puck loose. Heller fired the puck behind the Lightning net to Patriots senior center Nathan Tai. Tai came around the goal toward the right corner and then further around the outside of the right faceoff circle. Coming at the net with speed, Tai snapped off a sharp wrist shot that went far side seven hole into Shterenberg’s body under his blocker and stick. The pace of the shot propelled the puck past the young goaltender’s body and into the net.

Upper Montgomery would get a late powerplay of their own to close out the second period when Tai was called for a hooking penalty. Upper Montgomery continued to threaten the crease area but time after time the puck squirted just wide of the net or was blocked away when seemingly headed toward an open net. The Lightning were unable to cash in with the extra skater and entered the third period down by two goals while having been outshot 42-13 through thirty minutes of action.

The Lightning again had a golden opportunity to tighten up the game at the beginning of the third period when Hosier was called for a slashing penalty just seconds into the period. Upper Montgomery put on a significant amount of pressure while on the powerplay with Hosier off the ice. There was a goal mouth scramble with Wootton goalie Kevin Yu bobbling the puck behind him. However, the puck was steered just wide of the net. As Hosier’s penalty ended, the puck was stolen by Wootton forward Michael Klimantov at the red line along the right wing boards. Klimantov skated into the Upper Montgomery defensive zone where he passed the puck to his left finding Hosier open in the high slot. Hosier shot the puck back across his body toward Shterenberg. The perfectly placed shot wound up going under Shterenberg’s outstretched glove hand. It was a deflating moment as Upper Montgomery had an opportunity to climb back into the game, and then seconds after Wootton returned to even strength the Lightning was staring at a three goal deficit.

At the eight and a half minute mark of the third period, Upper Montgomery would use a fine set of passes to finally convert on one of their high danger opportunities. Lightning senior center Henry Honacki poke checked the puck loose from Hosier just inside the Wootton defensive blue line. Upper Montgomery sophomore forward Jake Hudson picked up the puck just outside the blue line. He sent a pass back to Upper Montgomery ninth grade defender Lillian Robbins standing at the Lightning’s defensive blue line along the right wing boards. Robbins swung the puck left to her defensive partner junior Brady Berkhammer who read a slow developing Wootton line change. Berkhammer fired the puck up to Honacki who had managed to get behind all Wootton skaters. From the offensive blue line in, Honacki was in alone on a breakaway. Honacki faked from forehand to backhand and easily outmaneuvered Yu carefully sliding the puck into the yawning open net.

With Upper Montgomery trailing by just two goals, an all out offensive push provided a lifeline when Wootton’s Tai was called for a tripping penalty on the next shift. Another opportunity with the extra skater to try and claw closer. The right goal post was as close as the Lightning would come with several more chances that just would not go in. After Tai’s penalty ended, Wootton spent the final six minutes of the game focusing on playing sound defense.

For Wootton, their best defense is their potent offense and puck possession. The Patriots struggled to clear their defensive zone, but did manage to block several Upper Montgomery shots to help protect Yu. Even when Upper Montgomery pulled Shterenberg with two minutes left in the game, Wootton had trouble finishing the game. The Lightning applied constant pressure which Wootton relieved with several icings over the final two minutes of the game. But, it was enough as the Patriots found a way to win a game where their offensive output was nine goals lower than their season average. The Lightning have little time to appreciate how well they played against a very good opponent. A clash against another top ranked team, the Urbana Hawks comes up on Tuesday afternoon.

Game Notes:

  • Wootton badly outshot Upper Montgomery 52-26 for the game, including 42-13 over the first two periods of play.
  • Lightning sophomore goalie Ilan Shterenberg made a career high 49 saves with a .942 save percentage.
  • Lightning senior center Henry Honacki scored for the third consecutive game.
  • Upper Montgomery ninth grade defender Lillian Robbins notched her first career varsity point with an assist on Honacki’s goal.
  • Upper Montgomery returns to action early Tuesday afternoon facing off against another powerhouse team in the Urbana Hawks. Game time is 3:10 pm at Rockville Ice Arena.

Three Stars of the Game:

First Star—Ilan Shterenberg—Upper Montgomery Goalie—49 Saves, .942 Save Percentage
Second Star—Sam Hosier—Wootton Defense—2 Goals
Third Star—Kevin Yu–Wootton Goalie—Win, 1 Goal Against, 25 Saves, .962 Save Percentage

Varsity DC Stars Game Preview

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The Upper Montgomery Lightning begins the second half of the Montgomery Hockey Conference schedule this Friday evening when the team clashes with the DC Stars. Game time is 8:45 pm at Rockville Ice Arena. Last season the Lightning dominated both games against the DC Stars only to be foiled by Stars goaltender Anton Tracy. Tracy outright stole game one and made countless saves in game two to snag important standings points for the Stars in a three all tie. Upper Montgomery has started the 2024 – 2025 high school hockey season in fine fashion with a 3-2-1 conference record (3-3-1 overall). All three losses have come against teams ranked in the top fifteen in the state; Wootton twice and Urbana. It will be the Lightning’s first game in three weeks since a very poor performance against Wootton. Meanwhile, the DC Stars have lost six games in a row since their program defining first ever victory against Churchill, a 1-0 overtime win back in October.

Once again Upper Montgomery will not be at full strength as last season’s leading returning scorer Nathan Cassel continues to recover from an upper body injury. His likely return of after the Thanksgiving holiday has been pushed back until the start of the new year. With this season’s leading scorer Owen Robbins (6GP, 7G, 3A) also missing the DC Stars contest as he is out-of-town with his external travel team, the young Lightning will need to step it up to be competitive against the Stars. The game is anticipated to be a very low scoring affair as Upper Montgomery will be missing its top two offensive threats and the DC Stars have managed to score only twelve goals over their first seven games of the season. Expect a lot of play in the neutral zone and along the boards with each team trying to threaten the high danger scoring areas.

Upper Montgomery’s goaltender, 16U AA sophomore Ilan Shterenberg has been sound this season with a 3-3-1 record, a 4.75 goals against average, and an .876 save percentage. Shterenberg will need to be exceptionally sharp to match Tracy in net at the other end of the ice. This is one of the few games where Upper Montgomery does not have a very distinctive advantage in goaltending. Shterenberg will again be backed up by 14U Lower A ninth grade netminder Porter Stutsrim-Lyons. Stutsrim-Lyons is 3-1-2 on the season (two shutouts), with a 1.64 goals against average, and a .939 save percentage playing for the Lightning junior varsity.

In net for the DC Stars will be junior goalie Anton Tracy. The Lightning struggled last season to get the puck past Tracy who stopped 78 of 82 shots, .951 save percentage, and who was the first star of the game in both meetings against Upper Montgomery. Tracy is massive and covers much of the net. With his sound positioning, there is very little open net to shoot at when coming in on Tracy. This season he has not faired as well going 1-4, with a 4.80 goals against average, and an .868 save percentage. Let’s hope it takes him one more week to find his groove and that the Lightning fair far better than they did in both games last season.

On defense, the Lightning will be tested. The Lightning’s most experienced defender 16U AA junior Brady Berkhammer (7GP, 2G, 5A) will pair with ninth grade defender Matt Rivera and senior Patrick Sell. Anticipate that 16U Lower A sophomore defender Miles Wendland will skate with senior Cole Howerton. Howerton played the best game of his high school career recently against Richard Montgomery.

DC Stars most explosive skater is 18U AA senior defender Leo Nyberg. Nyberg leads the Stars in scoring (7GP, 4G, 1A). The rest of the Stars defenders are more defensively minded; 18U Upper A senior Benjamin Lust, his younger brother 16U Upper A sophomore Jonathan Lust, 18U AA senior Fletcher Lyttleton, 18U AA senior Anna Mayer, and junior Samuel Bensky. The Stars defense will be packed in very tight against their goalie making it difficult for the Lightning to generate good quality scoring chances. The Stars are a very well coached team. The Lightning will need to play a clean game and avoid giving the Stars odd skater rushes which could assist them in creating easy offensive chances.

Offensively, Upper Montgomery will be challenged to score with Cassel and Robbins both out of the lineup. Junior forward Philip Shkeda (6GP, 4G, 5A) and 18U Upper A senior center Henry Honacki (7GP, 5G, 2A) will each need to find the back of the net for Upper Montgomery to have a chance at victory. Honacki scored Upper Montgomery’s only goal in the blowout loss against the Patriots.

Sophomore 16U Lower A Aiden Zheng is averaging almost point a game (7GP, 2G, 4A) and seems more comfortable at the varsity level this season. Sophomore newcomer Jake Hudson has five assists in five games but is still looking for his first career varsity goal. Ninth grade 14U Lower A forward Siddy Bhasin is also looking for his first career varsity goal. Hudson and Bhasin are two of the top three scorers for the Lightning junior varsity with seven points each. After these five forwards, it is going to be important for any of the younger Upper Montgomery forwards to step up and provide some production. Getting some offense from the defense would be a bonus and could alter the game in the Lightning’s favor.

The Lightning have managed only thirteen powerplays in their first seven games of the season, less than two extra skater advantages per game. The Upper Montgomery powerplay has clicked at 30.8% in its limited opportunities. Potting a powerplay goal or two would also be a key to victory.

The Stars’ most accomplished forward is 16U Upper A junior Walter Bernstein. Bernstein is a quick shifty jitterbug who will push the pace of play up the ice. He has scored twice this season as has 16U AA ninth grade forward Gabriel Schon. The other fifteen forwards that have suited up for the Stars have scored a combined four total goals. Is it a lack of offense that is dooming the Stars? Or, is it simply playing a front loaded schedule that saw the Stars play Walter Johnson twice, Whitman, Churchill, and Sherwood before their squad had time to jell?

Coming out of the Thanksgiving break, the Lightning need to ramp up their game. As teams gear up for the end of season and playoffs the games have more meaning and the competition intensifies. Headed into Friday’s tilt with the Stars, the Lightning are hoping to jump a game over .500 and continue their best start to a season in several years. Let’s hope the outcome of Friday’s game is a springboard for the second half of the season and that good things are in store for the program as we move closer to winter break.

#Second Half Strong, #UML, #Bleed Green, #Go Bolts!

Upper Montgomery Dispatches Northwest / Quince Orchard Remains Undefeated

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The Upper Montgomery Lightning entered Thursday’s game against Northwest / Quince Orchard knowing that they were the more talented squad. Hoping for a Halloween massacre, the team settled for a ho hum sloppily played victory over the overmatched but pesky Jaguars. While Upper Montgomery dominated play for much of the evening, the coaching staff was not pleased with how the team seemed to go through the motions with a distinct lack of intensity. With the victory, Upper Montgomery advanced its record to 2-0-1 on the season and cemented its place among the top half of the teams in the county.

The first half of the opening period was filled with individualism and very little team play. The individualism led to many turnovers with skaters out of position not knowing where the puck carrier was going with the puck in the offensive zone. These continuous turnovers led to easy defensive zone clears for the Jaguars. Of note, Lightning junior center Owen Robbins twice hit the goal post with wicked wrist shots. Unfortunately for him and the Lightning, both shots harmlessly clanged away from the net after easily beating Northwest / Quince Orchard senior goalie Joseph Dean.

The Lightning opened the scoring with eight and a half minutes left in the first period. Northwest / Quince Orchard dumped the puck into the Upper Montgomery defensive zone to the left corner. Lightning junior defender Brady Berkhammer chipped the puck off the corner boards to Upper Montgomery senior center Henry Honakci. Using his backhand, Honakci dug the puck up ice to senior forward AJ Marks making his varsity debut. Marks touched the puck before over skating the puck in his haste to exit the defensive zone. Berkhammer, trailing the play, jumped on the puck and skated out of the defensive zone up ice. He maneuvered down the left wing boards into the offensive zone. Entering the left faceoff circle with the puck on his forehand, he shed the Northwest / Quince Orchard defender with a shoulder lean and cut toward the front of the net. Berkhammer skated around Dean and slid a backhand shot along the ice to the far side of the net.

Having finally taken the lead Upper Montgomery seemed to relax just a bit. That exhale of relief seemed to jump start the team. Two minutes later, the score increased to 2-0. The Northwest / Quince Orchard defense slung the puck around the curve behind their own net. The puck was cut off by Upper Montgomery junior forward Philip Shkeda along the left wing boards. He returned the puck low behind the Northwest / Quince Orchard net. The Northwest / Quince Orchard defense attempted a defensive zone breakout up the other side of the ice. This fling of the puck was kept in at the right point by Upper Montgomery senior defender Patrick Sell. From midway between the top of the right faceoff circle and the blue line, Sell lined up a wrist shot and fired at the net. His shot traveled high toward the top right corner of the net. Dean could not get his glove hand up high enough to stop the puck leading to Sell’s first career varsity goal and a rousing celebration from the Lightning bench.

With three and a half minutes remaining in the opening period Northwest / Quince Orchard clawed back into the game. A shot by Lightning sophomore forward Jake Hudson was blocked by Northwest / Quince Orchard defender Roman Martin. The puck bounded slightly forward toward the Northwest / Quince Orchard net. Martin poked the puck to Northwest / Quince Orchard center Ethan Custudio. Custudio took the puck up the left side of the ice through the neutral zone and into the Upper Montgomery defensive zone. From the top of the left faceoff circle he fired a wrist shot past the leg of a Lightning defender to the short side of the net. The puck squirted past Upper Montgomery sophomore goalie Ilan Shterenberg’s blocker and his side and then into the net. It was a goal that Shterenberg would tell you never should have gotten past him.

The soft goal against seemed to fire up the Lightning. On the very next shift Upper Montgomery restored the two goal lead. Northwest / Quince Orchard iced the puck. Off the offensive zone faceoff in the right faceoff circle, Honacki shot the puck toward the net. The puck went wide short side and rebounded off the back wall to Shkeda in the left corner. Shkeda sent a bank pass off the boards to Berkhammer at the left point. Berkhammer sent a return pass off the boards back down to Shkeda. Shkeda fired a cross ice pass looking for senior forward TJ Gottesman. Gottesman chunked the cross crease feed wide of the net past the right goal post. Gottesman hurried to the puck and went around the back of the net from right to left. He lost control of the puck as he came around the net. Retaining possession he then passed the puck into the slot. The puck was grabbed by Honacki on his backhand. Honacki spun away from the Northwest / Quince Orchard defense and fired a wrist shot that went top shelf near side past Dean’s blocker.

Nineteen seconds later, with the same forward trio remaining on the ice, Gottesman scored his first career varsity goal to extend the lead to 4-1 putting Upper Montgomery firmly in control. Northwest / Quince Orchard won the center ice faceoff following Honacki’s goal. From the right wing boards along the defensive zone blue line, the Jaguars defense cleared the puck up ice. Berkhammer stole possession of the puck inside his own defensive zone blue line. He advanced the puck up the left wing boards to Shkeda in neutral ice. Shkeda skated through the middle of the ice and cut to the left entering the offensive zone. Shkeda stickhandled in and lost the puck as he closed in on the goal. Dean swatted at the puck which went to Gottesman on the right side of the slot. Gottesman shot high over Dean’s glove hand to find the back of the net. Shots on goal in the first period were sixteen for Upper Montgomery and four for Northwest / Quince Orchard. As previously mentioned, it was a period that Upper Montgomery seemed to go through the motions and still the Lightning dominated play.

The second period saw a continuation of the same. Upper Montgomery outshot Northwest Quince Orchard by a similar fifteen to four margin. Off the opening faceoff to start the second period, Martin was called for a roughing penalty putting Upper Montgomery on the powerplay for what would be their only opportunity of the evening. Robbins again hit the goal post and the Lightning had several other threatening opportunities but could not cash in with the extra skater.

A minute after the Lightning’s powerplay concluded, Shkeda scored his second goal of the season. A shot from the point by Northwest / Quince Orchard defender Andrew Isaacson was saved by Shterenberg. The puck bounced into the slot near Shkeda who was covering for the defense. Shkeda corralled the puck and headed up the right wing. He made a self pass off the boards as he stepped around the Northwest / Quince Orchard defender. He came in on a two on one rush with Hudson. Choosing to shoot, Shkeda fired a wrist shot from the bottom of the right faceoff circle. The puck went far side under Dean’s blocker for the unassisted goal.

With four minutes remaining in the period, Berkhammer would tally his second goal of the game to extend the Lightning’s lead to 6-1. Berkhammer began the play firing a diagonal cross ice pass from his left defensive corner to Upper Montgomery sophomore forward Aiden Zheng on the right wing at the Lightning defensive blue line. Zheng skated the puck all the way down the right wing into the Upper Montgomery offensive zone. He traveled into the right wing corner and then around the net. Coming around the net, Zheng sent a backhand pass to Berkhammer at the left point. Berkhammer skated around the approaching Northwest / Quince Orchard forward and then to the inside of the defense before he fired a wrist shot short side over Dean’s blocker.

With under two minutes remaining in the second period, Honacki scored his second goal of the game and third of the season to bring the game temporarily into running clock with Upper Montgomery ahead 7-1. Berkhammer again started the play beginning with the puck behind his own net. He sent a bank pass up the left wing boards to Shkeda. Shekda made a nice pick up of the pass while skating backwards. He pivoted forward into a two on one rush with Honacki. Shekda again chose to shoot, this time from the low portion of the left faceoff circle. Dean made a pad save with the puck rebounding immediately back to Shkeda. This time Shkeda passed across the crease to Honacki alone at the right goal post for an easy tap in goal.

With a six goal lead, the Upper Montgomery coaching staff inserted ninth grade netminder Porter Stutsrim-Lyons to play the third period. The coaching staff also began to give some of the depth skaters more playing time as the victory was securely in hand with fifteen minutes left in the game. The game began to have the flow and nature of a friendly scrimmage. Three and a half minutes into the third period Hudson was called for a hooking penalty putting Northwest / Quince Orchard on the powerplay for the first time in the game. With Upper Montgomery using skaters who do not normally kill penalties, the Lightning penalty kill was scattered and chaotic, but did enough to keep the Jaguars off the scoreboard.

With five and a half minutes remaining in the game, Lightning senior defender Cole Howerton was called for a roughing penalty. Thirty seconds later, Northwest / Quince Orchard scored to get the game out of running clock with five minutes remaining. Off of a faceoff in the Upper Montgomery defensive zone to the right of Stutsrim-Lyons, the Lightning lost the draw to the side wall. The puck found its way back to the left point to Isaacson. He stepped around the Upper Montgomery forward and fired a wrist shot from the top of the left faceoff circle through a screen in front. Stutsrim-Lyons made the initial save but could not control the rebound which fell in front of the net. Custudio found the puck through some legs and skates and slid a pass across the front of the crease to Miriam Birck standing behind the Lightning netminder. Birck slammed home the puck to the far side of the goal.

With less than two minutes to play, Northwest / Quince Orchard was back on their third powerplay of the period. A frame in which Upper Montgomery just went through the motions gearing up for the monumental tilt tomorrow evening against highly ranked Wootton. Sell took an interference penalty in front wiping out a Northwest / Quince Orchard forward. Similar to the last Northwest / Quince Orchard powerplay, Upper Montgomery was hemmed in the defensive zone.

With a minute remaining in the game and from a faceoff originating outside of the Upper Montgomery defensive zone along the right side of the ice, Custudio won the draw back to Martin. Martin entered the Upper Montgomery zone and fired the puck wide of the net. The puck was kept in at the left point by Isaacson. He dumped the puck down into the left corner. An Upper Montgomery defensive zone clear was kept in at the left point by Isaacson. This time he fired at the net where the shot hit Martin and deflected high off Stutsrim-Lyons’s stick to the left side of the ice. The Lightning defense possessed the puck and attempted to skate the puck out of the defensive zone rather than simply immediately icing the puck as the coaching staff has instilled in all Lightning penalty killers. Custudio snuck in and stole the puck. He passed to the slot with Upper Montgomery’s skaters heading up ice anticipating the puck would be cleared down the ice. Martin was all alone in front of Stutsrim-Lyons for a layup goal to conclude the scoring. It proved to be an anticlimactic end to the ho-hum evening which produced an Upper Montgomery victory that was hardly celebrated.

Game Notes:

  • Upper Montgomery outshot Northwest Quince Orchard 37-20 for the game, including 31 to 8 over the first two periods of play.
  • Lightning junior defender Brady Berkhammer had his first career high school multi-goal game and he added two assists for a career high four point game.
  • Lightning senior defender Patrick Sell scored his first career high school varsity goal.
  • Lightning senior forward TJ Gottesman scored his first career high school varsity goal and added an assist for his first two career varsity points.
  • Playing in his first ever varsity game, Lightning senior forward AJ Marks registered an assist for his first career varsity point.
  • Upper Montgomery ninth grade netminder Porter Stutsrim-Lyons entered the game and played the entire third period seeing his first career varsity action. Stutsrim Lyons made ten saves and played well.
  • Upper Montgomery returns to action late tomorrow night facing off against arch rival and undefeated Wootton. Puck drop is scheduled for 10:00 pm at Cabin John Ice Rink.

Three Stars of the Game:

First Star—Philip Shkeda—Upper Montgomery Forward—1 Goal, 3 Assists
Second Star—Henry Honacki—Upper Montgomery Center—2 Goals, 1 Assist
Third Star—Ethan Custudio—Northwest / Quince Orchard Center—1 Goal, 2 Assists

Lightning Strike Blog-November 2024

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The first half of the 2024 – 2025 high school ice hockey season has zoomed past with the Upper Montgomery Lightning varsity and junior varsity squads right in the thick of the conference standings. As the Thanksgiving holiday break concludes, the sprint to the Montgomery Hockey Conference post season playoff tournament is in full flight with both Upper Montgomery teams looking make some noise and finish the season strong.

The Lightning junior varsity has received outstanding goaltending from ninth grade goalie Porter Stutsrim-Lyons coupled with some timely goal scoring to begin the season with a 3-1-2 record. Stutsrim-Lyons has posted two shutouts along with a 1.64 goals against average and a .939 save percentage. He has a chance over the remainder of the season to set junior varsity program records for goals against average and save percentage. Upper Montgomery’s junior varsity extended the program record unbeaten streak to sixteen games, 12-0-4 over three seasons, until inevitably, all things must come to an end. The long undefeated streak vanished in a 4-3 loss to BCC, the Lightning’s only regulation loss of the season. In the BCC game, the Lightning’s string of 36 consecutive shorthanded situations killed off also ended.

In a heroic effort, Upper Montgomery took Churchill to overtime playing with only seven available skaters. It was a monster performance to gut out a point with such a depleted roster. Up next for the Lightning junior varsity is a non-conference matchup against Annapolis / Arundel before closing out the regular season playing a very strong Whitman team. With the start of the playoffs just six weeks away, the Lightning junior varsity will need to continue to receive contributions from up and down the lineup. The junior varsity’s leading scorer is senior forward AJ Marks (6GP, 4G, 4A). He is followed in scoring by two newcomers to the Lightning program, sophomore Jake Hudson (5GP, 5G, 2A), and ninth grade forward Siddy Bhasin (4GP, 3G, 4A). Bhasin scored in his first three high school hockey games. Sophomore Aiden Zheng has stood out offensively and with his hustle and effort. He scored a hat-trick versus Blair and has (4GP, 5G, 1A). Lightning varsity goalie Ilan Shterenberg has skated out as a forward in some junior varsity games scoring two goals.

Defensively, the junior varsity has been led by sophomore Miles Wendland (4GP, 3A) and senior Cole Howerton (4GP, 2G, 2A), two varsity skaters who have played down to assist the junior varsity’s young defenders. Senior Patrick Sell is playing the best hockey of his high school career. Young defenders Avery Evans (3GP, 1G, 3A), Lillian Robbins (2GP, 1G, 3A), and Matt Rivera (6GP, 5A) have all contributed while gaining key experience. Due back to the lineup in time for the Lightning’s next junior varsity game are sophomore center Jackson Schickler and sophomore defender Max Curtusan.

The Upper Montgomery varsity is off to its best start in the last four seasons playing to a 3-3-1 record over the first half of the schedule. The teams only losses are against teams ranked in the top fifteen in the state; Wootton twice and Urbana. With a reasonable second half schedule, the Lightning have a chance to finish the 2024 – 2025 regular season with a winning record. It would be the first time since the 2018 – 2019 season that the Lightning could finish the season above .500.

In net, sophomore Ilan Shterenberg has handled the majority of the goaltending duties. He has shined in some games, making 49 saves in the Lightning’s 3-1 loss to Wootton early in the season, and he has struggled in other games. His play is typical for an underclass student athlete moving up from his staring role on the junior varsity where he set or tied numerous program records last season; tying for most wins in a season, and setting the lowest goals against average and highest save percentage in junior varsity program history. Shterenberg has a solid save percentage of .876. His goals against average which had been in the three’s ballooned to 4.75 after the Lightning’s poor defensive performances against both Urbana and in the second Wootton game. The three week Thanksgiving holiday break should provide him the opportunity to re-set and focus on the second half of the season.

Defensively, junior AA defender Brady Berkhammer has upped his game this season. He is providing much more offense (7GP, 2G, 5A) than in his first two seasons of varsity play. He had a four point game against Northwest / Quince Orchard with two goals and two assists. Sophomore defender Miles Wendland has played important minutes against the opposition’s top forward lines. He has accelerated his game from his ninth grade season. He has also contributed offensively with three assists in six games. Senior Cole Howerton has stepped into a regular role on the varsity playing mostly with Wendland. Howerton has played some of the best hockey in his final high school season. His play stood out in the Lightning’s win over Richard Montgomery. Ninth grade AA defender Lillian Robbins has seen regular action in the first half of the season and contributed three assists in the game against Richard Montgomery. She has played in four games and has dished out four assists. Senior Patrick Sell scored his first career high school varsity goal in the Northwest / Quince Orchard game. His size and presence on the blue line has caused problems for the opposition. Ninth grade Matt Rivera and sophomore Avery Evans have each gained valuable experience at the varsity level in their limited play. Getting time in varsity games now will help them in future seasons as they take on larger roles on the team.

Offensively, the Lightning knew they would have to replace Maryland Student Hockey League Hall of Fame standout Chris Hassett who graduated after last season. Unexpectedly, junior Ryan Jacobson left to play junior hockey in Michigan. Then, last season’s leading returning scorer Nathan Cassel (2GP, 3G, 1A) has missed most of the early portion of the season with an upper body injury. His hat-trick against Rockville / Magruder helped the Lightning to a 5-5 tie against the Rams. The Upper Montgomery coaching staff moved AAA junior defender Owen Robbins to center as a means of generating additional offense. The move has paid off as Robbins authored a hat-trick in the Lightning’s season opening win over BCC and scored four times against Richard Montgomery. The Lightning’s victory over BCC was the program’s first ever win against the Barons. Robbins has paced the Lightning in scoring with (6GP, 7G, 3A). He is followed closely by junior forward Philip Shkeda with (6GP, 4G, 5A) and senior center Henry Honacki (7GP, 5G, 2A).

A couple of sophomores have stepped in and filled important roles on the team. Returning forward Aiden Zheng has (7GP, 2G, 4A) continuing his assent from last season’s breakout during the Montgomery Hockey Conference varsity playoff tournament. Newcomer Jake Hudson has used his size well getting the puck out of the defensive zone along the boards leading to numerous rushes up ice. Several of the odd skater rushes have led to goals. He has five assists in five games including dishing out three assists against Richard Montgomery. With depth an issue, several student athletes who have played the majority of their high school careers with the junior varsity team are receiving playing time this season with the varsity. Senior forward TJ Gottesman scored his first career varsity goal in the Northwest / Quince Orchard game and senior forward AJ Marks contributed an assist in that same game. Ninth grader Siddy Bhasin has dressed and played in several varsity games earning an assist. Senior Josh Nadler missed the beginning of the season while he was out-of-the country. He will be looking to elevate his game over the second half of the year.

A positive for the program, the powerplay. Last season, the anemic Upper Montgomery powerplay went zero for its first 46 chances with the extra skater before finally scoring in the regular season finale versus Bullis. Early in the season this year, the Lightning have converted on four of their thirteen powerplays, a 30.8% success rate. Now it is time for the squad to turn it up, not just on the powerplay, but on the penalty kill and at even strength. It’s time to go on a run over the second half of the season and be playing excellent hockey as the conference playoffs close in.

#Second Half Fury, #UML, #Bleed Green, #Go Bolts!

Varsity Wootton Game Preview

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The Upper Montgomery Lightning takes on their new archrival Wootton on Friday night in a rematch of a game three weeks ago won by the Patriots 3-1. The game will be a tall task for Upper Montgomery as Wootton’s fast break style of play puts an enormous amount of pressure on the opposition. The Patriots have scored fourteen, ten, thirteen, and eight goals in their other four games against teams in the Montgomery Hockey Conference. Upper Montgomery’s excellent defensive performance held Wootton down and the Lightning only allowed three goals, which was 8.25 goals fewer than Wootton’s average so far this season. Upper Montgomery has started the 2024 -2025 high school hockey season in fine fashion with a 3-1-1 conference record (3-2-1 overall) coming off their last game, a 7-4 decision over Richard Montgomery two weeks ago.

Once again Upper Montgomery will not be at full strength as last season’s leading returning scorer Nathan Cassel continues to recover from an upper body injury. He will likely return after the Thanksgiving holiday. With this season’s leading scorer Owen Robbins (6GP, 7G, 3A) also missing the Wootton contest as he is out-of-town with his external travel team, the young Lightning will be severe underdogs in this game. Further adding to the drama surrounding this budding rivalry is that before this season Upper Montgomery had won the last three meetings between the teams after never having beaten Wootton in its first fourteen years of existence. Wootton will be looking for revenge and to assert its dominance after the Lightning’s 9-1 destruction of the Patriots in last year’s Montgomery Hockey Conference Varsity Tournament championship game. The game will be a contrast in styles as Upper Montgomery will look to suffocate the game defensively to keep the high powered Patriots offensive obstructed for as much of the game as is possible.

Upper Montgomery’s goaltender, 16U AA Ilan Shterenberg has been sound this season with a 3-2-1 record, a 3.80 goals against average, and an .895 save percentage. Shterenberg will need to be exceptionally sharp against the Patriots to steal the game. He will face continuous pressure and a high shot volume with the offensive advantage that the Patriots will possess. He will again be backed up by Lower A ninth grade netminder Porter Stutsrim-Lyons. Stutsrim-Lyons is 3-1-2 on the season, with a 1.64 goals against average, and a .939 save percentage playing for Lightning junior varsity. He also has authored two shutouts.

In net for Wootton will be sophomore 16U Upper A goalie Kevin Yu. The Lightning have faced Yu twice already this season, in game one of the home and home varsity series, and then when the Lightning junior varsity fell in overtime to Wootton’s junior varsity squad. Yu is a very solid netminder although he was pierced for seven goals by Richard Montgomery last Friday evening. He carries a 5-0 record, a 3.20 goals against average, and an .822 save percentage. He will be looking to bounce from last week’s shaky performance and help Wootton secure a victory over the Lightning. Wootton’s opposition has not fired many shots on net averaging only eighteen shots on goal per game as Wootton’s opponents have been overwhelmed by the Patriots offensive firepower and time of puck possession. Wootton outshot Upper Montgomery 52-26 in the first game doubling up on the Lightning.

On defense, the Lightning will be tested. The Lightning’s most experience defender junior 16U AA Brady Berkhammer (6GP, 2G, 5A) will pair with ninth grade defender Matt Rivera and senior Patrick Sell. Anticipate that 16U Lower A defender Miles Wendland (5GP, 3A) will skate with senior Cole Howerton. Howerton played the best game of his career last time out against Richard Montgomery.

Wootton’s most explosive skater is 18U AA senior defender Sam Hosier. Hosier is a lock to be one of the two defenders on the Montgomery Hockey Conference All-Conference first team at the conclusion of the season. He may also be voted an all state defender as well. Hosier leads Wootton in scoring (5GP, 19G, 6A). He is second in all of the Maryland Student Hockey League in points produced and he is third in goals scored. In the earlier meeting between the programs, Hosier scored two of Wootton’s three goals. Hosier plays as a rover more than a defender. He will be all over the ice during the game focusing on pushing the puck up ice and generating offensive chances. Wootton has other capable defenders aside from just Hosier. Junior Nicholas Chung has experience to help lead younger defenders, sophomore 16U AAA Jaina Kronforst, ninth grade 14U Upper A Isaac Greene, and 14U Lower A Nathan Tian. The Wootton defensive corps is mobile and will cause problems for the Lightning forwards on transitions up the ice.

Offensively, Upper Montgomery will be challenged to keep pace with the Patriots. With Cassel and Robbins out of the lineup, junior forward Philip Shkeda (5GP, 4G, 5A) and senior center Henry Honacki (6GP, 4G, 2A) will be relied upon to provide the bulk of the team’s offensive production. Honacki scored Upper Montgomery’s only goal in the earlier meeting against the Patriots.

Sophomore 16U Lower A Aiden Zheng is averaging a point a game (6GP, 2G, 4A) and seems more comfortable at the varsity level this season. He had two point games against both BCC and Rockville / Magruder to start the season. Senior Josh Nadler is getting his legs under him after finally returning to the lineup recently. Both Zheng and Nadler will play heavy minutes in Friday’s game. Sophomore newcomer Jake Hudson has five assists in four games and is coming off of a three assist outing versus Richard Montgomery. Ninth grade 14U Lower A forward Siddy Bhasin will have an opportunity to showcase his talents for the program he will play for next season after he transfers to Wootton. Hudson and Bhasin are two of the top three scorers for the Lightning junior varsity with seven points each.

Wootton has a dynamic duo of forwards in juniors 18U AA Justin Heller (5GP, 5G, 3A) and 16U Upper A Owen Goozh (4GP, 4G, 4A). Senior 18U AA Nathan Tai is a hulking monster who played defense in prior seasons. He has been moved to forward this year and he has scored consistently (5GP, 8G, 5A). Sophomore 16U Upper A Nathan Geeng has (5GP, 4G, 2A). Sophomore 16U AA Michael Klimantov has (5GP, 4G, 3A). Ninth grade 14U AAA forward Evan Batbold has not played very much this season, but if he suits up for Friday’s game it gives Wootton an additional offensive threat that Upper Montgomery will need to contain. With this much offensive potential and Wootton’s aggressive offensive style of play, Upper Montgomery will be under duress the entire game. The Lightning will need to cleanly and constantly clear the defensive zone without getting hemmed in for long periods of play.

The 2024 – 2025 season has started out well for Upper Montgomery. Once thought of as a season of growth and development for the green and gold’s younger student athletes, the year is quickly turning into an opportunity to compete now.  If the Lightning are competitive with third ranked Wootton while playing with such a depleted lineup, it may be a springboard for the second half of the season. After Thanksgiving break, the competition increases and the intensity revs up as teams gear up for the end of season and playoff seeding. Headed into Friday’s tilt with high powered Wootton, the Lightning are off to their best start to a season in years. Let’s hope the outcome of Friday’s game does not diminish the team’s psyche and that good things are in store for the program after the Thanksgiving holiday break.

#UML, #Bleed Green, #Go Bolts!

Lightning Storms Through Blair Blazers

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The Upper Montgomery Lightning junior varsity stormed through the Blair Blazers on Friday evening winning in convincing fashion after a slow start to the game. Like a building storm, the Lightning grew in strength as the game wore on unleashing a torrent of goals in the second and third periods to coast to a 9-0 victory over the winless Blazers. With a varsity game later on in the evening, the Upper Montgomery coaches were able to sit certain students for the entire third period to help rest the students who would be playing two games in the same night.

Upper Montgomery looked lackluster to begin the game. Maybe the students were concerned with expending too much energy with another game to come. Maybe the students thought that they could just show up and beat Blair because of their 0-5-1 record entering the game. Whatever the case, the opening fifteen minutes of play were certainly not up to Upper Montgomery’s standards. Six minutes into the game, Upper Montgomery ninth grade forward Max Israfilbek was whistled for an interference penalty. Upper Montgomery easily killed the two minute minor penalty without allowing Blair to set up in the offensive zone with puck possession.

At the five and a half minute mark, Blair defender Nicholas Legault was assessed an interference minor giving the Lightning their first power play of the evening. Lightning ninth grade defender Matt Rivera took the puck around the back of the Upper Montgomery net in the defensive zone from left to right. He traveled up the left wing boards to neutral ice. The puck was then dumped into the Blair defensive zone. A poor Blair clearing attempt off the right wing boards was intercepted by Israfilbek who threw the puck into open space in the left wing corner. Lightning senior center AJ Marks was first to the puck. He centered the puck toward the slot area. The puck clipped off a Blair defender’s stick to Upper Montgomery sophomore forward Aiden Zheng camped out in the low slot. Zheng fired a backhander towards the net that found its way through Blazers goalie Ethan Hedberg’s five hole. It was Zheng’s third goal of the season and the Lightning’s second powerplay goal of the year. The goal put Upper Montgomery in front finishing off a languid first period that ended with each team firing seven shots on goal.

Upper Montgomery’s struggles continued at the beginning of the second period. Although displaying more intensity and urgency, the efforts did not immediately translate into increasing the Lightning’s one goal lead. Two minutes into the period Israfilbek was back in the penalty box, this time for hooking. While shorthanded, Upper Montgomery had the better of the offensive chances, but kept shooting the puck wide of the net which yielded no results. Two minutes after the teams returned to even strength, Upper Montgomery began asserting its dominance.

Blair carried the puck into the Upper Montgomery defensive zone. A shot from the right faceoff circle was blocked by Lightning sophomore defender Miles Wendland. The puck was then fired around the Upper Montgomery net from right to left. Zheng stole the puck at the right point and took off up ice on a breakaway. Coming down the left wing side of the ice Zheng cut toward the net. He faked to his backhand and slid the puck past Hedberg’s right leg pad for the unassisted goal.

Seventeen seconds later, Upper Montgomery had broken the game open. The Blair defense cleared the defensive zone to center ice. The puck was picked up by Upper Montgomery senior defender Cole Howerton. Howerton carried the puck into the Blair defensive zone into the right corner. He curled up and sent a centering pass to sophomore forward Jake Hudson in the high slot. Hudson immediately fired a wrist shot that beat Hedberg five hole. For Hudson, it was his team leading fifth goal of the season.

Upper Montgomery was now in front 3-0 and had firm control of the game. With three minutes remaining in the second period, the lead became 4-0 when Lightning sophomore varsity goalie, Ilan Shterenberg scored his second goal of the season. At times, Shterenberg skates out and plays forward in junior varsity games. The puck was picked up in the neutral zone by Marks. He entered the offensive zone in the middle of the ice. His hard wrist shot from distance was saved by Hedberg who made a really nice save with an extended right leg pad. The puck caromed to Shtereberg who shot while falling down. The Blair defense stopped Shterenberg’s shot and cleared the puck to the left point where it was kept in the offensive zone by Lightning sophomore defender Avery Evans. Evans sent a spinning pass over to the right wing boards to Marks. Marks stickhandled the puck and fired a wrist shot on net that hit Hedberg in the chest protector. The rebound shot out to the left side of the goal where it was captured by Shterenberg at the left side boards. He passed to Howerton in the mid slot along the left side of the ice and cut to the net. Using his backhand, Howerton found Shterenberg with a return give and go pass. From the bottom of the left faceoff circle, Shterenberg roofed a backhand shot high far side above Hedberg’s glove hand.

Fifteen seconds later the Lightning scored again to increase the lead to five. Off the neutral zone faceoff, Blair shot the puck to the Upper Montgomery defensive blue line. Evans collected the puck along the left wing boards at her defensive blue line. She sent an indirect pass off the boards to neutral ice for Zheng. Zheng skated into the puck with speed and entered the Blair offensive zone. Because of his speed, he skated wide past the Blair defender and cut to the front of the net. He easily wrapped a forehand shot around Hedberg’s left leg pad to effectively end the competitive portion of the game. It was a hat-trick for Zheng and tied him with Hudson for the team lead in goals with five.

With eight seconds left in the middle period, Howerton would complete the five goal explosion. Marks had the puck behind the Upper Montgomery goal. He fired an outlet pass to Zheng along the right wing boards. Zheng skated the puck out of the defensive zone up the middle of the ice. Nearing the Blair defensive zone he angled to the left side of the ice. Zheng pulled up at the left faceoff circle and fired at the net. His wrist shot went wide high to the short side. Howerton came down from the right point to gather the puck. He fired on net from the bottom right edge of the right faceoff circle. His bad angle shot hit the inside of Hedberg’s right leg pad and shot through the goalie’s five hole. Shots on goal in the second period were slanted toward Upper Montgomery with twelve to only five for Blair.

With Upper Montgomery holding a six goal lead entering the third period, the game was concluded with running clock. Upper Montgomery’s coaching staff pulled several student athletes to provide an even longer period of rest. Several other students were shifted from offense to defense to limit the potential of Upper Montgomery being accused of running up the score.

Two minutes into the period, Lightning ninth grade defender Lillian Robbins, playing forward, was called for a hooking penalty. Upper Montgomery easily killed off Blair’s powerplay without letting up a shot on goal. After Robbins exited the penalty box she helped set up Upper Montgomery’s seventh goal. The Lightning cleared the puck down ice. Hedberg pushed the puck to the left of the net behind the goal. The Blair defense came back and overskated the puck. Robbins pushed the puck to Shterenberg in the right corner. Shterenberg fired a cross ice pass back to Evans at the left point. Evans fired a left handed wrist shot that traveled through traffic at the net. The puck went past Hedberg’s arm and body seven hole to the glove side as the goalie reacted very late to the shot.

As the clocked clicked under two minutes remaining Marks scored to go along with his three assists on the night. From a defensive zone faceoff to the right of Upper Montgomery ninth grade netminder Porter Stutsrim-Lyons, Marks won the faceoff to Hudson in the right defensive corner. Hudson banked the puck up the right wing boards where it was kept in at the point by the Blair defense. Robbins poked the puck past the defense into the neutral zone. Marks was waiting for the puck behind the Blair defense. He went in alone on a breakaway from the red line in. He made a quick forehand backhand move putting his shoulders into the deke. The move completely faked out Hedberg and Marks had no difficult sliding the puck into the empty net.

With fifteen seconds remaining in the game, Marks finished off the scoring with his fourth goal of the season. A Blazers forward dashed to the front of the Upper Montgomery net with the puck. Stutsrim-Lyons poke checked the puck free into the slot area. Lightning ninth grade defender Matt Rivera slung the puck out of the high danger area to the left wing boards. Marks picked up the puck while fending off a Blair defender. Marks skated the puck up ice into the neutral zone and then into the Blair defensive zone. He cut to the middle of the high slot and fired a wrist shot against the grain low past Hedberg’s right leg pad to complete the scoring.

The Lightning junior varsity now enters a short period without upcoming games on a high note with the shutout victory and advancing their record to 3-1-2 on the season. With a few remaining games in the regular season the team is primed to compete against all teams in the county. The Lightning are very much looking forward to winning their first junior varsity playoff game in three seasons when the playoffs kick off in mid-January. A few weeks of practice for the Lightning to get ready for some non-conference action and then the final regular season conference game against high powered Whitman.

Game Notes:

  • The Lightning badly outshot the Blazers 27 to 14 for the game after each team fired seven shots on goal in the opening period of play.
  • Lightning ninth grader netminder Porter Stutsrim-Lyons stopped fourteen shots on goal for his second career shutout. Stutsrim-Lyons lowed his goals against average to 1.64 and raised his save percentage to .939.
  • Upper Montgomery’s varsity goalie, Ilan Shterenberg, skated out and scored his second career high school goal. He also added an assist.
  • Upper Montgomery senior forward AJ Marks had a career high five point game with two goals and three assists.
  • Lightning sophomore forward Aiden Zheng had his first career junior varsity hat-trick to go along with a hat-trick he produced last season in the Montgomery Hockey Conference Varsity Playoff Tournament quarterfinals versus Northwest / Quince Orchard.
  • Lightning defender Avery Evans scored her first goal of the season and added an assist.
  • Upper Montgomery’s junior varsity team is scheduled to return to action on Friday, November 15th against the Oakdale Bears in a non-conference game. However, with the ice situation at Skate Frederick the game may need to be postponed and/or moved to a different ice rink. Game time is currently set for 8:55 pm at Skate Frederick.

Three Stars of the Game:

First Star—Aiden Zheng—Upper Montgomery Forward—3 Goals, 1 Assist
Second Star—Cole Howerton—Upper Montgomery Defense—1Goal, 2 Assists
Third Star—AJ Marks—Upper Montgomery Forward—2 Goals, 3 Assists

Varsity Richard Montgomery Game Preview

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The Upper Montgomery Lightning are eager to return to the ice and conference play after a dud of a performance on Tuesday afternoon against the high powered Urbana Hawks. The Lightning did not show very well in losing 7-0 to the top ranked team in the Monocacy Valley Conference. Up this Friday night is a game against the Richard Montgomery Rockets, a team that is 0-3 on the season and which has given up at least six goals in each game. Game time is 9:45 pm at the Rockville Ice Arena. Upper Montgomery will be looking to get back on track after losing two straight games. The Lightning skate into the contest with a 2-2-1 record on the season and 2-1-1 in conference play. A win over Richard Montgomery would push Upper Montgomery’s conference record to 3-1-1.

In both the loss to Wootton and the tie versus Rockville / Magruder, Upper Montgomery played better than they did in both of their wins, 4-3 over BCC and 7-3 over Northwest / Quince Orchard. Last Friday’s 3-1 loss to Wootton showed the young Lightning roster what it takes to compete with one of the top four teams in the county rankings. Upper Montgomery’s defense was solid and the Lightning generated several good chances that they just could not punch over the goal line. The team will be seeking to significantly limit the number of shots on goal given up after sophomore Ilan Shterenberg made 49 saves against the Patriots. Upper Montgomery will need to bring full intensity and jump out to an early lead against the Rockets. At times, the Lightning have made it a habit of playing down to the level of their competition. Richard Montgomery is in a rebuilding season and they are not very talented compared with previous years. In its first three games to open the season, Richard Montgomery has lost to Rockville / Magruder, BCC, and lowly Northwest / Quince Orchard.

Upper Montgomery’s starting goaltender, 16U AA Ilan Shterenberg has been really good so far this season with a 2-2-1 record, a 3.75 goals against average, and a .897 save percentage. He made 49 saves, many of them on high quality chances, in the Lightning’s 3-1 loss last Friday to Wootton. Shterenberg has been sharp early this season and is a significant reason why the Lightning have gotten off to a quicker start this season than in past campaigns.

In net for Richard Montgomery will be either ninth grade goalie Brent Schoenebeck who stopped 15 of 20 shots in the game against Northwest / Quince Orchard (.750 save percentage and 5.23 goals against average) or sophomore Liam Parkinson (.732 save percentage and 7.50 goals against average) who suited up for the Rockets against Rockville and BCC. If Richard Montgomery continues their goalie rotation, it will be Schoenebeck’s turn. Both goalies are 16U Lower A netminders and are playing behind a very shallow and inexperienced defense.

On defense, the Lightning will have most of their starting defenders available for the game. Junior 16U AA Brady Berkhammer (5GP, 2G, 4A) coming off of a career high four point game against Northwest / Quince Orchard) will pair with ninth grade 14U AA defender Lillian Robbins. Sophomore 16U Lower A defender Miles Wendland (4GP, 3A) and senior Cole Howerton, both of whom were held out of the lineup against Urbana for roster management considerations will return for the game against the Rockets. Senior Patrick Sell who scored his first career varsity high school goal in the game against Northwest / Quince Orchard will also be involved in the defensive rotation.

Richard Montgomery’s defense consists of 16U Lower A Brody Evans and juniors Ryan Jones and Samir Wang. Both Jones and Wang played for the Rockets junior varsity team that loss to Upper Montgomery’s junior varsity 8-0 in a non-competitive game to open the season. The Rockets defense is very thin. As Richard Montgomery can’t play with only three defenders, look for forwards to slide back and play shifts on defense. It shouldn’t matter. Upper Montgomery should be able to pressure the Rockets defense into regular turnovers and have their way in and around the crease area.

Offensively, Upper Montgomery will continue to be challenged for the next several weeks. With high scoring senior forward Nathan Cassel out of the lineup, junior forward Philip Shkeda (5GP, 2G, 3A) and senior center Henry Honacki (4GP, 4G, 2A) will be relied upon to provide the bulk of the team’s offensive production. With Upper Montgomery playing 16U AAA Owen Robbins (5GP, 3G, 2A) at center this season, the junior has flourished scoring a hat-trick against BCC. Sophomore 16U Lower A Aiden Zheng (5GP, 1G, 4A) had two point games against both BCC and Rockville / Magruder to start the season. Senior Josh Nadler finally returned to the lineup against Wootton after missing the first three games of the season while he was out of the country.

Both Zheng and Nadler will play heavy minutes with the varsity this season and both will need to increase their offensive output. Nadler is the junior varsity’s all-time leading goal scorer with 20 career junior varsity goals. Joining them on the varsity roster are forwards TJ Gottesman, the junior varsity’s career points leader with 32 points (and who scored his first career varsity goal against Northwest / Quince Orchard), sophomore newcomer Jake Hudson (two assists in his first varsity game), and ninth grade 14U Lower A forward Siddy Bhasin. AJ Marks and his big frame will get a look in varsity competition as well. Other junior varsity student athletes may get called up as the season progresses when the core of the varsity squad is missing due to out-of-town external travel team conflicts.

Richard Montgomery has one forward of note, senior Tom Stone. Stone played for several years at the AA travel level. Thus far this season he has scored five goals in three games (3GP, 5G, 3A). Sophomore hard edged Bennett Parisi has been the beneficiary of Stone’s offensive explosion. He has tallied four assists to lead the Rockets in helpers. The rest of the Rockets have three or fewer points with Henry Wang and Caleb Liu putting up more production than the other forwards that will be utilized by Richard Montgomery. To overpower the Rockets, Upper Montgomery will need to consistently get the puck in deep, forecheck hard, and make the Rockets go the length of the ice to generate scoring chances. All of the Lightning defenders will need to be aware of where Stone is at all times. Shutting him down will be the key to keeping the Rockets off the scoreboard.

The 2024 – 2025 season has started out well for Upper Montgomery. Once thought of as a season of growth and development for the green and gold’s younger student athletes, the year is quickly turning into an opportunity to compete right away.  The Lightning will continue to face top competition over the middle portion of the season. Playing those high quality teams will help prepare Upper Montgomery for the end of season county playoffs. A good start to the season is nice, but the Lightning can’t let up now. More wins are needed with a prime opportunity to take advantage of a down Richard Montgomery program on Friday. A big win over the Rockets would set the tone before a week off.

#Back on Track, #UML Victories, #Bleed Green, #Go Bolts!

Varsity Urbana Game Preview

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After Friday evening’s hard luck loss to rival Wootton, the Upper Montgomery Lightning step out of conference to take on the top team from Frederick County. At the top of the Monocacy Valley Conference standings is Urbana. Upper Montgomery looks to exact revenge on the Hawks when the two teams faceoff on Tuesday afternoon, election day, at 3:10 pm, taking advantage of the day off from school for both school systems. Expect this year’s matchup to unfold similar to last season’s tilt. Urbana will play a physical brand of hockey and will take the body on Upper Montgomery skaters at every opportunity. If prior form holds, Upper Montgomery should be given a fair amount of powerplay opportunities in the game. A twist on this year’s matchup is that Urbana has not played or practiced in over two weeks as their home ice rink, Skate Frederick has experienced technical difficulties and the ice surface has been unavailable. Thus, Tuesday’s game has been moved to Rockville Ice Arena.

Upper Montgomery skates in to the contest with a 2-1-1 record to begin the season. In both the loss and the tie, Upper Montgomery has played better than they have in both of their wins. Friday’s 3-1 loss to Wootton showed the young Lightning roster what it takes to compete with one of the top four teams in the county rankings. Upper Montgomery’s defense was solid and the Lightning generated chances that they just could not punch over the goal line. The team will be seeking to significantly limit the number of shots on goal given up after sophomore Ilan Shterenberg made 49 saves against the Patriots. Urbana rolls into the contest having won both of their early season games against Frederick County 4-2 and Washington County 7-0.

Upper Montgomery’s starting goaltender, 16U AA Ilan Shterenberg has been really good so far this season with a 2-1-1 record, a 3.21 goals against average, and a .907 save percentage. He made 49 saves, many of them on high quality chances, in the Lightning’s 3-1 loss to Wootton. Shterenberg will need to be exceptionally sharp against the Hawks in order for Upper Montgomery to prevail. He will once again be backed up by ninth grade netminder Porter Stutsrim-Lyons.  Stutsrim-Lyons plays for the Caps Academy 14U Lower A external travel team and he has started off his high school career strongly playing for the junior varsity. Stutsrim-Lyons is 3-1-2 on the season with a 1.64 goals against average and a .939 save percentage including two shutouts. Stutsrim-Lyons saw his first varsity action earlier in the week at the end of the Northwest / Quince Orchard game where he played well in the third period.

In net for Urbana will be sophomore 16U Upper A goalie Mason Sebold. In his first outing of the season Sebold gave up two goals against Frederick County while making 23 saves. The Lightning have the better goaltender in the matchup and will need to exploit any weakness in Sebold game. Backing up Sebold will be junior Chloe Hanson. Hanson faced the Lightning in last season’s game playing the final two periods in Urbana’s 5-2 victory. She stopped thirteen of the fourteen shots she faced and was very solid during the outing.

On defense, the Lightning will once again be piecemealing the defensive pairings. Junior 16U AA Brady Berkhammer (4GP, 2G, 4A) coming off of a career high four point game against Northwest / Quince Orchard) will pair with ninth grade defender Matt Rivera and sophomore Avery Evans. Ninth grade AA defender Lillian Robbins will skate with senior Patrick Sell. Sell scored his first career varsity high school goal in the game against Northwest / Quince Orchard. Sophomore 16U Lower A defender Miles Wendland (4GP, 3A) and senior Cole Howerton will be held out of the game for roster management considerations.

Urbana’s defense consists of several young but experienced sophomore defenders. The most accomplished of whom is Robert Radtke who plays for the Philadelphia Junior Flyers 16U travel team. He is joined on the blue line by Zi Yang Wang, who plays for the Frederick Freeze 16U travel team. Joining those two defensive stalwarts are Michael Dye, Daniel Summers, and Mason Garmon. Mainly because of their strong defensive play, the Hawks have given up only two goals total on the season in their two games.

Offensively, Upper Montgomery will continue to be challenged for the next several weeks. With high scoring senior forward Nathan Cassel out of the lineup, junior forward Philip Shkeda (3GP, 2G, 3A) and senior center Henry Honacki (4GP, 4G, 2A) will be relied upon to provide the bulk of the team’s offensive production. With Upper Montgomery playing 16U AAA Owen Robbins (4GP, 3G, 2A) at center this season, the junior has flourished scoring a hat-trick against BCC. Sophomore 16U Lower A Aiden Zheng (4GP, 1G, 4A) had two point games against both BCC and Rockville / Magruder to start the season. Senior Josh Nadler finally returned to the lineup against Wootton after missing the first three games of the season while he was out of the country.

Both Zheng and Nadler will play heavy minutes with the varsity this season and both will need to increase their offensive output. Nadler is the junior varsity’s all-time leading goal scorer with 20 career junior varsity goals. Joining them on the varsity roster are forwards TJ Gottesman, the junior varsity’s career points leader with 32 points (and who scored his first career varsity goal against Northwest / Quince Orchard), sophomore newcomer Jake Hudson (two assists in his first varsity game), and ninth grade 14U Lower A forward Siddy Bhasin. AJ Marks and his big frame will get a look in varsity competition as well. Other junior varsity student athletes may get called up as the season progresses when the core of the varsity squad is missing due to out-of-town external travel team conflicts.

Urbana has some dynamic forwards in their lineup. Junior 16U AA Matthew Elam-Browning leads the Hawks in scoring with (2GP, 4G, 3A). He is closely followed by junior 16U AA Zachary Thayer (2GP, 3G, 4A). Last season, Thayer lit up the Frederick County high school hockey scene with (19GP, 19G, 23A). Elam-Browning’s younger brother Andrew has three assists in the two games. Speedy forward Alexander Cheeves has scored twice. Controlling these four talented forwards will be crucial to Upper Montgomery’s success on Tuesday. With this much offensive potential, Upper Montgomery will be unable to take any shifts off and will need to clear the defensive zone continuously. If the Lightning get hemmed in defensively for long periods of play, Urbana will surely capitalize. Upper Montgomery chip outs off the boards and full length icing clears to slow the pace of play will be frequent occurrences.

The 2024 – 2025 season has started out well for Upper Montgomery. Once thought of as a season of growth and development for the green and gold’s younger student athletes, the year is quickly turning into an opportunity to compete right away.  The Lightning will continue to face top competition over the middle portion of the season and that will only help Upper Montgomery prepare for the end of season county playoffs. A good start to the season is nice, but the Lightning can’t let up now. A statement win over Urbana would be a nice springboard into resuming conference play later in the week.

#UML, #Bleed Green, #Go Bolts!