Category: Lightning Strike Blog

The Upper Montgomery Lightning will play one of the most important games in program history on Friday evening when the team faces off against the Whitman Vikings. The matchup will be in the quarterfinal round of the Montgomery Hockey Conference (MHC) playoffs with the winner advancing to the Maryland high school hockey state playoffs. Game time is 8:15 pm at Cabin John Ice Rink. Whitman will be looking to return to the state playoffs again this season. The Vikings reached the quarterfinals last season after beating Leonardtown 4-0 in the sweet sixteen before losing to South River in the state quarterfinals by a score of 4-1. Upper Montgomery will be looking to make the state playoffs for the first time in program history. Last season, the Lightning were oh so close, losing to reigning state champion Churchill (winners of nine consecutive state titles) in this same round of the MHC playoffs. Upper Montgomery lost in a five round shootout (3-2 in the shootout) after a one all tie though regulation and overtime. If Upper Montgomery is able to prevail on Friday, it would be a historic accomplishment and the program would be celebrating for days if not weeks and months.

Friday will be the rubber match between the programs. These two teams have played many close games over the last four seasons. Whitman won the opening game this year by a score of 7-2, but the score was not indicative of how close the game really was. The teams were tied at one with one second left in the second period. Upper Montgomery turned the tables and beat the Vikings in mid-December by a score of 3-2. Last year, Whitman won 5-3. In 2022, Upper Montgomery won 2-1. In 2021, Upper Montgomery won 1-0. Both teams anticipate that it will be a low scoring game defined by puck battles all over the ice, the neutral zone being clogged up, lots of dump ins from the red line with forecheckers charging after the opposing defense, and then chip outs by the defensive side to clear the puck back out to neutral ice. This game will not be pretty to watch. It will be a grind for the full 45 minutes of regulation and maybe longer. An interesting twist to the game comes by way of an odd scheduling quirk. Whitman has played only once over the past five weeks. That game was a stellar effort in a one to one tie against top seeded Churchill.

Upper Montgomery’s play has evolved and transformed as the regular season progressed. The return of top defender, junior Andrew Botti has calmed the back end and provided additional confidence. At around the same time, Lightning senior goaltender Landon Bernard began playing much, much better in net. The Lightning are 6-1-1 over their last eight conference games. Further, Upper Montgomery played the top public high school team in the state, Oakdale, superbly leading 1-0 with under five minutes to play before Oakdale was able to prevail. Last week, against top private high school program Bullis, Upper Montgomery was tied with under one minute to play before succumbing. The Lightning must believe there is a chance to pull the upset and defeat Whitman, the third seed in the playoff tournament bracket.

The goaltending matchup will be same as in the team’s first two games this season. Landon Bernard will be in net for Upper Montgomery. He has posted terrific statistics in the MHC playoffs this season and last year. He enters Friday’s game with a .966 save percentage and a 0.98 goals against average in his three career playoff outings, never giving up more than one goal in a game. If Bernard again plays stellar, he can steal the game by himself. He would forever be known as the goalie who took Upper Montgomery to the state playoffs for the first time. Bernard also backstopped the Lightning junior varsity to the MHC junior varsity championship two years ago. He excelled in those playoffs as well giving up only four goals over three games, including posting a shootout victory. In net for Whitman will be Ryan Graf. Graf was recently named the first team MHC All Conference goalie. Graf is a solid netminder. He went 5-4-1 this season with a 2.64 goals against average and an .899 save percentage playing against the top teams in the county.

Whitman’s calling card is their team defense. The Vikings defensive structure and the forwards ferocious back checking are second to none in the league. The Lightning’s top forward line of senior co-captain and center Chris Hassett (16GP, 15G, 19A), playing between Nathan Cassel (15GP, 11G, 18A), and Philip Shkeda (16GP, 12G, 6A) will have their hands full trying to get into the high danger areas in the offensive zone. The team’s second line will be composed of senior co-captain and center Hunter Cameron (14GP, 5G, 4A) playing with Henry Honakci (17GP, 5G, 3A) and Olivia Robbins (9GP, 2G, 2A). Cameron scored two goals in the season opener against Whitman and missed the rematch as he was in Phoenix with his external travel team. The season ending loss of Ryan Jacobson (6GP, 4G, 1A) (out long term with a lower body injury) definitely has impacted the Lightning’s secondary offensive production.

Upper Montgomery’s third offensive line will be centered by senior Bradley Cupples (13GP, 2G, 7A) playing with Adam Levine (8G, 3A) including a career high two assist game in the opening round win over Blair last week and Josh Nadler. The objective of this line will be to provide energy and tireless effort on the forecheck and along the boards. Their focus will be on chipping pucks out of the defensive zone, dumping pucks in deep behind the Whitman net, and playing on the defensive side of the puck. Any offense provided by the third line is gravy. It will be up to the high powered first line to supply offense. The Vikings want to play low scoring, tight checking games and counter attack when their opponents try and rush up ice in hopes of generating more offensive chances. The Upper Montgomery game plan will counter the Vikings desired style of play.

On defense the return of top Upper Montgomery defender Andrew Botti really did stabilize the back end. He will log extensive minutes against Whitman and will play almost exclusively with 9th grade defender Miles Wendland. Wendland has a very bright future within the program as he gets stronger over the next several years. The other defensive pairing will feature a pair of AA external travel skaters, Brady Berkhammer and Brandon Bernard (17GP, 6G, 3A). Berkhammer (17GP, 1G, 7A) scored his first career high school goal last week against Blair in the playoff opener. Bernard is dropping back to play defense this week with the absence of Owen Robbins who will miss the game as he is out of town with his external travel team. Cole Howerton will play some to spell Wendland during the game. The defensive game plan will be simplified to allow the defenders to conserve energy.

Whitman is led in scoring by talented forward Andrew Fou who has (13 GP, 15G, 10A). He is the offensive dynamo for the Vikings and the rest of the forwards play off of his successes. He has torched the Lightning over the past two years totaling four goals. The second highest scoring forward on the team is Charles Ingis with (8GP, 8G, 2A). Ingis scored the back breaking goal for the Vikings in the season opener, a breakaway goal at the beginning of the third period where he fired top shelf high over Bernard’s glove hand. He has also scored four goals against the Lightning over the past two seasons. Jacob Lerman has (13 GP, 8G, 2A). From there, the rest of the Whitman scoring is spread throughout their lineup with no other skater having more than three goals on the season.

Defensively, the Vikings high level external travel skaters dominate their lineup. AAA defender Zach Kraus is the headliner (10GP, 3G, 9A). Morrison Cohen (12GP, 2G, 7A) and Rowen Miller both play AA and will play significant minutes. Upper A ninth grade defender Stephen Mah has come on strong over the last few games. The Whitman defense is not expected to provide offense. Their job is to limit the opposition and make it hard for the Lightning to get to the net and score.

The Lightning’s powerplay has come alive over the last two games, scoring goals in back to back contests. The team simplified their system and is getting more shots on net and traffic in front. Both powerplay goals have come off of puck retrievals of missed initial shots and then a secondary shot at the net with skaters in front. Upper Montgomery is now up to 3-46 on the powerplay for the season, 6.5%. A key powerplay goal in the playoff contest versus Whitman would be huge. Conversely, Whitman has scored eleven powerplay goals this season. Whitman has given up only six powerplay goals while the Vikings have scored six shorthanded goals of their own to even out the scoring while playing with one less skater.

Within the rules, Upper Montgomery must do everything possible to win this game. With a senior heavy lineup, the program has been looking toward this opportunity for the better part of four years. The game plan devised for this tilt against Whitman will match the Vikings style of play and will provide the team with a chance to pull the upset. Anticipate a low scoring, tight checking affair where Upper Montgomery focuses on defensive coverage and defensive zone clears. It will not be a visually pleasing game, but expect the Lightning to play committed team hockey where the students focus on neutralizing Whitman’s strengths. Can the Lightning push through and make history after being so close last year? It could be a lucky bounce that decides the game late. There could be an unsung hero who rises up with a key goal. We know for sure that there will be tears in the locker room after the game. The question is whether they will be tears of joy.

#Make States, #Continue the Streak, #Get it Done, #UML, #Bleed Green, #Go Bolts!

After struggling all season, Lightning has power play goals in two consecutive games.

by Shaun Chornobroff

February 5, 2024, 11:04 am

Entering this week, the Upper Montgomery hockey co-op, a team made up of students from Clarksburg, Damascus, Poolesville and Seneca Valley high schools, had yet to score a power play goal this season.

Against Bullis on January 29th, the Lightning notched their first goal with a man advantage.

In the opening period of Friday’s matchup against Blair, a co-op consisting of players from Blair, Einstein, Wheaton, Northwood and Kennedy High Schools, a tripping penalty gave Upper Montgomery a man advantage with 4:43 on the clock.

As the power play dwindled, sophomore defender Brady Berkhammer drifted into the center of the attacking zone and flicked a shot into the top left corner with 2:59 remaining, scoring the first goal of Upper Montgomery’s 5-1 victory in the opening round of the Montgomery County Tournament.

After a season of laboring through wasted power play opportunities, Upper Montgomery may have solved its man advantage woes at an ideal time.

“We went back and simplified it,” said head coach Todd Hassett. “We’re keeping the lines that play together, together … so there’s at least a little better communication and they’ve done a better job.”

Upper Montgomery went into the second period holding the 1-0 lead from Berkhammer’s first high school goal. With 6:35 remaining, Nathan Cassel raced down the right side during an odd man rush and found Christopher Hassett, who took advantage of his opportunity.

After a goal from Blair’s Zander Frey made the score 2-1, Cassel scored with 4:27 remaining in the second.

The top line of Christopher Hassett, Cassel, and sophomore Philip Shkeda have carried the offensive production for Upper Montgomery all season. With Shkeda out due to illness on Friday, the pair combined for three goals and three assists.

“The three of them, for whatever reason, they just work together,” said Todd Hassett, who is also Christopher’s father. “Anytime they’re in the game together, we put them together.”

Before the game, Blair celebrated its senior night. Among the honorees was two-year starting goaltender Lily Bendavid.

Despite being credited with the loss, Bendavid was a bright spot, stopping 28 shots, which included multiple close-range opportunities.

“It gives our team so much confidence when our goalie plays like that,” said Blair Head Coach Jim Caron, who described Bendavid as the bravest player he ever coached.

In two games this season, Upper Montgomery has accumulated 10 goals against Blair. Despite that fact, Caron said the defense was the strength of this Lightning team.

Since the team’s top defenseman, Andrew Botti, returned from injury on Dec. 8, Upper Montgomery has been among the stoutest teams in the county.

In six league games against Montgomery County foes since Botti’s return, the Lightning have given up less than two goals per game. On Friday, Upper Montgomery goaltender Landon Bernard stopped 29 shots.

The final four teams of the Montgomery County Tournament move onto the statewide MSHL playoffs. Upper Montgomery will face Whitman on Friday. To be one of the four teams that qualify, Todd Hassett says his team needs to play what he calls “muck it up hockey.”

“Smart simple hockey, making the right plays, get the puck down low … do the dirty work,” said Hassett. “Go at the boards hard, win the battle, win the races, and get pucks in the net.”

Article edited for factual accuracy.

#Playoff Wins, #Our Time, #UML, #Bleed Green, #Go Bolts!

The Upper Montgomery Lightning open the Montgomery Hockey Conference playoffs hosting the Blair Blazers. The game will be a rematch of a late January game won by Upper Montgomery 5-0. Game time on Friday is 8:20 pm at Rockville Ice Arena. The Lightning finished the regular season strong with a 5-1-1 conclusion to the conference schedule and very close losses to both Oakdale (led 1-0 with under five minutes remaining) and to Bullis this past Monday (tied with 40 seconds remaining). Blair is the third lowest ranked team in the conference having only beaten the lowest ranked team (Churchill 2) three times and edging past Northwest/Quince Orchard (second lowest ranked team) playing without its starting goalie. Upper Montgomery needs to guard against playing down to Blair’s level and being overconfident. The Lightning will need to bring it and dominate right from the beginning of the game and not let off the gas.

In net for Upper Montgomery will be senior Landon Bernard. Bernard has played very well of late and was stellar in Monday’s game against Bullis making 41 saves. His goals against average has shrunk by two goals per game over the back half of the season. His save percentage over his past seven starts is a stalwart .906. His 24 save shutout over Blair on senior night will make for a nice memory years from now. Upper Montgomery will only go as far in the playoffs as Bernard’s play takes the team. The Blazers will play Lily Ben David in net. She has a 5.71 goals against average and a .729 save percentage. She plays behind a porous defense and does well just to provide her team a chance to win against the lower competition Blair has faced this season. In the recent game against Upper Montgomery, she stopped 17 of 22 shots on goal. Upper Montgomery will need to do a much better job generating offense this time around and getting shots on goal.

Upper Montgomery may be dangerous while shorthanded as Ben David has been beaten ten times while Blair has been on the powerplay. On the flip side, Blair has done a nice job on the penalty kill giving up just two powerplay goals on the season. This does not bode well for the Lightning who have a ghastly powerplay currently sitting at 1-44 on the season after finally cashing in versus Bullis on Monday. Anticipate major changes to the Upper Montgomery powerplay including personnel changes to try and spark the dormant Lightning powerplay. To say Upper Montgomery has been challenged all season long while on the powerplay is certainly an understatement.

Upper Montgomery had hoped this season for balanced goal scoring throughout its lineup. Last season’s top line of Chris Hassett, Nathan Cassel, and Philip Shkeda has continued to produce again this season. Unfortunately, it has been a continual search for other student athletes to step up and match last year’s offensive production. In last Friday’s game against Rockville, the top line scored all five goals. Against Bullis, the top line scored both goals. There was no secondary scoring. Hassett (15GP, 13G, 17A) and Cassell (14GP, 10G, 17A) have alternated the team lead in assists and points throughout the season. A beautiful give and go passing sequence between the two led to Cassel’s overtime winner on Friday night. A very nice passing sequence between Shekda and Cassel led to the late game tying goal against Bullis with a minute and a half remaining in the game. Shkeda (16GP, 12G, 6A) had been tied for the team lead in goals until Friday. The season ending injury to Ryan Jacobson (6GP, 4G, 1A) drastically impacted the Lightning’s secondary offense. Hunter Cameron has chipped in nicely with (13GP, 5G, 4A). He has scored two goals in two different games, and Cameron scored the tying goal late in the third period against the DC Stars. Each of the team’s other forwards, Brandon Bernard (16G, 5G, 3A), Bradley Cupples (12GP, 2G, 5A), Olivia Robbins (8GP, 2G, 2A), and Henry Honacki (16GP, 5G, 3A) have each played well in a few games where they have accumulated the majority of their points on the season.

The Blazers are led offensively by Jackson Martindill (9GP, 7G, 4A). Chen Chen-Ye is next with (9GP, 4G, 5A). Long-time agitator Ari Garnder leads the team in goals (8GP, 8G, 1A). The Blazers defense has chipped in offensively. Joseph Killebrew (11GP, 4G, 4A), Wyatt Bakalis (9GP, 2G, 2A), and Danilo Azcarate (10GP, 3G, 1A) have provided some complementary scoring. BUT, it is hard to judge these offensive figures as most of the games Blair has played is against very weak competition. Against stronger competition Blair has been involved in one sided games, with the Blazers getting destroyed and scoring two or fewer goals.

On defense the Lightning struggled out of the gate. With top defender Andrew Botti out for the first eight games of the season, Upper Montgomery had difficulty keeping teams out of the high danger areas. With Botti back, the team has played much more responsibly. Senior co-captain Cameron has played several games on defense to help anchor and provide stability on the back end. Sophomores Brady Berkhammer and Owen Robbins will see substantial playing time against the Blazers. Ninth grader Miles Wendland will likely pair with Botti. Expect Cole Howerton to play as the game progresses. If the game tightens up, Olivia Robbins may join her brother on the back end. Outside of Cameron’s production in October’s season opener against Whitman where he scored both Upper Montgomery goals, all other Upper Montgomery defensive skaters have contributed no goals and 17 assists in 61 combined games played.

It’s time to prove it. The playoffs are here. There is no tomorrow for the teams that lose in the opening round of the Montgomery Hockey Conference playoffs. The Lightning have begun to show much more fight and desire as the season has progressed. The effort against Bullis was outstanding. Now, the team needs to back up that performance. Blair does not care about how well Upper Montgomery has been playing. The Blazers are going to look at the matchup as their state playoff game. Blair is going to try and stymie the Lightning, do to Upper Montgomery what Upper Montgomery has been doing to other teams. Blair has nothing to lose and will come to play. Upper Montgomery must dig deep and perform. Whatever it takes. There is no tomorrow, just move on and advance to the Montgomery Hockey Conference quarterfinals. Anyhow, Anyway!

#Advance, #Extend the Streak, #UML, #Our Time, #Bleed Green, #Go Bolts!

Upper Montgomery Lightning senior co-captain, center Chris Hassett will be inducted into the Maryland Student Hockey League Hall of Fame in the spring of 2024. Hassett will be the sixth member of the Upper Montgomery program to receive this prestigious honor.

Just prior to the winter break Chris recorded his 50^th career varsity assist.  On senior night in January, Chris notched his 100^th career varsity point.  In the opening round of the Montgomery Hockey Conference playoffs in early February, Chris scored his 50th career varsity goal. These historic achievements result in an automatic induction into the Maryland Student Hockey League Hockey Hall of Fame.  Chris will receive his induction plaque and other commemorative memorabilia later this spring during the Upper Montgomery year end team celebration.

In his storied high school career Chris finished by scoring 62 goals (third in program history) and adding 64 assists (second in program history), for 126 points (third in program history).  

Outside of high school hockey, Chris plays for the Tri-City Eagles 18U AA external travel team where he leads the Eagles in scoring.

The Upper Montgomery program is proud of Chris’s accomplishment and this very special recognition.

The Upper Montgomery Lightning close out the regular season when they face off on Monday afternoon against the Bullis Bulldogs. Game time is 3:15 pm at Rockville Ice Arena. It will be an incredibly difficult task for the Lightning as the Bulldogs are 4-0-1 against public high school competition. Bullis is in the middle of the pack in the much more competitive Maryland private high school league. Bullis would be comparable to the very top teams in the Montgomery Hockey Conference. The coaching staff intentionally scheduled the Bulldogs as the final regular season game to prepare Upper Montgomery to be playoff ready at the end of the week when the Lightning host a first round playoff matchup. The opening round playoff opponent, location, and game time will be released later in the week. The Lightning have been playing much better of late. Upper Montgomery is 5-1-1 in its last seven conference games advancing up the conference standings. The Lightning’s lone conference loss since very early in November was against Churchill.

Upper Montgomery may use both of its goalies in the game. It has been a while since ninth grade netminder Ilan Shterenberg has seen game action. The coaching staff will want to make sure he is ready if needed during the Montgomery Hockey Conference playoffs. Senior Landon Bernard has played very well of late and made four huge saves Friday evening in the thrilling overtime win over Rockville. He also recently shutout Blair. His goals against average for the season is shrinking and his save percentage is climbing. Upper Montgomery will only go as far in the upcoming conference playoffs as Bernard’s play takes the team. The Bulldogs are expected to play Jacob Lang in net. Against public high school competition he has a 2.00 goals against average, a .902 save percentage, and he recorded a shutout against BCC. In Private school play, Bullis has used Andrew Hookman-Vass as their primary goalie.

Upper Montgomery had hoped this season for balanced goal scoring throughout its lineup. Last season’s top line of Chris Hassett, Nathan Cassel, and Philip Shkeda has continued to produce again this season. Unfortunately, it has been a continual search for other student athletes to step up and match last year’s offensive production. In Friday’s game against Rockville, the top line scored all five goals. There was no secondary scoring. Hassett (14GP, 13G, 16A) and Cassell (13GP, 9G, 16A) have alternated the team lead in assists and points throughout the season. A beautiful give and go passing sequence between the two led to Cassel’s overtime winner on Friday night. Shkeda (15GP, 11G, 5A) had been tied for the team lead in goals until Friday. The season ending injury to Ryan Jacobson (6GP, 4G, 1A) drastically impacted the Lightning’s secondary offense. Hunter Cameron has chipped in nicely with (12GP, 5G, 4A). He has scored two goals in two different games, and Cameron scored the tying goal late in the third period against the DC Stars. Each of the team’s other forwards, Brandon Bernard (15G, 5G, 3A), Bradley Cupples (12GP, 2G, 5A), Olivia Robbins (7GP, 2G, 1A), and Henry Honacki (15GP, 5G, 3A) have each played well in a few games where they have accumulated the majority of their points on the season.

The Bulldogs are led offensively by star defender Davian Peretti (8GP, 7G). Next in line is another defender, Avery Brown with (6GP, 2G, 6A). Bullis’ top scoring forward is Matt Halle (11GP, 6G, 3A). Liam Grapes who transferred from Urbana to Bullis this offseason has tallied (11GP, 1G, 6A). The remainder of the Bulldogs have scored five or fewer points on the season.

On defense the Lightning have played better lately after struggling through the early portion of the season. With top defender Andrew Botti out for the first eight games of the season, Upper Montgomery had difficulty keeping teams out of the high danger areas. With Botti back, the team has given up far fewer goals. Senior co-captain Cameron has played several games on defense to help anchor and provide stability on the back end. Sophomores Brady Berkhammer and Owen Robbins will see substantial playing time against the Bulldogs. Ninth grade defender Miles Wendland and junior Cole Howerton will also see game action. Outside of Cameron’s production in October’s season opener against Whitman where he scored both Upper Montgomery goals, all other Upper Montgomery defensive skaters have contributed no goals and sixteen assists in 64 combined games played. Getting shots through from the points and contributions offensively from the defense will definitely help Upper Montgomery.

It should be a rewarding experience for the Lightning to play such a top level team just prior to the start of playoff action. Upper Montgomery should have fun with the game and play free with no stress. There are no expectations on the team other then to play hard and compete for the entire game. The primary objective is for the student athletes to get used to the speed of playing against tougher competition.

#Extend the Streak, #UML, #Bleed Green, #Go Bolts!

The Upper Montgomery Lightning varsity squad enters the last few games of the regular season with all of its pre-season goals still within reach. Although the first portion of the regular season did not go as anticipated, the Lightning have played much better of late. The team has a 3-2-1 record over its last six games with the only losses to perennial powerhouse Churchill and the top public high school team in the state of Maryland, Oakdale. The Lightning had a one to zero lead on Oakdale with five minutes remaining in the game before conceding two late powerplay goals, including a five on three advantage. The team comes into the final regular season conference games on a roll having beaten fourth ranked Whitman and also top ranked Walter Johnson. The team enters the final stretch of regular season games with an overall record of 3-8-1 while being 3-5-1 in conference play.

Upper Montgomery’s goalies have struggled in net all season long. Senior Landon Bernard has played much better of late. His goals against average for the season is shrinking. He has posted a 2.16 goals against average over his last six appearances. His save percentage is climbing. Over his past six games Bernard has a stalwart .916 save percentage. Upper Montgomery will only go as far in the upcoming conference playoffs as Bernard’s play takes the team.  Ninth grade goalie Ilan Shterenberg has a bright future in the program. He has played in four varsity games this season after dominating at the junior varsity level. He has two wins, including his first career victory over the Walter Johnson Wildcats.

Upper Montgomery had hoped this season for balanced goal scoring throughout its lineup. Last season’s top line of Chris Hassett, Nathan Cassel, and Philip Shkeda has continued to produce again this season. Unfortunately, it has been a continual search for other student athletes to step up and match last year’s offensive production. Hassett (13GP, 10G, 14A) and Cassell (12GP, 8G, 15A) have alternated the team lead in assists and points throughout the season. Shkeda (14GP, 10G, 3A) is tied for the team lead in goals. The season ending injury to Ryan Jacobson (6GP, 4G, 1A) has drastically impacted the Lightning’s secondary offense. Hunter Cameron has chipped in nicely with (11GP, 5G, 3A). He has scored two goals in two different games, and Cameron scored the tying goal late in the third period against the DC Stars. Each of the team’s other forwards, Brandon Bernard (14G, 5G, 3A) with goals in his past two games, Bradley Cupples (11GP, 2G, 5A), Olivia Robbins (7GP, 2G, 1A), and Henry Honacki (14GP, 5G, 3A) have each played well in a few games where they have accumulated the majority of their points on the season. The top depth forwards called upon to play in varsity game action have all stepped up and played well lately. Junior Josh Nadler, senior Adam Levine, and ninth grade forward Aiden Zheng have all contributed important assists lately in limited game action. Their hustle and adherence to the coaches’ game plan has infused some energy into the lineup.

On defense the Lightning have played better lately after struggling through the early portion of the season. With top defender Andrew Botti out for the first eight games of the season, Upper Montgomery had difficulty keeping teams out of the high danger areas. With Botti back, the team has given up far fewer goals, and only two goals while he has been on the ice at even strength. Senior co-captain Cameron has played several games on defense to help anchor and provide stability on the back end. Sophomores Brady Berkhammer and Owen Robbins have been playing together as a regular pairing all season seeing substantial playing time in all phases. Ninth grade defender Miles Wendland and junior Cole Howerton have also seen game action with their time on ice increasing as the season has gone on. Outside of Cameron’s production in October’s season opener against Whitman where he scored both Upper Montgomery goals, all other Upper Montgomery defensive skaters have contributed no goals and fourteen assists in 59 combined games played. Getting shots through from the points and contributions offensively from the defense will definitely help the team.

The main achilles heel for the Lightning has been a dreadfully awful powerplay. The Lightning have not scored at all this season when on a traditional powerplay with the extra skater, currently sitting at 0-37 on the season. The team’s only ‘powerplay’ goal was scored on a penalty shot converted by Nathan Cassell against Good Counsel. Anticipate personnel changes as well as a change to the powerplay structure in the games ahead.

The Lightning have a few games left in the regular season before the program defining Montgomery Hockey Conference playoffs begin at the start of February. The Upper Montgomery program had very high expectations for this season after the conclusion to last year and with so many highly talented student athletes returning. Fortunately, the team’s primary goal remains attainable. The Lightning still have a great opportunity to make the state playoffs, but it will take complete team dedication, playing hockey the right way, dogged puck support all over the ice, a 1000% commitment to team defense, and making good decisions that will put the team on the precipice of history.

Going into the season, the junior varsity was expected to be better than last year with the team needing talented 9th grade goaltender Ilan Shterenberg to be a difference maker in net. The junior varsity games were expected to be lower scoring as the team used its defensive strength to focus on preventing the opposition from scoring. This is exactly how the season played out. Shterenberg played excellent in net for the junior varsity this season. His finished the regular season with an 8-0-1 record and three shutouts. He gave up more than two goals in a game only twice, one time when playing against Churchill 2’s varsity squad. Shterenberg finished the season with a .927 save percentage and a tidy 1.80 goals against average. His played admirably in net during the junior varsity quarterfinal playoff game against BCC.

The other core reasons for the junior varsity’s 8-0-1 undefeated regular season were the team’s leadership and team defensive play. The junior varsity was not worried about who scored the goals and how the game looked visually. Some of the games were downright awful from an artistic sense, but played right into the Lightning’s strategy of getting the other teams frustrated. Once frustrated, the other teams took risks opening up for Upper Montgomery to counter attack. The junior varsity worked hard each game and focused on defense only giving up 22 goals in its eleven game season. The penalty kill was a perfect 27-27 on the season (when not using a position skater in net) including a couple of long five on three kills and a five minute major powerplay against.

The Lightning junior varsity finished the regular season second in the conference standings, a half game behind Wootton. Unfortunately, finishing second matched the junior varsity against the one team that was not truly a bottom team in the conference. Having to face BCC in the quarterfinal round of the junior varsity playoffs, was just an awful draw. BCC uses a strategy in the regular season of not playing all of their top available junior varsity students. Then, when playoff time comes, all of their top skaters are dressed, and the top talent receives an over abundance of ice time in the playoff games. Thus, playing against the only ‘bottom’ team with a chance at advancing, the Lightning junior varsity lost in the quarterfinal round to BCC, four to one. The 2023 – 2024 junior varsity squad did set an Upper Montgomery program record for most wins in a season with nine. The team’s overall record of 9-1-1 was the team highest winning percentage, .863.

The junior varsity’s offense scored just enough with the team averaging 3.91 goals per game, aided by the ten goals scored against Oakdale. Junior TJ Gottesman (9GP, 11G, 5A) and junior co-captain Josh Nadler (10GP, 11G, 1A) led the team in goals with eleven. Gottesman was the team’s top point getter with sixteen. Senior co-captain Adam Levine (11GP, 3G, 8A) lead the team in assists. He finished one assist off the program record for assists in a season while he did set the program record with points in consecutive games at seven straight games. Levine also proved to be awesome in the faceoff circle winning over 70% of his faceoffs with seven Lightning goals scored directly off of faceoff wins. The team’s depth scoring picked up as the season went on with junior Cole Howerton (10GP, 5G, 4A), senior Sean Levine (11GP, 3G, 5A), junior AJ Marks (9GP, 3G, 4A), and ninth grade forward Aiden Zheng (11GP, 4G, 2A) chipping in and contributing. Jason Woodman had a three assist game against Oakdale to increase his scoring to (10GP, 1G, 4A). Sean Levine scored a pretty breakaway goal against the DC Stars deking to his backhand before lifting the puck. He also scored the Lightning’s only goal in the playoff game against BCC. Adam Levine’s dazzling push through, walk around, far side, top shelf marker also in the DC Stars game was the goal of the season for the program.

Defensively, the Lightning’s experience and team defense stood out. Jake Roth, Cole Howerton, Patrick Sell, Miles Wendland, Avery Evans (8GP, 1G, 4A), and Behr Schickler limited the opposition’s quality scoring chances. When breakdowns occurred, the forwards were routinely in position defensively to block shots and clear the high danger areas getting pucks out of the defensive zone. The combination allowed the Lightning to play with the lead or tied for most of the entire season. The team competed with maximum effort, commitment to each other, and with the stellar defensive play. It was this attitude that allowed the junior varsity to thrive all season long culminating with an undefeated regular season.

#Playoff Wins, #Our Time, #UML, #Bleed Green, #Go Bolts!

The Upper Montgomery Lightning face off against the Rockville / Magruder Rams in a very important matchup Friday evening at Rockville Ice Arena. Game time is 9:00 pm. The winner of Friday’s matchup will have an easier road in the upcoming Montgomery Hockey Conference playoffs. It is the final regular season conference game for both teams, and on paper they appear to be evenly matched. The Lightning have been playing much better of late. Upper Montgomery is 4-1-1 in its last six conference games advancing up the conference standings and rankings to the middle of the pack.

In net for Upper Montgomery will be senior Landon Bernard. Bernard has played very well of late culminating with Monday’s senior night shutout of Blair. His goals against average for the season is shrinking. He has posted a 2.16 goals against average over his last six appearances. His save percentage is climbing. Over his past six games Bernard has a stalwart .916 save percentage. Upper Montgomery will only go as far in the upcoming conference playoffs as Bernard’s play takes the team. The Rams will play Sean Connelly in net. He has a 3.59 goals against average and an .848 save percentage. His record is 7-3, however, that is skewed by the weak conference opponents Rockville has faced playing against mainly lower level division two competition.

Upper Montgomery had hoped this season for balanced goal scoring throughout its lineup. Last season’s top line of Chris Hassett, Nathan Cassel, and Philip Shkeda has continued to produce again this season. Unfortunately, it has been a continual search for other student athletes to step up and match last year’s offensive production. Hassett (13GP, 10G, 14A) and Cassell (12GP, 8G, 15A) have alternated the team lead in assists and points throughout the season. Shkeda (14GP, 10G, 3A) is tied for the team lead in goals. The season ending injury to Ryan Jacobson (6GP, 4G, 1A) has drastically impacted the Lightning’s secondary offense. Hunter Cameron has chipped in nicely with (11GP, 5G, 3A). He has scored two goals in two different games, and Cameron scored the tying goal late in the third period against the DC Stars. Each of the team’s other forwards, Brandon Bernard (14G, 5G, 3A) with goals in his past two games, Bradley Cupples (11GP, 2G, 5A), Olivia Robbins (7GP, 2G, 1A), and Henry Honacki (14GP, 5G, 3A) have each played well in a few games where they have accumulated the majority of their points on the season.

The Rams are led offensively by 18U AAA star defender senior Drew Pfeufer (7GP, 15G, 6A). Pfeufer plays on the same external travel team (The Washington Little Capitals) as the Lightning’s Cameron. The top scoring forward for the Rams is senior Brendan Iliff (11GP, 7G, 12A). His linemate Lukas Gold has (8GP, 10G, 6A). Rounding out the Rams scoring threats is another defender, Aiden Ward (7GP, 8G, 6A). There is then a drop off to the Rams depth scorers, Toyin Okunseinde (10GP, 4G, 2A), Cole Cohen (7GP, 5G), and Brendan Kalinock (10GP, 2G, 3A).

On defense the Lightning have played better lately after struggling through the early portion of the season. With top defender Andrew Botti out for the first eight games of the season, Upper Montgomery had difficulty keeping teams out of the high danger areas. With Botti back, the team has given up far fewer goals, and only two while he has been on the ice at even strength. Senior co-captain Cameron has played several games on defense to help anchor and provide stability on the back end. With a full compliment of defenders available on Friday evening, anticipate that Cameron will play forward. Sophomores Brady Berkhammer and Owen Robbins will see substantial playing time against the Rams. Ninth grade defender Miles Wendland and junior Cole Howerton will also see game action. Outside of Cameron’s production in October’s season opener against Whitman where he scored both Upper Montgomery goals, all other Upper Montgomery defensive skaters have contributed no goals and fourteen assists in 59 combined games played. Getting shots through from the points and contributions offensively from the defense will definitely help Upper Montgomery.

With all but one student athlete expected to be in attendance on Friday night, the Upper Montgomery coaching staff can use their full bench including its depth skaters against Rockville. This will provide sufficient rest for the team’s top student athletes. If the team’s second and third lines do not produce early against the Rams or if a student tries to do too much individually, expect the coaching staff to sit skaters and use students who will follow the system and play hockey the Lightning way.

This past Tuesday’s game against top non-conference foe Urbana helped identify the areas that Upper Montgomery needs to shore up heading into the final regular season games and the upcoming playoffs. The Lightning have begun to show much more fight and desire as the season has progressed. These traits have led to better results. The team’s play needs to be cohesive, with the students playing for one another. The Lightning have played more focused and with more belief in each other, but will need to ramp up their play to another level if they want to have playoff success. While not an elimination game, Friday night’s matchup will go a long way towards putting the remainder of the season into focus.

#Extend the Streak, #UML, #Bleed Green, #Go Bolts!

With the recent inclement weather in the Washington DC area, the Upper Montgomery Lightning will play on back-to-back days when taking on the Urbana Hawks on Tuesday afternoon at Skate Frederick. Game time is early, a 3:40 pm puck drop. Fresh off the annual senior night celebration against Blair on Monday evening, the Lightning have a quick turnaround. It is an important non-league contest for the Lightning who are looking to keep building on their recent better play of late. The team is 3-1-1 in its last three conference games and is coming off of a terrific effort last Monday against the top high school team in the state, Oakdale. The Lightning held a 1-0 lead with five minutes remaining in the game before succumbing. Upper Montgomery has also beaten two highly regarded teams in Walter Johnson and Whitman during the stretch. Urbana is the second highest ranked team in the Monocacy Valley Conference. The Hawks lost to Oakdale in overtime on Friday after staging a third period rally to force the overtime session. It was an emotionally draining game which saw Oakdale prevail on a shorthanded goal in the extra frame.

In net for Upper Montgomery will be senior Landon Bernard. Bernard has played very well of late. His goals against average is shrinking and is under three over his last four appearances. His save percentage over his past four games is a stalwart .915. Upper Montgomery will only go as far in the upcoming conference playoffs as Bernard’s play takes the team. The Hawks will play Abby Tanner in net. She has a miniscule 1.91 goals against average and a .928 save percentage. She has given up only 19 goals in the ten games she has played in. If unavailable, Chloe Hanson will step in and backstop the Hawks.

Upper Montgomery had hoped this season for balanced goal scoring throughout the lineup. Last season’s top line of Chris Hassett, Nathan Cassel, and Philip Shkeda has continued to produce again this season. Unfortunately, it has been a continual search for other student athletes to step up and match last year’s offensive production. Hassett (11GP, 9G, 13A) and Cassell (11GP, 7G, 15A) have alternated the team lead in assists and points throughout the season. Shkeda (12GP, 9G, 2A) is tied for the team lead in goals. From there the season ending injury to Ryan Jacobson (6GP, 4G, 1A) has drastically impacted the Lightning’s secondary offense. Hunter Cameron has chipped in nicely with (9GP, 5G, 3A). He has two different games where he scored two goals, and Cameron scored the tying goal late in the third period against the DC Stars. Each of the team’s other forwards, Brandon Bernard, Bradley Cupples, Olivia Robbins, and Henry Honacki have each played well in one or two games where they have accumulated the majority of their points on the season.

The Hawks are led offensively by 18U AA star forward Cody Keegan. Keegan has (11GP, 18G, 11A). His linemates, 16U AA Zachary Thayer (11GP, 12G, 16A) and Max Dubruzzo (12GP, 9G, 16A) have really benefitted from Keegan’s presence on the ice. There is a sizeable drop off to the Hawks second line with ninth grade forward Alexander Cheves (10GP, 6G, 3A) leading the way. Be on the lookout for the Hawks defenders to join the rush with Seamus McGee (12GP, 6G, 4A), Thomas Alexander (12GP, 2G, 4A), and Brady Gardiner (12GP, 2G, 4A) contributing as well.

On defense the Lightning have struggled all season. With top defender Andrew Botti out for the first eight games of the season, Upper Montgomery had difficulty keeping teams out of the high danger areas. With Botti back, the team has given up only six goals in three games, none while he has been on the ice at even strength. Senior co-captain Cameron has played several games on defense to help anchor and provide stability on the back end. Sophomore Brady Berkhammer will again see substantial playing time against the Hawks after playing every other shift against the DC Stars and Oakdale. Outside of Cameron’s production in October’s season opener against Whitman where he scored both Upper Montgomery goals, all other Upper Montgomery defensive skaters have contributed no goals and twelve assists in 49 combined games played.

In almost every game this season, the Upper Montgomery coaching staff was going to be forced to supplement the usual varsity squad with several student athletes called up from the junior varsity. After Adam Levine and Aiden Zheng performed admirably against the DC Stars and Oakdale, expect that these two student athletes to play a more prominent role over the closing games of the season. As a senior, Levine may receive a regular shift on Tuesday. If the team’s second and third lines do not produce early against Urbana, expect the coaching staff to begin whittling down ice time and inserting additional student athletes into the game.

The game against Urbana will help identify where Upper Montgomery will need to focus heading into the final regular season conference game against Rockville. The Lightning have begun to show much more fight and desire as the season has progressed. These traits have led to better results. The team’s play is becoming more cohesive and the total team effort has been better. The Lightning have played more focused and with more belief in each other. If the Lightning continue to play this way, they may have an outside shot to beat Urbana.

#Extend the Streak, #UML, #Bleed Green, #Go Bolts!

The Upper Montgomery Lightning will celebrate a large senior class in style Friday evening before what should a triumphant victory over the Blair Blazers. It is an important league contest for the Lightning who are looking to keep building on their recent better play of late. The team is 3-1-1 in its last three conference games and is coming off of a terrific effort last Monday against the top high school team in the state, Oakdale. The Lightning held a 1-0 lead with five minutes remaining in the game before succumbing. Upper Montgomery has also beaten two highly regarded teams in Walter Johnson and Whitman during the stretch. Friday’s tilt is important for playoff seeding as the Montgomery Hockey Conference playoff tournament begins in two weeks. Blair is the second lowest ranked team in the conference having only beaten the lowest ranked team (Churchill 2) three times and edging past Northwest/Quince Orchard (third lowest ranked team) playing without its starting goalie.

In net for Upper Montgomery will be senior Landon Bernard. Bernard has played very well of late. His goals against average is shrinking and is under three over his last four appearances. His save percentage over his past four games is a stalwart .915. It should be a nice memory winning on senior night. Upper Montgomery will only go as far in the playoffs as Bernard’s play takes the team. The Blazers will play Lily Ben David in net. She has a 5.79 goals against average and a .724 save percentage. She plays behind a porous defense and does well just to provide her team a chance to win against the lower competition Blair has faced this season.

Upper Montgomery may be dangerous while shorthanded as Ben David has been beaten ten times while Blair has been on the powerplay. On the flip side, Blair has done a nice job on the penalty kill giving up just two powerplay goals on the season. This does not bode well for the Lightning who have a ghastly powerplay currently sitting at 0-33 on the season. Anticipate major changes to the Upper Montgomery powerplay including personnel changes to try and spark the dormant Lightning powerplay. To say Upper Montgomery has been challenged all season long while on the powerplay is certainly an understatement. The team’s only powerplay goal was scored on a penalty shot converted by Nathan Cassell against Good Counsel.

Upper Montgomery had hoped this season for balanced goal scoring throughout the lineup. Last season’s top line of Chris Hassett, Nathan Cassel, and Philip Shkeda has continued to produce again this season. Unfortunately, it has been a continual search for other student athletes to step up and match last year’s offensive production. Hassett (11GP, 9G, 13A) and Cassell (11GP, 7G, 15A) have alternated the team lead in assists and points throughout the season. Shkeda (12GP, 9G, 2A) is tied for the team lead in goals. From there the season ending injury to Ryan Jacobson (6GP, 4G, 1A) has drastically impacted the Lightning’s secondary offense. Hunter Cameron has chipped in nicely with (9GP, 5G, 3A). He has two different games where he scored two goals, and Cameron scored the tying goal late in the third period against the DC Stars. Each of the team’s other forwards, Brandon Bernard, Bradley Cupples, Olivia Robbins, and Henry Honacki have each played well in one or two games where they have accumulated the majority of their points on the season.

The Blazers are led offensively by Jackson Martindill (8GP, 7G, 4A). Chen Chen-Ye is next with (8GP, 4G, 5A). Long-time agitator Ari Garnder leads the team in goals (7GP, 8G, 1A). The Blazers defense has chipped in offensively. Joseph Killebrew (10GP, 4G, 4A), Wyatt Bakalis (8GP, 2G, 2A), and Danilo Azcarate (9GP, 3G, 1A) have provided some complementary scoring. BUT, it is hard to judge these offensive figures as most of the games Blair has played is against very weak competition. Against stronger competition Blair has been involved in one sided games, with the Blazers getting destroyed and scoring two or fewer goals.

On defense the Lightning have struggled all season. With top defender Andrew Botti out for the first eight games of the season, Upper Montgomery had difficulty keeping teams out of the high danger areas. With Botti back, the team has given up only six goals in three games, none while he has been on the ice at even strength. Senior co-captain Cameron has played several games on defense to help anchor and provide stability on the back end. Sophomore Brady Berkhammer will again see substantial playing time against the Blazers after playing every other shift against the DC Stars and Oakdale. Outside of Cameron’s production in October’s season opener against Whitman where he scored both Upper Montgomery goals, all other Upper Montgomery defensive skaters have contributed no goals and twelve assists in 49 combined games played.

In almost every game this season, the Upper Montgomery coaching staff was going to be forced to supplement the usual varsity squad with several student athletes called up from the junior varsity. After Adam Levine and Aiden Zheng performed admirably against the DC Stars and Oakdale, expect that these two student athletes to play a more prominent role over the closing games of the season. As a senior, Levine may receive a regular shift on Friday against Blair. If the team’s second and third lines do not produce early against the Blazers, expect the coaching staff to begin whittling down ice time and inserting additional student athletes into the game.

The game against Blair will help identify where Upper Montgomery will be seeded in the upcoming county playoff tournament. The Lightning have begun to show much more fight and desire as the season has progressed. These traits have led to better results. The team’s play is becoming more cohesive. The total team effort has been better. The Lightning have played more focused and with more belief in each other. If they continue to play this way, and not down to Blair’s level, the Lightning should prevail easily.

#Extend the Streak, #UML, #Bleed Green, #Go Bolts!

The Upper Montgomery Lightning enter Monday’s non-conference matchup against the Oakdale Bears a little salty after Friday night’s 3-3 tie against the DC Stars. It was a game that the Lightning came back from a goal down on two separate occasions in the third period to reach overtime, then dominated the five minute extra session. Although the first portion of the regular season did not go as anticipated, the Lightning have earned points in four of their past five games with a 3-1-1 record. Upper Montgomery has beaten two highly regarded teams in Walter Johnson and Whitman during the stretch.

Upper Montgomery will be looking to continue its stronger play of late on Monday evening in Frederick. Game time is 8:20 pm. In net for Upper Montgomery will be senior Landon Bernard. Bernard played very well in the team’s last game before winter break. He was one of the primary reasons for Upper Montgomery’s upset win against Whitman stopping 30 of 32 shots on goal (.938 save %) and looking as comfortable in net as he has all season. Bernard was solid against the DC Stars playing behind a lineup that had only one defender dressed for game action. It was a carousel of forwards playing defense in front of Bernard. While his individual statistics have taken a step back this year, if the Whitman performance is any indication, he may be back in the groove. He is aiming for redemption over the final regular season games and in the playoffs. Upper Montgomery will only go as far in the playoffs as Bernard’s play takes the team.

The Bears will play all state nominee Devin Brown in net. Brown sports sparkling numbers this season coming into the game with a 6-1 record, the loss to private school foe Landon. He has a 1.69 goals against average and a .916 save percentage. Brown has cat quick reflexes and uses his agility and athletic ability to prevent goals. It will be very difficult for Upper Montgomery to score. Of note, the Bears have given up ZERO powerplay goals this season. This does not bode well for the Lightning who have failed to score a power play goal all season, now sitting at 0-24 with the extra skater. To say Upper Montgomery has been challenged all season long while on the powerplay is certainly an understatement. The team’s only powerplay goal was scored on a penalty shot converted by Nathan Cassell against Good Counsel. Which team wins on special teams may determine who wins the game.

Upper Montgomery had hoped this season for balanced goal scoring throughout the lineup. Last season’s top line of Chris Hassett, Nathan Cassel, and Philip Shkeda has continued to produce again this season. Unfortunately, it has been a continual search for other student athletes to step up and match last year’s offensive production. Hassett (10GP, 9G, 13A) and Cassell (11GP, 7G, 14A) have alternated the team lead in assists and points throughout the season. Shkeda (11GP, 9G, 2A) is tied for the team lead in goals. From there the season ending injury to Ryan Jacobson (6GP, 4G, 1A) has drastically impacted the Lightning’s secondary offense. Hunter Cameron has chipped in nicely with (8GP, 5G, 3A). He has two different games with two goals scored and he scored the tying goal late in the third period Friday night against the DC Stars. Each of the team’s other forwards, Brandon Bernard, Bradley Cupples, Olivia Robbins, and Henry Honacki have each played well in one or two games where they have accumulated the majority of their points on the season.

Oakdale has dominated the Monocacy Valley Conference all season long with a 9-1 record with their only loss against Landon. The Bears have played many close one or two goal games all season. Oakdale has averaged six goals per game, but that total is skewed with a couple of lopsided games where Oakdale prevailed easily. Where the Bears have shined is defensively and Brown has really helped. Oakdale has given up only 18 goals in their ten games, an average of 1.8 goals per game. Churchill, one of the top teams in the state, played Oakdale tough in a 2-1 loss. The Bears are led offensively by 16U AA level travel forward Kyle Metzler. Metzler has (9GP, 13G, 7A) including three shorthanded goals. Cameron Horan, plays 18U AA, has complemented Metzler and has scored (9GP, 11G, 8A). Tyler Yuhas has (9GP, 6G, 10A).

On defense the Lightning have struggled all season. With top defender Andrew Botti out for the first eight games of the season, Upper Montgomery had difficulty keeping teams out of the high danger areas. Paired with subpar goaltending, the Lightning suffered a pile of losses. With Botti back, the team has given up only three goals in two games, none while he has been on the ice. Botti is expected to return to the lineup after he missed Friday’s game as he was out of town with his external travel team. Senior co-captain Cameron has played several games on defense to help anchor and provide stability on the back end. Sophomore Brady Berkhammer will again see substantial playing time against the Bears after playing every other shift against the DC Stars. Outside of Cameron’s production in October’s season opener against Whitman where he scored both Upper Montgomery goals, all other Upper Montgomery defensive skaters have contributed no goals and twelve assists in 46 combined games played.

Oakdale has received significant offensive production from their defense. Gavin Timberlake, another 16U AA skater has (10GP, 6G 8A). His travel team teammate Thomas Farley has (9GP, 4G, 8A). The rest of the Oakdale defenders play for the Frederick Freeze travel hockey program at the A level. The Bears have a talented and well coached team as evidenced by the very miniscule number of goals they have given up this season.

In almost every game this season, the Upper Montgomery coaching staff was going to be forced to supplement the usual varsity squad with several student athletes called up from the junior varsity. After Adam Levine and Aiden Zheng performed admirably against the DC Stars, expect that the Lightning will lean heavily on the core of their varsity roster against Oakdale. Getting contributions from up and down the lineup will take pressure off of the top line and allow them to receive sufficient rest on the bench between shifts. If Upper Montgomery’s scoring continues to be centralized amongst only the top four skaters, the coaching staff will be forced to constantly rely on just those few top end offensive skaters. This is not a recipe for success as their performance will deteriorate as the game progresses and they become fatigued. If the team’s second and third lines do not produce against the Bears over the first half of the game, expect the coaching staff to begin whittling down ice time and inserting additional student athletes into the game.

The game against Oakdale was intentionally scheduled to prime the club for the upcoming Montgomery Hockey Conference playoffs. Playing very good non-conference opponents late in the season gets the team prepared to play faster and compete harder heading into a top level playoff matchup against one of the top teams in Montgomery County. The Lightning have begun to show much more fight and desire as the season has progressed and these traits have led to better results. The team’s play is becoming more cohesive, and the total team effort has been better. The Lightning have played more focused and with more belief in each other. Let’s see how that continues to play out on Monday night against a very good opponent.

#Extend the Streak, #UML, #Bleed Green, #Go Bolts!