Highlanders iced in states, but still wrap up record season

Four months, 17 wins, 37 points, and a million smiles later the West Milford Ice Hockey Highlanders’ record setting 17 win season came to an end at the hands of the sixth ranked team in New Jersey in the second round of the state tournament. The Bridgewater-Raritan Panthers defeated the Highlanders 6-1 at the Rock Ice Pavilion in Dunellen in a hard hitting, penalty ridden affair punctuated by three power play goals for Bridgewater. The Highlanders surprised the heavily favored Panthers by skating with them shift for shift in the first period and All Conference MVP Sean Ryan was brilliant in net as he faced the most explosive offense that West Milford has faced all season. But at 10:02 the Highlanders got caught at the end of a long shift, the Panthers switched horses and finally beat Ryan for the 1-0 lead. The early part of the second was as tightly played as the first but then the striped shirts changed the pace of the contest by calling anything close on both sides. At 10:08 Bridgewater pushed in their first of would be three power play goals on the night and then another equal strength tally only six seconds later to make it 3-0. The Highlanders never slowed down but playing a man down for half of the time against such a powerful offense proved to be just too much. West Milford found themselves down 5-0 before Matt McCann tipped in an Alex Barr shot from the point for the lone West Milford tally. The Highlanders earned their way to the Bridgewater match by defeating Toms River South 2-1 in overtime as Andrew Atieh slid in the game winner about two minutes into the extra stanza. Keegan Saum assisted on the goal and also scored 1 of his own earlier, assisted by Steve Williamson. The Highlanders won 17 games (a single season record for WMHS), earned their way to a Passaic County Championship game and the first ever entry to a Northern White Conference Championship game, and notched two wins and a tie against arch rival Lakeland. Head Coach Brian Jones has had a positive effect on his players. The combination of his hands-on knowledge of the game, his positive, supportive approach to coaching, and his good old fashioned youthful enthusiasm was just what the doctor ordered for Highlander Hockey. Junior and team Co-Captain Andrew Atieh topped the score sheet with 45 points (32G, 13A). Senior Alt. Captain goalkeeper Sean Ryan (2.67 GAA) has been an All Universe MVP for all four of his Highlander years. Senior Co-Captain Steve Williamson scored 42 points (10G, 32A) and earned an Honorable Mention All Conference Award but he is most noted for his defensive in tying up attacking forwards. Senior Nick Lezette (7G, 6A) helped the team on multiple line combos. Senior defensemen JJ Stoebling (1G, 3A), Mike Percival (6A), and Frank Troia (2G, 1A) were rock solid at the blue line. Senior Zach Weiss (2G, 3A) played an important role as the big defensive forward. Line mate Senior Ryan Dixon (6G, 5A) was a role playing center called upon when extra offense was needed and senior Pete Driscoll brought his football-trained heart of a lion to the ice every night. Backup Senior goaltender Tim Webb earned two shutouts in his final season. Juniors that will be returning with Atieh next year are Kevin Flynn (2G, 6A), Keegan Saum (4G, 7A), a defenseman turned forward that nicely filled out the Atieh / Williamson line at the end of the season, Alex Barr (7G, 8A), an All Conference defenseman with a great shot, Mike Hamilton (2A), a smart defensive center that made a big difference on the 3rd line, and Matt Jordan (2A), an aggressive forward who loves to crash the net. Returning Sophomores are Jeff Reese (12G, 12A), Matt McCann (5G, 4A), and Ray Worley (1G, 5A).