JOHN CULLEN
Special to The Leader
With less than a week before the puck drops against Buffalo State to start the season, the Fredonia men’s hockey team took to the ice for the annual Blue-White Intrasquad Scrimmage. The scrimmage saw the roster divided into two teams, giving new and returning players an opportunity to showcase their abilities to the coaching staff in a game situation.
Newcomer Kyle Jelinski, a freshman forward, wasted no time making an impact for the White Team as he opened the scoring by deflecting a point shot from sophomore defenseman Jamie Young in the opening period.
“I try to contribute to the team in any way possible. Today I was fortunate enough to get some good bounces and be in the right place at the right time,” said Jelinski.
After he allowed in the game’s first goal, freshman goaltender Eric Bogart stood tall between the pipes. He stopped the rest of the shots he faced, and turned in an impressive 20 save performance.
“Both teams had great energy and used their speed to create chances out there,” said Bogart. “There was a strong net front presence with a lot of hard fought battles. We look to continue that intensity and blue collar work ethic next Friday versus Buffalo State.”
The physical play continued into the second period when freshman forward Todd Schauss displayed tremendous strength and balance using a beautiful center lane drive to finish off a great feed from sophomore forward Samuel Wilbur. This knotted the game at 1-1.
The game did not stay tied long. Team White capitalized on a goalmouth scramble when Jelinski buried his second goal of the game and junior forward Marcus Ortiz extended Team White’s lead to 3-1 with a laser of a shot after a great play to keep the puck in the zone by Young.
All three Fredonia goaltenders saw time in the game, with sophomore Nick Harper making some outstanding saves in the final period as Team White used its veteran presence to create numerous scoring chances.
Senior forward Taylor Bourne finished the scoring with an empty net goal on a two-on-one break after freshman forward Rich DeMarco unselfishly passed to an open Bourne. Bourne buried the puck into the empty cage.
The game finished 4-1 and Assistant Coach Mike Lysyj was pleased with the effort from both squads.
“I was really impressed by the pace of the game, I thought both teams had great discipline playing with structure and not taking bad penalties” said Lysyj. “Both returning and new players made their impact felt on the ice and on the scoresheet, and we expect these players to continue to contribute on a daily basis.”
The Blue Devils open their season on the road this Friday at Buffalo State, and return to Steele Hall on Halloween night where they face Southern New Hampshire at 7 p.m. in their home opener.
John Cullen currently serves as the Fredonia men’s ice hockey team’s goaltender coach.