2020-21 Preview/Part I
by Janet Schultz, NYHOL
One year ago the Western New York Girls Ice Hockey League were completing their playoffs; this year they are beginning a 28-game schedule with only a Section VI playoff/championship. Add to that the fact that no spectators will be allowed in the arenas makes for a season that is frustrating for all of us. NYHOL is no exception and plans to do the best job we can to keep the girls in the news!
Now let’s get down to some business.
Williamsville will be defending their Section VI and Federation championships as well as a second place finish at the NYS Girls Championship. Lancaster/Iroquois/Depew will be looking for revenge after losing the titles to Williamsville and FLOP will also be seeking to return to glory after having three successful seasons prior last year.
Over the ten years of the league there has been no clear cut champion at the beginning of the season. There are teams who once the season starts have made their way to the top or bottom and it looked like they would stay and suddenly things changed.
Williamsville and Frontier/Orchard Park (No Lakeshore then) took the first Federation and Section VI Championships, respectively. Then Monsignor Martin blossomed, along with Kenmore and they took home championship trophies in the next five seasons. Lakeshore joined Frontier/Orchard Park and they become a powerhouse team taking Federation and Section championships and bringing the first-ever State Championship back to the Western region. The last two seasons its been a FLOP, Williamsville and LID run. LID came up short but Williamsville managed to keep the State Championship in Buffalo in 2019 when Section VI hosted the NYS Championship series at Harborcenter. So as of this week, it’s anyone’s game!
The season opens Thursday, February 11 when Clarence/Amherst/Sweethome (CASH) take on Monsignor Martin (MMAA) at North Buffalo at 4:30 p.m.
Monsignor Martin has a history of winning but fell short last year landing in third place overall with a 9-3-1 record. CASH had a rough season with a 2-11-1 record.
CASH had no 2020 seniors which should give them an experienced group of players. However, they will be relying on Goalies Kylie Page and Avery Hall to stop those shots. Page is a ninth grader and Hall is an eighth grader but both saw action last season. Page played 483 minutes with a 2-8-1 record and Hall played 240 minutes. Alison Green should be returning and last year as a junior had 13 goals and 6 assists. Lilli Adimey, who comes into her senior year, posted 5 goals and 4 assists and Sydney Spear with 2 goals and 6 assists.
Monsignor Martin will have a new head coach behind the bench. Mark Brownschidle takes over from Chris Malicki and will have to work with the loss of 5 seniors, including Goaltender Grace Harrington. However, Goalie Sophia Will has shown her experience and played 323 minutes last season and Junior Lara Beecher can be looked at to put some pucks in the net, she had 17 goals and 10 assists last season.
CASH’s seniors include Emma Guzdek, Adimey and Lucy Grimaldi while seniors playing for MMAA will include Haylee Luderman, Kayla Kasprzak and Alex Groh.
Hockey will be in full force beginning Monday (Feb. 15) with Hamburg/Eden/West Seneca (HEWS) taking on Niagara County at 4 p.m. at Hyde Park Arena in Niagara Falls.
Niagara County drew a second game the very next day as they face Lancaster/Iroquois/Depew (LID) at Holiday Rinks at 3:45 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 16. Two other games are also scheduled for Tuesday and include HEWS at Williamsville at 5:10 p.m. and Frontier/LakeShore/Orchard Park (FLOP) at Kenmore/Grand Island at 7:40 p.m. at Lincoln Arena.
Thursday, Feb. 18 will have Kenmore/Grand Island vs LID at Holiday at 4 p.m.; MMAA vs FLOP at Hamburg Nike at 4:30 p.m. and Niagara County at Williamsville at 4:30 p.m. at Northtowns.
A very tight and fast-paced schedule that can predict no clear-cut winner when the playoffs are held March 18, 23 and Championship on March 25.
The full schedule can be found at www.wnygirlshockey.com.
(Editors Note: Rosters have not been finalized so information in this article is based on last season.)
