Hockey Tournament Updates By Carson Carrell

Knights Beat Rivals in Upper Division Tournament

By Carson Carrell

The Knights took part in the annual Parma Hockey Tournament the weekend before Christmas, playing against the Normandy Invaders, Lakewood Rangers and the Stow Bulldogs. It is important to know that these are upper division teams from the Knight’s Blue South Division; however, this year the Knights have proved that divisions mean nothing.

The first game was against Normandy and was definitely a tough one for the Knights. Nordonia played well but the game resulted in an 8-2 score against the Blue North team. The two goals for the Knights were scored within the last two minutes of the game by Danial Kimpton and Carson Carrell, preventing the Invaders from getting a shut-out. The team dog was given to Nate Juchnik for his continuous effort throughout the game even though the odds were not in favor of the Knights.

Nordonia faced off against Lakewood for the second game of the tournament. Nordonia has been striving to beat the Rangers for several seasons.  Nordonia took an early lead in the first period. This score remained unchanged throughout the second with both teams fighting hard to put one in the net.  Lakewood was able to tie up the game in the third period but their excitement was short lived. In the last minutes of the game, Nordonia starting forward Nate Juchnik was able to wrap around the net and rocket one in between the goalie’s legs for the game winning goal.  Knight’s goalie, Tommy Lippicott, fought hard and kept the Rangers from evening up the score. The Knights skated away with a well deserved 2-1 win. The team dog was awarded to Brian Sebastian for his amazing effort and unyielding hustle during the game, which prevented Lakewood from scoring additional goals. 

The third and final game was against the Stow Bulldogs and was for second place in the tournament. The Knights scored their first goal early in the first period. They were able to keep the Bulldogs scoreless until the third period when Stow put up three goals. The Knights struggled to get the puck in the zone and narrow the score. Coach Cinalli pulled the Knight’s goalie giving them an extra player on the ice. That player advantage allowed starting forward Carson Carrell to score, bringing the Knights within one goal of tying the Bulldogs.  With less than a minute left to play, the Bulldogs drew a two minute minor penalty giving the Knights a 2 player advantage after the Coach again pulled the goalie, hoping for another goal. The Knights fought hard but fell to the bulldogs 3-2. The team dog was given to Tommy Lippincott for an amazing 27 saves, which helped the Knights stay in the fight.

The team uses these tournaments to better themselves as players and to work on skills they have learned in practice. The Knights have another tournament next weekend to look forward to and will hopefully have a winning result.

Tough Losses for Nordonia Knights Hockey

The weekend after Christmas, the Nordonia Knights Ice Hockey Team participated in the annual Avon Tournament. They were up against some of the best teams in the upper divisions, needless to say it was quite the challenge.

In the tournament the Knights played against three high schools, Avon, Avon Lake and Aurora. All three of these teams are either in the White North or White South Division, two or three divisions above the Knights Blue South Division.  Although the Knights have beaten or tied some upper bracketed teams, these upper tiered teams proved to be formidable opponents. Unfortunately the Knights did not come out with any wins in that tournament; however, they came out with a lot of skills learned and some other aspects that they need to work on in practice in order to better themselves as a team and as individuals.

The team dog was given first to Joshua Krysinski,  followed by Kenton Carrell and then Max Zuschin for their effort throughout the tournament.

The Knights first game of the new year was against the upper division Brooklyn Hurricanes. The vigorous and spirited play between the Knights and the Hurricanes ended in a 3-2 loss for Nordonia. Anthony Stutler was awarded the team dog for scoring in the last few minutes of the game giving Nordonia a burst that nearly tied the game. 

The Knights next game will be away against the Bay Rockets on Sunday, January 5th.  The knights will return to their normal practice schedule where they will work on all the things that they gathered from the games.

Nordonia is still on track to gain a division championship and possibly a Baron Cup. Go Knights!

Carson Carrell is a Junior at Nordonia Hills High School and Captain of the Varsity Hockey Team.  Carson is also a Police Explorer for Sagamore Hills PD.