Volume 1 Issue 24
March 19, 2014

In This Issue
Quick Links
AHAI Adult State Tournament
The AHAI Adult State Championship Tournament, hosted by the AHAI Adult Committee, Center Ice of DuPage, Seven Bridges Ice Arena and USA Hockey will be held April 3-6, 2014. 
 
This premier event, sponsored by USA Hockey and Labatt Blue has many new Women's and Men's Teams. Great awards, prizes, gifts and complimentary beverages will return! Register as soon as possible as the number of teams is limited. Hurry! Contact Bob Fiorio at [email protected] for more details.
High School Hockey Highlights
Ross Forman

And then, there were two.

 

After thousands of games, and millions of slapshots throughout the Land of Lincoln, the Illinois high school season has come down to two teams - the same two that battled for the 2013 state championship, Glenbrook North and New Trier Green.

 

The No. 3-seeded Spartans look to stop the defending state champion and No. 1-ranked Trevians on Thursday, March 20, at the United Center.  The puck drops for the Red Division title at 6:30 p.m.

 

Action at the United Center starts at 4 p.m., with the girls' state championship game, a battle of bitter rivals:  No. 1-ranked New Trier faces No. 2-ranked Loyola.

 

Championship Thursday wraps up at 8:45 p.m., with the Combined Division title game, a surprising clash of No. 4-seeded Waubonsie Valley against No. 7-seeded Glenbard.

 

The Spartans have an explosive offense and stingy defense - and are skating with a grudge.

 

GBN won the nine-team Scholastic League regular-season season, finishing 20-4, one point ahead of New Trier Green and two ahead of Loyola Gold.  GBN also won the best-of-three league championship series, defeating Gold in three games for the school's second league title in a row. Click HERE to read more, including Ross' Illinois High School State Championship predictions and his 2013-14 High School Hockey Honorees.

Hayes-Suburban Hockey League Highlights

Congratulations to the 2014 Hayes-Suburban Academic All Conference Recipients! Click HERE to view complete list of recipients.
40th Anniversary Championship Game, JCA vs. Renegades to be held on Saturday, March 22. Good luck teams in your quest to bring home one of Illinois hockey's oldest traveling trophies.
BURTON CUP CHAMPIONS
Lane Tech Varsity
HAYES CUP CHAMPIONS*
Fenwick White JV

*Inaugural awarding of the Hayes Cup, named after former League President and IHHF member, George Hayes
BLUE DIVISION CHAMPIONS
Lake Central (Indiana)
GREEN DIVISION CHAMPIONS
Lemont/Lockport Spartans JV
Illinois West Hockey League Highlights
FOUNDERS CUP CHAMPIONS
Wildhawks Varsity
Wildhawks JV
 
Illinois West recently released their 2013-14 Team and Individual Award Recipients. Click HERE to find out who was awarded the Varsity and JV Coach of the Year Awards, Leadership Award, Sportsmanship Award, Academic Achievement Award and much more!
Scholastic Hockey League Highlights
2014 SHL All-League Teams
SHL VARSITY CHAMPIONS
Glenbrook North Varsity
 
For the second year in a row GBN Varsity was crowned champions of the Scholastic Hockey League. The Spartans defeated Loyola Gold 2 games to 1 in the best of three series. GBN won game 3 by the score of 2-0.

Interview with MVP, Nate Harris
Charitable & Fundraising Events in Illinois

A Hockey Program for Youths Living with Diabetes
Dskate Hockey is an educational hockey program for youth hockey players living with Type 1 diabetes. No ordinary hockey camp, Dskate combines the elements of hockey and diabetes, providing on and off-ice educational sessions designed to improve puck-skills and life-skills while showcasing how it's possible to successfully manage diabetes while having fun. Dskate Hockey is excited to invite you to learn what it means to have fun while playing the sport you love! Dskate will host two exciting hockey programs in the summer of 2014 - Milton, Ontario, July 28 - August 1 and Montreal, Quebec, August 11 - 15! Click on city name below for more program information.
 
 
Charitable & Fundraising Events in Illinois
The Puck Cancer Showcase is a unique hockey event. The tournament is for FUN and designed to bring the hockey community together to help families battling cancer.

INFORMATION & REGISTRATION
Please consider attending the Fundraiser for Mic Mascolino, father of a goaltender for the Cobras Hockey Club, who is battling pancreatic cancer.

MORE INFORMATION

CLICK HERE TO VIEW CHAMPIONSHIP PHOTOS ON AHAI'S FACEBOOK PAGE

All photos courtesy of  www.photosbysully.com
Kohlman Cup the First Stop on the Road to Nationals for Six Illinois Tier I Teams
Fond du Lac, Wisconsin - March 21-23

AHAI wishes good luck to the following Tier I teams as they compete in the Kohlman Cup March 21 - 23 at the Fond du Lac Family Ice Center in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. The winners of the Kohlman Cup at the Bantam and Midget levels will advance to the 2014 USA Hockey Tier I National Championships in Green Bay,  Wisconsin on April 2-6; the Girls Champions will compete for a National Title during those dates at the New England Sports Center in Marlborough, Massachusetts.

Girls U14Chicago Mission
Girls U16Chicago Mission
Girls U19Chicago Mission
BantamChicago Mission
Midget 16UChicago Mission
Midget 18UTeam Illinois

Five Illinois Tier II Teams Bound for USA Hockey's National Championships
Congratulations and Good Luck Teams!

Competing in a USA Hockey National Championship is the experience of a lifetime for players of all ages. AHAI wishes our five Illinois Tier II Teams good luck as they venture to various host locations up and down the East Coast the week of April 2-6 in search of a USA Hockey's Holy Grail, a National Championship Title.

GIRLS 14U - Sabres - Amherst, NY
GIRLS 19U - Sabres - Amherst, NY
YOUTH 14U - Bruins - Hackensack, NJ
YOUTH 16U - Falcons - Reston, VA
YOUTH 18U - Falcons - Wayne, NJ

Because sometimes work and family commitments prohibit family and friends from cheering on their teams in person, USA Hockey has teamed up with FASTHockey to make every game available through live streaming coverage. Click HERE for more information. Additionally, you can follow your favorite team with the new USA Hockey National Championships app, available for Android and iOS devices. The USA Hockey National Championships app is available in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.


Illinois Paralympians Brody Roybal and Kevin McKee Bring Home Gold!
U.S. Paralympic Team Wins Gold Medal with 1-0 Win Over Russia

On Saturday, March 15, Illinois Paralympians, Brody Roybal and Kevin McKee helped Team USA become the first team to win back-to-back gold medals in the Paralympics. The gold medal is the third for the U.S. since 2002. Roybal also has the distinct honor of being the youngest paralympic hockey player to ever win Gold! Join AHAI in congratulating these young men on an incredible achievement! Click HERE to read the full story on USAHockey.com.



BRODY ROYBAL: TURNING A DREAM INTO A REALITY
VIDEO: Student Athletes Recognized at the Blackhawk Alumni Scholarship Awards
2014 NWHL Tournament Finals
By Tom Michon, NWHL President

This year marked the 32nd year of the NWHL. This year's finals took place at both Franklin Park and the Darien Sportsplex. The NWHL would like to thank the staffs of both arenas for their hospitality. The NWHL had a record 26 teams crowned as Champions in the 26 different divisions. The NWHL would also like to thank the Chicago Blackhawks and COMCAST Xfinity for their continued support of the NWHL and its Tournament.
 
NWHL TOURNAMENT FINAL RESULTS
CSDHL Champions, Midget Scholarship Recipients & Academic Awards

AHAI congratulates all the 2014 Central States Developmental Hockey League (CSDHL) Champions on a successful season! AHAI would also like to congratulate CSDHL Midget Scholarship Recipients, Reno Murphy of the Rockford Icemen and Marc Shipbaugh, Jr. of the Sabres. Click HERE to view all CSDHL Academic Scholars.


2014 NIHL Academic Excellence Award Recipients Announced

AHAI congratulates all Northern Illinois Hockey League Academic Excellence Award Recipients for their commitment to outstanding scholarship.
 
 

Nearly 1,000 Children Tried Hockey for Free in Illinois on March 1st!
By Michael Durkin, Vice President of One Goal

The Try Hockey for Free day on March 1st, as part of Hockey Weekend Across America, was the most successful Try Hockey event for USA Hockey to date! Over 15,800 children across the country were introduced to the sport. Combined with the November Try Hockey event, more than 28,000 kids experienced youth hockey for the first time this season, an increase of 11,400 from the previous USA Hockey record season. For the March event, Illinois was a big contributor with 949 skaters from 26 total sites across the State. Click the link below to view the top sites in Illinois as well as their associated Hockey Clubs. Thank you for all your help and support with this event and our Try Hockey initiative as a whole!

 

Illinois Boasts Six 2014 NTDP Evaluation Camp Invitees!
By USA Hockey

Fifty-two of the top American hockey players born in 1998 have been invited to USA Hockey's National Team Development Program Evaluation Camp. The camp, which will help select the 2014-15 U.S. National Under-17 Team, will take place March 21-25, at the Ann Arbor (Mich.) Ice Cube. Congratulations to our Illinois skaters invited to attend this elite camp. 
 
Clayton Keller (F)
Swansea, IL - Shattuck-St. Mary's

William Knierim (F)
Skokie, IL - Chicago Mission Midget Minor

Dominic Mersch (F)
Park Ridge, IL - Chicago Mission Midget Minor

James Sanchez (F)
Northbrook IL, Chicago Young Americans Midget Minor

Brett Callahan (D)
Westmont, IL - Chicago Mission Midget Major

Alex Green (D)
Chicago, IL - Chicago Mission Midget Minor  

7th Annual Wirtz Cup Champions: Colorado Avalanche
Hoffman Estates Triphahn Center

The Hoffman Estates Triphahn Center, which is one of a handful of rinks in the United States with Sled Hockey compatibility, hosted the 7th Annual Wirtz Cup Sled Hockey Tournament. The Wirtz Cup is the Championship Tournament for the Midwest Sled Hockey League (MWSHL) headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The league is comprised of the RIC Blackhawks, the St. Louis Blues, the Colorado Avalanche and San Antonio Rampage. The league was founded to support the needs and aspirations of Disabled Adult Hockey Players.  In fact, nine players from the MWSHL represented the United States on the USA Hockey Men's Gold Medal Paralympic team. In addition, one woman from the MWSHL, Erica Mitchell represented the USA Hockey Woman's Paralympic team. Congratulations to the Colorado Avalanche, this year's champion!!

 

BMO Harris Bank Player, Coach & Volunteer of the Month Recipients
 
This season BMO Harris Bank, in partnership with the Chicago Blackhawks, is honoring one youth hockey coach, youth hockey player and youth hockey volunteer each month for outstanding achievements both on the ice and in their communities. Each candidate was nominated by teammates, coaches, family or friends through the Chicago Blackhawks' website and chosen by an amateur hockey committee. AHAI congratulates the following recipients on this honor, and celebrates their achievements both on and off the ice. Click HERE to nominate a worthy candidate today.
 
PLAYER OF THE MONTH
Madison Matrasko - Huskies Hockey Club

COACH OF THE MONTH
Anthony Monte - Chicago Blues Hockey Club

VOLUNTEER OF THE MONTH
Chris Scholl - Loyola Academy

Left to Right: Julie Curran - BMO Harris Bank, Anthony Monte - Coach of the Month, Chris Scholl - Volunteer of the Month, Madison Matrasko - Player of the Month and Annie Camins, Chicago Blackhawks



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