| June 2006 |
6/12/2006
97s Advance to RMCC Championship and 93s Move on to Sunday, too.
The 97s clicked on all cylinders this past weekend. Their goaltending was stellar, the defense solid, and they got some good scoring
punch up front. They knocked off Detroit Compuware to advance to the consolation bracket championship game where they were
eventually defeated 5-3 (report from the team manager appears below).
This group exemplifies what the Prospects is all about: get with the program, stick with the program & stick to the plan, and then
watch the skill and character develop in the kids to the point we can compete with the best teams around.
I guarantee this, If we had these 97' guys (and all our birth years) full time for two years we'd be winning tournaments like Ronald
McDonald for fun. We created the formula and we have the right players, coaches, managers, and parents to implement it.
Across all the birth years we have great buy in from you, the parents. For instance, even though our 98s and 99s took their lumps (see
essay on why the Canadians have a 1-2 year head start on the US kids in the Essay section of our site), I was very encouraged to see
and hear the parents encouraging their own kids to "get to the loose puck first," "backcheck hard," "go through the guy when pursuing
him," and "never quit." This reinforcement is so, so helpful. No one was blaming teammates. No one was making excuses. They saw
where the other teams were better, and that was that. We appreciate your support - and it will only help your kid.
The 93s also had a great showing. They, too, made it to the crossovers on Sunday. They met a strong opponent (and a couple of the
less than perfect referees many of us saw over the weekend) and were defeated. But, like I said it was a strong showing. They now
have their sights set on winning the Battle of Buffalo.
Back to the refs for a second. Having been going to Toronto for the last 8 years, very little surprises me, but a lot disappoints me (as I
sure you experienced). The refs often do 6-7-8 games in a row. They frequently feel the need to teach us the game by enforcing evey
little rule in the book (chin straps, one coach out to see an injured player, can't change goalie sticks (98s!), phantom penalty shots
(94s!) and so on). To this point, putting up with this has not pushed us to the point of not going. There is little more you can do than grin
and bear it. As I have personally experienced over the years, ticking them off creates a whole new level of misery.
One last item has to do with off ice game preparation. Most of our teams played 4 games (12-12-15 min periods) in 30 hours. This is
very demanding and is compounded by driving 2 hours to get there. Without taking all the fun stuff out (knee hockey, swimming, etc), I
think we may at least lay out guidelines for next summer (I had assumed that these are common across travel teams here, but it didn't
look like it this weekend). We'll recommend in-room curfews (perhaps 10:00 or 10:30 for mites, 11 for squirts and pee-wees, etc). We'll
also recommend no swimming before the first game or between games. These are tough enough games as it is and - if you are close
- why lose on account of fatigue you brought upon yourself?
Regina's report for the 97s:
Congratulations to the Buffalo Prospects 1997 team finishing as the Consolation Finalist for the 2006 Ronald McDonald Tournament
for the second year in a row. In total there were 28 teams registered for the 1997 division. The Buffalo Prospects made it past the first
round eliminations and secured a spot in the semi finals for the consolation round (3 & 4th place) and made it all the way to the finals
finishing up in 4th overall; playing a total of 7 games in 3 days. Not bad for a bunch of boys from Buffalo!!
Ryan Pakulski had an amazing 3 shut outs out of the 7 games and Cody Fleckenstein was awarded MVP. All the players did a great job
and played their skates off. A special thank you to the coaches for donating their time and expertise to the 97 Buffalo Prospects teams.
6/5/2006
Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Viola family
We are saddened to announce the passing of Mary Carol Viola (mother of Paul (1990) and Elizabeth (u12)).
Having known this family since the late 90s, this certainly hits hard and close to home.
Here are some more details from today's Buffalo News.
Mary Carol (Cochi) Viola
June 5, 2006; age 50; beloved wife of Paul J. Viola Jr.; dear mother of Stephanie, Catherine, Paul J. and Elizabeth; dear daughter of
Romolo and the late Lois (nee Einig) Cochi; dear sister of Diana Herman, Linda Cochi, Paul (Lori) Cochi and David Cochi; dear
daughter-in-law of Ann (late Paul J.) Viola; also survived by nieces and nephews. Online register at www.Amigone.com
6/4/2006
95 Prospects have a Weekend to Remember
It was a great weekend for the Buffalo Prospects, finishing second in the Bring Your Best tournament in Toronto.
We opened the weekend on Friday against the Niagara Vipers with some new faces in the line-up. Michael Hubert, Jason Cohen, Kristy
Knoll, Angelo Sarro, and Jake Battistoni were all participating in their first Prospects tournament and it didn’t take long to show they
belong in the show. Michael Hubert opened the scoring in the first on a great feed from Jason Cohen 5 minutes in the first period. In
the second, Austin Bishop popped in his first of the tournament with assists going to Zach Evancho and Austin Bianchi. Zach Evancho
added the third Talley with a cross-body snap-shot in the top corner with the helper going to James Grachos. James Grachos added
another helper along with Austin Bianchi on a Goal by Gary Sietz to end the scoring for the Prospects in the second period. The story of
this game, however, was the shot total. The prospects peppered the Vipers net minders with a rapid fire fury of one-timers, point shots,
and odd-man breaks. The goalies from the Vipers deserved a lot of credit for keeping them in the game. Andy Lee picked up his first
shut-out of the weekend, and Jason Cohen was name MVP for a 7-shot and one point performance. Prospects win 4-0
The prospects were flying high going into their second game of the tourney, facing the Skillz Elite from Toronto. This team was not only
made up of players from the Skillz Elite, but come to find out, the picked up the 3 best players from the Vipers A team, 2 players from the
dreaded Pro Hockey West, and some other kid that was really good. The Elite team just came off a romping of the Durham Demons 10-
0 and came out flying, popping in 4 goals in the first period and adding 2 in each of the remaining periods to tally 8 goals. Devin Paluh
fended off many point-blank shots and many 1-0 chances. Then lone tally for the Prospects came in the second with a goal by Austin
Bianchi. The MVP award went to the invisible man and was saved for the next gameJ. Prospects are defeated 8-1.
In the second game on Saturday the Prospects needed to get back on track against the Detroit Trackers for any hope to make it into the
championship game. The prospects opened the scoring with a goal by Michael Hubert 5 minutes into the 1st period. RJ Gicewicz and
Zach Evancho assisted on the play. Later in the first Hubert notched his second of the contest with a great individual effort. Early in the
3rd Zach Evancho kept things rolling with a tally from Michael Piscatelli and Conner Hughes. Taylor Ferrino would end the game with a
goal in the third on an assist from James Grachos. Andy Lee had little to do but when he did he was on his game and recorded his 2nd
shutout of the tournament. Prospects win 4-0 with MVP honors going to Gary Seitz for a great game.
In the final game on Saturday, the winner between the Prospects and the Durham Demons (which nobody from their team could tell us
where Durham was) would go on to the championship. The scoring was opened by Taylor Ferrino late in the first on an unassisted
goal. The story of the game, however, was Austin Bianchi. Bianchi netted the next goal and then the scoring machine added two more
in the third for the prospects first 1995 hat trick. The 1st of his 3 was unassisted, with his second coming from Austin Bishop and
Conner Hughes, and the last also coming from Bishop and Zach Evancho. The “AB” connection (Austin Bishop and Bianchi) was all
over the opposition and James Grachos added his second of the tournament on a feed from Zach Evancho and Gary Seitz. Devin Paluh
recorded the shutout and wasn’t tested often; but when he was he was sharp and left no rebounds. MVP honors went to Bianchi and
the Prospects won 5-0 to get a second try at their first tournament victory.
The first ever Chalk Talk session was held at 7:40 in the morning and everyone was there…physically…
The prospects stepped on the ice and from the drop of the puck, they were a force to be reckoned with. The Skillz had similar results
from the first game, adding 3 goals in the first period; but they didn’t come without punishment. The Prospects had them off their game
for most of the contest and the game was filled with great hits. The Skillz put pressure on the Prospects, but this time the Prospects
were calm and relaxed. The Skillz added 2 goals in the 2nd and third and won the game 7-1. The Prospects only goal came on a spin-
o-ramma by Gary Seitz which came from James Grachos and Jake Battistoni. Andy Lee started the game and had a couple tough
breaks, but after a quick meeting with the Staff, and 3 ½ minutes of flawless goaltending by Devin Paluh, Andy regained focused and put
on show for the rest of the game.
This weekend provided some reassurance that Prospects are second-to-none when it comes to skills development. The Prospects
distanced themselves from many of these “tournament teams” in skating, shooting, passing, and hitting; and as you can see from the
attached photo, it was a weekend to remember!!!
6/4/2006
Buffalo Prospects U12 win AA Championship in Toronto Tournament
The Girls’ U12 team went 4-1-0 this past weekend at the Girls Hockey Challenge tournament in Toronto. The Prospects out-worked
and out-skated teams from Michigan, Brampton, and Durham, ON in the round robin portion of the tournament.
With only three defense available on Sunday the U12 Prospects gave Ottawa a very tough game entering the third period down 2-1,
before running out of gas and falling 4-1 in the AAA/AA crossover game. In the afternoon game, the Prospects came out strong and built
up a 4-0 lead and then held on for a 5-2 victory in the AA Championship game.
The U12 team’s success in the tournament was another example of how the Buffalo Prospects program of skill development and hard
work can pay off. This was the U12 team’s first tournament together and they improved with every game while competing against
teams that have been skating together for a year of two.
6/4/2006
Buffalo Prospects U14 Battle Hard in Toronto Tournament
The U14 Girls battled hard and were very competitive in a series of very close games in Toronto over the weekend. The coaches report
their eyes are being opened to what it takes to compete at the highest levels, and that they are progressing nicely.
6/4/2006
Strength & Conditioning Seminars Well Attended
Our strength and conditioning seminars were well attended over the weekend. Our two presenters [more] shared a ton of knowledge
and expertise with those in attendance. The kids even got to demo some of the equipment. Some were quite impressive. For some
reason we did not see a lot of parent volunteers to demo. Hmmmmm!
Our next set of seminars is scheduled for the weekend of June 17 & 18. Stay tuned.
97s Advance to RMCC Championship and 93s Move on to Sunday, too.
The 97s clicked on all cylinders this past weekend. Their goaltending was stellar, the defense solid, and they got some good scoring
punch up front. They knocked off Detroit Compuware to advance to the consolation bracket championship game where they were
eventually defeated 5-3 (report from the team manager appears below).
This group exemplifies what the Prospects is all about: get with the program, stick with the program & stick to the plan, and then
watch the skill and character develop in the kids to the point we can compete with the best teams around.
I guarantee this, If we had these 97' guys (and all our birth years) full time for two years we'd be winning tournaments like Ronald
McDonald for fun. We created the formula and we have the right players, coaches, managers, and parents to implement it.
Across all the birth years we have great buy in from you, the parents. For instance, even though our 98s and 99s took their lumps (see
essay on why the Canadians have a 1-2 year head start on the US kids in the Essay section of our site), I was very encouraged to see
and hear the parents encouraging their own kids to "get to the loose puck first," "backcheck hard," "go through the guy when pursuing
him," and "never quit." This reinforcement is so, so helpful. No one was blaming teammates. No one was making excuses. They saw
where the other teams were better, and that was that. We appreciate your support - and it will only help your kid.
The 93s also had a great showing. They, too, made it to the crossovers on Sunday. They met a strong opponent (and a couple of the
less than perfect referees many of us saw over the weekend) and were defeated. But, like I said it was a strong showing. They now
have their sights set on winning the Battle of Buffalo.
Back to the refs for a second. Having been going to Toronto for the last 8 years, very little surprises me, but a lot disappoints me (as I
sure you experienced). The refs often do 6-7-8 games in a row. They frequently feel the need to teach us the game by enforcing evey
little rule in the book (chin straps, one coach out to see an injured player, can't change goalie sticks (98s!), phantom penalty shots
(94s!) and so on). To this point, putting up with this has not pushed us to the point of not going. There is little more you can do than grin
and bear it. As I have personally experienced over the years, ticking them off creates a whole new level of misery.
One last item has to do with off ice game preparation. Most of our teams played 4 games (12-12-15 min periods) in 30 hours. This is
very demanding and is compounded by driving 2 hours to get there. Without taking all the fun stuff out (knee hockey, swimming, etc), I
think we may at least lay out guidelines for next summer (I had assumed that these are common across travel teams here, but it didn't
look like it this weekend). We'll recommend in-room curfews (perhaps 10:00 or 10:30 for mites, 11 for squirts and pee-wees, etc). We'll
also recommend no swimming before the first game or between games. These are tough enough games as it is and - if you are close
- why lose on account of fatigue you brought upon yourself?
Regina's report for the 97s:
Congratulations to the Buffalo Prospects 1997 team finishing as the Consolation Finalist for the 2006 Ronald McDonald Tournament
for the second year in a row. In total there were 28 teams registered for the 1997 division. The Buffalo Prospects made it past the first
round eliminations and secured a spot in the semi finals for the consolation round (3 & 4th place) and made it all the way to the finals
finishing up in 4th overall; playing a total of 7 games in 3 days. Not bad for a bunch of boys from Buffalo!!
Ryan Pakulski had an amazing 3 shut outs out of the 7 games and Cody Fleckenstein was awarded MVP. All the players did a great job
and played their skates off. A special thank you to the coaches for donating their time and expertise to the 97 Buffalo Prospects teams.
6/5/2006
Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Viola family
We are saddened to announce the passing of Mary Carol Viola (mother of Paul (1990) and Elizabeth (u12)).
Having known this family since the late 90s, this certainly hits hard and close to home.
Here are some more details from today's Buffalo News.
Mary Carol (Cochi) Viola
June 5, 2006; age 50; beloved wife of Paul J. Viola Jr.; dear mother of Stephanie, Catherine, Paul J. and Elizabeth; dear daughter of
Romolo and the late Lois (nee Einig) Cochi; dear sister of Diana Herman, Linda Cochi, Paul (Lori) Cochi and David Cochi; dear
daughter-in-law of Ann (late Paul J.) Viola; also survived by nieces and nephews. Online register at www.Amigone.com
6/4/2006
95 Prospects have a Weekend to Remember
It was a great weekend for the Buffalo Prospects, finishing second in the Bring Your Best tournament in Toronto.
We opened the weekend on Friday against the Niagara Vipers with some new faces in the line-up. Michael Hubert, Jason Cohen, Kristy
Knoll, Angelo Sarro, and Jake Battistoni were all participating in their first Prospects tournament and it didn’t take long to show they
belong in the show. Michael Hubert opened the scoring in the first on a great feed from Jason Cohen 5 minutes in the first period. In
the second, Austin Bishop popped in his first of the tournament with assists going to Zach Evancho and Austin Bianchi. Zach Evancho
added the third Talley with a cross-body snap-shot in the top corner with the helper going to James Grachos. James Grachos added
another helper along with Austin Bianchi on a Goal by Gary Sietz to end the scoring for the Prospects in the second period. The story of
this game, however, was the shot total. The prospects peppered the Vipers net minders with a rapid fire fury of one-timers, point shots,
and odd-man breaks. The goalies from the Vipers deserved a lot of credit for keeping them in the game. Andy Lee picked up his first
shut-out of the weekend, and Jason Cohen was name MVP for a 7-shot and one point performance. Prospects win 4-0
The prospects were flying high going into their second game of the tourney, facing the Skillz Elite from Toronto. This team was not only
made up of players from the Skillz Elite, but come to find out, the picked up the 3 best players from the Vipers A team, 2 players from the
dreaded Pro Hockey West, and some other kid that was really good. The Elite team just came off a romping of the Durham Demons 10-
0 and came out flying, popping in 4 goals in the first period and adding 2 in each of the remaining periods to tally 8 goals. Devin Paluh
fended off many point-blank shots and many 1-0 chances. Then lone tally for the Prospects came in the second with a goal by Austin
Bianchi. The MVP award went to the invisible man and was saved for the next gameJ. Prospects are defeated 8-1.
In the second game on Saturday the Prospects needed to get back on track against the Detroit Trackers for any hope to make it into the
championship game. The prospects opened the scoring with a goal by Michael Hubert 5 minutes into the 1st period. RJ Gicewicz and
Zach Evancho assisted on the play. Later in the first Hubert notched his second of the contest with a great individual effort. Early in the
3rd Zach Evancho kept things rolling with a tally from Michael Piscatelli and Conner Hughes. Taylor Ferrino would end the game with a
goal in the third on an assist from James Grachos. Andy Lee had little to do but when he did he was on his game and recorded his 2nd
shutout of the tournament. Prospects win 4-0 with MVP honors going to Gary Seitz for a great game.
In the final game on Saturday, the winner between the Prospects and the Durham Demons (which nobody from their team could tell us
where Durham was) would go on to the championship. The scoring was opened by Taylor Ferrino late in the first on an unassisted
goal. The story of the game, however, was Austin Bianchi. Bianchi netted the next goal and then the scoring machine added two more
in the third for the prospects first 1995 hat trick. The 1st of his 3 was unassisted, with his second coming from Austin Bishop and
Conner Hughes, and the last also coming from Bishop and Zach Evancho. The “AB” connection (Austin Bishop and Bianchi) was all
over the opposition and James Grachos added his second of the tournament on a feed from Zach Evancho and Gary Seitz. Devin Paluh
recorded the shutout and wasn’t tested often; but when he was he was sharp and left no rebounds. MVP honors went to Bianchi and
the Prospects won 5-0 to get a second try at their first tournament victory.
The first ever Chalk Talk session was held at 7:40 in the morning and everyone was there…physically…
The prospects stepped on the ice and from the drop of the puck, they were a force to be reckoned with. The Skillz had similar results
from the first game, adding 3 goals in the first period; but they didn’t come without punishment. The Prospects had them off their game
for most of the contest and the game was filled with great hits. The Skillz put pressure on the Prospects, but this time the Prospects
were calm and relaxed. The Skillz added 2 goals in the 2nd and third and won the game 7-1. The Prospects only goal came on a spin-
o-ramma by Gary Seitz which came from James Grachos and Jake Battistoni. Andy Lee started the game and had a couple tough
breaks, but after a quick meeting with the Staff, and 3 ½ minutes of flawless goaltending by Devin Paluh, Andy regained focused and put
on show for the rest of the game.
This weekend provided some reassurance that Prospects are second-to-none when it comes to skills development. The Prospects
distanced themselves from many of these “tournament teams” in skating, shooting, passing, and hitting; and as you can see from the
attached photo, it was a weekend to remember!!!
6/4/2006
Buffalo Prospects U12 win AA Championship in Toronto Tournament
The Girls’ U12 team went 4-1-0 this past weekend at the Girls Hockey Challenge tournament in Toronto. The Prospects out-worked
and out-skated teams from Michigan, Brampton, and Durham, ON in the round robin portion of the tournament.
With only three defense available on Sunday the U12 Prospects gave Ottawa a very tough game entering the third period down 2-1,
before running out of gas and falling 4-1 in the AAA/AA crossover game. In the afternoon game, the Prospects came out strong and built
up a 4-0 lead and then held on for a 5-2 victory in the AA Championship game.
The U12 team’s success in the tournament was another example of how the Buffalo Prospects program of skill development and hard
work can pay off. This was the U12 team’s first tournament together and they improved with every game while competing against
teams that have been skating together for a year of two.
6/4/2006
Buffalo Prospects U14 Battle Hard in Toronto Tournament
The U14 Girls battled hard and were very competitive in a series of very close games in Toronto over the weekend. The coaches report
their eyes are being opened to what it takes to compete at the highest levels, and that they are progressing nicely.
6/4/2006
Strength & Conditioning Seminars Well Attended
Our strength and conditioning seminars were well attended over the weekend. Our two presenters [more] shared a ton of knowledge
and expertise with those in attendance. The kids even got to demo some of the equipment. Some were quite impressive. For some
reason we did not see a lot of parent volunteers to demo. Hmmmmm!
Our next set of seminars is scheduled for the weekend of June 17 & 18. Stay tuned.
