Cupertino Cougars
Bantam-A 2001/2002 Ice Hockey Team



CHAMPIONSHIPS

CUPERTINO COUGARS	STOCKTON COLTS	OAKLAND BEARS	SAN JOSE JR. SHARKS

San Jose Ice Centre - March 22-24, 2002

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Cougars Results

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That's All She Wrote - Cougars Are Swept
            March 23, 2002

The Bantam-A Cupertino Cougars quest for a NORCAL crown was dealt its third and final strike Saturday evening when the Oakland Bears skated past the Cougars by a 4-0 score.  Cupertino's hopes of putting their best hockey on display at the tournament never came to fruition as they were outscored in the three-game sweep by a 16-1 margin.

Oakland wasted little time getting on the board, cashing in on a one-timer at 13:48.  Cupertino's first offensive threat came during a power play that started at 10:43.  One minute into the man-advantage, Jordan Yindiphol sent in a slapshot that Nathan Zebrowski tipped toward the net.  The shot was blocked by the goalies pads, giving Zebrowski a second chance on the rebound, but that shot was stopped and covered. Devin Ernst snapped off a decent shot with 6 seconds left on the power play, but his shot was stopped as well.  This game featured some big hits, but Oakland never backed down.  Dustin Thomas delivered a jarring check at 7:45, but later in the shift the Cougars took a penalty, wiping out any momentum gain that might have come from the physical play. Eric Blumenthal and Ashley Ocampo led the successful penalty kill, the first of five for the Cougars.  But the key play came from goaltender Addison Lee who made a spectacular cross-ice stop on a last-second pass during a 2-on-1 break.  Lee added another heads-up save at 1:35 when a Bears player came out of a scrum along the boards with the puck with no one left on defense in front of Lee.  A defensive breakdown led to the second Bears goal, which came just a few seconds later.  Too much room was opened up in front of the net and the Bears took advantage, circling in and waiting for the perfect time to snap the shot home.  Lee closed out the period with a nice glove save at the buzzer.

Oakland opened the second period 11 seconds into a 2:00 power play.  They used the man-advantage to continue to carry the action in the opening minutes of the period.  It took a great pokecheck from Eric Blumenthal to stop a potential open-ice shot at 14:40.  Blumenthal made another nice play, icing the puck on the penalty kill.  The Bears took their turn in the box at 12:50 and the Cougars applied some good offensive pressure.  Ian Brown whipped a good backhander on net at 11:25.  Daniel McCarthy ripped a shot on the rebound, but the goalie made the save.  After killing the penalty, Oakland committed another infraction at 10:10.  The forward line of Zack Hitchcock, Daniel Willenborg, and Derek Fredericks applied good pressure but they were unable to cash in.  At 8:23, Blumenthal raced end-to-end, sending a shot on goal that was kicked back out.  Ben Dines was positioned for the rebound but his shot was stopped and held.  It was then Cupertino's turn to take a seat in the box, and the result was another unsuccessful power play for Oakland.  The penalty kill effort was led by a blocked shot from Zack Hitchcock, two icing plays from Michelle Chee, an icing play from Daniel Willenborg, and back-to-back saves from Addison Lee.  At 5:15. Michelle Chee and Devin Ernst broke in on a 2-on-1. Chee passed to Ernst but his shot was rejected.  Ashley Ocampo and Ian Brown walked in on another 2-on-1 at 3:45, and again Oakland's goaltender came up with the save.  Oakland then went right back the other way, schooling the Cougars on how the 2-on-1 is supposed to be done.  The result was Oakland's third goal of the contest.  Sloppy defense led to the Bears' fourth goal as well.  Oakland was able to get off a clean shot through a partial screen, making it 4-0 with just 46 seconds remaining in the period. Ian Brown made a nice individual play off the next faceoff, maneuvering through the defense and releasing a shot that was stopped and covered.

Neither team scored in the final period, though there were some nice plays.  Addison Lee made a great breakaway save at 13:30.  A huge hit by Daniel McCarthy led to a turnover and a quick slapshot from Jordan Yindiphol that was gloved.  Nathan Zebrowski keyed a successful penalty kill that began at 8:25.  At 3:20, Yindiphol sent another shot on goal and James Ady was right there to hammer away at the rebound, but the goaltender was ready for the rebound effort and he covered Ady's shot.  The final minutes were anticlimactic except for one more hammering check, this one coming from Devin Ernst was a nice way to finish what was otherwise a disappointing game.

So ends the season for the Cupertino Cougars.  The team ends the year 9-9-4 in NORCAL regular season play and 12-19-6 overall.  It was certainly an up-and-down season, with the Cougars seeming to peak around the time of the President's Day tournament.  After having played excellent games in defeating Santa Clara, High Sierra and Stockton in late January & early February, the team played a couple of stinkers against Oakland and Belmont.  But they returned to form in Riverside and came back home to play a solid game against San Jose.  Two wins and a tie followed, including a great win in a rematch against Oakland.  But then Cupertino lost their final two regular season contests, as well as all three NORCAL playoff games, scoring only two goals in that five-game stretch.  While a few more wins would have been enjoyed by all, the team ends the season with many new friendships between kids and parents alike.

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0, Oakland, 4

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BOX SCORE

	1st	2nd	3rd	TOTAL
Cupertino	0	0	0	0
Oakland	2	2	0	4

Scoring Summary

First Period
Scoring:  1, Oakland, Champi (Policarpio), 13:48.  2, Oakland, Bordeaux (unassisted), 1:25.  Penalties:  Tan, Oakland (high-sticking), 10:43;  Thomas, Cupertino (tripping), 7:17;  Hopper, Cupertino (charging), 0:11.

Second Period
Scoring:  3, Oakland, Rock (Policarpio), 3:36.  4, Oakland, Anderson (Rotolo, Champi), 0:46.  Penalties:  Tan, Oakland (2:00 checking from behind & 10:00 misconduct), 12:50;  Corbi, Oakland (slashing), 10:10;  Dines, Oakland (hooking), 7:44.

Third Period
Scoring:  None.  Penalties:  Thomas, Cupertino (interference), 8:25;  Anderson, Oakland (holding), 5:15;  Ocampo, Cupertino (high-sticking), 1:53.

Plus/Minus:  even(Dines, Thomas, Ady, Hopper, Ernst, Chee);  -1(McCarthy, Chibidakis, Yindiphol);  -2(Hitchcock, Fredericks, Willenborg, Brown, Zebrowski, Ocampo, Howe);  -3(Blumenthal).

Hits:  5(Thomas);  4(Ernst); 3(Yindiphol); 2(Blumenthal); 1(Brown, McCarthy, Ocampo, Chee).

SHOTS ON GOAL

Cupertino	5	9	5	--19
Oakland	12	15	13	--40

Power-play Conversions:  Cupertino - 0 of 4;  Oakland - 0 of 5.  Goalies:  Cupertino, Lee (40 shots, 36 saves; record 0-2-0).  Oakland, Bradley (19 shots, 19 saves).

   Three Stars Of the Game

Daniel McCarthy - Good play in tournament overall - landed another big hit today - plus/minus of -1
 

Michelle Chee - One of the team's most consistent players in over the weekend - plus/minus of even
 

Ian Brown - Good puck movement and aggressive forechecking -  good scoring chances just missed

Cougars Go Down Shooting, 4-1
            March 23, 2002

For the most of Saturday's win-or-else playoff game versus the Stockton Colts, the Cupertino Cougars looked like the better team.  They pressed the action and applied good offensive pressure.  They outshot the Colts, 32-26 and goaltender Addison Lee was sharp in net.  But a fluke goal that deflected off a defenseman's skate in the first period, and a nifty conversion on a second-period breakaway gave Stockton a 2-0 lead that they would protect on their way to a 4-1 victory.  Cupertino has been eliminated from any hopes of a NORCAL championship and they will instead focus on tonight's game against the Oakland Bears, in hopes that they can end the season on a positive note, and knock the Bears into hibernation while they're at it.

Stockton's play was the best at the onset when they took it right to the Cougars.  Addison Lee was called upon to make two saves on the first Colts rush up the ice. Lee added a solid stop on a point-blank shot at 12:42.  At 10:42, Cupertino picked up a penalty and Oakland would convert thanks to the help of an unintentional deflection.  Icing plays from Derek Fredericks and Eric Blumenthal helped kill off the first Stockton rushes, but on a shot through traffic at the tail end of the power play, the puck hit a blade suddenly changed direction, slipping right through Lee's 5-hole to make it 1-0.  Cupertino's first decent shot on goal came from Kelli Howe on a slapshot at 15:18.  The momentum slowly began to shift as Cupertino found a little extra jump.  The forward line of Devin Ernst, Ben Dines, and Michelle Chee really helped inspire the Cougars with an excellent shift that began around the 4:00 mark.  Ernst had a steal inside the Colts' zone at 3:38, but his pass to Ben Dines was just off his stick.  Howe followed up with two more good slapshots from inside the blueline, but neither lit the lamp.  On the next shift, James Ady let loose a one-timer that was stopped by the Stockton netminder.  At 2:12, Daniel McCarthy broke up an odd-man rush with a nice steal.  Daniel Willenborg picked off a pass at the 1:00 mark and he broke into the Colts' zone with two defenders on the chase.  Willenborg did a good job to shake off the chasers and get off a decent shot, but it was nabbed and held. Addison Lee added a tough save of his own at 0:22 and the first period ended with the Colts up, 1-0.

Cupertino opened the second period finishing out a penalty kill. Nathan Zebrowski sacrificed his body with a diving block on a slapshot at 14:44.  The puck deflected directly to another Colts player who tried to rip a shot past Addison Lee.  But Lee reacted like a cat and made the save.  Cupertino went on their first power play at 11:46 but were unable to score despite a great shift from Zebrowski, Ashley Ocampo, Ian Brown, Kelli Howe and Eric Blumenthal.  By this time, all the Cupertino lines were clicking.  Stockton had the perfect remedy however.  After gaining control of the puck deep in their own zone, an outlet pass and a perfect head-man pass found a Stockton skater a step behind the Cougars defense.  In a blink of an eye, Cupertino's momentum was dealt a top-shelf death blow that made it 2-0.  But to the team's credit, they didn't lay down and die. Lee made a big glove save at 8:04. James Ady collected a pass from behind the net at 5:54 and slung a hard shot on goal that was stopped and held.  At 5:38, Tarra Chibidakis made a smart defensive play to break up a 2-on-1. Lee delivered a perfectly-timed poke-check on a breakaway that came after a long Cougars shift resulted in an ill-timed line change.  Ady tried to hammer home a puck that deflected his way at 1:23, but that shot was stopped as well.  Devin Ernst and Ben Dines moved in on a 2-on-1 at 0:21, but Ernst's shot was gathered in up high by the Stockton goaltender.

Jordan Yindiphol was the next Cougar, and the first of the third period, to have a shot rejected.  His slapshot at 13:39 was deflected out of play.  The Colts then stuck a fork in the Cougars, connecting on a one-timer feed and shot at 13:21 to make it 3-0.  More frustration ensued for the Cougars, as they continued to apply pressure, but had nothing to show for it.  Cupertino would generate 14 shots in the third period alone, one more than their entire game total from the day before.  Dustin Thomas' shorthanded slapshot was gloved at 9:15.  Eric Blumenthal nearly snuck a knucklepuck through at 6:02 - then he followed that up with a rifle-shot that 5:42 that was gathered in and held. Ian Brown made a nice move off the ensuing faceoff, delivering a shot that was stopped at 5:35, but Stockton picked up what would be the first of three penalties in a 3:02 span.  At 5:20, Brown misfired on a great rebound chance and it was rapidly becoming apparent that the Cougars were simply snakebit on this day.  On the next shift, Blumenthal sent in another slapshot that Devin Ernst deflected into the ready goaltender's pads.  Finally, with the goaltender pulled for the extra skater, Cupertino would pick up a 6-on-4 power play goal at 2:02. Daniel Willenborg got the monkey off the Cougars' back, ripping home Ben Dines' feed from behind the net to make it 3-1.  Eric Blumenthal added the second assist on the play.  Stockton added an empty netter at 1:14 to account for the final 4-1 score.

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1, Stockton, 4

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BOX SCORE

	1st	2nd	3rd	TOTAL
Cupertino	0	0	1	1
Stockton	1	1	2	4

Scoring Summary

First Period
Scoring:  1, Stockton, Silvernail (Tong), 9:29 (pp).  Penalties:  Thomas, Cupertino (cross-checking), 10:42;  Brown, Cupertino (tripping), 0:38.

Second Period
Scoring:  2, Stockton, Calhoun (Silvernail, Tong), 8:36.  Penalties:  Sandoval, Stockton (roughing), 11:46;  Pawloski, Stockton (tripping).

Third Period
Scoring:  3, Stockton, Sweet (Sandoval, Tong), 13:21.  4, Cougars, Willenborg 1 (Dines, Blumenthal), 2:02 (pp).  5, Stockton, Pawloski (Tong), 1:14 (en).  Penalties:  Hitchcock, Cupertino (unsportsmanlike conduct), 10:56;  Tong, Stockton (interference), 4:22;  Colon, Stockton (slashing), 2:33;  San Vicente, Stockton (roughing);  Thomas, Cupertino (roughing), 2:13.

Plus/Minus:  even(Dines, Brown, Ocampo, Chibidakis);  -1(McCarthy, Hopper, Chee, Ernst, Howe, Willenborg, Fredericks, Thomas, Ady, Zebrowski);  -2(Hitchcock, Blumenthal, Yindiphol).

Hits:  1(Yindiphol, Dines, Fredericks. Ady, Hopper, Thomas).

SHOTS ON GOAL

Cupertino	8	10	14	--32
Stockton	8	10	8	--26

Power-play Conversions:  Cupertino - 1 of 5;  Stockton - 1 of 3.  Goalies:  Cupertino, Lee (25 shots, 22 saves; record 0-1-0).  Stockton, Matthews (32 shots, 31 saves).

   Three Stars Of the Game

Daniel Willenborg - Collected Cougars first goal of playoffs on power play one-timer
 

Kelli Howe - Fired several shots on goal from her defensive position - solid all-round play
 

James Ady - Skated aggressively and had some of the Cougars' best scoring chances

Playoff Opener is an 8-0 Downer
            March 22, 2002

In a game they'll need to forget in about 15 hours, the Cupertino Cougars looked like Shark chum in a humbling, 8-0 loss to the San Jose Jr. Sharks.  For one period, it looked like a repeat of last weekend's tightly-matched contest which San Jose eventually won, 3-1.  After the first 15 minutes, the Jr. Sharks led by a slim 1-0 margin.  But back-to-back power play goals at 12:04 and 4:51, ignited a 5-goal, second-period outburst, and the route was on.

Cupertino's best player on the ice just might have been goaltender Sarsh Levine, who faced odd-man rushes and open shooters almost from the initial drop of the puck.  Levine had to feel like he was facing a firing squad with a blindfold, and for awhile he was catching bullets with his teeth.  Levine made a number of excellent stops in the opening period, including back-to-back-to-back rejections at 12:03.  But San Jose's pressure finally paid off at the end of a long shift when San Jose connected on a rebound shot at 10:22.  Other than Levine's goaltending, the best play of the period for the Cougars might have been Eric Blumenthal's blocked shot during a 2-on-1 rush at 5:18.

Jordan Yindiphol opened the second period with two jarring hits that might have been designed to inspire his teammates.  The inspirational shot in the arm was boosted further when San Jose took a 5:00 penalty at 14:03.  Cupertino took a simultaneous minor penalty which should have given the Cougars a 3:00 power play beginning at 12:03.  But Cupertino's extended power play fizzled when they drew a second minor penalty at 12:48.  That penalty resulted in a short power play for the Jr. Sharks and they successfully turned the tables on the Cougars by capitalizing on the 4-on-3 skating advantage with a top-shelf goal at 12:04.  Meanwhile, Cupertino was not generating many scoring chances of their own.  Ian Brown hit the side of the net on a hard snapshot at 10:37 while skating in on a 2-on-1.  Derek Fredericks just missed a wraparound attempt off a rebound of a Daniel Willenborg shot at 9:01.  All the while, Sarsh Levine was adding to his highlight reel of impressive saves. Levine rejected an open shot off a steal at 7:34.  He set aside a hard wrist shot at 5:58.  But San Jose would convert on the power play again at 4:51, to make it 3-0.  At that point, the walls caved in as Cupertino allowed a total of four goals in a span of 4:39.  Cupertino again went scoreless for the period despite two strong efforts around the net by Nathan Zebrowski at 4:00 and 3:29.  Zebrowski's efforts to squeeze those shots just inside the post were thwarted and the period ended with San Jose holding on to a 6-0 lead.

San Jose made it 5 goals in a span of 5:09 when they tallied at 14:30 of the third period.  Cupertino had a couple chances of their own in the third period, but they were unable to convert.  Derek Fredericks' tip of a Jordan Yindiphol slapshot at 10:36 sailed just wide.  At 9:16, Nathan Zebrowski maneuvered in close but his shot was stuffed.  At 8:42, Michelle Chee broke in with Zebrowski on a 2-on-1, but Chee's pass was just out of reach.  San Jose then attempted to clear the zone but Kelli Howe intercepted and fired a slapshot that was grabbed and held.  After that impressive effort, San Jose shrugged it off and went right back the other way to notch their eighth and final goal.  Dustin Thomas had the last scoring chance for the Cougars but his wrister was gloved at 6:07.

The next 24 hours will tell if Cupertino can rebound against highly competitive foes from Oakland and Stockton.  By virtue of their exciting 2-2 tie this evening, those two teams each have a single point.  The Bears and the Colts both looked impressive this evening and Cupertino will definitely need to step it up if they hope to come away with wins in those games.  Cupertino has a 1-1-1 season series record against both teams, including victories in their most recent match-ups - so, tomorrow's games promise to be tense, exciting nail-biters. 

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0, San Jose, 8

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BOX SCORE

	1st	2nd	3rd	TOTAL
Cupertino	0	0	0	0
San Jose	1	5	2	8

Scoring Summary

First Period
Scoring:  1, San Jose, Rhodes (Gauthier), 10:22.  Penalties:  Hitchcock, Cupertino (roughing), 13:55;  Kompelmakher, San Jose (interference), 9:49.

Second Period
Scoring:  2, San Jose, Barclay (Wright), 12:04 (pp).  3, San Jose, Wright (Barclay), 4:51 (pp).  4, San Jose, Volkov (McIntosh), 4:13.  5, San Jose, Greene (Krcik, Dickerson), 1:01.  6, San Jose, Sitterle (Barclay, Moring), 0:12.  Penalties:  Sanchez, San Jose (high-sticking major), 14:03;  Levine, Cupertino (roughing), 14:03;  Howe, Cupertino (boarding), 12:48;  Dickerson, San Jose (holding), 8:33;  Thomas, Cupertino (2:00 boarding & 2:00 roughing), 7:22; Sanchez, San Jose (tripping), 7:22;  Chibidakis, Cupertino (boarding), 5:25.

Third Period
Scoring:  7, San Jose, Barclay (Volkov), 14:30.  8, San Jose, Greene (Dickerson), 8:27.  Penalties:  Drake, San Jose (Tripping), 13:34.

Plus/Minus:  even(Ady, Thomas, Chibidakis); -1(McCarthy, Yindiphol, Hopper, Ocampo, Chee);   -2(Brown, Ernst, Dines, Hitchcock, Fredericks, Zebrowski); -3(Willenborg); -5(Blumenthal, Howe).

Hits:  2(Yindiphol, Hopper); 1(Howe, McCarthy).

SHOTS ON GOAL

Cupertino	3	5	5	--13
San Jose	8	15	10	--33

Power-play Conversions:  Cupertino - 0 of 4;  San Jose - 2 of 4.  Goalies:  Cupertino, Levine (29 shots, 21 saves; record 0-1-0), and Lee @ +/- 3:00 remaining in third period (4 shots, 4 saves).  San Jose, Lee (13 shots, 13 saves).

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   Three Stars Of the Game

Nathan Zebrowski - Generated a couple of scoring chances in a game where there weren't too many
 

Daniel McCarthy - Despite logging considerable ice time, escaped with a -1 plus/minus rating
 

Dustin Thomas - Somehow managed to be off the ice for all 8 San Jose goals - plus/minus of even

Cougars NORCAL Playoff Record

GP	W	L	T	PTS	GF	GA	GFA	GAA
3	0	3	0	0	1	16	0.33	5.33

 

Cougars NORCAL Playoff Schedule

Date	Time	Location	Opponent	Result
22-Mar-02	3:15 PM	SJ South Rink	@ San Jose	L, 8-0
23-Mar-02	11:15 AM	SJ Center Rink	@ Stockton	L, 4-1
23-Mar-02	7:15 PM	SJ South Rink	@ Oakland	L, 4-0

San Jose Jr. Sharks take NORCAL crown in 7-1 romp over Stockton

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NORCAL Tournament Standings

Team	W	L	T	PTS
San Jose	4	0	0	8
Stockton*	1	2	1	3
Oakland	1	1	1	3
Cupertino	0	2	0	0

Stockton finishes second due to goal differential tiebreaker vs. Oakland

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Goaltenders

Player	#	Games	Shots	Goals	Saves	Save %	GAA	W	L	T
Addison Lee	32	2.08	69	7	62	89.9%	3.37	0	2	0
Sarsh Levine	34	0.92	29	8	21	72.0%	8.69	0	1	0
Empty Net	-	-	1	1	-	-	-	-	-	-
Goalie Totals	-	3	98	15	83	84.7%	5.00	0	3	0

NORCAL Tournament Schedule & Scores

March 22 San Jose - 8 Cupertino - 0 Oakland - 2 Stockton - 2

March 23 San Jose - 4 Oakland - 0 Stockton - 4 Cupertino - 1 Oakland - 4 Cupertino - 0 San Jose - 5 Stockton - 3

March 24 San Jose - 7 Stockton - 1 Championship

Sunday, March 24 @ 12:45 PM - NORCAL Championship Game

 ...hockey, hockey, hockey, hockey, hockey, hockey, hockey, hockey all the time.....

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