The Tampa Bay Juniors boasted a roster loaded
with Florida players. Their Premier team has 19
American born players, 10 of which are Florida
natives.
Of those 10, eight young men have joined the
league throught the local youth programs. This is
a testament to the high level of coaching they’ve
received here.
On the Elite side, Tampa has 19 Florida-born
players. Along with the Florida Jr. Blades, they are
the only teams in the Florida Division solely made
up of American players.
The other competing teams in the Florida Division
consisted of the Florida Eels, and DME Hockey
Academy. The Southeast Division brought the
Charlotte Rush, the Carolina Eagles,
the Atlanta Jr. Kings, Potomac
Patriots, Hampton Roads Whalers,
and Richmond Generals) as well
as the Islanders Hockey Club out of
Boston area.
The Islanders made the long trip down
to Florida and the team performed
well. Head Coach Tim Kyrkostas is no
stranger to Florida hockey. He spent
many years here coaching at FAU in
Boca Raton before moving on to the
Florida Panthers Hockey Club as their
skating and skills instructor.
Before accepting his current head coaching
position with the Islanders, Kyrkostas coached
the USPHL Palm Beach Hawks, which remained
a very successful program under his guidance.
To this day, he’s impressed with the talent that
Florida has produced in recent years.
“Florida has arrived as a hockey hot bed,”
Kyrkostas said, and he sees only good things
coming from Florida. “Florida players are well
respected in our league; the Florida teams have
great ownership and dedicated coaches.”
Whalers team owner Patrick Cavanagh has been
with the USPHL since the beginning and has
seen his league go through some ups and downs.
Through it all, he now proudly
sees the league on solid ground.
“This weekend’s showcase has
been our best so far,” he said. As
a rink owner himself in Virginia,
he had high praises for FHCI
arena.
”This rink is amazing, we’re
looking forward to coming back.”
Hampton Roads has a solid team
both at the Premier and Elite
levels. Leading the way for the
Premier team is Captain Brandon
Osmundson who, coming into
this weekend, is the league’s leading points
producer.
Osmundson has compiled 21 goals and 40 assists
in 25 games. Osmundson is arguably the best
player in the league and leading the Hampton
Roads Whalers in franchise all-time points. The
Chesapeake, Virginia native says that what he’s
most proud of is that everyone on his team has
at least one point. As an early
commitment, Utica College in
New York is getting a great
player and an even better
young man.
With more than 30 college
scouts in attendance at
this years’ showcase, it is
a substantial increase from
last year’s event. Many of
the players participating
in the weekend showcase
were given college offers, a
feat they have fought for all
season and for the entirety of their juniors career.
Now the big decisions need to be made. The
players will talk things over with their coaches,
families and family advisors. These advisors play
a big part in junior hockey.
After all, the parents of these players have to be
sure that their sons are going to be looked after
properly. It’s a big decision that parents have to
make in allowing their kids to leave home to follow
their dreams.
Frank Scarpaci, owner of the Florida Eels, says
it’s a responsibility that he doesn’t take lightly.
“These parents are trusting us to take care of
the most precious thing in their life. From school
to hockey, and everything in between. Our billet
families are well screened before we ever place
a player in their care.”
Scarpaci himself makes spontaneous checks on
his players, showing up where they live to see if
they’re all doing things the right way. The Eels, just
like all the hockey clubs in the USPHL take pride
in what they do, and every player is a reflection of
the league. It’s not uncommon for a player to be
benched if he’s not doing things the right way, and
that includes his school work.
Scarpaci adds, “It’s not always about winning on
the ice, it’s about winning at life. At some point
hockey will end for all of us, are we prepared for
what’s next?”
Over the years, Scarpaci and his Jr. Eels have
placed over 230 young hockey players in colleges
all around the country, an accomplishment that
Scarpaci shares with a big smile on his face, and
a well-earned sense of pride.
One of those players that chose to leave his home
in Clifton Park, New York to play hockey in Florida
is 20-year-old Hayden Haldane of the Florida
Eels.
Haldane first laced
up hockey skates as
a two-year-old, and
now 18 years later,
he is close to fulfilling
his lifelong dream as
colleges are trying to
convince him to come
play for them.
His dreams of playing college hockey, or just living
a normal life for that matter, were in jeopardy just
five days before the start of this showcase.
Haldane took a hard check from behind and then
laid injured on the ice for 30 minutes before being
taken by ambulance to the hospital. He had lost all
feeling from the waist down.
For the next three hours the doctors tended to
him. His parents, who were watching the game
on Hockey TV in Vermont, were being updated by
Photo Credit: Josh Boyd, USPHL
Photo Credit:
Josh Boyd, USPHL
Photo Credit: Tia Preece,
Florida Jr. Blades
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