Rumson-Fair Haven Ice Hockey Team
Wraps Up Stellar Season
(LEFT PHOTO) Rumson-Fair Haven goalie Ronan Hickey is embraced by teammates after the Bulldogs captured the program’s rst Handchen Cup championship, defeating Middletown South, 9-3,
in the nal. (RIGHT PHOTO) Rumson-Fair Haven players celebrate after winning the Handchen Cup for the rst time in school history. The Bulldogs came out victorious at the Red Bank Armory.
Throughout the 2019-20 season, the Rumson-Fair Haven ice hockey
team kept checking off goals, one after another.
The Bulldogs began the campaign with a goal of winning the Shore Conference
B Division title. Check – they shared the title with Jackson Liberty. Next
up was the Hanchen Cup (the Shore Conference championship). RFH wanted
to get the top seed. Thanks to a 12-2-3 record at the start of the tournament,
the Bulldogs checked that one off as well. Finally, there was the championship
itself. After a convincing 9-3 win over Middletown High School South at the
Red Bank Armory, the Bulldogs checked that one off too.
“The Handchen Cup was awesome for us,” said Head Coach Eric Zullo.
“The way they progressed as a team this year is nice. The team goals
gave them motivation.”
The win in the Hanchen Cup nal was historic for RFH because it was
the program’s rst.
Sam Catalano notched the three-goal hat trick against South to spark
the Bulldog offense, which had been struggling prior to the nal.
Brett Pritchard had two goals and an assist while Jack Whitelaw
chipped in with a goal and three assists. Rowan Goldin added a goal and
two assists.
The nine-goal outburst was welcomed after the team had scored just
three goals in each of its two wins in the tournament leading up to the nal.
“The oodgates nally opened,” said Zullo. “We have a lot of skilled
players.”
The two championships were just what the Bulldogs wanted and needed
this season. They took the “jump up,” Zullo said, from a good team to one
that wins championships and is ranked among the top 20 in the state.
To achieve their lofty goals, the Bulldogs relied on team speed, depth,
defense and goal tending, and two-way play from their forwards. Teamwork
and chemistry played an important role as well.
“Everyone was on the same page. We had chemistry,” Zullo explained.
“We have speed throughout the line-up. Our speed and physicality fatigued
teams. It was a benet of having three lines. It gave us fresh legs in the third
period.”
30 APRIL 2020 | TheJournalNJ.com
BY TIM MORRIS | Photos by JC Hageny, Hockey Club
Rumson’s offense didn’t rely on one scoring line or a couple of big
scorers. Everyone on the forward line could put the puck in the net. In the
cup nal win over South, eight Bulldogs scored a point.
Catalano, a senior forward, leads the forwards and team in goals scored
with 17. He has also assisted on 22 others, and his 39 points are also tops.
Junior Ryan Croddick is next with 15 goals and 10 assists while senior
Goldin put 13 pucks in the net and assisted on 11 more. Senior Whitelaw is
second behind Catalano in assists with 15. He has also scored eight goals.
Other scoring forwards are: senior Jack Spagnuolo (seven goals, eight
assists); senior Max Nicolson (six goals, two assists); sophomore Charlie
Tallman (three goals, three assists); sophomore Pritchard (four goals, ve
assists); and junior Michael Kuras (one goal, six assists).
Although the Bulldogs can be explosive, defense is still the top priority.
The team practices backchecking at every workout.
With three returning starters on defense; junior Andrew Schmidt,
sophomore Casey Freeman and sophomore Spencer Lee, the challenge was
to nd that fourth backliner to give the team two solid lines.
“We found that fourth guy in freshman Spencer Hobson,” Zullo said.
Just like the Bulldog forwards who backcheck and play defense when
he puck is in the defensive end, the Bulldog defenders are also two-way
players. Schmidt has scored ve goals and assisted on 11. Hobson has assisted
on seven goals and scored once while Lee has six assists and a pair of
goals. Freeman has scored four goals and assisted on four.
Looking ahead, the good news for Rumson is the youth of its defenders.
Goalie Ronan Hickey also stepped up this year. He saw action last year
and has settled into the starting spot. The junior has allowed just 24 goals
and has made 346 saves. Hickey has recorded six shutouts.
“He has been an asset this year,” Zullo said of his starting goalie. “He’s
made the big saves.”
What stands out the most about this year’s Rumson team that racked
up a superb 16-3-3 record (a big improvement over last year’s 10-10-2
mark) is how well the athletes played.
“We worked so well together as a team, as a ve-man unit,” said Zullo.
/TheJournalNJ.com