Kevin MacKrell

Kevin MacKrell is a senior at Orchard Park High School and defenseman on the boys hockey team. He has blogged throughout the season to provide an inside look at the team. This is his third and final installment.

As the playoffs began to quickly approach, we were looking to start playing our best hockey. We needed some big wins to get us moving in the right direction. A key game that steered our team in the right direction was our game against Niagara Wheatfield on Martin Luther King Day. After two lucky goals for Niagara Wheatfield, we were down 2-1. However, we continued to fight back and tied the game with a minute to go in the game. The game ended in a tie, but it was a confidence booster heading into our game against Canisius. In that contest, we played one of our best games of the season beating Canisius, 5-3. We backed that performance up with a 5-0 win against Williamsville North. However, we lost in a close game to Frontier in our next game, 3-1.

Going into the playoffs, we had beaten Lancaster 4 to 2 in our final regular season game. By beating Lancaster, who earned the third seed in the playoffs, we had confidence going into our game against fourth-seeded Frontier. We had a full week of practice to prepare for the matchup, and game plan our strategy against Frontier. Having lost to them during the season, we were ready for another shot at them.

On the day of the game, we had a shortened day of school which allowed us to get in a quick 30 minutes of skating to warm up our legs. A couple of hours later, we were on the bus heading to the game at the Northtown Center in Amherst. We got there with plenty of time to warm up and get ourselves ready for the game. Just prior to the game, Matt MacCarrick, the brother of junior defenseman Ryan MacCarrick, came into the locker room to do a rap for the team. It was the same rap he did a few years ago before Orchard Park’s first playoff win. As superstitious hockey players, we were looking for that same result.

As the game started, we knew it was going to be a tight game. Chances were limited for both teams in the first with the period ending 0-0. The second period saw more chances from both teams. It was during this period that Orchard Park appeared to have scored. Tristan Lukowski seemed to have put the puck in the net. However, the goalie pulled the puck out of the net and by the time the ref was in a position to see the net, the goalie had the puck and the ref waved the goal off. It was an unfortunate call and, according to those on the ice, the wrong call. The period also ended 0-0.

The third period continued to be a defensive struggle. Both teams traded a few power plays, but both teams were unable to capitalize. With two and half minutes left in the game, the refs made a questionable interference call against Ryan Cox. He was tied up with their forward in front of the net, as were many other players. The player Ryan was tied up with fell on his way to the net and Frontier went on a power play. With a minute and half left in the game, Frontier scored on a backhand shot from the slot to go up 1-0. We were unable to tie the game late, and our season ended in bitter disappointment.

As a senior playing my last high school game, I want to thank all of my teammates and the coaches for a great year. To all the seniors: Jake Biasillo, John Januszkiewicz, Joe Copella, Tyler Whiteaker, Patrick Draper, Taylor Ferrino – good luck in your future plans whether it includes hockey or not. And to all the underclassmen that will return next year – good luck next season.

Although the season didn’t end in the way we had hoped, I had a great time playing with all the boys on the team. It was always fun coming to the rink. Even with our slow start, we kept working, and that showed in only five losses since Christmas. It made for an exciting year of hockey and I am glad to have been a part of it.

Kevin MacKrell

Kevin MacKrell is a senior at Orchard Park High School and defenseman on the boys hockey team. He will blog throughout the season to provide an inside look at the team. This is his second installment.

After our disappointing loss to Saint Joe’s, we took on Williamsville North with a chance to get on the right track. Even though we out-shot them, we did not have a good work ethic and lost, 4-1. Our next practice was a very difficult practice. We worked extremely hard for an hour and fifteen minutes, constantly pushing our limits. The practice brought our team together, and made us realize how hard we can work, and how hard we need to work to win hockey games.

Our next game was against Canisius, who was ranked number one in the state. We came out with the same work ethic that we had in our practice. We skated hard for a full 45 minutes and pounded Canisius down low in their zone. We out-shot them 45 to 19. Even with our domination, we struggled to capitalize on scoring chances. We were only able to score one goal that tied the game at one. However, Canisius made us pay for the few mistakes we had and capped the game off with an empty net goal to win, 4-1. Even though we lost the game, it was a turning point for us. We realized that if we could out-play the best team in the state, we could beat anyone. It was also an individual turning point for me. I had my best game of the season to date that game and tallied my first point of the year with an assist.

Our next game against Niagara Falls would be the start of a five-game winning streak. We finally found our scoring touch in the third period scoring three goals to win, 5-0. I also continued to contribute with a goal and an assist. Tristan Lukowski and Tyler Riter led the way offensively. We continued our winning streak with a 2-0 win over Sweet Home in a tournament game. We did not play very well, but still managed to come out with a win. These two games gave us good momentum leading into our trip to Albany for the CBA Albany Brothers Tournament.

The road trip was a great time. It gave the team a chance to bond. From the ride down to Albany in the coach bus, to the team meals and the hotel, we were together as a team the whole weekend. What made the weekend even better was a couple of wins. We played the host team, Christian Brothers Academy, in the semifinals, and won 5-2. In the final, we played Ithaca – who has won five state championships and ten section III titles – and defeated them 4-1 and limited the Little Red to only nine shots. It was the best all-around game that we had played all year as we put together three full periods. Ryan Cox was the tournament MVP with four points, a performance that awarded him Super 7 Athlete of the Week. He continued his great play by adding two goals in our next game against Kenmore West, a game we dominated in a 12-2 win.

With our play getting better every game, we were looking forward to our league game against Niagara Wheatfield. A win would put our first three league losses behind us. We came out hard and dominated the team down low in the zone, our newly found identity. However, we lacked that extra bit of work, the extra ten percent that had been winning us games in the past. We were not getting to the tough areas and many of our shots were getting blocked. Combined with some mental mistakes and turnovers we lost the game despite outshooting them, 27-15.

Our game against Lockport the next day had some of the same issues. We were not giving 110 percent. We were losing battles, or failing to find loose pucks and handle the puck. Thanks to John Januszkiewicz with his four-goal third period, we were able to win, 7-3. With a 2-4 league record going in to our next game against Saint Joe’s, we need to get back to the things that won us five games in a row; extremely hard work ethic, constantly moving our feet, and getting to the tough areas to score goals.

Kevin MacKrell

Kevin MacKrell is a senior at Orchard Park High School and defenseman on the boys hockey team. He will blog throughout the season to provide an inside look at the team. This is his first installment.

The official start to our season was our first league game against Saint Joe’s. However, our season started much earlier than that. During the summer, we had ten Saturday morning skates, and we participated in a clinic that consisted of six ice times of individual drills and scrimmages. These summer skates gave everyone trying out for the team a chance to start skating together and get used to each other’s tendencies. The skates were also a great way to stay in shape over the summer.

Once tryouts were over in the beginning of November, the team quickly got to work. We were skating three to four times a week. The practices were high tempo, and we started making progress quickly. After two weeks of practices, we got a chance to evaluate where we were as a team through a scrimmage with Lancaster – one of the best teams we will play all year. In a hard fought game, we came out on top, 3-2. This game gave us confidence that we had a great team in the locker room, but we realized there were things that we needed to improve on.

After another week of practice, we headed into a scrimmage carnival to show that we had made improvements. We opened the day with a 2-1 win against Kenmore East. Fifteen minutes later we took on Grand Island and defeated them, 5-2. Our last game of the day was our best with an 8-1 win over Kenmore West. With a 4-0 preseason, we had confidence going into the Saint Joe’s game that we could beat them for the first time in Orchard Park Fed history.

The day had finally arrived; December 1. As we skated on to the ice for our first league game, we were greeted by a large crowd. With our high energy and confidence, we started the game with high intensity and physical play. We kept Saint Joe’s in their own end for much of the first eight minutes of the game. However, we started losing our intensity, and Saint Joe’s started taking control of the game. The first goal of the game came in the middle of the second period when Saint Joe’s capitalized on our inability to clear the puck from our zone. Saint Joe’s quickly added to their lead and finished the period with a 2-0 lead. Their second goal seemed to eliminate any intensity that we had. We came out in the third period and immediately surrendered another goal one minute into the period. We started watching the play and stopped moving our feet. The result was a 4-0 loss.

It was very disappointing to start our season in a losing fashion. However, it is a long season and we just have to learn from our first game and move on. We came back to practice Monday morning ready to work, and began our preparation for our next opponent – Williamsville North. It is a key game to get our team back on the right track.