A Look Around the League
December 20, 2007

Three months into the hockey season and the competition and excitement throughout the Atlantic Youth Hockey League continues to grow.  As we head into the Holiday season some teams remain undefeated while others have improved greatly from the start of the season.  Without hesitation let’s take a look around the AYHL and see how all the teams have been doing.

Squirt Division
The month of November was when both the Mercer Chiefs and NJ Colonials recorded their first losses of the season.  Early in November it was the Colonials that remained undefeated as they handed the Chiefs their first loss in a 9-1 game.  In mid November the Colonials lost their first game to the Long Island Gulls 6-3.  The Chiefs and Colonials remain tied for first place with 14-1 records.  NJ however, is still undefeated in District Standings (14-0).  They also lead the league in goals for with 128.

The Long Island Gulls are carrying the Squirt Major Division.  They are undefeated at 13-0.  Team Comcast and the Philly Little Flyers are in a battle for second at 7-5-4 and 7-2-3 respectively.   The Little Flyers still have 4 games in hand on the Gulls and Team Comcast.  The North Jersey Avalanche are leading the district standings at 7-5-1.  There last win came this past weekend as they edged out Suffolk PAL 3-2.  Cooper Telesco had two short handed goals, including the game winner.

Pee Wee Division
The last time we checked in with Team Comcast they were 9-0.  They lost their first game on November 18th against the NJ Colonials 4-0.  They are currently 16-1-1 as they have been put up double digits in a good amount of their games.  They are followed closely by the LI Gulls who are 15-1-2.  The NJ Rockets lead the District Standing with a 7-2-1 record, put they are on the verge of being passed by Team Comcast who is 7-1 with two games in hand.

The NJ Rockets are now unbeaten in regulation play the entire season thus far.  They are in first in the league and first in the districts.  But right behind them is the North Jersey Avalanche who have really picked it up in the later half of the season.  They are 13-3, however their 3 losses came in district games.

Bantam Division
The Philadelphia Junior Flyers gave the North Jersey Avalanche their first loss of the season earlier in December (5-3), keeping them in the number one spot for the time being.  They are 15-2 and are followed closely by the Conn. Wolves who are 13-2 and the Avalanche who only have one loss on the season.  The Wolves are currently first in the District Standing at 7-2-2 but the Mercer Chiefs still remain undefeated in District play as they are 6-0-2.

The North Jersey Av’s lead the Major Division at 18-1 and have been winning some tough games.  Especially against the LI Gulls, the Av’s have managed to win both of the last two meetings by one goal.  The NJ Rockets found the Av’s soft spot and gave them their first loss of the season, however the Av’s have jumped right back up to playing the dynamic hockey they have had all season long.  The Gulls are in 2nd place at 13-2 (both losses coming from the Av’s) and the Philly Jr. Flyers are in 3rd at 11-2-2.  North Jersey also leads the District Standings at 8-1, tied with the Philly Little Flyers at 8-1.  The Gulls are 6-1 in Districts.

Midget 16 – American
The Midget 16 – The NJ Colonials, NJ Avalanche and Team Comcast all remain a top the American Division. The Colonials are first, but they have played 6 more games than North Jersey and 8 more games then Team Comcast, so the next few months will be very competitive.  All three teams are lined up the same way in the District Standings.  Justin LaCorte leads the Colonials in points, one shy of the 50 mark in 30 games.

Midget 16 – National
In the National Division the New Jersey Youth Devils have jumped into first place in both the league and district standings.  They are followed by the NJ Colonials and the Mercer Chiefs.  A quick note on the Mercer Chiefs is that they are still undefeated.  They are currently 10-0-1-1.  The Colonials have three players at the top of the league point’s leaders.  They are Michael Ambrosia (48), Matt Willows (44), and Denny Agostino (44).  They will be a very tough team to stop come late February and March.

Midget 18
The New Jersey Colonials remain atop the Midget 18 standings.  They are 14-3-3 and are in first in the district standings.  Valley Forge and the Philly Junior Flyers are at battle for second at 8-4-1 and 7-4-1 respectively. Four Colonials and four Valley Forge players lead the league in points.  Charles Nerbak of the NJ Colonials leads the league with 10 goals, 18 assists and 28 points.