Mr. DePuydt was most recently the Head Coach of the Colorado Thunderbirds U18 team, where he won the Rocky Mountain District Championship and competed in the USA Hockey Tier I National Tournament.  Prior to that, Mr. DePuydt was the Assistant Coach at St. Olaf College where he was in charge of player development, scouting and recruiting.

“We are extremely excited about Paul joining our junior program in Boulder. We were looking, first and foremost, for a ‘character guy’, and we found him in Paul”, said Dennis Hefter, BVHF President. “Our goal is to build on the prior three successful seasons of Junior Bison hockey, with high integrity and a focus on developing young people.”

The Boulder Junior Bison will hold open tryouts on August 10 – 12, 2012 at Boulder Valley Ice at Superior. For more information about the Boulder Junior Bison program, contact Paul DePuydt at 303-882-0228 or pauldepuydt@gmail.com, or visit www.jrbison.com.

About Boulder Valley Hockey Foundation

BVHF is a 501(c)(3) non-profit foundation created in 1993 to accept donations and grants for the purpose of constructing an ice facility in Boulder County. BVHF currently owns and operates Boulder Valley Ice at Superior, a single-sheet ice facility in Superior, Colorado, Boulder Hockey Club, which has grown to become one of the preeminent youth hockey programs in northern Colorado with over 325 players, and the Boulder Junior Bison, a Junior A Tier III program in the Western States Hockey League.

About Western States Hockey League

The Western States Hockey League (WSHL) is a Junior A Tier III hockey league that has teams located in the mid-west and western United States. It started its first season in 1994 as a Junior B league with six teams. The WSHL currently has 15 teams in three divisions

Worcester State is an NCAA Division III college. The Lancers compete in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) against seven other schools, six in ice hockey.

The son of Darren and Kellie Stanley, “Nate” scored 7 goals and 11 assists in 23 games for the Lancers, finishing second to senior John Cahalane, who led the team with 20 points on 7 goals and 13 assists and played in all of the team’s 27 games.

According to Steven M. Miller, WSU Sports Information Director, Stanley’s 11 assists were the second highest among MASCAC freshman, and his 18 points third highest.

In his first 12 games, Stanley had one goal and three assists, but in the last 11 games, he piled on 6 goals and 8 assists.

Stanley’s contribution to the offense helped the Lancers to the playoffs and their first post-season win in 35 years, a 4-1 victory over Fitchburg State on February 25.

Miller also noted that Stanley was the eighth hockey player to receive the Male Freshman Athlete of the Year Award in the 21 years it has been given.

Stanley grew up playing hockey in the Boise Youth Amateur Hockey Association, went away to the California Wave, the Dallas Penguins and Alliance programs, and the Grand Forks Border Bruins, then came home to play two years at the Junior A level with the Idaho Junior Steelheads in the Western States Hockey League.

With the Junior Steelheads, Stanley led the team in scoring in 2009-2010 with 65 points (31 goals, 34 assists) in 51 games. The Junior Steelheads made it into the division playoffs in their first year of existence.

Stanley was chosen for the WSHL “Best of the Rest” All-Star Team which competed as an adjunct to the National Tournament in Marlborough, Mass., after the season.

Worcester is located just 18 miles from Marlborough.

Because of the respect he had earned from coaches and teammates, Stanley was named Team Captain of the Junior Steelheads for the 2010-2011 season.

He led the Junior Steelheads to the WSHL League Championship and 3rd Place National finish, garnering 37 goals and 42 assists for 79 points in 51 games. His production was best in the Western Division and second in the league.

The 21-year-old Stanley was joined by Junior Steelheads teammate and co-captain Stephen Rock (Tulsa, OK) in accepting the invitation to attend and play hockey at Worcester State in 2011-2012.

Tyson Cox, a Boise resident and Junior Steelheads team captain in their inaugural 2009-2010 season, was already at Worcester State, playing in 25 games in his freshman season of 2010-2011.

In all, the Lancers had 16 former WSHL players on their roster this last season, and more graduates of the Junior A league have committed to enroll for 2012-2013.

One former WSHL alum, Cody Osburn (Fair Oaks, CA), played not only as a hockey defenseman for the Lancers (24 games, 6 assists), but also as a baseball pitcher and outfielder.

Osburn was recently named to the All-MASCAC Baseball First Team, one of only two freshmen to earn those honors.

Osburn played in the WSHL for the Fresno Monsters.

Submitted by Dick Dorfman – Junior Steelheads Play-by-Play – 208-514-5419

President/Commissioner Ron White and the WSHL Board of Governors are pleased to announce that the following organizations have been approved for membership:

Tulsa Jr. Oilers

Ontario Avalanche [Press Release]

Seattle Totems [Press Release]

Southern Oregon Spartans [Press Release]

Idaho’s leading scorer in the regular season scored six times, including the game-winner in overtime, carrying his Jr. Steelheads to victory over the Dallas Ice Jets in the Thorne Cup Championship game.

With a pretty good size crowd on-hand, despite the host Rhinos not making it to day four, both teams came out juiced to begin the game.

Each team made sure to finish every check early on, as forward Max Veatch of Idaho was his usual cannonball self, while hulking defenseman Blake Box of Dallas matched the tenacity of Veatch by twice putting the aforementioned Brucato into the penalty box with big hits.

The first real blow came 6:34 into the game however, as Dallas notched their first of three power play goals on the day.

Forward Dan Hudson, playing the point while on the power play, threw a long shot at the Idaho net andJefferson Wright got just enough of a piece of it to re-direct it past goaltender Jordyn Kaufer.

The celebration did not last long for Dallas, as Idaho showed off their quick-strike capability by knotting the game just 1:02 later. Brucato notched his first of six by using his speed to gain a step on the Dallas defense down the wing, before beating goaltender Michael Baldwin with a steep angle wrist shot.

With 7:27 left in the opening frame, Dallas converted on another power play power opportunity, taking a 2-1 lead.

Probably their most lethal forward, Christian Elsborg, was left alone in the slot where he took a pass fromRichard Bohan and threw a quick wrister on net. Kaufer got a piece of the puck but not enough to stop it from finding twine.

The penalty parade continued late into the period, as two of the most disciplined teams in the entire league may have had a bit too much adrenaline pumping early.

This time, defenseman Tommy Mines headed off ford holding with 4:56 left in the period and Idaho got their first chance at the man-advantage.

They weren’t able to convert over the two minutes of power play time but just seconds after the penalty ended, Brucato put home his second of the game, out of a scramble in the Dallas crease, tying the game at two.

The two teams headed to the first intermission with the score the same, as Idaho proved to be the better team at even strength but found themselves short-handed way too often in the opening period.

Defenseman Austin Rehwinkel notched two goals about four minutes apart to start the second period and put Dallas up by two goals, their biggest lead of the contest.

The first of the two came while on the power play, pushing his Ice Jets to three out of four with the man advantage on the day. His second, scored at even strength, prompted Idaho Head Coach John Olver to make a goaltending change, bringing in Josh Benton in relief of Kaufer.

The move by Olver seemed to wake his team up, as Brucato pulled his team back within a goal just two minutes after Rehwinkel made it 4-2.

Just 42 seconds after that however, Dallas was up by two again, as Austin Azurdia finished off a beautiful no-look feed from Brandon Unser, welcoming Benton to the game and making it 5-3 Ice Jets.

All of the Dallas momentum was quickly sucked out of the building by Brucato, who stepped up big once again, scoring twice more before the end of the period to knot the game at five heading into the locker room.

His fourth of the game came off a re-direct of Jake Webber’s shot on the power play with 3:51 left before the buzzer and his beautiful finish of a 3-on-2, where he outwaited Baldwin and slid the puck in on the backhand when everyone in the building thought he was going to shoot, tied it with just 1:09 left in the middle stanza.

Both squads had their moments in the second period, as they went back and forth but Dallas’ inability to play with the lead would eventually come back to haunt them.

Idaho took over in the third, outshooting the Ice Jets 9-2 but were unable to beat Baldwin, who would wind up being named the tournament’s top goaltender.

With nothing solved after 60 minutes of play, the two teams got to rest up before the first overtime period and Idaho, normally a very deep team, would need it, as their top two lines played seemingly the entire third period.

Brucato must have rested just fine, as it took him only 2:15 to strike, as he ended the game just seconds after Christian Elsborg got called for hooking.

While on that power play, Brucato re-directed a Jake Webber point shot between his own legs and past Baldwin, marking his sixth goal of the contest and crowning his team back-to-back Thorne Cup Champions.

The Most Valuable Player of the tournament ended the game with six goals, adding to his tournament-leading total of nine points.

Also earning accolades for Idaho were forward Vance Bridgman and defensemen Jake Webber and Tyler Smith, who were part of the All Thorne Cup Team.

Dallas’ Michael Baldwin was the hard luck loser in net but carried his Ice Jets throughout the playoffs and was named top goaltender for the tournament.

Forwards Christian Elsborg and Austin Azurdia and defensemen Blake Box and Austin Rehwinkel also joined Baldwin on the All-Thorne Cup Team.

The win for Idaho capped an amazing last few months of hockey, a span that saw them win a league-record 30 straight games, as well as going 8-1-0 throughout the divisional and Thorne Cup playoffs.

They were solid in every facet, from the players to the coaching and are very deserving champions.

The loss is a tough one for Dallas, who fought hard to not be “the team that got in on a bye” and surprised many people by getting to the final. They are also coached extremely well and made up of a roster full of not only great hockey players but also fine young men.

Both of these teams will be absolute forces in this league for years to come.

The Thorne Cup Final capped a great weekend of hockey in El Paso, Texas, where Cory Herman and staff put on a great show and were pivotal to the success of the tournament.

The favorite won again and the Idaho Jr. Steelheads are the 2012 Thorne Cup Champions!

Tournament M.V.P. – Stefan Brucato (Forward, Idaho Jr. Steelheads)

All-Thorne Cup First Team

Forwards: Stefan Brucato (Idaho Jr. Steelheads), Christian Elsborg (Dallas Ice Jets), Austin Azurdia (Dallas Ice Jets)

Defensemen: Jake Webber (Idaho Jr. Steelheads), Blake Box (Dallas Ice Jets

Goaltender: Michael Baldwin (Dallas Ice Jets)

All-Thorne Cup Second Team

Forwards: Vance Bridgman (Idaho Jr. Steelheads), Tomas Stastny (El Paso Rhinos), Jason Beisinger (Fresno Monsters)

Defense: Tyler Smith (Idaho Jr. Steelheads), Austin Rehwinkel (Dallas Ice Jets)

Goaltender: Jordyn Kaufer (Idaho Jr. Steelheads)

Story By: Brent T. Maranto

Game One: Idaho Jr. Steelheads (Mountain Division Champions) vs. Dallas Ice Jets (Mid-West Division Runners-Up)

The two top dogs got a little preview of one another on Saturday afternoon, as the two teams that will meet on Sunday for the title faced off in the matinee contest.

Just like their game the previous night against El Paso, Idaho came out flying and jumped out to a big lead early on.

The Jr. Steelheads were well in control to begin the game but Dallas’ defense did a good job of keeping everything to the outside of goaltender Michael Baldwin.

With 12:04 left in the opening frame, Idaho broke through and began their early dominance.

Defenseman Oliver Gustafsson made a beautiful spin move at the opposing blue line to get by two Dallas defenders, before feeding a speeding Ivo Crhak on the wing, who beat Baldwin with a wrist shot over the glove.

Sean Van Eysden’s goal with 8:12 left pushed the Idaho lead to 2-0, as the veteran forward corralled a rebound off the end boards and beat a prone Baldwin.

Not even two minutes later, Jake Webber’s long point shot squeaked thru Baldwin to make it 3-0 Idaho at the 13:18 mark of the period.

The shots were close over the opening 20 minutes but Idaho made their opportunities count, scoring on three of their six shots and holding a commanding lead heading into the break.

The comeback kids were at it again in the second period however, as Dallas continued their “never say die” attitude and got within two on Christian Elsborg’s eighth goal of the post-season, 3:26 into the middle period.

Although they were narrowly outshot again, the Ice Jets controlled the better portion of the period but two odd-man rush chances were turned away nicely by Idaho goaltender Josh Benton.

Benton had to be good again in the third, as Dallas played one of their best periods of the tournament so far.

They had the power play working early in the period and nearly got within a goal when Joey Matyaszek’s wrist shot rang the post from the high slot.

Benton then went on to make two big stops, one on a Greg Sauers’ breakaway chance and another on Austin Azurdia’s wrister on a two-on-one break just minutes later.

Tommy Mines’ wrister found its way through Benton off a set faceoff play with 5:15 left in regulation and suddenly, it was a one-goal game.

The Ice Jets were able to kill off a late penalty and had their own chance with a power play as time ticked down but Idaho was ultimately too strong on the penalty kill and held on for the 3-2 win.

The first period was probably the best of the tournament for Idaho but they seemed to pack it in over the final two, which I’m sure is something Head Coach John Olver will address before tomorrow’s game.

In their defense, a few of their top players were being rested for the championship game, while Dallas played to their full capacity.

Benton was the deserving winner in net for Idaho, stopping 18 of the 20 shots he saw, while Baldwin took the loss for Dallas, despite bouncing back after a sub-par opening period.

The two teams will meet again Sunday with the title on the line and it will be interesting to see if they learned anything from today’s precursor.

Player of the Game: Josh Benton (Goaltender, Idaho Jr. Steelheads)

Game Two: El Paso Rhinos (Mid-West Division Champions) vs. Fresno Monsters (Western Division Champions)

The final game of the season for both the El Paso Rhinos and Fresno Monsters meant nothing in terms of the standings but you wouldn’t of known that by just watching the game.

With only pride on the line, both squads played as if it were the championship game, going back and forth all evening and battling until the very end.

Fresno started strong and kicked-off the scoring 9:39 into the opening period, while on a five-on-three power play.

El Paso failed to clear the zone twice and the Monsters made them pay, as Kyle Godfrey found a wide-open Zach Alvarez at the side of the Rhinos’ net, who easily one-timed a shot past goaltender Trent Caspar to make it 1-0.

Both squads carried the momentum at times in the opening frame, while attempting to impose their will but both defenses were strong, allowing few even strength chances.

The hometown kid, Michael Rivera stuffed home a power play marker late in the second period, knotting the game at one, before Caspar made the save of the tournament so far.

Just minutes after El Paso tied it, Fresno went on a 5-on-3 power play and veteran forward Don Coyle took a cross crease pass and looked to have an empty net.

Caspar slid from right to left and trapped the puck just before it crossed the goal line, keeping the game even.

El Paso had a golden opportunity just seconds into the third period but couldn’t convert on another two-man advantage and just seconds later, Fresno regained the lead.

Forward Nick McKee stole the puck in the neutral zone and flipped the puck ahead to line mate Marc Haaf, who broke in one-on-one against Caspar, beating him five-hole with 15:33 left in regulation.

Not even two minutes later, El Paso tied it up again, as David Nelson finished off a beautiful tic-tac-toe passing play from Brenden Gust with 13:53 left on the board.

The pace really picked up from that point on, as neither team wanted to be the only one to finish winless on the tournament.

With 4:04 remaining, the Rhinos took their first lead of the game, as John Morales scored while on the power play to make it 3-2 El Paso.

The Monsters would push hard late but could not beat Caspar, as the Rhinos pleased the home crowd one last time and held on for the victory.

Caspar took the win in net for the Rhinos, stopping 37 of the 39 shots he faced, while Tom McGuckin allowed three goals on 42 shots in the loss.

For the third straight season the Monsters dominated the regular season and for the third straight season, they are void of a Thorne Cup Title.

El Paso meanwhile, came in as one of the hotter teams in the post-season but could never seem to get it together for a full 60 minutes and finished in third place.

Despite a tough tournament for both teams, they are both perennial powers in the league and will surely be right back in the thick of things in the fall.

Player of the Game: Trent Caspar (Goaltender, El Paso Rhinos)

After six long months of exciting hockey, it all comes down to Sunday afternoon’s contest between the defending champion Idaho Jr. Steelheads and the upstart Dallas Ice Jets.

Sunday’s Title Matchup:

4:30 PM MST- Idaho Jr. Steelheads (3-0-0) vs. Dallas Ice Jets (2-1-0)

Summary By: Brent T. Maranto

In the opening game, the regular season champions were upset by the “Cinderella” team of the tournament (it is March Madness) while the host El Paso Rhinos were bested in front of the home crowd by the heavy favorite Idaho Jr. Steelheads in the second game of the evening.

Game One: Fresno Monsters (Western Division Champions) vs. Dallas Ice Jets (Mid-West Division Runners-Up)

The underdog Ice Jets were at it again on Friday afternoon, still playing with a chip on their shoulder as the only non-division winner in the field.

After two convincing wins over two tough opponents, the Ice Jets have flipped the tournament upside down and proven they more than belong.

With their backs against the wall, Fresno started strong in the opening period and jumped out to a 3-0 lead after just 20 minutes of play.

The first two goals were almost identical to one another and very uncharacteristic of Ice Jets’ goaltender Michael Baldwin, as both came from off-angles.

3:21 in, Jason Beisinger continued his amazing playoff production by putting home his eighth goal of the post-season, throwing the puck off of Baldwin and in from below the goal line.

Just 44 seconds later, Marc Haaf, who assisted on the first marker, picked up a loose puck and threw it in off of Baldwin again, giving the Monsters an early 2-0 lead.

The Ice Jets would settle things down toward the middle of the period but Fresno would extend the lead to three with under a minute to go, as their constant pressure broke down the Dallas defense.

It came with just 40 seconds left before the intermission, as veteran Don Coyle banged home a shot off a perfect feed from line mate Justin Plate, who was moved up a line in place of the injured Rob Kolander.

In all, Fresno outshot Dallas 17-5 over the opening 20 minutes in a dominating effort, seemingly rebounding from a rough game against Idaho the day before.

As one-sided as the opening period was, the second was even more so but it was the Ice Jets playing the aggressor this time around.

The first half of the period was relatively even but from the middle of the period on, it was all Ice Jets.

Christian Elsborg got the scoring started for Dallas with 9:54 left in the period, on a great individual effort.

Dallas’ leading scorer in the playoffs broke down the wing with speed and cut around a Fresno defenseman, before one-handing the puck between the pads of Fresno goaltender Marcus Harbison.

At the 12:27 mark of the period, Dallas pulled within a goal, as things were quickly unraveling for the Monsters.

Again, Dallas’ speed upon entry into the zone was the key contributor in the goal, as Joey Matyaszek backed off the defense before ringing his shot off the post. The rebound sat untouched in the crease and Emilio Mayagoitia put it back.

Just as Fresno did in the opening frame, Dallas scored their third goal of the period with under a minute remaining, as Elsborg found twine for the second time in the period.

The Ice Jets dodged a bullet just before the goal but were bailed out on a smart play by goaltender Michael Baldwin.

While on the power play, the Ice Jets turned the puck over in the neutral zone, springing Fresno forward Josiah Nikkel in all alone against Baldwin. Nikkel, couldn’t fully corral the loose puck however and Baldwin came charging out of his crease, sliding on his side near the blue line to knock the puck away.

The risky move paid off just seconds later, as at the other end, Marcus Harbison turned away Richard Bohan’s shot but the rebound bounced off of Elsborg’s body and into the net.

The two squads would go to the third period tied at three, after Dallas answered Fresno’s three first period goals with three of their own in the second, while also outshooting the Monsters 16-3.

Harbison had to be good for Fresno early in the third, as he turned away a couple of great Dallas opportunities.

With 16:10 left in the third however, he misplayed a puck behind his own net and Dallas’ Jefferson Wright threw the puck toward the goal from outside the circle, beating Harbison, who couldn’t get back in goal in time.

After the fourth straight Ice Jets’ goal, Fresno looked like a defeated team and failed to muster much attack the rest of the way.

Austin Azurdia’s controversial goal just a few minutes later sealed the deal, putting Dallas up 5-3.

Azurdia used his speed to go wide into the Monsters’ zone and crashed the crease with the puck, bowling over Harbison in the process, as the biscuit trickled over the line.

After conversing with his linesmen, the referee ruled that Azurdia was pushed into Harbison by a Fresno player and the goal stood, further incensing the Monsters’ bench.

A late empty-netter made it look more like a blowout, as the Ice Jets shocked the tournament and moved to 2-0, while Fresno dropped to 0-2 and will be void of a Thorne Cup yet again, after three fantastic regular seasons in a row.

Baldwin started off slow in net for Dallas but picked up his game late, taking the win in net for the Ice Jets, while stopping 30 of 33.

Harbison was hit with his first regulation loss of the regular season and playoffs, struggling to find his zone and allowing five goals on 29 shots.

If Idaho could take down El Paso in the nightcap, the underdog Ice Jets would be playing for the title on Sunday against Idaho (whom they also matchup with Saturday.)

Player of the Game: Christian Elsborg (Forward, Dallas Ice Jets)

Game Two: El Paso Rhinos (Mid-West Division Champions) vs. Idaho Jr. Steelheads (Mountain Division Champions)

The sellout crowd for the late game was treated to the most entertaining contest of the tournament thus far.

Although it was fun for the capacity crowd, both coaches won’t want to see video of it anytime soon, as neither team played to their ability.

Idaho started the game off red-hot, scoring four times in the opening frame and taking that lead into the second period.

Ben Hanus’ goal just 30 seconds in quieted the crowd and began the Idaho onslaught.

Just about two minutes later, Tyler Smith’s shot from the point beat a screened Trent Caspar over the glove and it was quickly 2-0 for the visitors.

In the next few minutes after the second goal, El Paso temporarily slowed the Idaho attack by picking up their physical play.

With 7:50 left in the opening frame however, Idaho extended their lead to three thanks to a great play by Stefan Brucato.

Their leading scorer in the regular season fought off two defenders after taking a beating in front of the El Paso net and sent a sweet backhand feed to Matt Sanford in the slot, who beat Casper blocker-side.

While on a five-on-three power play late in the period, Justin Videen put a shot off the bar and in, officially opening up the floodgates and handing Idaho a 4-0 lead.

Rhinos’ Head Coach Cory Herman made a goaltending change to begin the second period, as Trent DiCarlo took over for Caspar in net and it seemed to work early on.

After the first few minutes of the period went scoreless, El Paso scored consecutive goals, both coming while on a two-man advantage, to get back into the game and awake the crowd.

At 7:11, defenseman Travis Oddy got the Rhinos on the board, beating Jordyn Kaufer with a shot from the point. Just about three minutes later, Oddy’s shot from the same spot missed the net but took a big bounce off of the end board and onto the stick of Tomas Stastny, who put it home, making it 4-2 Idaho.

Sensing a collapse, Idaho coach John Olver called a timeout and ripped into his team and it worked wonders.

Just seconds later, Idaho successfully killed off another penalty and broke into the El Paso zone three-on-one. Brucato fed Skyler McKnight at the side of the net who’s original shot was stopped by DiCarlo but he stopped up and put back the rebound.

Exactly one minute later the momentum was officially gone, as Tyler Kruenegel wristed one home, making it 6-2 Steelies.

The ups and downs continued late into the period however and El Paso scored twice with under a minute left before the intermission to make a game of it yet again.

Idaho began retaliating to the physicality of the Rhinos and quickly found themselves cutting a rut to the penalty box.

With 33 seconds left, Kyle Stephens’ point shot found it’s way home and Stastny picked up his second of the period just 16 seconds later on a nice wrist shot off a beauty of a feed from Trey Hughes.

El Paso scored all four of their goals in the period while on the power play and outshot the Jr. Steelheads 14-4 and were feeling good coming off the ice to end the period.

The momentum swings continued into the third, as Jake Webber’s goal 1:44 into the period put Idaho back up by three, before Stastny completed his hat-trick just a few minutes later for El Paso.

Idaho’s defense was that of a “bend but don’t break” mentality and were consistently picked up by their offense, as Sanford’s second of the game at the 7:21 mark handed them back the three goal lead.

John Morales gave El Paso a little hope, finding twine with 4:20 left in regulation but Kruenegel’s second of the game just 13 seconds later would end the scoring, as Idaho took the win by a score of 9-6.

It wasn’t pretty and Olver didn’t look happy after the game but Idaho found a way to continually answer the Rhinos’ attack and now find themselves defending their Thorne Cup Title on Sunday against Dallas.

Jordyn Kaufer remained perfect in regulation on the season, stopping 28 of the 34 shots he faced in net for Idaho.

Trent Caspar only played a period but took the loss for El Paso, allowing four goals on 19 shots.

The host Rhinos played their usual physical brand of hockey but were hit where it hurts by Idaho, on the scoreboard. It seemed every time they inched closer, Idaho stuck a dagger deeper into them.

El Paso will face Fresno, Saturday at 7:30 PM MST, in a contest with nothing but pride on the line.

Idaho and Dallas will get a little preview of one another at 2 PM MST on Saturday, before meeting again on Sunday with the Thorne Cup on the line at 4:30 PM MST.

Player of the Game: Stefan Brucato (Forward, Idaho Jr. Steelheads)

With the title matchup set after two great days of hockey both games tomorrow will carry no real significance, at least as far as the standings are concerned.

Tomorrow’s schedule of games:

2 PM MST: Idaho Jr. Steelheads (2-0-0) vs. Dallas Ice Jets (2-0-0)

7:30 PM MST: El Paso Rhinos (0-2-0) vs. Fresno Monsters (0-2-0)

Summary By: Brent T. Maranto

Six long months of hard played hockey will come to an end this weekend in El Paso, Texas and just one of the four teams currently left standing in the Western States Hockey League Playoffs will be named the 2012 Thorne Cup Champion.

In round-robin play (Thursday thru Saturday) each team gets the chance to play one another just one time and after completion of those six contests, the top two teams remaining will faceoff on Sunday afternoon with the prestigious Thorne Cup on the line.

Game One: Idaho Jr. Steelheads (Mountain Division Champions) vs. Fresno Monsters (Western Division Champions)

The talk of the tournament coming in was the rematch of the top two teams in the league, as the Fresno Monsters and Idaho Jr. Steelheads kicked off the Thorne Cup Finals in fine fashion.

Despite winning the regular season league title, the Monsters were still considered an underdog against their former division foe, even though they had beaten Idaho two out of the three games they played against one another back in October.

Since that time however, Idaho has undoubtedly been the hottest team in the league, rattling off a league-record 30 straight victories and falling just one point shy of Fresno’s regular season point total.

In what are usually face-paced, physical games against one another, each team played surprisingly passive hockey in the opening period, as it looked as thought the two heavyweights shadowboxed over the opening 20 minutes of play.

Although neither team was able to light up the scoreboard, the Monsters seemed to hold a slight edge, outshooting the favored Jr. Steelheads 8-4 in the opening frame, while also gaining momentum after killing off a lengthy 5-on-3 Idaho power play.

Idaho started the second period slowly as well but were able to weather an early Fresno storm, behind solid goaltending from Jordyn Kaufer.

After hitting the “reset” button, the Jr. Steelheads picked up their play as the period wore on and eventually got on the board first, as Filip Kasaly corralled a puck out of a net-mouth scrum and lifted it past rookie goaltender Tom McGuckin to begin the scoring at 8:08.

The momentum carried into the middle of the period for Idaho, as they swarmed for minutes at a time in the Fresno zone.

With under a minute left before the intermission, the Monsters peppered Kaufer in hopes of heading to the locker room knotted at one.

The Stillwater, Minnesota native stood strong however and on the ensuing rush, Idaho would go up 2-0, after a perfect finish to a beautiful passing play.

Ben Hanus drove the net and took a cross-ice pass from a spinning Fillip Kasaly, re-directing it past a sprawling McGuckin with just 49 seconds left before the buzzer; furthering Idaho’s hold on the contest.

The Monsters would come out aggressive to begin the third and get within a goal while on the power play, as defenseman Tommy Nourie’s seeing-eye wrist shot beat Kaufer thru traffic and for a moment, the Monsters looked as if they’d eventually tie the game.

Then came the penalties, as the Monsters began to cut ruts to the box and lose a bit of focus.

It started when veteran forward Don Coyle got hit with a major penalty for high-sticking, prompting their leading-scorer thru the first two rounds of the playoffs, Jason Beisinger, to lose his cool and eventually be assessed a ten-minute misconduct for his actions.

Just two minutes later, one of their top defensemen Gunnar Dircks got called for a kicking major, which also carried a game misconduct with it, further shortening the Fresno bench.

After Idaho took a penalty of their own, bumping their advantage down to that of a 4-on-3, Fresno took to the rush, looking to tie the game while shorthanded.

Josiah Nikkel led a two-on-one rush into the Idaho zone with fellow veteran Nick McKee speeding down the opposite wing. Nikkel, usually spot-on with his passing, narrowly missed the blade of McKee and the puck rode the boards back the other way. Noticing their opponents’ exhaustion, Idaho looked to exploit it with a counter-rush.

It worked wonders, as an odd-man rush developed with the end product being a Justin Videen redirect goal off of a feed from Vance Bridgman, extending the lead back to two and essentially putting the game on ice with 7:01 left in regulation.

The Monsters would put up a fight late but couldn’t beat Kaufer again, as ultimately, penalties did Fresno in and Idaho escaped with the victory, despite being outshot 27-25 for the game.

The two rivals played one another tight but both teams got away from the game late and neither played their best hockey.

Kaufer remains nearly perfect in net for Idaho, still without a regulation loss throughout the entire regular season and playoffs.

Despite the loss, the rookie McGuckin has seemingly stolen the starting job from veteran Marcus Harbison, who just like Kaufer, did not lose in regulation all regular season and playoffs but has still been relegated to bench duty due to the stellar play of the New Jersey native.

Idaho’s power play clicked on one of their four chances, while Fresno’s lone goal was put up while on one of their six man-advantages.

The win keeps the momentum going for Idaho, although they’ll need to be much better if they hope to remain perfect moving forward in the tournament.

Fresno, on the other hand, is suddenly faced with adversity and will more than likely need to win their next two games if they’d like to play a fourth game for the championship.

Player of the Game: Filip Kasaly (Forward, Idaho Jr. Steelheads)

Game Two: El Paso Rhinos (Mid-West Division Champions/Host) vs. Dallas Ice Jets (Mid-West Division Runner-Up)

The only team of the four still playing, the Dallas Ice Jets came into the weekend looking to prove that they belonged.

After a convincing 2-1 victory over a powerful host team, they did just that in their opening game of the Thorne Cup Finals.

Just two weeks ago, the Ice Jets traveled the 10 hours to El Paso for a divisional finals series with the Rhinos and were swept with relative ease. Those two losses had two weeks to marinate in the minds of the Dallas players and coaching staff and it showed, as they came out on fire in a game that was played at a much higher pace than the prior matinee.

Playing in front of the home crowd, the Rhinos came out and threw their weight around early but it was the Ice Jets that hit them where it counted.

With the contest scoreless late in the first, forward Austin Azurdia blazed over the El Paso blueline and was able to cut thru two defensemen, breaking in two-on-one against Rhinos’ goaltender Trent Caspar.

Azurdia looked off the pass and held onto the puck long enough, waiting for the Caspar to go down before placing his shot directly under the bar and in, giving the Ice Jets the early lead on a fantastic individual effort.

Just 1:17 into the second period, Dallas extended their lead to two thanks to a goal by Christian Elsborg, again the product of the speed of the Ice Jets backing off the El Paso defense.

Chace Jackson carried the puck into the Rhinos’ zone and got off a wrister that was turned away by Caspar. Jackson’s speed however, backed off the defense so much that the puck sat untouched in the crease. Richard Bohan’s put back chance was turned aside but Elsborg made no mistake on the third try, finding twine for the fifth time in the postseason.

The rest of the period, the Ice Jets did a great job of forcing the play to the outside and giving up very little, if any, solid scoring chances.

With the home crowd getting antsy late in the period, the Rhinos finally gave them something to cheer about, as Tomas Stastny one-timed a deflected shot off the stick of defenseman Gunnar Bjorklund up and over the glove of goaltender Michael Baldwin, giving the Rhinos some momentum to take into the locker room.

As was expected, the Rhinos were again physical in the third period but the Ice Jets continually made the smart plays and kept everything to the outside, making it very easy on Baldwin.

El Paso would only really challenge with under a minute remaining, as they enjoyed a 5-on-3 power play with 36 seconds left and made it a 6-on-3 after pulling Caspar. It was all for naught though, as Dallas was fundamentally strong, getting in lanes and blocking chances, while allowing just a single shot to reach Baldwin, squeaking by with the 2-1 upset victory.

The win is huge for the Ice Jets and their team psyche, as another loss, especially to El Paso, could have done it for their tournament. Instead, they’re 1-0 with a great chance of sneaking into he title game.

Michael Baldwin took he win in net, stopping 35 of the 36 El Paso shots he faced, including a few flurries near the end.

Caspar was hit with the loss for the Rhinos, allowing just two goals on 28 shots faced.

Neither team converted on four power plays each, as the game was as tight as an even strength showdown as you will see.

Player of the Game: Austin Azurdia (Forward, Dallas Ice Jets)

Day one is in the books and it was full of surprises, as both games kept the crowd on the edge of their seats. Expect day two to be more of the same, as both clashes can be seen online at www.b2livetv.com with a FREE pre-game show on the Western States Hockey League’s Facebook Page (via Fasthockey.com) starting 15 minutes prior to puck-drop and post-game show immediately following each game, including interviews, stats and much more!

Tomorrow’s schedule of games:

2 PM MST: Dallas Ice Jets (1-0-0) vs. Fresno Monsters (0-1-0)

7:30 PM MST: Idaho Jr. Steelheads (1-0-0) vs. El Paso Rhinos (0-1-0)

Content provided by Brent T. Maranto

WSHL and FastHockey have teamed to offer free Thorne Cup Pre and Post game video coverage on Facebook.  Visit the WSHL Facebook Page and look for the WSHL on FastHockey application tab on the left side of the screen.

Live game action is also available for this year’s cup with further information available at the El Paso Rhinos website.

Article updated 3/27/12 11:46 PM Pacific to add clarification and information about Live Game video coverage.

Thursday, March 29, 2012
2:00 pm – Fresno Monsters (Home) vs Idaho Jr. Steelheads (Visitor)
7:30 pm – Dallas Ice Jets (Home) vs El Paso Rhinos (Visitor)

Friday, March 30, 2012
2:00 pm – Fresno Monsters (Home) vs Dallas Ice Jets (Visitor)
7:30 pm – Idaho Jr. Steel Heads (Home) vs El Paso Rhinos (Visitor)

Saturday, March 31, 2012
2:00 pm – Idaho Jr. Steelheads (Home) vs Dallas Ice Jets (Visitor)
7:30 pm – El Paso Rhinos (Home) vs Fresno Monsters (Visitors)

Sunday, April 1, 2012
4:30 pm – Thorne Cup Championship – the two teams with the best records in round robin play

Home wears White, Visitor wears Dark

For those that don’t know, Brent Cullaton – Head Coach/GM for the Boulder Bison has coached is last game in the WSHL Sunday at the Mountain Division Championship.

Brent will be moving on to the pro ranks, working for the new Denver Pro team.

All of us who have known Brent since taking over the Bison know what a fine gentlemen, great coach, all around great guy that Brent is. Brent joined the league at a time the WSHL was striving to make radical coaching improvements to almost all teams. Brent led the way in professionalism and helping to take the league to a new standard along with several other coaches hired around the same time.

As Commissioner I would like to thank Brent for all of efforts to not only make the Boulder Bison a great member, but for all of his personal effort to help the WSHL reach the level of professionalism, competitive standard that we now enjoy. Brent has always put the WSHL first in his decision process, and that is a credit to him. We will miss his contributions, but hopefully we can some how keep him close and lean on him from time to time.

I am sure that all of you join me in wishing Brent the best of luck with his new career and I am sure we will see him climb the ladder of success in the Pro Ranks as time moves on. Brent will always be a guy that we can be proud of as he climbs that ladder.

Cordially,

Ron White, President/Commissioner
Western States Hockey League