NSA Girls Season Recap

The girls after hiking up the tip of Whiteface

The 2011-2012 season for the NSA women's U19 AAA hockey team was full of exhilarating success but equalized by devastating failures ending with a nail biting loss in the quarterfinals at USA  Hockey National Championships. There were tournaments won, records set and jaw dropping moments but there was also surprising losses, long grueling slumps and times when the players and coaches alike felt as though nothing was going right. The year started in Lake Placid's own Olympic Center and ended in Marlbourgh Massachusetts for nationals, playing all over North America in between. Some of these places included; Boston, Colorado, Providence, Washington DC, Calgary and Minnesota among many others.

          The girls returned to the school on September first ready to hit the ice. Only there was one problem, there was no ice for the first two weeks, rather, the coaches used the couple weeks to whip the girls into shape. They completed an intense workout on sandhill and sprinted up the seemingly mile high stairs at the ski jumps. Throughout the entire pre season the team came together and bonded creating chemistry that would later help them on the ice. 

Workout

          This chemistry showed during the first few games of the season vs the New Jersey Rockets. NSA won and tied a game, outplaying their opponents from the starting whistle till the ending buzzer.  

          Then, first JWHL, Junior Women's Hockey League showcase rolled around. This was the first real test for the NSA team. Wether it was being over confident, being out of shape or simply being a team that has only been together for a few weeks, the weekend was a long one ending with a 2-3 record. 

          The Assabet Tournament was the first time the girls faced off against arch rival North American Hockey Academy(NAHA). One of the team's year long goals was to beat NAHA and this was the time. Unfortunately, NAHA was the team setting the pace this first game leaving NSA in the dust by a score of 6-1. 

T.t and Whiddon Celebrate after scoring against NAHA

          Now it was around this time that due to frustration and maybe just an overall lack of winning the number of penalties a game started to sky rocket. Coach Bill, always having had pride in his team for not being a chippy bunch decided this was not okay. He set in place a rule that for every minute over 6 the entire team would skate a herbie. Lets just say it was a long practice for the girls the next day, all of the water was gone, sweat was dripping off each one's chin and nose and some payers even went so far as to say that their legs felt more like jello then the solid muscle that they normally did. 

          Well as harsh as this skating sounds it brought the team closer together and the penalty minutes down. In fact, during another JWHL weekend, in Troy Albany, on December second 2011, the NSA girls skated up and down the ice playing two sided hockey for sixty minutes moving the puck and connecting with their passes arguably the best they had all year, resulting in the first NSA victory over NAHA in seven years. 

          The halfway point of the season, the Deerfield Tournament rolled around and the team knew pressure was on. Never have the NSA buses pulled away from the Deerfield Academy Rink without the Championship title. 

          Well the pressure must have been a good thing because it led the girls to yet another championship. 

The deerfield Tournament acting like a slingshot propelling NSA forward. The girls went 2-0 against New Jersey Rockets, went 4-1 at a JWHL weekend and then capped it all off by defeating Ontario Hockey Academy, the older NAHA(in triple overtime), and younger NAHA to win the title. 

The team posses for a Championship Photo

          Senior night against Northwood went off without a hitch as the girls stomped over Northwood 4-0 demonstrating that they are still the team to beat up in Lake Placid NY.

          As JWHL playoffs rolled around the team packed their smelly hockey bags and not quite as smelly clothing and boarded a plane for Colorado. 

          Because NSA ended in 7th place they were lined up to play the Washington Pride, a team they had not beaten all year. But the girls worked together, literally every girl had at least one shot on net, resulting in a final score of 7-3 in NSA's favor.  

          But the luck or chemistry or whatever you want to call it ran out when in the quarter finals NSA was beaten by the Edge School ending any playoff championship goals. One thing about this team though is they never quit, doesn't matter if they are down by five goals with a minute left or up by three goals with thirty seconds to go they always give everything they've got and just because they couldn't win it all they were still determined to finish as high as possible. 

          The girls won two consecutive games to land them in fifth place. While its far from first and left many disappointed there was now states and potentially nationals to look forward to. 

          Looking at the schedule for States one would guess that NSA would run show and head for nationals without a problem but that is far from the case. The first game wasn't even close it was noticeable from the way the girls played they had no intentions of having their season end early as last years team had, winning by a score of 8-1. 

          But just from warmups before the second game it was noticeable that something was off. The girls were not connecting with each other and everyone seemed half a second slow. This remained true throughout the game resulting in a nail biting last few minutes but NSA was able to hold on to the lead for a 3-2 win. 

After tubing in Colorado

          All year this is what the team had trained for. Things like the brutal sandhill work out that caused people to throw up or the never ending ski jump stairs both seem to have taken place years ago. Now the question is, can this team come together and play the best hockey they've played all year right when they need it the most? 

          The first two games the girls came out hot making an impression to the college scouts in the stands and the opposing coaches wining by scores of 9-1 and 7-2. Then came Shattuck St. Mary's, the number one in girls hockey, the one to beat. While Shattuck set the pace of the game the NSA girls hung with them playing what college scouts referred to as some of the fastest junior women's hockey they have ever seen. The end score was 4-1 but the score does not demonstrate the closeness of the game. 

          Heading into the quarterfinals, paired up against the Chicago Mission, the girls know this is due or die. The girls started slow allowing Mission to score the first goal but they bounced back almost immediately to answer with a tying goal. Going into the third period the score was all tied up at 1-1. The NSA team finally seemed awake and ready to play but it proved too late. Mission scored to go up 2-1 and NSA was unable to answer. 

          After the game in the locker room there was mixed emotions of anger, for not going harder sooner and sadness, realizing that this past game was the last one they would ever play again all together. 

The family

The 2011-2012 NSA team was a special one and I'm not just saying that. I was part of this team and through the ups and the downs we stuck together. I've never played on a team that loved each other the way this one did and could be as magical on the ice when everything came together as this one could. Obviously not all the memories are positive and there are things we would all change if given the choice. But one thing I don't think a single player would change is this year with this team doing what we did. We arrived at school eight months ago as individuals. After playing 74 games and living together for about 218 days and suffering through harsh practices meant to break us, sitting in that locker room after losing looking from face to face we all know that we're not just a team we're a family.