Amherst Steele Comets bring eight returning players back into the mix lead by senior captain and leading scorer Jacob Kramer and junior goaltender Brady Grove.

The Comets will be welcoming three freshman and two additional new players, sophomore Avery Winkleman and senior John Curtin to the mix in hopes they can help keep the success Amherst has had the previous two seasons.

The Comets are led by head coach Steve Morris, who is 31 wins away from achieving 300 for his career. Coach Morris is excited for the upcoming season. He is really depending on his experienced forwards to help out as they try and get the back-end more comfortable.

Amherst finished 32-3 last season marking the most wins in program history. This was in helped in part of going a perfect 13-0 in league play to win the White South division. Amherst kicks off the holidays with the very competitive DiPaolo Tournament in Oxford.  Amherst suffered one of their three losses last season taking runner-up to a team from Cincinnati. Amherst hopes to seek revenge for that loss last season.

The Comets will compete this season in the Adam Hamilton Memorial Tournament against Red Division powerhouses Mentor and Hudson. Amherst will also be playing a game against St. Edward JV, winners of three of the last four JV state titles, in the Parma Christmas Tournament, where they are two-time reigning champions.

Coach Morris and the team will then defend their back-to-back championships in the Southwest Conference Tournament. With this schedule, coach Morris hopes that all the competition gets them ready to defend their Baron Cup II championship, where they are also defending champions the last two years. The last test would be in the state tournament where last season they were able to advance to the third round for the first time in school history, knocking off Great Lakes Hockey League member Padua Franciscan before losing an overtime thriller to Olmsted Falls.

Coach Morris and the team hope to keep the trend going up and put Amherst on the map in the White North this season.

--- Thomas Liegl for Ohio Hockey Digest