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2020 Sylvania District Preview

By Scott Harrington, 02/21/20, 12:15AM EST

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Your guess is as good as mine…

While clear favorites have emerged in the Brooklyn, Kent and Columbus districts, things seem like they are pretty much going to be up for grabs at the Tam-O-Shanter in Sylvania. 

Three teams from the Northwest Hockey Conference were tightly clustered in the 8-10 spots in the final state coach’s poll:  Toledo St. John’s, Northview and Toledo St. Francis.  Findlay has to be considered in the mix as well and Anthony Wayne, coming off a strong first season in the Red Division, would like nothing more than to make a post-season statement.

Adding to the uncertainty of trying to project how things will play out is the fact that the top two seeds will square off in the quarterfinal round on Friday night.  Toledo St. John’s, the #2 seed, placed themselves in a play-in game against Maumee that sent the winner up against #1 seed Sylvania Northview.  The Titans defeated the Panthers Monday, 12-2, and now we will see two of the favorites from Northwest Ohio go head-to-head on Friday in what should be a very intense hockey game.

St. John’s head coach Matt Bollinger explained the strategy to Ohio Hockey Digest:

“Recent history between our programs has been very favorable for Northview when it comes to district final games,” Bollinger said.  “So instead of playing the long game and potentially meeting them in a place of relative comfort for their program, we decided shake it up and get after them early.”

A very bold move to be sure, but in a bracket as unpredictable as this one, you can see the logic.

Northview and St. John’s tied for the NHC regular season title, so they make sense as co-favorites here.  The Titans won the division race last year, but the Wildcats knocked them out in the tournament and represented the district in Columbus.

THE FAVORITES

Sylvania Northview – After his team earned the top seed, Northview head coach Steve Elliott had to be pretty shocked when he saw the bracket.

“With the seeding process set up the way it is currently I'm never sure how the road to Columbus is going to look,” said Elliott.  “But it's definitely a little unprecedented to have the #1 and #2 seeds facing off this early in the bracket. That said, if you want to make it to Columbus and ultimately win a state title, you will always have beat good teams to do so.  When those games happen really doesn't matter.”

The Wildcats are not a very prolific scoring team for a #1 seed.  Their 117 goals scored was only fourth-best in the Red Division of the NHC.  Jimmy Roberts (16-25-41), Dougie Carter (18-22-40) and Jeffrey Wood (21-16-37) lead a well-balanced forward group, but the game-breaker is on the blue line.

Defenseman David Crandall is one of the most dynamic defensemen in the state.  He leads Northview with 53 points (19-34-53) and is second with 73 penalty minutes.

Since they seldom over-whelm their opposition offensively, the Wildcats need to play well without the puck and get good goaltending if they are going to repeat as district champs.  Asked mid-week for some inside information on his starting goalie, Elliott confirmed that Tyler Clem will be between the pipes when the puck drops Friday.

OK, that’s not really a scoop…Clem has played every minute in the Wildcats crease over the last two seasons – 64 games in a row and counting.  His 2.63 goals-against average and .882 save percentage kept the ‘Cats in most of the games they played this season.

Elliott feels that the competitive schedule his team played this season will pay off this time of year.

“We feel that we are battle tested and the results down the road hopefully show that our team has shown the growth for us to compete well in these playoffs,” he said. 

Northview’s practice did not vary too much from the normal routine this week despite the stakes of the games coming up this weekend.

“We try to keep things as normal as possible as athletes are creatures of habit,” said Elliott.  “We understand the magnitude of the games from here on out, but we will prepare the same way.”

Toledo St. John’s – While Northview received the top seed for this tournament, St. John’s was the highest-ranked NHC team all season in the state coach’s poll.  That did not change this week in the final rankings, although the Titans slipped two spots to #8.

It should not be a surprise that St. John’s was moved down in the rankings, however.  After winning their first two games of 2020, they sported a record of 12-6-1.  They have managed just six wins since (6-6-0).  Looking at the results from the beginning of season to the end, it would appear the Titans have lost some momentum, but they still are a Top 10 team in the state that won a share of the conference title.

And the slate is wiped clean for the post-season, which started with a 12-2 win over Maumee on Monday.

In addition to league wins over all of the Red Division teams, St. John’s also has quality wins this season over the likes of University School, Holy Name and Gilmour Academy – the #3 team in the state and top seed in the Kent District.

They also got a chance to see the four-time defending state champs from Saint Ignatius up close and personal in their final regular season game.  Head coach Matt Bollinger was impressed with the Wildcats.

“Ignatius is a talented team, no doubt, but more importantly they're a good example of a team that plays the game the right way,” Bollinger said.  “That can be seen in their habits and their consistency shift to shift, doing the little things right almost every time.”

Despite the final score (an 8-1 loss), there are things the Titans can take away from the experience.

“It’s nothing that can be implemented in the short term,” said Bollinger.  “But I think we all recognize that if we're able to embrace and execute smaller details as part of our identity we can start competing at level that begins to challenge where Ignatius is at as a team.”

After being the top team in the NHC last year, but missing out on a trip to Columbus, the returning players are pretty motivated to finish the deal this year.  Bollinger saw a change in the way they prepared this week.

“There is a noticeable difference between the way our guys prepared for big elimination games last year and the approach that they're taking now,” he said.  “Last year, the group was a little too loose and maybe a bit overconfident.  Heading into this game our guys have been dialed in, working to make improvements, and they're the right mental headspace for this game.”

Now the fun starts.  The puck drops at 7:00 p.m. Friday night at the Tam-O-Shanter.

“It’s a tough road to get out of this District regardless of the path you choose,” said Bollinger.  “In my mind, this season, the road to Columbus ultimately goes through Northview so whether we play them early or play them in the district final, the match-up would likely be there.”

THE CHALLENGERS

Toledo St. Francis – The Knights of Toledo St. Francis had a four-year run of district titles come to an end last year.  The rebuilding continues for head coach Chris Varga.  The team lost seven of their first 10 games, but the Knights have been ranked in the Top 10 at times this year.

St. Francis continues to play an ambitious schedule (they even took on Saint Ignatius last weekend), so their 12-16-1 record is a bit deceiving. They have defeated both St. John’s and Findlay this season.  They did lose to Northview both times they played but, with the bracket set up the way it is, they would not see Northview or St. John’s until the final if they can get past Anthony Wayne, then likely Findlay.

Another reason for optimism heading into the post-season:  after dropping out of the Top 10 about a month ago, the Knights re-appeared in the final edition on Tuesday (at #10).

Findlay – Findlay has been flying under the radar all season – just on the periphery of the NHC race and outside the state Top 10, but in the discussion. 

An argument could be made that the Trojans’ 2-6-2 mark down the stretch should put them in the “Dark horse” category, but they have quality wins over St. Francis and Northview this season – the latter in a playoff-like game on February 7 that denied the Wildcats the outright NHC title.

THE DARK HORSE

Anthony Wayne – The Anthony Wayne Generals moved up to the Red Division of the NHC this season and held their own with an overall mark of 23-5-4.  AW did not manage to defeat the top three seeds during the regular season but did beat Findlay both times they played.

The Generals could end up being the beneficiary of St. John’s decision to place itself in the top part of the bracket and go after Northview early.  Findlay is on the same side of the bracket so, if Anthony Wayne can make it past St. Francis in the quarterfinals, they may find themselves with a favorable match-up in the semis.

--- Scott Harrington for Ohio Hockey Digest