The Greater Cleveland High School Hockey League released their alignment for the 2020-21 season and there were some notable changes as the league heads into its 50th season of operation.  Thirty-four schools will ice teams next season and they are arranged in five divisions.

“It went a lot smoother than usual,” GCHSHL president Ryan Kelber said of the re-alignment process, which could not be done at a live in-person meeting due to the COVID-19 situation. Teams made requests individually, then he put together the new divisions and it went to the group of 34 athletic directors for approval.

‘Tis the season, where all teams are getting into the bulk of the schedule. Many teams are in tournaments – sometimes multiple tournaments – and most coaches now have a feel of what their team’s identity is but also what they need to work on going forward.

The Amherst Steel Comets (9-3-0, 3-0-0) continue to lead the charge in the White North Division. They got to enjoy a nice little break from game competition and prepare to play in the Parma Christmas Tournament this weekend (Dec. 26-29)

Parma is leading the White South Division and continues winning games as they improve to (12-1-1, 4-0-0) after a nice 3-2 victory over Solon this past Friday (Dec. 21). Parma hopes to bring home some hardware as they host their annual Christmas Tournament Dec. 26-29 at Ries Rink. The six teams competing will be Amherst, Parma, Brooklyn, Mayfield, NDCL, and St. Edward JV. How big would an Amherst vs Parma championship game be? Let’s hope.

The North Olmsted Eagles (7-5-0, 2-4-0) took a hard loss to Avon on Saturday night by the score of 2-0. North Olmsted looks to gain momentum moving forward as they compete in the Solon Holiday Tournament taking place Dec. 26-28 at Gilmour Ice Arena. This four-team tournament consist of the host Solon, the Eagles, Olmsted Falls and Red division team Kenston Bombers.

The Solon Comets (4-8-0, 2-1-0) took their first league loss this past Friday losing a close contest against Parma, 3-2. The Comets host their annual Holiday Tournament and hope to win the championship of their own tournament.

The other team playing in the Solon Holiday Tournament is the Olmsted Falls Bulldogs. The Bulldogs are coming off a 4-2 win against Avon this past Saturday (Dec. 21) to increase their record in league play to 3-1-0 with an overall record of 5-4-0.

CVCA (2-5-0, 2-2-0) pulled off a minor upset beating Aurora 4-2 last Sunday (Dec. 22). The Royals look to keep it going as they host their annual Holiday Tournament (Dec. 29-Dec 31) at Kent State Ice Arena. The eight-team field includes another White division team in Kent Roosevelt, along with Chagrin Falls, Lakewood, Normandy, Orange, Twinsburg, and Westlake.

Kent Roosevelt (4-12-0, 1-3-0) took some lumps in their own tournament this past weekend (Dec. 19-22), winning only one game out of the four they played in. Starting off losing to a Red Division team, Kenston, by the score of 5-2 on Thursday night. They followed up with games on Saturday (Dec. 21), beating Gahanna Lincoln Lions of Columbus, 8-0, but then losing to Olentangy Berlin of Columbus, 5-1.  In a rematch, with some hope to split the series and tournament, the Rough Riders were unable to beat Olentangy Berlin and they ended up losing to the Bears again, this time by the score of 5-1. Kent hopes to gather up some wins and continue to improve as they compete in the CVCA Holiday Tournament this weekend.

Aurora (7-3-0, 3-2-0) was able to pick up some wins this past weekend playing three games in three days. The first team games were non-league and they took care of business beating Stow, 3-1, and dismantling Twinsburg, 10-0. What came as the surprise is the upset loss to CVCA, 4-2, on Sunday Dec. 22. This loss drops their league record to 3-2-0. Aurora looks to get win number 10 of the season as they compete in the Avon Lake Invitational. Games take place this weekend Dec. 27-29 at Serpentini Arena of Lakewood.

Avon (5-8-0, 1-2-0) played a very competitive and evenly-matched game against Olmsted Falls only to come up short, 4-2, on Saturday Dec. 21. The Eagles continued their tough non-league schedule on Sunday Dec. 22, playing against the Gilmour Academy JV team, which is one of the best JV programs in the State.  Another well-played, evenly-matched game but Avon ended up on the losing end again by a score of 3-1. Avon has been involved in seven games where 1-2 goals were the difference. Avon will compete this weekend in the Avon Lake Invitational.

Avon Lake picked up their 13th win overall, and second in the league, by shutting out North Olmsted on Saturday night, 2-0, and then demolishing Clay High School on Sunday, 12-2, in a non-league contest. Avon lake will host their annual Holiday Invitational this weekend (Dec. 27-29). All games will be played at Serpentini Arena of Lakewood. The four-team field consist of the host Shoremen, Avon, Aurora and Nordonia, the only team not from the White division.

Western Reserve Academy (2-10-0, 1-2-0) picked up their first White Division league win on Friday against Canfield by the score of 6-2. WRA then competed in the Kent Roosevelt tournament but did not fare much better as they won only one of the four games they played, losing the opener to a powerful Hudson team, 7-1, and then on Saturday losing the early game against Olentangy Berlin, 2-1, before beating Gahanna Lincoln, 3-, in the nightcap. On Sunday, WRA had a chance to even their tournament record and sweep Gahanna but they were unable to do so and lost, 3-1. The Pioneers get a much-deserved break from action and get to enjoy the Christmas break and New Years with family.

Canfield (3-6-0, 0-5-0), like WRA, gets to enjoy a break in action and will not pick back up until after the New Year. The Cardinals are still searching for their first league win as they lost to WRA on Friday (Dec. 20) by the score of 6-2.

--- Thomas Liegl for Ohio Hockey Digest