Special Hockey Classic Summary - Championship Sunday - 11/9/25
The Special Hockey National Championship Tournament concluded today at the Ice Vault in Wayne, NJ. The Dare Devils registered three teams for the tournament and all three made it to Sunday's Championship Games in their respective divisions. It was a long weekend but the perseverance of the players paid off as all three of the NJDD outfits took home gold medals and championship banners that will soon be in the rafters at Codey. We would also like to thank our coaching staff who manned the bench for 10 games over the course of the weekend. Thank you Coach Bernard, Coach John, Coach Brendon, Coach Myles, Player/Coach Captain Ryan Griffin, Player/Coach Reese Citro and especially Coach Terence, who was in attendance for Every. Single. Game!
Frank's crew was in attendance today and we will post links to their galleries as soon as they are available. Thank you for the continued dedication Frank and team!
Below is a summary of Sunday's game action:
Sunday, 11/9 - NJDD A Team vs. the Long Island Blues - 7am - Rink 1:
Our NJDD A players teamed up with A players from other teams to take on our good friends from Long Island in this early morning championship game. Despite the early start time, the Dare Devils came ready to play and were able to squeak past the Blues to secure the championship medals. As usual, Captain Ryan Griffin led the charge with two goals in the contest while Patrick Hung chipped in with two assists. Reese Citro also played a strong game and recorded one assist for the A team.
Frank's gallery of NJDD A vs. LI Blues - 11/9
Sunday, 11/9 - NJDD Black Team vs. Great Blizzards C - 8:30am - Rink 2:
Similar to their teammates on the A team, the Dare Devils Black squad found themselves in their division championship game in a matchup against the Great Blizzards from Cape Cod, Massachusetts. The Blizzards were a bit shorthanded for this game so James Cooney and Connor Hung showed great sportsmanship and volunteered to throw on their white jerseys and dress for the opposition. The change of scenery suited the Dare Devil turncoats well as both played their best games of the season. Cooney had an offensive explosion, scoring 8 goals for the Blizzards, while Hung recorded two goals and one assist. Both players also played solid defense, relishing in their board battles against Shea Passikoff, Sean Glasset, Jake Simon and Liam Smith. In fact, Cooney played so well he had his father contemplating a move to Cape Cod to allow James to continue with the mojo he found with the Blizzards. Coach Bernard was seen looking up Yarmouth real estate while on the bench (but don't fear, Coach Bernard thought better of it when he looked to the other side of the bench and realized that Coach Brendon and Coach Terence would bankrupt the Dare Devils within days without proper supervision). However, the Dare Devils were not laying down for their carpetbagging teammates and they also played spirited hockey. The Dare Devils went out of their way to make the extra pass today, highlighted by a Shea Passikoff, Liam Smith and Kevin Plunkett three man rush that resulted in a Plunkett goal. The linemates strung together 8 passes and Plunkett completed the play by burying a one-timer from the left hashmarks. The game ended in a regulation tie and went to a shootout. Our resident shootout specialist, Madison Mitchell, did her best TJ Oshie impression and deked the Blizzards goalie and deftly slid the puck between the goalers pads to seal the championship for the Dare Devils. A shout out goes to our guest goalie, El, from the East Coast Jumbos who kept us in the game and allowed us to come out victorious. The Dare Devils making the regulation scoresheet were: James Cooney (8 goals); Shea Passikoff (3 goals, 4 assists); Sean Glasset (2 goals, 1 assist); Connor Hung (2 goals, 1 assist); Liam Smith (1 goal, 2 assists); Tony He (2 goals); Jake Simon (1 goal, 1 assist); and Kevin Plunkett (1 goal).
Frank's Gallery of NJDD Black vs. Great Blizzards - 11/9
Sunday, 11/9 - NJDD White Team vs. Great Blizzards B - 9:45am - Rink 2:
The tournament concluded with an intense division championship game between the Dare Devils White Squad (wearing their black Jersey jerseys) and the Great Blizzards B team. This was a chippy affair, with a lot of puck battles and chirping between the teams. The Dare Devils received support from guest goalie, Finn Bailey, from the East Coast Jumbos. Bailey was spectacular today, and was one of the main reasons the Dare Devils were able to come away with the hardware. Danny Giger opened the scoring after executing a beautiful poke check at the defensive blue line, taking the puck the length of the ice and burying a low snap shot to give the Dare Devils an early lead. The teams traded goals throughout the game and Patrick Law's second goal of the morning ended up being the game winner. Kiernan O'Malley made his Dare Devils debut and played a strong game on both ends of the ice. He inspired his teammates with his skating, back-checking and passing. The Dare Devils in the box score were Vinny Racamato (2 goals), Patrick Law (2 goals), Danny Giger (1 goal), Patrick Hung (1 goal), Liam Smith (1 assist), Andrew Piccirillo (1 assist) and Owen Silverstein (1 assist). The defense was paced by Will Milazzo, Ryan Kientz, Connor Hung and Patrick Hung. Micayla Shields, James Cooney, Shea Passikoff, Ayden Duran and Aaron Quintana all had several scoring chances but were unable to convert.