Offense Stifled in Boys Ice Hockey Tie

In a battle between Summit and Westfield High School's ice hockey teams for third place in the Cron Tournament, neither claimed that title by game's end.

Instead the Hilltoppers (3-1-1) and Blue Devils (3-1-1) skated to a scoreless tie in the consolation game on Wednesday night at Warinanco Park, allowing Cranford to take third due to their 2-1 tournament record. Summit and Westfield both went 1-1-1 in the Cron Tournament.

"This is a rivalry and both teams played their hearts out," Summit head coach Keith Nixon said. "We all want to go to the finals and want a shot at winning the Cron Tournament. We have enough third place trophies."

The Blue Devils controlled the game early, getting seven shots on goal in the first period while holding the Hilltoppers to just one. Summit committed two penalties and Westfield had one, but neither team generated any more offense with the man advantage than they had at even strength. There were only five penalties the entire game.

In the second, Summit got more shot opportunities but could not find the back of the net.

With 3:09 remaining in the period, Blue Devil captain C.J. Meyer went to the penalty box for interference. During Meyer's two minutes off the ice, Hilltopper junior forward Timmy Yager aggressively attacked Westfield's net.

First he took a hard shot from just inside the blue line that  Blue Devil junior goalie Morgan Bungerz saved with his glove. Then Yager ripped another shot on Bungerz's right side, but it went wide.

"(Yager) gave us everything he had," Nixon said. "He's a little bit under the weather. I think if he had been 100 percent we could have popped him for a breakaway or two. He's probably in the best shape of anybody on our team, but he just didn't have the energy that he normally has."

Summit made up a lot of ground on shots on goal in the second, trailing just 10-8. By the end of the game, the Hilltoppers out-shot Westfield 17-16.

Meyer had an excellent opportunity to give the Blue Devils the lead with 6:10 left in the third, but he tripped over junior goalie Jackson Stuckey while setting up his shot. Late in regulation both teams had spurts where they put offensive pressure on the opponent, but each time, Stuckey and Bungerz and their defenses made stops.

It was Stuckey's first start of the season, and Nixon liked what he saw.

"(Stuckey) did a good job," Nixon said. "His positioning was good overall, his concentration looked good and he followed the puck well. He had to make a couple of good stops, and it's encouraging. It's always good to have more than one goalie that can go out and win games for you."

In overtime, Bungerz preserved the scoreless tie with a remarkable save on a shot by Yager. Yager received the puck inches away from the net as the lone Hilltopper on the left side, but before he could get a wide open look, Bungerz dove to his right and covered up to stop play.

Then in the final 30 seconds, senior captain forward Bobby Lawrence took a shot that Westfield blocked before it reached the net.

"Both teams were exhausted in the end and it got a little sloppy," Nixon said. "I thought we played a lot better than we did on Monday. It's a step in the right direction, but we still have to keep working on offense."

Summit's next game is on December 22nd when they play defending Haas Conference champion Montville at Warinanco at 6 p.m. The Mustangs are 2-1-3 on the young season.

"We have to keep working on communicating," Nixon said of what his team must do to prepare for Montville. "We don't get the most out of our offensive opportunities because we don't communicate enough. That's one of our big concerns."