Northeast Hockey Showcase ... Day 1

The Wolverines are spending Thanksgiving Weekend at the Northeast Hockey Showcase in Tilton, NH. The tournament features 20 teams from the US and Canada, with each team playing four 30 minute mini-games. The top 8 teams will advance to the quarterfinals on Sunday.

In game 1 on Friday, BA faced the South Jersey Raptors of the IJHL. After 3 days off, BA came out a bit sluggish, but quickly began to get back to form en route to a 4-1 victory. Matt DelGiudice started the scoring midway through the first half. DJ haskins scored his 4th goal in four games to make it 2-0 at the break. BA capitalized on 2 power plays in the second half with Garret Collins and Eric Clemmenson scoring. The only disappointment was allowing a goal with less than 1 second to play. Mike Pearless picked up the victory in net making 7 saves.

In game 2, the Wolverines faced the host Tilton school and won 2-0. The entire game was a defensive chess match as the Wolverines outshot Tilton 9-7 for the game. Tom Paine scored the gamewinner with 52 seconds remaining, and Quinlan Junta added an emptynetter to seal the game. Steven Sisler made 7 saves for the win.

Day 2 features games versus Banff Academy of Alberta and Webster Academy of Quebec.

Carroll Named Captain of SNHU Hockey Team, Will Lead 5 Former Wolverines

Dave Carroll, BA Class of '05 has recently been appointed Captain of the 2008-09 Southern New Hampshire University Hockey Team. Carroll last year served as the teams Assistant Captain before receiving the honor of Captain this season. Carroll will be leading a team which has a total of six former Bridgton Academy Wolverines including himself. Joining him are Thomas Ohlson BA Class of '06, Troy Maybury '07, John DeSangro '07, and Jonathan Santos '07 and Adam Ziegler '07.

The team is off to a 2-1 start with wins over Assumption College and Western New England College and an overtime loss to Johnson & Wales University.

Congratulations to Dave and best of luck to all our former Wolverines!!

Wolverines Take Win Against Mass Maple Leafs

Bridgton Academy played its fourth game of the weekend and won in convincing fashion as the Wolverines walked away with a 6-3 advantage. Tom Paine started the scoring in the first, and Richie Asselin added a power play goal to send the game into the locker room at 2-0. Eric Clemmenson kept the scoring going as he punched in a rebound just 52 seconds into the second. DJ Haskins added his third goal of the weekend, and Eric Siegel potted one with only 17 second on the clock to finish the second period at 5-1. The Leafs would not disappear as they scored 2 goals in the first six minutes of the period to tighten the game. Nick Marshall finished the scoring with 19 seconds left in the game. Michael Pearless picked up the win for Bridgton making 22 saves in the game.

Bridgton returns to action on Friday as they search hardware in the Northeast Hockey Showcase.

Final Score:
Final Score photo taken by Joe Robichaud

Wolverines Drop Heartbeaker to Winchendon

The Winchendon School scored a shorthanded goal with 60 seconds remaining to lift the home squad to a 5-4 victory at the Winchendon Showcase. Bridgton fell behind early and was looking a. 3-0 deficit with 28 minutes remaining in the game when Eric Clemmenson broke through and put the Wolverines on the board. Matt Delgiudice scored on the power play and DJ haskins would tap in a rebound to tie the score at 3 with 15 minutes remaining. DelGiudice would score his second of the game while shorthanded to put Bridgton up 4-3 with 10 minutes remaining. Bridgton could not hold on as Winchendon tied the game with 7 minutes left and notched the gamewinner with 1 minute on the clock.

Up next...the Wolverines play Sunday at home against the Mass Maple Leafs at 2:00.

Wolverines take one from Ste.-Foye

The Wolverines played its most complete game of the season as they defeated CEGEP Ste-Foy 3-0 at the Winchendon Showcase. The Wolverines struck twice in the opening 20 minutes with goals from DJ Haskins and Alex Young. Tom Paine completed the scoring with 6 minutes remaining. Michael Pearless was perfect stopping all 26 shots he faced.

Game 2 of the showcase will feature a tough matchup with the host Winchendon.

New England Stars take down Wolverines

The New England Stars of the IJHL put their 22-2-1 record on the line as they ventured to Bridgton and came away with a 5-1 victory dropping the Wolverines to 2-9 on the season. Special teams was the name of the game as the Stars scored 3 goals on the power play and 1 while shorthanded. Goaltending was strong for the visitors as Bridgton outshot the Stars 45-25 on the game. Eric Siegel scored the lone goal for Bridgton Academy.

The Wolverines head to the Winchendon School for two games. Game 1 features CEGEP Ste.-Foy, and Game 2 will be against the host school.

Wolverines Fall Short Against Phillips Exeter

A second period lapse proved to be all Phillips Exeter needed to hand Bridgton Academy a 4-3 loss on the road. The Wolverines played strong in the first with Tom Paine scoring midway through to send the game to the locker room with Bridgton up 1-0. Exeter would come out hungry building a 3-1 lead before Eric Clemmenson would cut the lead to 3-2. Exeter would score its fourth goal of the period with 0.3 seconds on the clock to extend its lead to 4-2. Paul Tosto cut the score again, but Bridgton could not find the net despite numerous chances. Steven Sisler played well making 28 saves. The loss drops the Wolverines to 2-8 on the season.

The Wolverines are in action 4 times next weekend. Friday, Bridgton hosts the NE Stars at 7:00. Saturday, Bridgton heads to the Winchendon Showcase where they will play CEGEP Ste. Foy at 1:00 and Winchendon at 4:30. Sunday, the Wolverines return home to play the Mass Maple Leafs at 2:00.

WOLVERINES VISIT STEVENSBROOK ELEMENTARY

Mrs. Clark's First Grade Class received a surprise visit from Bridgton Academy Hockey Captain Sean Travis and Forward Eric Clemmenson. The visit started with both Sean and Eric working with multiple groups who were completing both arts and crafts and math. Sean and Eric noted how impressed they were with the kids focus and overall motivation during completion of these assignments.

During the second part of the visit, Mrs. Clark divided the class into two groups for snack time. During this time, Sean and Eric read two stories and interacted with the kids. Sean read a story about a colorful monkey. Both Sean and the monkey were a huge hit with the group. Eric in the meantime, sat comfortably in a rocking chair and read a story about a stuffed bear. Coach Meserve noted, "I was surprise how attentive the groups were. Sean and Eric have a knack for working with kids."

Finally, Coach Meserve brought out a surprise for the class. Each student received a Bridgton Academy Autograph Roster. Sean and Eric worked their way around the room signing each students sheet. Additionally, the class was presented with two autographed photos of each player for all their hard work.

"Overall, it was a great experience to see our players interacting with the students. The students really looked up to Sean and Eric and were very excited to have them in their class" said Assistant Coach Mike Meserve.

Wolverine Hockey Defeats NSA 5-2

The Bridgton Academy hockey team snapped its 5 game losing streak by defeating the National Sports Academy 5-2 on Sunday. Sean Travis paced the offense with 2 goals and Eric Siegel added 3 helpers in the game. The key point in the game was the second period. With the score tied at 1-1, BA returned to the locker room with a 4-1 lead.

The Wolverines will spend time in Vermont this coming weekend as they play two games at the University of Vermont against the Green Mountain Glades of the Eastern Junior Hockey League.

Special Teams are the Difference Against Bulldogs

Wolverine hockey took its game to the University of Southern Maine to take on the Boston Bulldogs, and he Bulldogs power play proved to be the difference in the gam as Bridgton fell to 1-5 with a 6-2 loss. The Boston Bulldogs scored on 4 of their 8 power plays while the Wolverines continue to struggle on their own. The game was evenly matched as both teams traded scoring opportunities throughout. However, the Bulldogs had much more success in finishing their chances. Tom Paine (Superior, WI/Duluth-Marshall HS) scored both Bridgton Academy goals in the third period.