VERONA/GLEN RIDGE, NJ — The Verona–Glen Ridge high school ice hockey team will begin the season on Friday, Dec. 8, against Nutley at Richard J. Codey Arena in West Orange at 8:30 p.m.
The Hillbillies are coming off a 10-10-3 season, reaching the semifinals of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association’s Public C state tournament.
There are 11 Glen Ridge players on the roster. They are seniors Owen Kristal, Jaden Segal and Pyotr Sysak; juniors Jack Budinick and Griffin Kim; sophomores James Benson, Max Cohen, Gavin Farrell and Brandon Grisafi; and freshmen Davin Hirschman and Jackson Soshnick.
There are six Verona players on the roster. They are senior Jack MacEvoy; juniors Michael Compierchio and Yianni Yanniotis; sophomore Sebastian Ferran; and freshmen Graham Lehrhoff and Jaeden McHugh.
Despite the heavy graduation losses, Verona–Glen Ridge veteran head coach Ken Lilien is looking forward to the season.
“We lost 14 seniors, but we expect to be very exciting to watch, and very difficult to play against every game,” Lilien said. “We are a smaller roster, but we have great leadership in Sysak and Benson. We have a younger group, but they all work extremely hard, and know what it takes to represent VGR Hockey. We plan on playing for the Kelly Cup championship and making a lot of noise in the state tournament as usual.”
Following the season opener, the team will face Glen Rock on Monday, Dec. 11, at 6 p.m. and face Livingston on Wednesday, Dec. 13, at 4 p.m., both at Codey Arena.
Here are other upcoming games:
- Dec. 19: vs. Bridgewater-Raritan, 4:30 p.m.
- Dec. 21: at Watchung Hills, 4 p.m.
- Dec. 22; vs. Madison,4 p.m.
- Dec. 28: at Frisch Yeshiva (Mackay Ice Rink, in Englewood), 7 p.m.
- Jan. 6: vs. Oratory Prep, 7:45 p.m.
- Jan. 8: vs.Frisch Yeshiva, 8 p.m.
- Jan. 9: at Scotch Plains–Fanwood (Warinanco Ice Rink, in Roselle), 8:30 p.m.
- Jan. 12: vs. Hoboken, 8 p.m.
- Jan. 15: vs. Marlboro, 4 p.m.
- Jan. 17: at Montclair (at Clary Anderson Arena, in Montclair), 7:45 pm.
- Jan. 19: at Glen Rock (at Ice House, in Hackensack), 7:15 p.m.
- Jan. 21: vs. Nutley, 5 p.m.
- Jan. 26: vs. Scotch Plains–Fanwood, 8:30 p.m
- Jan. 28: vs. Newton, 8 p.m.
- Feb. 4: vs. Vernon, 7:30 p.m.
- Feb. 5: vs. Oratory Prep, 8 p.m.
All home games are held at Codey Arena.
Photos Courtesy of Michael Discafani
Verona–Glen Ridge vs. Arthur L. Johnson High School, preseason scrimmage (Sunday, Dec. 3, at Codey Arena)
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