Northford, Connecticut – January 29, 2020: Branford H.S. vs. Stamford Co-op during the first period of boys hockey Wednesday evening at the Northford Ice Pavilion in Northford.
1. BUBBLEVILLE: NORTHFORD, CT
A high school hockey version of Bubbeville is coming to the Northford Ice Pavilion. In a normal season, five SCC/SWC Division II teams usually play out of the rink. Now, with some prep school rinks closed and another rink under construction, two more division teams have moved in. That means seven SCC/SWC Division II squads will play each other at Northford. Might as well save some money on travel, right?
2. FAST AND FURIOUS: D-I EDITION
It is going to get crazy, early, among the state’s best programs. In the first week alone, fans will get to see top ranked matchups right away. Fairfield Prep vs. New Canaan opens the season Monday. Wednesday will see New Canaan vs. Notre Dame-West Haven, Fairfield Prep vs. Ridgefield and Darien vs. Greenwich. On Saturday, it’ll be Fairfield Prep vs. Darien and Ridgefield vs. New Canaan. Make sure to have your Live Barn subscription updated.
3. SETTING THEM FREE
The FCIAC is not requiring its teams to play a full FCIAC schedule this year, thanks to COVID scheduling concerns. That means no mismatched Division I vs. Division III games and more games against opponents of equal caliber, especially against the SCC/SWC.
4. POLL POSITION
With no state championships, the New Haven Register/GameTimeCT Top 10 figures to take on a more significant weight this season. But the pollsters’ job should be made easier since most of the top teams will mostly get to play each other. Then again, no one is ever happy with the top 10 poll. Maybe it’s just wishful thinking on our part.
5. MISSING SOME FRIENDS
The Eastern CT Eagles and the Shepaug co-op team will not be playing this season. The Eastern Connecticut Conference is not allowing co-op teams for winter sports, so the Eastern CT Eagles, a 12-school outfit which won the Division III state title in 2018 — are unable to field a team. Meanwhile, Nonnewaug — one of the teams in the Shepaug co-op — announced the school district would not allow co-op teams this year, forcing Shepaug co-op team to take the season off.
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Also, I wanted to give a shout out to GameTimeCT writer Mike Fornabaio who is usually on the hockey beat. He will not be covering hockey this winter, at least for the time being, as he has been asked to help out in other departments because he is such a great reporter. No one covered, knows as much or cares about high school hockey like Mike. Thanks for all the help with the previews.
