Huskies Show Improvement in Double Header

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The Northwood Huskies faced off twice against the Troy Albany Ice Cats this Sunday at the Knickerbocker Arena.

In the first game, Northwood started off shaky with bobbled pucks and missed passes. Luckily for the Huskies, Gaby P. held it to 0-0 with her strong goaltending in the first half. The Huskies progressively got better, but could not find a way to score until the second period when Erin B. battled through multiple Ice Cats to take it coast-to-coast and score. However, the third period saw two unanswered goals to upset the Huskies for a 2-1 loss.

After a short break where many Huskies didn’t even take off their pads, the two teams again battled on the ice. This time, Northwood came out strong – overpowering the Ice Cats and out-shooting them but not finding the back of the net. In the second period, Casey K. and Cailey H. had a beautiful give-and-go on the power play to finally put the Huskies on the board. Hailey S. scored her first Northwood goal towards the end of the second to give Northwood a 2 goal lead. As the old adage says though, a 2 goal lead is the hardest to keep, and this proved true for the Northwood girls. At the beginning of the third, Troy Albany scored twice to level the game. Despite their many efforts, the Huskies could not find a way to score and the game ended in a tie.

Northwood Builds College Repertoire with RPI Engineers

Northwood Alum and current RPI senior Kristin Jakubowski (Jako) and assistant coach Colette Youlen walked the girls around the campus of RPI before the RPI vs Princeton game on Saturday. The girls enjoyed watching the Engineers and Tigers play to a 1-1 tie then ate dinner in the freshman dorm dining hall. The girls are pictured with the RPI mascot Puck Man.

O Captain! My Captain!

Following a team vote, four huskie hockey players were named to leadership positions for the 2011-2012 season. Casey K. and Erin B. will serve as captains while Halle K. and Alexa C. will serve as assistant captains. All four girls live the core values of Northwood School  – respect, responsibility, integrity, compassion, and courage.

Here are some thoughts on what the girls hope to bring to the season this year, in their own words:

On the girls hockey team here at Northwood we take leadership very seriously. Erin and I are the new team captains for the 2011-2012 hockey season. We both agree that it is a big responsibility that entails keeping the team in order on the ice and in the classroom. Our main focus this year it to keep the team motivated and progressively get better as the season goes on. We believe that we have a very talented and hardworking team, and that we have the potential to be successful. We are excited about the depth and talent that we will be able to put on the ice every day this season. As the captains, we will do our best to lead the team in a positive direction, and hopefully a winning season.

– Casey K. and Erin B.

Newly appointed captains, Casey K. and Erin B.

LEADERSHIP

by Halle K. and Alexa C.

Letting things go

Assistant captains - Halle K. and Alexa C.

Easy to talk to

Accepting that teammates may have flaws

Dedication to make oneself better

Eager to get on the ice

Respecting opponents

Stepping out of the comfort zone

Hungry for goals

Igniting passion

Playing to potential

Huskies Battle in First Game

The Northwood girls’ hockey team showed great potential in the opening game of the new season. Playing at SUNY Potsdam against Canadian International Hockey Academy (CIHA), the Huskies started off strong with great forechecking that led to some offensive opportunities. Despite outshooting CIHA, the teams remained tied 0-0 going into the second period. The girls battled hard in the second, but went down 1-0 after a talented CIHA player dangled the D and beat Nicole with a deke. As is typical for a first game, the huskies were dragging a bit in the third and took three penalties – two if which led to CIHA goals – making the final score 3-0.

Some bright spots for the game: solid goaltending by Nicole, great hustle by Franny, a feisty first Northwood game by Cailey, and a terrific up and down effort by Halle.

After their game, the girls stayed to watch SUNY Potsdam Bears take on the Nittany Lions of Penn State. Pictured are Erin B., Grace, Erin K., Jess B., Alexa, and Casey before the game.

Bean Bag Reading

“He’s got a bill like a duck, but he’s not a duck. He’s weird!” said Little Duck.

Those and other words and stories filled the St Agnes Elementary kindergarden classroom yesterday as 4 Northwood girls’ hockey team members shared their love of reading with 8 lucky kindergardeners. The girls joined Coach Kilbourne-Hill as part of the Reading Buddies program between Northwood and St Agnes.

Every Monday Northwood students head to St Agnes where they read, play games, or get read to by the kindergarden or pre-k students. The program not only models great literacy skills for the young students, it also gives the teachers a welcome break in their very busy day. Reading Buddies is only one of the many community service projects that the girls dedicate themselves to throughout the school year.

Pictured are (from top to bottom) Nicole, Brennan, Erin and Julie.

Push ups during study hall?

The girls are bringing the dedication from the ice to the books with their push up routine during study hall. Alexa C. and Jess B. alternated reading their texts with a set of push ups – simultaneously preparing for the season and the next day’s classes. Good thinking girls!

The Huskies Hit the Ice

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Skates were sharpened, sticks were taped, and excitement filled the halls of Northwood School today in anticipation of the first day of hockey season. It’s hard to believe that so many young people would be looking forward to burning lungs and jello legs – two very key components to the first week of practice – but there were 23 young ladies lined up today waiting for the big blue busses to drive them to the Olympic Center (picture at right).

It was a high tempo practice mixing some skill development with competition and conditioning. On the way back to school, one new player sighed, “That was a really great practice…a hard practice, but a fun practice.” And that is music to a hockey coach’s ears!