2017 Hockey Nationals – Flames, Avalanche Represent NH

Well, the results are in, and the Nationals are over with. New Hampshire high school hockey was pretty well represented in Michigan and also in Texas. The New Hampshire Avalanche 18U and the Manchester Flames 16U teams both made the trip to their respective Tier II National Championship tournaments. I purchased a subscription to HockeyTV so that I could watch both teams play.

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2017 Hockey National Championships – NH Avalanche 18U

Breaking Hockey News: East Lansing, Michigan:

The New Hampshire Avalanche 18U team is playing for the Tier II Division 2A USA Hockey National Championship tomorrow at 10am! This press release is meant to be informational and also serve as a summary of how the NH Avalanche 18U team reached the final.

NHIAA Hockey: Div. II Final: Bow Hands Keene First Loss, 4-2

SNHU arena, Manchester, NH – 03/11/17

#2 Bow (17-2-1) vs. #1 Keene (18-0) – Division II Championship

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Mettlesome and gritty are a pair of words that come to mind when I look to describe the Bow Falcons in their game this afternoon. See, Bow entered the tournament as the #2 seed, and they owned an awesome regular season record of 15-2-1. As these kind of things often work themselves out, the pair of losses for Bow came at the hands of this afternoon’s opponent, the Keene BlackBirds. Bow lost to Keene 3-0 just before Christmas, and then they lost again, 5-3 in mid-February. In today’s Division II State Championship game, the #1 BlackBirds (18-0) looked to remain undefeated, and cap their perfect season with their first ever hockey title. Though, as we have learned over the years, in sports, and in rivalries, it is very difficult to beat a good opponent three straight times, especially in the same season. Today was no different.

NHIAA Hockey: Div. II Semi-Finals, It’ll Be 1 vs. 2

The Rinks at Exeter, Exeter, NH – 03/08/17

Mumbled and garbled audio aside, the atmosphere in Exeter was electric. The Bow student section was in place early. The Windham throngs seemed to show up at exactly the same time. Keene packed their side with orange and black. St. Thomas showed their various blues. Before long the seats were full. The areas all around the glass where people were allowed to stand, were accounted for. The crowds for all of the Final Four teams were loud, present, and noticeable. Despite my hometown Grizzlies being absent from the semifinals, it was fun to watch some good high school hockey. Storylines run in every direction when there are a few of us, or more, gathered at events like these. Then, there comes the time when the game is played, and legends are born.