If this were a movie the ending would have been different. The Florida Eels EJHL South team would have defeated the Atlanta Knights in the EJHL South Championship game and the script would have gone on describing several barn-burning games that Eels team played in Rochester Minnesota ultimately winning the Tier III USA Hockey Nationals. But to the contrary the it is not TV and the Eels lost in what was one of the best games played by any of the EJHL South teams this year. The Atlanta Knights struck first and again making it 2-0 in the first period up in Tyngsboro Massachusetts the site of the EJHL South league championships. . The Eels team were down 2 goals and came back to score 3 unanswered goals in the second period. However, Atlanta put two more goals in the third period on the scoreboard and won the game 4-3.
Yes Massachusetts was the forum of the EJHL South League games Indeed, the EJHL South owners selected Massachusetts as the venue as it would allow the teams to showcase their talents and player’s skill in front of dozens of NCAA college scouts as well as selecting the team to represent the EJHL South at Nationals. The EJHL South has held their playoffs in Massachusetts for the second year in a row for this very reason: Gain maximum exposure. That is what we are here for. This gives our players the edge in getting in front of the scouts. In fact the EJHL South teams regularly travel to the Northeast three times during the regular season to play in EJHL showcases to gain that recruiting forum.
This year we saw that the road to the USA Hockey Tier III Junior Nationals was going to be even more difficult for the teams as unlike last year only one team form our league gets to go to Nationals. We expected the competition to be fierce all around and indeed that is what the scouts witnessed. The teams present played extremely hard all weekend demonstrating some phenomenal talents among the players competing.
There is truly parity amongst the teams in the EJHL South. Any team can beat any other team on any given night. Every game is a true battle. Coach Bloomingburg comments that he was surprised when he came to the EJHL South to find that every game is a battle. You cannot take any team for granted. There are no sure wins in this league.
In fact there is no clear dominant team in our league says GM Scarpaci of the Florida Eels. Even the teams who did not make playoffs such as the East Coast Eagles and the Potomac Patriots are very good and present clear challenges to any team they play. In fact it took the last games of the regular season to determine who clinched t a playoff berth in the EJHL South. What other league is that close? This year all of our coaches and GMs did phenomenal jobs in recruiting and training and developing our players individually and as a team.
No program underscores that more than the Florida Eels. In fact the Eels EJHL South team only won 3 games the previous season and the Eels Empire squad only won 5 games that year. There was Herculean work that needed to be done in order for the Eels to survive and GM Scarpaci took the bull by the horns so to speak and made it his number one mission in life to completely overhaul his program. And as shown by this year’s regular season performance and playoff results he emphatically and unequivocally accomplished that monumental task.
Nowhere was this shown more clearly than period two of the Championship game. The Eels team was down 2 goals and came back to score 3 unanswered goals in the second period. Most teams would have rolled over after the Atlanta attack in period one. But not the Eels. The boys showed their composure and confidence and battled back to notch three goals while assign a stalwart defense. This clearly was not the Eels of last year. This was an incredible battle amongst two teams that went down to the final buzzer. The best of both teams had to offer was left on the ice.
There was an irony all weekend that the Eels and Atlanta were destined to meet in the finals. These same two teams unbeknownst earlier by the owners shared the same hotel this weekend, the same breakfast places, had adjoining locker rooms, and shared showers at the end of their hard fought battles. It was only fitting they would be the two who met in the end. I think all of the coaches there saw the drama building over the season and in the playoffs. Atlanta was clearly the top team in the league. They had much experience and dept on the team and having won last year’s Tier III junior Nationals. Many thought they were simply poised to win it again. However, there was no doubt the Eels had to be reconciled with. After last year’s absence from playoff participation and his team’s dismal record, Scarpaci vowed he would rebuild his team into a premier and elite program he once enjoyed of years past.
And that he did. He recruited players from across the entire USA and Europe. He hired Jason Bloomingburg to take over the helm as head coach of the EJHL South team and as Associate coach of the Empire team. Bloomingburg was part of the winning tradition of the Texas Tornadoes. He was a member of the Tornadoes who won the Nationals at the Tier II level both as a player and then last year as an assistant coach. Scarpaci interviewed dozens of candidates but there was something intangible about Bloomingburg that he liked. It was a combination of his experience, winning attitude and desire to be the best. Jason also had the right chemistry that Scarpaci was looking for. Scarpaci also trusted his long time friend and colleague Tony Curtale who highly recommended Bloomingburg for the Job and a marriage was made. Scarpaci comments that Jason has done a phenomenal job. He shares the same training qualities as Scarpaci, including high tempo practices, strong discipline, commitment and dedication among the players.
Scarpaci also hired his son Frankie Scarpaci to take over as head coach of the Empire team. He had recently graduated form Concordia University in Wisconsin where he played NCAA Div 3 hockey and he specialized his studies in Sports Management. He brought fresh ideas with an exciting coaching style that fit the needs of the Eels. He was part of the Eels Elite teams that the Eels have been known for and brought back the winning attitude and tradition to the program. .The younger Scarpaci also understood that we are in it for the long haul and we needed the right mixture of winning and player development.
GM Scarpaci now knew he had the right ingredients for a winning program. It is so important to have the chemistry you need and we now believe we have it. A winning formula. With his new team they brought in 44 new players. The three of them combed the USA in scouting every Jr showcase in North America. Overhauling his program was the understatement of the year. The staff went to 8 spring and summer showcases and put together 6 tournament teams. Bloomingburg and young Scarpaci then sought out on a training program that includes 2 ½ hours of training each day. The results of these changes were loudly echoed day in and day out in regular season games and in the playoffs.
In fact to fully appreciate the breath of the Eels development this year one has to look well beyond the EJHl South team and how far it went. Yes the EJHL South team made it to the finals and was one goal away from going to Nationals. Sure they had the best power play and penalty kill percentages n the league. Sure they went from 3 wins to 25 wins. Sure they played top EJHL North teams to 2 and 3 goal margins. But if you peel back the onion you will see that the Empire team did just as well. That is what is so incredible about this Cinderella story. You see most teams that make such a turn around put all of their eggs in one basket. For example they stack the EJHL South team or stack their Empire team to the sacrifice of the other. This was not the case for the Eels program. Oh no!
Just look at the Eels Empire team. They also went from a low of 5 wins in 2011-12 to an incredible 25 wins this season. They defeated top Empire teams in the north (Springfield Pics, Salem Ice Dogs, Valley Jr Wariors, the Fredrick Freeze) and had very respectable winning percentage as swell. In fact the Empire team was 9th overall in the entire Empire league in wins and winning percentage. These accomplishments are not realized unless there was incredible player development being facilitated. Indeed, there was, and that is why GM Scarpaci and his staff are so proud of this year’s players and their program. In fact, we expect to have 16 + players with college commitments this year including Zack Mudge, Steve Prince, Hunter Fernandez,, Arnie Osuna, Xavier Carrillo,, Daniel Filler, Brien Thompson, Vinny Cavalieri, Sean Gawel , David Bryant, Fredrik Wink, Tom Doverhjelm, Chris James, Ryan Deese, Matt Kiesel, and Mitch Reynders,
So what is next? One thing for sure is that the Eels GM and Coaches will not be sitting on their laurels this spring and summer. To the contrary, the Eels staff will once again set out on a recruitment journey that will exceed this year’s program. Moreover the Eels staff is very encouraged by its young midget program so we will work very hard to improve their skills to get these players to that Next Level.
The playing season maybe coming to a close but our job and work is only just beginning. In the next few months we are busier than the regular season says Scarpaci, if we want to get to Nationals we need to roll our sleeves up now and get the wheels in motion.
