2012 Buckeye Cup State Playoff Tournament 

Come watch the NCHSHL Champion Jackson Polar Bears compete in the 2012 Buckeye Cup in Columbus.  (Additional NCHSHL qualifiers are the Fremont Ice Wolves, the Medina Bees, and the North Royalton Bears) 

Jackson's Preliminary Games:

3/9/12  Jackson 9 - Northeast Storm 2

The Polar Bears bested by Northeast Storm by a score of 9 to 2 and took all 5 game points.  The Polar Bears were sparked by Adam Fratczak's 5 goal performance and a Matt McGervey hat trick.  Aaron Stover rounded out the scoring with a single tally.  Geoff Saltarelli was solid in the net in the win. 

3/10/12  Jackson 5 - Butler County 2

The Polar Bears beat the Butler County 5 to 2 and took 4-1/2 game points.  Nolan Jones, Colby Hart and Matt McGervey lit the lamp to keep the Polar Bears on the winning streak.  Goaltender Geoff Saltarelli secured his second win of the tournament.    

3/10/12  5:00 PM vs Westerville at the Chiller North

Semi-Finals:

3/11/12  8:00 AM/10:00AM at the Chiller North

Championship:

3/11/12  4:00 PM at the Chiller North

Good Luck Bears!!!!

2012 North Coast HS Hockey League Champions!!

2/25 – 3/4/12 NCHSHL Playoffs

The Polar Bears entered the tournament as the 2nd seed due to the lone regular season loss to Fremont. The playoffs were all held at Hoover Arena in Strongsville.

2/25/12 – Jackson 8 – VASJ 2

The first game in the bracket pitted the Polar Bears against VASJ. Brandon Loader walked in from the point and deked to score a power play goal with an assist to Paul Wischt just 3 minutes into the game. Brandon scored his second goal not 3 minutes later with a seeing-eye goal to the top left, this one assisted by Beau Dent. Nolan Jones finished up the 1st period scoring with a tip in started by Colby Hart and Taylor Clendenin to give the Bears a 3-0 lead after the end of the first period. 18 seconds into the 2nd period, Charlie Williams popped one in on a scramble in front of the net with assists to Matt McGervey and Eric Jones for a 4 goal lead. VASJ scored with 7 minutes left in the 2nd, however, Beau Dent blocked a shot in our end on a 3 on 4 PK, skated down the length of the ice and deked and scored an unassisted short-handed goal with 2:21 left in the 2nd period. One minute into the final period showed Austin Ahbe tipping in a perfect feed from Beau Dent with the second assist to Adam Montague for another short-handed goal to give a 6-1 lead in the game. VASJ was not finished, scoring again with 9 minutes left in the game. Beau Dent answered again, tipping in a rebound from a Brandon Loader blast with the second assist to Colin McDevitt with 8 minutes remaining. Charlie Williams finished out the scoring 30 seconds later with a toe-drag fake burying his second goal of the game with assists to Austin Ahbe and Nick Barbieri. Goaltenders Geoff Saltarelli and Alex Bailey shared duties and stopped 13 of 15 shots while the Polar Bears threw 51 shots at VASJ. The win keeps us in the winners bracket for a match against our friends from Medina tomorrow night.

2/26/12 – Jackson 5 – Medina 2

The 2nd round of the playoffs gets a little tougher with the Polar Bears facing off against the Medina Bees. Both teams traded shots until 6:23 remaining in the first, when Nick Barbieri shot a blast from the point into the back of the net with assists to Eric Jones and Adam Montague. The 1-0 lead was all the Bears could muster up on 9 shots at the opposing goaler. The Bears finally solved the opposing netminder with Matt McGervey putting in a rebound of a blast from Taylor Clendenin with second assist to Austin Ahbe just 2 minutes into the 2nd period. With 5 minutes left in the period, Nolan Jones skated it from center ice, through both defensemen and scored with assists to Paul Wischt and Colby Hart. Adam Fratczak scored 40 seconds later, carrying it in past both defenders with an assist to Brandon Loader. So the Bears take a 4-0 lead into the locker room for the ice cut. Medina rallied in the 3rd period, scoring with 8:50 remaining, then scoring again with 7:52 remaining in the game. The precarious 4-2 lead showcased multiple, spectacular saves by goaltender Geoff Saltarelli. Captain Alex Shepley calmed everyone’s anxieties scoring an empty net goal on a blast from outside our blue line with 16 seconds remaining in the game. Geoff stopped 26 of 28 in the win while the Bears fired 32 at Medina. The win keeps us in the winner’s bracket with a rematch against Fremont.

3/1/12 – Jackson 4 – Fremont 1

Finally, a chance to avenge the lone stain on a perfect league record… the loss to Fremont (in Fremont). And also, finally, a chance to meet them on neutral ice. The first period was tilted toward the Polar Bears, with the Polar Bears firing a dozen shots on goal and allowing only 4 shots through to Geoff Saltarelli. The second period was more of the same, until Aaron Stover backhanded a shot in with assists to Brandon Loader and Adam Fratczak with 12:43 left in the 2nd. Then, with 2:37 remaining in the 2nd, Austin Ahbe scored off his chest with assists to Eric Jones and Alex Shepley for a 2-0 lead. The lead was short-lived as Fremont battled back and scored with a minute and a half left in the period. That set the stage for a tense 3rd period as a battle was brewing. Alex Shepley blasted a shot from the point to score with assists to Colby Hart and Paul Wischt for a two goal lead with 10:36 remaining. Then Adam Fratczak rounded out the scoring with a top shelf goal from the right side with 6:37 remaining with assists to Aaron Stover and Beau Dent. Geoff Saltarelli was nearly perfect in the win, stopping 14 of 15. Although Fremont was hampered with a short bench, they found the drive to win the consolation bracket for a rematch on Sunday morning.

3/4/12 – Jackson 4 – Fremont 1 - NCHSHL League Championship

Another date with Fremont with the league trophy in the balance… and Fremont was showing battle scars with several more injuries to get back to the Championship. The Bears came out fired up and shot 12 times at the Fremont net in the 1st period, one problem, the Fremont goalie prevailed all 12 times. Finally, with 11:17 remaining in the 2nd, Eric Jones redirected a shot from Adam Montague with an assist to Austin Ahbe gave the Bears a 1-0 lead. And 4 minutes later, Aaron Stover scooped up a rebound, carried it around the goaler and deposited it in the empty net with assists to Matt McGervey and Colin McDevitt for a 2-0 lead. The Bears took the 2-0 lead into the locker room for the ice cut. If you thought that Fremont was done, think again… they scored to bring the game to 2-1 with 9:20 remaining. Alex Shepley knew it wasn’t over and scored on a blast from the point on a power play with assists to Paul Wischt and Colby Hart with 8:03 remaining. Then Beau Dent followed with a goal assisted by Aaron Stover and Brandon Loader with 7:07 remaining for a 4-1 lead. Then Eric Jones rounded out the scoring popping in a rebound with assists to Austin Ahbe and Matt McGervey with 2:32 remaining. Geoff Saltarelli was again nearly perfect, stopping 11 of 12 in the win. The Bears paraded the trophy around the ice and stopped for pictures, knowing full well the real goal in the back of their minds is next week in Columbus at the playoffs at the Buckeye Cup State Tournament.

1/14-15/12 Jeff Musat Memorial Hockey Tournament 

1/14/12 –Jackson vs. VASJ Vikings, Eastwood vs. North Royalton, VASJ Vikings vs. Eastwood 

The Polar Bears hosted the tournament at Center Ice, seeking to defend their title from the past two years.  The round-robin style tournament featured the Polar Bears, the VASJ Vikings from Euclid, the Eastwood Eagles from Toledo, and the North Royalton Bears from the NCHSHL.  A point is awarded for each period and two points for the game for a total of 5 points per game. 

The opening game of the tournament saw the Jackson Polar Bears skate against the VASJ Vikings.  Matt McGervey backhanded a rebound of an Eric Jones shot with Alex Shepley also assisting with 12:20 left in the first period.  Alex Shepley rounded out the scoring in the first with a goal assisted by Matt McGervey and Blake Youngblood with 4 minute left in the first. 

The second period scoring started with Paul Wischt scoring 1 minute into the period with assists to Youngblood and Evan Fenstemaker.  Nolan Jones followed 2 minutes later with a goal off the right post with assists to Shepley and Colby Hart.  Three minutes later Adam Fratczak went high blocker side on a backhand for an unassisted goal.  Then with 6:28 remaining in the period, Youngblood buried a one-timer from the slot on a feed from Beau Dent on a penalty kill.  With 4:21 remaining in the period Fratczak scored again tapping in a pass from Austin Ahbe.  Then Colby Hart scored a buzzer beater with 3 seconds remaining in the period, set up by Taylor Clendenin skating the puck through the entire team on a power play.  With all this scoring, we can just mail in the results and take all 5 points? 

That is what the Polar Bears thought, getting only 3 shots in a tense period.  Then with less than a minute remaining, Fratczak skated down the left wing and buried it in the upper right on a feed from Shepley and Geoff Saltarelli back in our end.  Alex Shepley received game MVP honors in the 4 point performance as the Polar Bears won 9 – 0 and took all 5 points with the solid goaltending and assist from Geoff Saltarelli (stopped all 9 shots in the shutout).   

The second game of the tournament saw North Royalton best Eastwood by a score or 4 to 3 with North Royalton getting 4 points and Eastwood getting 1 point.  This single point will make a difference late in the tourney. 

In the third game of the tournament, Eastwood defeated the VASJ Vikings by a score of 5 to 2 with Eastwood taking all 5 points.

1/15/12 –Eastwood vs. Jackson, North Royalton vs. VASJ Vikings, Jackson vs. North Royalton 

The Polar Bears faced off against Eastwood for the first game of the day.  Nolan Jones started the scoring popping in a rebound with assists to Brandon Loader and Paul Wischt just 20 seconds into the game.  That was the only score of the period.  Adam Fratczak went top shelf short side on a give-and-go with Austin Ahbe and Beau Dent with 8:30 remaining in the second.  Then Beau Dent went dipsy-doodle on a fake and go to the stick side with assists to Fratczak and Ahbe with 7:42 remaining in the period.  Eric Jones scored the lone goal of the third period with assists to Nolan Jones and Adam Montague.  The Polar Bears again took all 5 points in winning 4 to 0.  He shutout was secured by Geoff Saltarelli (2^nd shutout in as many days, stopping all 15 shots).

North Royalton shut out the VASJ Vikings 7 to 0 in taking all 5 points.  With Jackson at 10 points and North Royalton at 9, the final game is winner take all!

The Polar Bears faced off against North Royalton in the final game with North Royalton drawing first blood on the power play with 4:35 left in the first.  Beau Dent scored the lone goal of the second period (no he didn’t swim) with assists to Adam Fratczak and Alex Shepley.  MVP Geoff Saltarelli was solid in the pipes stopping 11 of 12 in the 2-2 tie, and razor thin tournament victory.

Final Results:

1^st Place:  Jackson – 12 ½ points

2^nd Place: N. Royalton – 11 ½ points

3^rd Place:  Eastwoood – 6 points 

The Polar Bears hosted the Westlake Demons at Center Ice for a non-league match.  The festivities included Senior Recognition for the seniors on the team.  Seniors Aaron Stover, Paul Wischt, Matt McGervey, Nolan Jones, Taylor Clendenin, Colby Hart, and Alex Shepley and all their parents were honored at center ice.  The night was also the First Annual “Pink the Rink” night hosted by the Jackson Local Schools Interact Club which raised awareness for breast cancer.  The Polar Bears played in special pink jerseys that, according to more than one parent, had a “calming effect” on the Polar Bears.  The Polar Bears set a “Lady Byng” record in receiving only one minor penalty for the entire game.  Now to the play-by-play…

The game started slowly with the Demons netminder stoning the Polar Bears, saving all 16 shots fired at him in the first period.  Senior Colby Hart was the first to crack the goaler, burying a rebound of a Senior Nolan Jones shot off a pass from Senior Paul Wischt with 8:38 remaining in the second period.  Next was Adam Montague scoring on the blocker side off a Senior Matt McGervey centering pass that was started off by Senior Alex Shepley with 6:04 left in the second.  Then with 3:54 remaining in the second, Senior Matt McGervey scored from the slot off a feed from Senior Aaron Stover.  The Bears rounded out the scoring with 2:16 remaining in the second period with Adam Fratczak burying a rebound of a Senior Aaron Stover shot with a second assist to Senior Alex Shepley.

Polar Bear goaltending was stellar again recording the fifth shutout of the year in a combined effort with Geoff Saltarelli (first two periods) and Alex Bailey (final stanza).

Click here to go to the "Pink the Rink" website.

The Polar Bears travelled to Cleveland Heights to participate in the Cleveland Heights Holiday Tournament.  The Bears were without several regulars due to Christmas vacations.  

12/27/11 Jackson 6 - Elyria Catholic 7 

After an early EC goal, a Charlie Williams wrap-around assisted by Alex Dent knotted the game at 1 each.  Then late in the first period, a goal by Matt McGervey with assists to Beau Dent and Aaron Stover followed by a Beau Dent tally assisted by McGervey and Stover gave the Bears a 3-1 lead.  Second period penalty problems gave EC 3 unanswered power play goals to lead 4-3.  However, tallies by Paul Wischt with assists from Colby Hart and Nolan Jones then Nolan Jones from Hart and Wischt within 20 seconds put the Bears up 5-4.  A final tally by EC in the second period  tied the game at 5.  Goaltender Alex Bailey kept the Bears in it saving all 9 shots in the third (for 27 saves on 33 shots), however, with no third period scoring, the game went to a shootout.  A single score in the shoot-out by Matt McGervey was not enough to win the match and the Bears were relegated to the consolation bracket.

12/28/11 Jackson 7 - Cleveland Heights 3

Austin Ahbe drew first blood scoring 6 minutes into the game with an assist to Beau Dent.  After two Heights goals, Matt Mayle evened the score with Brandon Loader’s assist to end the first period tied at 2.  Polar Bear tallies by Paul Wischt (assisted by Nolan Jones and Colby Hart) and Beau Dent (assisted by Matt McGervey and Austin Ahbe), both goals in the last minute of the second period gave the Bears a 4-2 lead.  A score 30 seconds into the third period by Logan Clendenin (assisted by Alex Dent and Charlie Williams) was matched by Heights a minute later.  But Adam Montague got into the action, scoring with a helper by Connor Danish, then Nolan Jones scored the final goal with 6 minutes left in the game.  Netminder Alex Bailey stopped 11 of 14 in the win.

12/29/11 Jackson 5  - VASJ Vikings 0  

The Bears shut-out the Vikings to take the Consolation Championship of the Tournament.  Scoring was started in the first period with a blast from the point by Evan Fenstemaker with the assist from Paul Wischt.  The Bears followed up with a power play goal by Paul Wischt with assists from Colby Hart and Aaron Stover.  In the second period, the same line connected again with Aaron Stover scoring and Wischt and Hart assisting.  This was followed by a short-handed, unassisted tally by Brandon Loader.  The third period featured a Matt McGervey goal to seal the win with assists going to Beau Dent and Loader.  Alex Bailey was solid between the pipes stopping all 7 attempts to record the Bears fourth shutout of the year.  The trophy was hoisted and the Bears skated off the ice to celebrate.