Hockey: Experience, defense boosting Dublin Coffman Shamrocks in CHC-White title race
After previously competing at the AAA travel level, defenseman Cam Willis elected to play for the Dublin Coffman hockey program last season.
It’s been everything he hoped it would be.
“I really just liked the sense of school spirit,” Willis said. “It was closer to home. I enjoy playing with all my friends and it’s a totally different atmosphere, one I find way more enjoyable.”
The Shamrocks have benefited from Willis’ choice as well.
Following a 10-19-2-1 finish in 2019-20 in its first season under coach Jeff Kerr, Coffman improved to 12-11 last season despite having only five seniors.
A roster featuring Willis and 10 other seniors this winter has the Shamrocks in line to win the six-team CHC-White Division, which is considered the middle of the CHC’s three divisions.
Before playing Upper Arlington on Jan. 21, the Shamrocks were 10-9-0-1 overall and 6-1-0-1 with 13 points in the CHC-White. Thomas Worthington was second in the CHC-White at 6-4 with 12 points before facing Cincinnati Moeller on Jan. 21.
Coffman has two league games remaining against opponents in the CHC-Red, two against CHC-White opponents and one against a CHC-Blue opponent. The CHC-Red is the top division.
The district tournament drawing will be held Feb. 9, the Blue Jackets Cup is set for Feb. 10-13 and the postseason will begin the following week.
“We’ve been having an extremely good season thus far,” Kerr said. “The boys are starting to learn that you can’t take shifts off now. There’s a lot of parity in our league regardless of the division you’re playing (in), and if you’re going to take a couple shifts off, we’re going to be pulling the puck out of the net. They’re starting to figure this thing out.
“(A strength has been) their intensity for sure. Their upbeat tempo when they’re on the ice is something they’re doing on their own. When we start to go south, that’s when they’ve lost that tempo. We’ve got to be able to understand that it’s a 45-minute game and we’ve got to be able to have that tempo for 45 minutes.”
Willis has been among the team’s top scorers despite playing on defense. Other key players on offense have been senior forwards Connor Mahoney and Owen North and sophomore forwards Joe Shevetz, Will Feit and Brady Gedman.
“We’ve got a really promising group of seniors this year,” Willis said. “It’s just about the energy we bring every single day. Day in and day out, in practice, games, you name it, every day of the week we’re putting in work. That’s something that a lot of teams don’t have. Energy is constantly brought up. It’s one thing that really affects how we play on the ice every day. It’s one thing that kind of gets overlooked.”
The “MVP” of the team, according to Kerr, has been senior goalie Will Pace. He had posted three shutouts before Jan. 21, including a 7-0 win over Jerome on Dec. 4.
Among those joining Willis on defense have been seniors Eliav Dayan, Brycen Leavings, Aiden Magyar and Cole Morris.
“Although our penalties have been a concern, it’s worth noting that nine of our 15 players (before Jan. 21 had) fewer than six minutes each in penalties for the season,” Kerr said. “In league play (before Jan. 21), we as a team (had) scored 51 goals, of which our defense accounted for 12. Our goals against shows the commitment the (defense has) to our end and yet still manages to have the jump to be key contributors to our success in the offensive zone.
“(Pace) continues to keep us in just about every game. This is a rallying cry for our team as we’ll put Will up against any shooter in the league. Not only is he a brick wall, but he also has an assist. Our team as a whole has committed to our defensive side.”
julrey@thisweeknews.com
@UlreyThisWeek
This article originally appeared on ThisWeek: Hockey: Experience, defense boosting Coffman in CHC-White title race
