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Finishing a remarkable run of three straight wins the Mako's are headed to the Nassau Coliseum for a championship showdown with Cantiague of Hicksville at 1:30 PM tomorrow. It will be the Squirts Championship game betwen two 3-0 teams. Today the Mako's were dominant in beating off a determined Long Beach team. The final score was 9-7 as the Mako's built up a 9-3 lead before Long Beach roared back and put a little nervousness in the Mako's fans.The tournament is under the sponsorship of the Islanders and is called New York Islanders Lighthouse Tournament. Former Islander Steve Webb is the coordinator of the tournament and definitely is the driving force behind it. The idea is to recognize In-House League players in Nassau and Suffolk Counties. The preliminary rounds are played at five sites across Long Island. Tomorrow at Nassau Coliseum there will be four championship games in the Squirt, Pee Wee, Bantam, and Midget Divisions.
The Mako's took a 4-1 lead after the first period on two goals by Joey, one by Johnny, and one by Troy. In the second period the Mako's scored five more times to take a 9-3 lead going into the final period. The goal scorers for the Makos were Joey giving him a hat trick, no hats thrown, Johnny and Troy each getting their second and Ben and John each notching their first goals.
But there was no quit in Long Beach as they came back with a furious rally that cut the once formidable lead to 9-7 with a little over two minutes to play. A great save by goalie Brandon with about a minute to play eased the nervousness of the Mako's fans. The first two periods saw some strong Mako forechecking led by Tyler, Alyssa, and Kyle. The defense led by James, Brendon, Billy, and Nicholas was solid especially at the points when they constantly kept the puck in Long Beach's zone. Nicholas was chosen as the Mako's player of the game.
A special word of thanks go out to the two coaches who gave of their time and energy and it really paid off as the Mako's seemed to have hit their stride in this tournament. Kudos to head coach Mike and his able assistant Rob for a job well done. A big thank you from all the parents, grandparents and fans. On to the Coliseum and one more win.
Lighthouse Tournament/Project Hope:
Steve Webb at Lighthouse Tournament Blog - Long Island DivisionIslandersTV:
Islanders: Lighthouse Tournament Blog
Newsday: Islanders host youth game for Chinese teams
Burnside in the Box at ESPN:
Owner Charles Wang was born in Shanghai, and the team for the past three years has been helping to establish rinks and youth hockey in China. This week the team will host two teams born of that project (dubbed Ice Hockey Project Hope) that will travel from Qiqihar and Harbin to take part in a massive youth tournament on Long Island. Some 2,500 kids aged 3 to 18 are expected to take part in the first-ever tournament hosted by the Islanders' children's foundation. The two China-based teams (players are aged 9-12) will also play a mini-game between periods at an Islanders game and be recognized during the opening ceremonies.
Steve Webb discusses the Lighthouse Tournament, a part of the Long Island Hockey Fest, from Parkwood Arena in Great Neck.
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