skip navigation

87's defeat Express to secure first EHL title

By Anthony Di Paolo, 04/07/22, 7:00PM EDT

Share

Atkinson named MVP as EHL team wins 2022 Frozen Finals

The New Jersey 87’s won their first-ever Eastern Hockey League (EHL) Championship with a 2-0 victory over the Walpole Express. 
 
It only took 44 seconds for the 87’s to jump ahead in the 2nd period with goals from Jason Atkinson and Everest Schneider. The defense and goaltending took care of the rest, killing off a five-minute power play for the Express, while Owen Hains recorded a 25-save shutout. 
 
“They did so much this year and to be able to put it together this weekend was everything about it,” said 87’s head coach Adam Houli. “It hasn’t hit me yet, I’m sure when I get on the bus and relax it’s going to hit me and it’s going to be a wave of emotion because I know how hard we worked as a club to do this and for the guys to do it.” 
 
Jason Atkinson, who finished the tournament with five points (2g, 3a) and scored the game-winning goal in the Championship Game, was named Most Valuable Player of the Frozen Finals. His goal came on the power play at 5:21 of the 2nd period, when Matt Anastasio shot a puck that went off the blocker of Express goaltender Jack Boschert and down to the ice. Atkinson picked up the rebound and went to the far post for a wrap-around goal. 
 
For Atkinson, being named MVP of the Frozen Finals was a culmination of the 87’s top line between Robbie Seewagen, Matt Anastasio, and himself. 
 
“It’s huge, I’ll definitely appreciate it forever but I wouldn’t be able to do it without my teammates and my two linemates Robbie [Seewagen] and Matt [Anastasio]. They are two amazing hockey players and I was always able to rely on them,” Atkinson said. 
 
Just 44 seconds after Atkinson’s goal, Everest Schneider doubled the lead as Walpole turned the puck over in their own end, allowing Schneider to fire a shot under the blocker of Boschert for his 4th goal of the postseason. 
 
The Express had an opportunity to claw their way back in the game with a lengthy power play, as 87’s defenseman Jimmy Mettler was assessed a five-minute major and a game misconduct. New Jersey’s penalty kill units rose to the task however, giving up only one shot on goal and keeping it a 2-0 game. 
 
“It defined our entire season,” Houli said of the penalty kill. “We take a penalty, we’re on the bad side of that, and now we go on to kill a five-minute power play and we blocked so many shots. We just played so well on that kill, once we got through it I knew it was going to be a really good thing for us, and honestly it was a testament of our season.” 
 
The Express had some close calls throughout the game, including a wrist shot from Alex Pratt on a two-on-one rush that slammed off the left post early in the 2nd period. Hains’ best save came in the 3rd period when he denied Anthony Persi, who was all alone and snapped a quick shot from between the hash marks. Moments later, the 87's were able to begin their celebration as time expired and they had won the championship. 

 

How they got there: 

The 87's trip to the Frozen Finals started with a wild card game against the Connecticut Chiefs. 

Following a loss to the Philadelphia Little Flyers in the South Division Final, the 87's had one more shot at reaching Providence through a wild card game against the losing team of the Central Division Final, setting up a one-game playoff round at Jersey Shore Arena against the Chiefs.  

Ben Gibbons scored late in the first period on a deflected point shot from Tobin Winslow. The Chiefs responded 32 seconds later with a seeing-eye shot from Tim Duffy, and Connecticut pulled ahead early in the third period with a goal from Nathan Cote. 

As the 87's kept pushing for a tying goal, Kyle Folkerson prevailed with 2:31 left in regulation, slamming a rebound past Chiefs goaltender Adam Yost. Folkerson stepped up again in overtime, scoring a power-play goal off a give-and-go with Matt Zdanowicz, sending New Jersey to its second straight Frozen Finals. 

"Hands down it's the best hockey game I've ever played," Folkerson said after the 87's overtime win. "As soon as I got into the dressing room after a little celebration with the boys, I immediately texted my parents and I said 'I feel like I'm dreaming right now, I had the best game of my life.'"  

Coming into Providence, the 87's were placed in a three-team pool with the Little Flyers and Worcester Jr. Railers. Their first game was against the Little Flyers, who had lost the day before, meaning an 87's win would automatically send them to the semifinal. 

Patrick DeMarinis opened the scoring in the first period, and in the second period the Little Flyers and 87's each scored twice; Savva Smirnov and Vincent Nicosia scored for Philadelphia while Matt Anastasio and Everest Schneider found the back of the net for New Jersey. In the third period, the 87's pulled away with three unanswered goals from Anastasio, Robbie Seewagen and Atkinson while cruising to a 6-2 win. 

Anastasio spoke about the 87's special teams, who scored on the power play and in four-on-four situations against the Little Flyers. "We put a lot together this week over the power play, and as a unit we've been talking it over a lot, trying to figure out what we need, and we got what we needed today," he said. 

New Jersey lost its second round robin game against the Railers, but the team rebounded on Saturday in its semifinal matchup against the New England Wolves.  

Matt Zdanowicz opened the scoring in the second period as a blocked shot bounced right to him in the low-slot, scoring on the follow up. New England tied the game moments later, but Matt Herrick put the team back in front when a seeing-eye shot went past Wolves goaltender Liam Kilgallen for a power play goal. 

Kyle Folkerson added to the lead with a power-play goal in the third period, and Owen Hains finished the game with 18 saves on 19 shots to send the 87's to the championship game, where they eventually defeated the Express. 

 

The turnaround: 
Earlier this season the 87’s were in a tumultuous stretch, losing eight straight games and falling to 4th place in the South Division. Houli admitted that he tried to get creative in order to get his team out of that rough stretch. 
 
“We tried everything and pulled every trick out of the book, we had barbecues, we shared hugs, we did everything we possibly could to break out of it and when that happened it really changed me,” Houli said. “This group really showed me a lot as a coach and I grew a lot with them.” 
 
He continued, “It’s something where I just have to sit back and just really see the growth of this club, and growth as a coach. We knew we had the pieces in place, we knew it was there, it was just a matter of putting it all together. 
 
Atkinson said it was just a matter of sticking to the game plan and battling through the adversity. 
 
“We just knew we had to buy in,” he said. “We were always a goal off, losing one-goal games, and it was just a team effort. We knew we were a team that could compete in every game and we showed it in the 2nd half of the season and obviously now we’re EHL Champions.” 

Additional Notes:

-Four 87's players were named to the All Tournament team in the Frozen Finals: Jason Atkinson (F), Matt Zdanowicz (F), Matt Herrick (D) and Owen Hains (G)

-Everest Schneider is the current 87's leader in goals during the Frozen Finals with three. He scored twice in this year's Frozen Finals and once last year.

-Like the EHLP team last year, the 87's EHL team won its first championship in its fourth season.

Photo Credit: Dan Hickling