The Walter Johnson Icecats ice hockey team defeated the Wootton Patriots 3-0 on Friday, Jan. 10, to improve their record to 10-1. The Icecats played the Patriots on their senior night and were able to shut down their hopes of winning on their big night.
With goals from senior Max Epstein, junior Jamie Pappafotis and junior alternate captain Henry Horwell, and a shut-down defense, the Cats won a solid game against one of the tougher teams in the league, solidifying their dominance.
“Our team has tried very hard to stay consistent with our play on and off the ice,” senior captain Patrick Murphy said. “With our winning attitude and high morale as a team, those have translated into our play, which can be shown with our record. As we head into county and state playoffs, we look to stay with our gritty, fast style of play and dominate future opponents.”
Although the players scoring the goals get a lot of the credit for the big win, the Cats’ defense was able to shut out Wootton. Both their defense and sophomore goalie Isaac Russ worked together for the shutout and Russ saved all 19 shots on goal he faced.
“The goalie play has been very impressive throughout the season, leading us to our current winning record,” senior assistant captain Jack Potash said. “The goalie shutting down shots put on the net and the defense keeping the puck out of the zone worked great together to prevent Wootton from scoring,”
The Icecats have gone on a rampage the second half of the season going 5-0 coming out of the mid-season break.
“Blowing out the weaker teams just shows how we can separate ourselves from the rest of the league,” Horwell said. “In order to win a championship, you can’t just be better you gotta be a lot better. It also helps our confidence, of course, which is great.”
The team currently sits atop the Montgomery Hockey Conference standings, edging out Whitman High School (10-1) for the top position on goal differential. The team has beaten every single conference team they have played this season at least once.
“The wins against tough opponents show our strength as a team and make us stronger and more prepared for the type of teams we are going to play in the playoffs,” Potash said.
The Icecats have a bye this week and will play the DC Stars next Friday, Jan. 24. The game will mark the end of the regular season and send the Cats into the playoffs.
