Mannion's defense powers Stevenson
When senior Jack Mannion and his younger brother Sam, a sophomore, agreed to play this season for Stevenson, they were excited to be linemates, not just teammates.
Well, at least they're teammates, as Jack was moved to defense since the Patriots were loaded with offensive threats.
The move worked - Jack Mannion is, without question, one of Illinois' best defensemen this season, and a record-holder at Stevenson, a club deep in defensive gems from its past.
"Through the years, Stevenson has been fortunate to have had a number of All-State defensemen, (such as) Kevin Welter, Dan Wood, Kyle Crowley, Tom Wood and Andy Wozniewski," said Stevenson coach Jim Wood. "Perhaps the best of the bunch is 2010 All-Stater Jack Mannion."
He set a school record for defensemen with 31 goals and 33 assists (64 points) in 53 games.
Sam, meanwhile, is the team's second-highest scoring forward. He has 42 goals, 28 assists in 55 games played, along with 8 power-play and 7 game-winning goals.
"Being teammates is one of the reasons that we decided to play for Stevenson this season, and it's been cool. I'm having a good season; Sam is too, and the whole team. It's been fun," said Jack, 18, of Lincolnshire, who previously played for the Falcons club. "I played with the same group of guys for a long time, but it's nice now to have new teammates, new coaches. It's refreshing. It's like a different environment to play in, and I think that's helped me."
A left-handed shooter, Jack Mannion plays on the Patriots' power-play and penalty-kill units. He leads the team with 14 power-play goals and is second on the team in game-winning goals (6).
Stevenson defeated York 5-2 on Feb. 28 to claim the Scholastic Cup championship, played in Northbrook. Sam had three goals in the win.
Jack had an assist Feb. 22 on Sam's goal as the Patriots' upset No. 1-ranked New Trier Green 1-0 in the semifinals of the season-long High School Invitational Tournament (HIT), which was the Trevians' first loss this season to an Illinois high school team.
Jack saw action at the end of last season at defense for the Falcons and in some previous seasons, "so it hasn't been that big of a transition," he said. "I've played defense on and off my whole life, but I think it's more fun to play forward.
"One of my best defensive attributes would be that I'm really good at (stopping) 1-on-1s because, when I used to play forward, what I would do was, I would try to figure out every possible move that I could use to beat defensemen.
"So, I think I know what (forwards) will think and try and do, thus I can anticipate and no one really beats me 1-on-1s."
The Patriots lost only twice in 10 January games and didn't lose at all in February.
"Jack Mannion is a tough defenseman to play against," said St. Viator forward John Scully. "He has good playmaking ability, as well as a nice shot from the point. His speed and quickness help him shut down opposing forwards, while allowing him to join the offensive rush. This makes him one of the most productive defensemen in the state."
And the best ever from Stevenson?
"I don't really think much about (Stevenson's defensive legacy) because I've never really seen any of (the former stars) play, except Danny. So I don't really know how I compare to them," Mannion said. "It's just a really cool thing (setting a school record) and knowing that I did something athletically for my school so my name is now on a record, especially since this is the first year I've been associated with the team."
Wild, Wild West: York captured the regular-season title in Metro West and has done the same in the league playoffs.
"It was awesome winning the regular-season because we get the first-place banner from AHAI, (the Amateur Hockey Association of Illinois)," said York All-State forward Connor Whitting. "That was our No. 1 priority for the entire season.
"It is not easy to be at the top of the standings all season and then head into the playoffs with that target on our backs. Our team has really come together and we have had great contributions from every player on the team. Winning the West division of the Scholastic Cup playoffs for two consecutive years has been amazing."
Nick Albergo is the Dukes' leading scorer with 52 goals and 36 assists in 47 games played. Whitting has 32 goals and a team-high 39 assists in 53 games. Anthony Albergo has 20 goals, 27 assists. All-State defenseman Brad Bosworth has 9, 24. All-State goalie Jason Kuzara has a 2.47 goals-against average in 40 games played.
The Dukes defeated Providence 3-2 on Feb. 22 in their first Blackhawk Cup game.
Fremd fun-day: Feb. 13 was lucky for the Vikings, as the club wrapped up Metro American play with a dominant 13-2 win over the co-op Huntley/Lake Zurich Raiders.
Eric Freeburg and Michael Azzaretto each had hat tricks, while Michael Cipolla and Jonathon Beening each had 2 goals. Freeburg and Daniel Walter also each had 3 assists.
Freeburg, an all-state left wing, leads Fremd in league scoring with 23 goals, 16 assists in 21 games. Azzaretto had 15 goals, 9 assists.
The Vikings finished Metro American play with an 11-10-3 record. They allowed only 71 goals in league play, third-fewest in Metro American, yet had 366 penalty minutes (second-most behind Jacobs 379).
North News: Glenbrook North won the regular-season Metro North title with an 18-3-1 record, 4 points ahead of Stevenson. However, the Spartans stumbled in Scholastic Cup playoffs, losing to New Trier Blue (5-4) and Lake Forest (1-0)
Around The Rink: Mundelein's Jamie Kleiner was the top scorer in Metro National. He had 21 goals, 23 assists, including 4 game-winning goals. And he had only one penalty in 23 games played ... Libertyville's Thomas Tambourine led Metro National with 5 game-winning goals ... New Trier won the Metro Girls' regular-season title with a 17-1-2 record, followed by the co-op NaperValley club (17-3) and Lake Forest (14-3-3). Junior Catherine Heidersback of Lake Forest Academy led Metro Girls in scoring with 39 goals, 7 assists, including 9 short-handed tallies. Lake Forest's Hannah Redden was the league's best regular-season goalie, recording a 0.72 goals-against average. She only allowed 13 goals on 244 shots in 651 minutes played - The Naper Valley Warriors defeated New Trier 4-3 to win the Girls Scholastic Cup - Some of the best players from around the state have been invited to tryout for Team Illinois, the local participant in USA Hockey America's High School Showcase, formerly called the Chicago Showcase. The event will be held April 14-18 in Pittsburgh and hosted by the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Hockey League (PIHL). There will be 24 ' teams from across the U.S., representing 43 states and competing in front of scouts from every major hockey institution in the country. Team Illinois tryouts will feature multiple games on March 6-7 at The Edge Ice Arena in Bensenville.