It's official: Barrington's Schmitz knows his hockey
After practice the other day, Barrington senior goalie Zach Schmitz was back on the ice working on his game in, well, a unique manner.
He was an on-ice official for a youth game in the Northwest suburbs.
Schmitz, 17, a senior who lives in Barrington, also is a registered official in his fifth year (level 3) wearing the black-and-white stripes for almost every level game from mites through men's leagues.
"Officiating definitely helps me as a player," said Schmitz, in his second season on the varsity. "(While playing), I can anticipate penalties and head to the bench, even before I look at the officials (to see if they are calling the penalty). That can give us a man-advantage."
Schmitz officiated about 80-100 games this season, many with his dad Bill Sr., or older brother Bill Jr., a former Barrington forward who now attends the University of Iowa.
"I'm more comfortable reffing with them than other refs because I've worked so many more games," Schmitz said. "I just feel so much more in control working with either of them."
Barrington, during the past month or so, seems to have taken control of its inconsistent season and is now playing its best hockey of the season. At the perfect time.
The Broncos, who advanced to the semifinals of the Metro League's Scholastic Cup before losing 3-1 to Stevenson, which included an empty-net goal, are set to face Fenwick in the Sweet 16 round of the Blackhawk Cup on Sunday morning in Bensenville.
"We had a slow start to the season, and it's been a rocky season, but right now we're playing really well," Schmitz said. "Personally, I'm coming off my best game of the season - the (Metro) playoff loss to Stevenson.
"They had a lot of shots (on goal), and I made a lot of saves. I was just on that night. I played really well."
Schmitz brings a butterfly style to the ice and credits his ability to read plays and know the angles for his success, especially this season.
"He is a good friend of mine, and a great goalie," said Barrington forward Austin Bostock. "He loves to goof around in practice, whether it's taking breakaway shots or playing a game of rebound.
"Yet when it comes down to game time, he's always focused and ready to play. He's been one of our go-to seniors this season and has really stepped up his game."
So how far can Barrington advance in the state tournament?
"I think we go all the way to the state championship (game) with the way we've been playing of late; I think we can beat everyone. We're really playing well right now," Schmitz said. "Something sparked in the team about a month ago and we just started playing together, playing as a team. We were playing very selfish earlier in the year. But now everyone is playing for the team, not for themselves."
State shockers: St. Viator was a top contender for the Blackhawk Cup, but the No. 4-seeded Lions will only be at the United Center for the championship game as fans. St. Viator suffered the biggest upset in the state tournament, falling 7-4 to No. 29-seed St. Charles North.
The Lions finished 42-18-7.
"It was a hard way to end the season," said St. Viator forward John Scully. "We expected to go pretty far in the playoffs, but it just didn't work out. As bad of a loss as it was, it doesn't take away from all that we accomplished this year, as a team."
St. Viator also suffered a two-game sweep by Fenwick in the semifinal Kennedy Cup series. Fenwick defeated Viator 4-2 win in the deciding game.
Mundelein, the No. 1-seeded team in the White Division, lost 3-2 to Notre Dame in the quarterfinals March 2 in Bensenville.
The Dons advanced to the semifinals against New Trier White on March 13, while Highland Park was set to battle Jacobs in the other semifinal.
The White Division finals will be March 16 at 8:35 p.m.
In the Combined Division, Rockford was looking for its 14th consecutive state championship, but first had to try to get past Conant in the semifinals on Saturday. Rockford defeated Evanston 4-3 on Monday in the Elite Eight.
Cougar Kudos: Conant's Kyle Weiner was named Goalie of The Year in Metro Northwest, while Conant's Matt Turinsky was named Coach of the Year.
Conant finished 28-19-9, losing in the Elite Eight of the state tournament.
"It's an honor to be named Coach of The Year in a division that has so many great coaches," Turinsky said. "This award is as much mine as it is my assistant coaches, Matt Szenda and Sean Allen.
"They bring a lot to the table. Also (to) the 16 kids that play for us; they bought into what we were trying to teach and that was a main reason for our success.
"Kyle is an unbelievable goaltender. He puts the work in on a night-in, night-out basis. He is more than deserving of this award, and that is a testament to who he is as person, someone who respects the game and plays with a lot of heart."
Weiner had a 2.16 goals-against average.
Turinsky was in his first season as head coach after two seasons as an assistant.
"We made a nice run in the state tournament this year," Turinsky said. "The final eight is a great accomplishment and our boys worked really hard to get there.
"Not many people gave us a chance to be successful, but the 16 guys on this team put the work in day in, day out. This team strung together a 14-game unbeaten streak early in the season, which is a major accomplishment.
"The biggest reason for our success this year was that all 16 guys on the team played the game with passion and heart. As a coach, that's one of the most important ingredients for a successful hockey team."
HIT Finals: Loyola Gold skated past Stevenson 4-1 to win the championship of the season-long High School Invitational Tournament.
Corey Shepard, Patrick Veech, Michael Scholl and Kevin Turro scored for the Ramblers (25-22-5), while Greg Rachke scored for Stevenson.
The Ramblers finished 9-2-2 in the HIT, a stark contrast from their run in the Midwest Prep Hockey League, where they finished 0-14-1.
Gold defeated York 3-1 on March 6 in a practice game.
Blackhawk Cup: The Sweet 16 of the Red Division features some intriguing battles as the eight games are played Saturday and Sunday (March 13-14) at The Edge in Bensenville, including Crystal Lake South against York, and St. Rita against Naperville Central.
The semifinals will be played Monday, March 22, at The Edge, while the state championship game moves to the United Center on March 26.
Good News For Glenbard: The third-seeded co-op Glenbard team opened the finals of Cougar Cup for bragging rights of Illinois Suburban Hockey League (ISHL) on Friday at the Darien Sportsplex against No. 1-seeded Lyons Township. Game 2 is Sunday.
Glenbard advanced with a 4-2 semifinal win over St. Charles North.
"We have been getting contributions from all four lines, solid defense, and great goaltending. That has been a winning formula in the playoffs so far," said Glenbard coach Jason Hawkins. "We know the next game is always tougher then the last one, but the players are playing with tremendous confidence right now."
Glenbard notched a 9-1 win over Maine Township in the round of 16.
"With eight seniors in their last year at Glenbard, they want this run to continue as long as possible, and they are playing like it," Hawkins said. "Our club has come a long way in the past few years and to have both JV and varsity teams still alive in both the ISHL playoffs and Blackhawk Cup is something we are very proud of."
The Glenbard JV plays Batavia in the championship game of the ISHL playoffs.