Lawrence ice hockey
By: Jim Green
Even for the long-struggling Lawrence High School ice hockey team, there is such a thing as a disappointing win.
The Cardinals experienced one Monday night, when they defeated winless Hamilton 6-0 at Ice Land in Hamilton with just nine of their 18 players in uniform. Eight of the nine missing players were benched for missing practice during the two-week layoff since Lawrence’s last game, a win over Nottingham on Jan. 3.
"It’s nice to win, but it wasn’t the way I wanted to win," Lawrence coach Andy Borowsky said. "We had eight guys benched because they were not dedicated no commitment. They missed practices. On top of that, some of them did not communicate why they were missing practice. They were lucky they weren’t playing one of the strongest teams in the league."
The nine active players managed to extend the Cardinals’ winning streak to three a streak that is coming on the heels of a season-opening eight-game losing streak. Sophomore forward Matt Watson shined for Lawrence, coming through with a hat trick and three assists for a six-point night.
"Matt Watson has improved a lot," Borowsky said.
Junior forward Tom Guarrieri had two goals and two assists, sophomore forward Pat Keegan had three assists, junior forward Evan Fruscione had a goal, and sophomore forward Sean Hancock and sophomore defenseman Will Tirrel each added assists. Freshman goalie Matt Azorlan made nine saves for his first career shutout.
But all the strong individual performances by those who did play were overshadowed by the absence of those who did not.
"It’s just been disappointing," Borowsky said. "It was nice the guys on the ice got to get a win. I just wish we had our whole team, so we could win as a team. It’s a shame we haven’t been able to do everything together to win as a team and lose as a team and come to practice as a team."
Borowsky is not sure what has caused the lack of commitment he is seeing from some of his players.
"We can’t put our finger on it yet," said the fourth-year coach. "Maybe it’s the history of the program or how hockey’s been looked at in Lawrenceville. I’ve tried some things to get them to understand how important it is. It’s tough."
Borowsky did admit that if he had a larger roster to work with, some of the offending players would have been cut rather than simply suspended.
"Oh, yes 100 percent definitely," he said. "It’s tough. Obviously, you want to have a good roster of 20-30 guys, so maybe they would work harder to make the team and stay on it. But it’s all about the commitment.
"They are still coming to some of the practices and doing some of the things I’m asking of them. You would think that when they don’t play in the games, that would hurt the most. The goal is to play in the games. I would love to have large numbers so I could make cuts, but I’m not in position to do that right now. This is the next logical step. And it’s a shame, because we would have had a good year if we had our whole roster playing together."
There were some positive steps taken Monday, though, in addition to Watson’s hat trick. Borowsky was pleased to have Hancock who had missed action due to illness back on the ice. And Azorlan’s shutout gives hope for the future.
"Matt Azorlan played, and he had a shutout," Borowsky said. "That’s good for him and good for the team. We got Sean Hancock back, and that was good for the team."
The Cardinals, who still hope to get injured sophomore Pat Jaeger back at some point, had an excellent chance to extend their winning streak even farther. They were scheduled to face Nottigham on Wednesday, and they take on Ewing at 6 p.m. Friday at Mercer County Park. But Borowsky believes the Cardinals will only end this year on a high note if the level of commitment changes.
"We have a chance to get a winning streak going, but I know on (this past) Wednesday, I won’t have my whole roster again because of guys missing practice," Borowsky said Monday. "I hate to be a downer when we win. I told the players in the locker room, ‘It’s great that we won tonight, but we can play better.’
"I didn’t see the enthusiasm I was looking to see. I hope it comes together soon, so we can carry it over to next year."

