NJ Colonials skate to 16U tournament
By Justin Feil, Assistant Sports Editor
Going to the ice hockey nationals is getting to be an annual thing for Gabby Vukasin.
It doesn’t even matter what team she skates for, when she’s on the team, it’s going to the highest level.
This year, Vukasin is going to the USA Hockey National Tournament that begins Wednesday in Rochester, N.Y., with the New Jersey Colonials 16-and-under team. The Colonials cruised to the Atlantic District championship to earn the right to play in nationals.
”We’re really good,” said Vukasin, a forward. “We were pretty sure that we were going to go. We went 3-0 in districts.
”We won the league and the championship. We had a rough patch in the middle of the season, where we lost a couple games.”
The Colonials bounced back to give Vukasin a return trip to nationals. Last year, she went with the Princeton Tiger Lilies 16U team, and the year before that went with the Tiger Lilies 14U team. But no one gets used to playing in nationals.
”It’s still a big deal,” Vukasin said. “It’s exciting.”
Joining Vukasin will be Princeton Day School’s Savannah Hecker. They were rivals during the high school season, but teammates for the club season. It is Vukasin’s first season with the Colonials.
Vukasin didn’t have the chance to return to nationals with her former team when the Tigers Lilies couldn’t field a 16U team for this year. Vuksin had to make a choice. To stay with Princeton, she was going to have to play up.
”I didn’t want to go up to 19 yet,” Vukasin said, explaining, “I’m 15.”
Vukasin knew there was no way she was giving up a chance to play so much hockey at the club level. She already plays a full high school schedule with PHS, but doesn’t worry about balancing the high school and club schedules.
”It’s not that tough,” she said. “I really like playing hockey.”
The Colonials gave here that chance this season, and now they’ve given her the chance to extend her season into April. Vukasin has worked on making her slap shot even better, but doesn’t have to be as big of a weapon for New Jersey as she is with her Little Tigers team.
”We have strong defense and strong offense and two really good goalies,” she said, “so we have everything. The Colonials is a lot different. I don’t score as much as I do in high school.”
Vukasin will be looking to help the Colonials advance deep in nationals. They are confident they’ll have a strong showing based on their regular-season results.
”We played the other teams that we’re going to play so we know the competition,” Vukasin said. “Some of the teams that win every year, we only lost to by a couple goals. So we know we’re good.
”I think we have a chance to get out of the round robin bracket and go to the semifinals at least.”
New Jersey already came through a tough stretch of the season. They emerged a stronger team after the mid-season dip.
”I think we have better chemistry now,” Vukasin said.
Just in time to make a big run at the national tournament. Then it will be off to a summer league, some soccer, and starting to gear up for another run next year.
”Next year, I’ll be up to U-19. It’ll be a lot faster,” Vukasin said. “I’m not even sure what team I’m going to play on.”
Whatever team she chooses, it has a good shot to make it to nationals. It’s become something of an annual trip with Gabby Vukasin.

