By Bob Nuse, Sports Editor
The Princeton High ice hockey team came into last Friday’s showdown against Notre Dame riding a season-long unbeaten streak., The Little Tigers left with that streak still intact., The Irish had won 81 games in a row against Colonial Valley Conference teams since suffering a loss to Princeton in the 2011 Mercer County Tournament final. That streak came to an end when the Little Tigers came away with a 4-3 win at Mercer County Park., “It was exciting,” Princeton coach Terence Miller said. “I got some nice congratulatory calls from some of the other coaches. It was probably one of the few times everyone was rooting for Princeton. We came out with a good game plan. We wanted to keep it simple and get it in deep and get in on the forecheck and feel them out a little., “We really wanted to get the first goal of the game. They scored first, but we answered. Both times they took the lead we answered back. We played a sound game. Sawyer (Peck) was strong in net. By the end we had a little more in the tank. I felt like we were still playing downhill and pressuring them to the end.”, Princeton improved to 10-0-2 with the win last Friday. On Wednesday, the Little Tigers met the Irish again and came away with a 6-5 win to earn their 11th win of the season. Tooker Callaway scored the game-winning goal late in the contest., In last Friday’s win, the game was tied, 3-3, when Aidan Trainor knocked in the rebound of a Max Garlock shot to put the Little Tigers ahead for good., “It was definitely a really fun game,” said Trainor, a freshman who has scored 13 goals and 23 assists this season. “It was back and forth with the scoring. It was great to get lucky and pull ahead at the end. It was an exciting game to be in as a player. And hearing from the parents and Princeton students that were there they said it was fun., “It was a great shot from Max Garlock and I got a stick on it and it went in.”, Trainor, whose two older brothers Anthony and Robby are also on the team, has been one of several freshman to make an impact for the Little Tigers this season. He and Rocco Salvato have been on a line with senior captain Brendon McCormick. The line accounted for all four goals against Notre Dame., “It has been great,” Trainor said. “I have been fortunate to get ice time with a senior like Brendon, who has been setting me up so well. We are both new to the experience of playing high school and Brendon does a nice job of helping us, especially in tough game like this one.”, Princeton came into the season thinking this could be a special year. There was a solid nucleus returning as well as an influx of new talent that made the Little Tigers one of the top teams in the CVC., “This is a big senior class with Brendon, Tooker (Callaway) and Eamon (McDonald) and our goalie, Saywer,” Miller said. “And we have Anthony (Trainor) and Zach (Bouchenoir), so knew this was a nice senior class. We incorporated in a couple transfers, Nick Ashcroft and Pascal (Meier), who is from Switzerland. And we add these freshmen like Aidan and Rocco (Salvato) and Ryan McCormick and it all aligned for us., “So far for us this year has been a nice mix of older guys and some of the younger guys coming together. We had a feeling we would be strong. But our theme is always one at a time and we want to be happy. We’re thrilled to knock Notre Dame off, but we have our sights set on bigger things. We’re happy, but not quite satisfied. This group has potential to be special and do some good things this year.”, Trainor is one of the additions to help. He scored a goal and added two assists in the win over the Irish. Salvato scored a pair of goals, while Brendon McCormick added the other., “For me as a freshman, my brothers have been on the team so I knew this was a big game,” said Trainor, who plays for the Mercer Chiefs outside of high school. “They have talked about the game and said give it everything we have to win. We were very lucky to win., “We have got big expectations but we need to work hard. We have Notre Dame again and have to give it everything we have got and then as the season goes we’ll see what happens. Coach Miller says the sky is the limit if we work hard. We’ll see where that takes us. We have great captains and they have helped us as freshmen and guided us with their experience and giving us tips and telling us what we should expect.”, Miller is happy to have all the newcomers, including Trainor, who seems to play beyond his years., “Aidan is a really good player,” Miller said. “He has a high IQ and sees the game really well. He and Rocco, our two freshmen with Brendon, they have been huge for us all year. Aidan had a great game — a goal and two assists. Rocco had two goals. Those freshmen have been coming up big., “Aidan is a very good defensive forward. He defends well and takes good angles. He knows proper positioning and kills penalties on the power play. He can play in all different scenarios and understands the game well.”
