After coming off of a successful season last year where they earned a spot in the Fairchester Athletic Association (FAA) semifinals, the KO hockey team looked to carry some of that momentum into this season. However, their season has gotten off to a rocky start with a record of 0-7.
The team has not fallen without a fight, with many of their games being closely contested. For instance, on Dec. 7, the Wyverns fell just short of victory against Harvey School by merely one goal. Recently, on Jan. 18, the KO was defeated by St. Luke’s School by only two goals.
Another highlight of their season so far was a game that the team got to play at Brown University in Providence on Jan. 7. Unfortunately, the Wyverns lost to Moses Brown with a final score of 6-0, but the experience was definitely worthwhile for the players.
One of the challenges that the team has encountered this year is their lack of experienced players. This year the team had only four or five returning players including senior Co-captains goalie Matt Cote and forward Cody Brew. Furthermore, the team has the disadvantage of not having an on-campus ice rink. The team must travel off campus to rinks in the surrounding area for practice every day.
However, one bright spot for the hockey team at the moment is the standout defender and forward, Brew. “He’s definitely a great asset to this team,” Cote said.
Recently, the wyverns played a tough game versus the King School on Jan. 28. “We played well overall, but we had a rough ten minutes that cost us but other than that we had a great third period and showed ourselves what we can do later on in the season,” said Cote.
Even though the team came away from the game with a loss, one highlight was goalie Matt Cote’s performance. “Matt played very well yesterday and I would say he saved maybe 28 shots,” said freshman Shane Smith.
For the remainder of the season, the team looks to improve in various aspects of the game. One specific focus that the team strives to improve is its team chemistry. As hockey is a team sport, the players must work together to execute plays seamlessly on offense, and also work together to prevent the opposing team from scoring.
Additionally, the team hopes to improve on playing a clean game. “We can definitely improve on playing well for the whole game as one challenge was staying out of the penalty box,” Cote said.
Even though the skating Wyverns have a losing record so far, they have achieved the team goal of having fun. Head Coach John Hissick tells his players to strive to find fun in the game. Hopefully, with some game experience under their belt, the Kingswood Oxford hockey team will be able to find some success during the second half of their season. “I hope to get some wins and enjoy the rest of the season,” said Cote regarding his goals for the rest of the season.
