Pittsburgh Hornets U14 Hockey Team loses heartbreaker in Overtime

The Pittsburgh Hornets U14 team lost a heartbreaker with 3:12 left in the first overtime, 4-3, to a relentless Syracuse team to finish up their competition at the 2007 USA Hockey National Championship competition in Fraser Michigan. The Hornets tied the game with 5:51 left in the third period to send the game into the overtime stanza.

The game featured a lot of relentless skating and checking from both teams plus a lot of offensive opportunities as Syracuse as the Hornets carried play and outshot Syracuse 32 to 26. It was not meant to be though as Syracuse moves on to the semi-finals and the Pittsburgh Hornets U14 Team reflects upon a very successful year and gears up for the future.

Congratulations to the U12 and U14 teams of the Pittsburgh Hornets Amateur Hockey Association for competing well at the USA Hockey National Championships this year.

Game summary

First Period
No goal

Penalties:
05:53 - Syracuse Stars (NY): James Forbes (33 ) - 2:00 Hooking
08:22 - Pittsburgh Hornets (MD): Zachary Lynch (84 ) - 2:00 Holding
14:15 - Syracuse Stars (NY): John Krisley (12 ) - 2:00 Tripping

Second Period
1-Pittsburgh Hornets (MD) : Brandon Saad (PP) (2)
02:17
(Williams)
2-Syracuse Stars (NY) : John Krisley (PP) (3)
05:18
3-Syracuse Stars (NY) : Michael Zalewksi (2)
10:08
(Mingoia, Black)
4-Syracuse Stars (NY) : Taylor Burden (3)
11:12
(Mingoia)
5-Pittsburgh Hornets (MD) : Stephen Johns (5)
13:36
(Williams, Koster)

Penalties:
01:47 - Syracuse Stars (NY): James Forbes (33 ) - 2:00 Hooking
03:33 - Pittsburgh Hornets (MD): Brandon Saad (22 ) - 2:00 Slashing

Third Period
6-Pittsburgh Hornets (MD) : Charles Williams (2)
05:51
(Johns)

Penalties:
10:06 - Pittsburgh Hornets (MD): John Facchiano (91 ) - 2:00 Tripping
14:01 - Pittsburgh Hornets (MD): Chase Lehigh (24 ) - 2:00 Tripping

Overtime
7-Syracuse Stars (NY) : Taylor Burden (4)
03:12
(Mingoia, Krisley)

Penalties:
No penalties

Shots on goal:
Syracuse Stars (NY):
7-14-8-3 (32)
Pittsburgh Hornets (MD):
9-6-9-2 (26)

Power-play conversions
Syracuse Stars (NY):
1/4
Pittsburgh Hornets (MD):
1/3

Goaltenders
Pittsburgh Hornets (MD):
Michael Houser 22 SV, 48:00 min (L)
Syracuse Stars (NY):
Andrew Iles 29 SV, 48:00 min (W)

FLASH UPDATE - Pittsburgh Hornet Brandon Saad wins 2 events at USA Hockey National Championship Easton Skills Competition

FLASH UPDATE - While the USA Hockey National Championships are about team success, the Easton Company hosts a skills competition for the participants to compete against each other for fun and individual recognition in various categories.

In the U14 competion in Fraser Michigan, Pittsburgh Hornet Brandon Saad was the winner of both the puck relay event and the breakaway contest, competing against athletes from the other teams at the national competion. Winning one of the events is pretty impressive but winning two of the events is a remarkable accomplishment indeed!

Congratulations Brandon on these individual accomplishments and good luck to the Pittsburgh Hornets U14 (birthyear 1992) Hockey Team through the rest of the USA Hockey National Championship competition.

Brandon Saad
Height: 6'-1"
Weight: 190 lbs
Date of Birth: October 27, 1992
Position: Forward Team - Pittsburgh Hornets U14 (1992 Birth Year)
Hometown: Pine Richland, PA

USA Hockey National Championships - Pittsburgh Hornet Teams Compete Well

After a rough start, the Pittsburgh Hornets U12 and U14 Hockey Teams have kicked it up a notch and are competing strongly at the 2007 USA Hockey National Championships.

In Fraser, Michigan, the U14 team, coached by Jim Lilja and behind the strength of 4 power play goals, came roaring back yesterday with a convincing 7-3 win over the Mid Fairfield Blues.

The Mid Fairfield Blues organization though extracted a measure of revenge on the other side of the lake in Buffalo with a thrilling for them, heartbreaking for us 3-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Hornets U12 Hockey Team, with 1:20 left in Overtime as Coach Chuck Fink's squad played their hearts out.

Though victories have been tough to come by, the Hornet Teams have shown through their fierce competion and sportsmanlike play why the Pittsburgh Hornets Amateur Hockey Association is one of the top amateur hockey development programs in the country.

More games scheduled today so good luck Hornets and keep the pressure on !

No Mojo Rising today for the black and gold as the LA Hockey Clubs trump the Pittsburgh Hornets in the USA Hockey National Championships

Wow, a tough start to the USA Hockey National Championships today for the Pittsburgh Hornets Hockey Teams.

The Pittsburgh Hornets U14 Team ran into a strong LA Hockey Club today and lost 4-0 and the Pittsburgh Hornets U12 Team ran into a smaller version but a just-as-strong LA Hockey Club team and ended up with a 4-1 loss as well.

The Pittsburgh Hornets are still in the hunt though as they each just need to win the next 2 games to make it into their respective quarter final rounds.

And though they have their work cut out for them and there are no guarantees, the Pittsburgh Hornets Hockey Association U12 and U14 hockey teams ( being parts of one of the top Tier 1 AAA Amateur hockey development programs in the United States and consistently competing and winning against the top teams in the country) will be well prepared for the challenges which lie ahead. Check out all of the action tomorrow for the Pittsburgh Hornets Hockey Teams and all of the other top teams in the nation by going to the following websites:

U12 USA Hockey National Championships in Buffalo - Click Here

U14 USA Hockey National Championships in Buffalo - Click Here

Good luck tomorrow Pittsburgh Hornets as you continue your march to a national championship !

National Team Development Program Player Patrick Gaul of the Pittsburgh Hornets provides insights on this year's U17 Team

Notre Dame Hockey recruit

Patarick Gaul looks forward to joining the Irish,

but has a few goals first - By John Raffel

March 2, 2007 - Special to usahockey.com

Patrick Gaul (Pittsburgh) likes to consider himself as a multi-talented athlete.
"I play pretty much every sport," said Gaul, a member of the National Team Development Program's U.S. National Under-17 Team. "Except for football. I even played lacrosse for quite awhile. I really like that sport too."

Hockey became Patrick Gaul's main love almost as soon as he was able to wear a pair of skates.
"I started at 5-years-old and I was not one of the better guys on the team. I worked hard at it," he said. "My dad pushed me to go as hard as I could. If he didn't push me, I don't know if I could be where I'm at right now.

"My dad, [Joe], has been an influence for me in hockey and my mom, [Margaret], has been an influence in everything for me." His father's long-time involvement as a hockey coach has had a great impact on Patrick and his younger brother, Joe, who has also had success in the sport.
"Patrick has always been close to his brother," their father said. "I've coached for all these years. So Patrick has been around the game from Day 1. He's a really smart player on the ice. He does so much just on instinct."

Joe Gaul recalls that his son played extensively in his youth with older players.
"It was amazing to see him do things that don't come naturally to other kids," Joe Gaul said. "His pee wee majors team made it to Nationals and that was quite a highlight. He was a runner-up at the Skills Competition. That's when we realized he was going to be pretty good."

Gaul has displayed his talents for the U17s, who have come on strong in recent weeks.
"We've learned a lot about our team," Gaul said after he and his teammates returned from a first-place effort in the Four Nations Tournament Feb. 5-10 in Piestany, Slovakia. "We're playing better as a team."

Gaul said he has made great personal strides with the NTDP since reporting to the program in September. "I've been adjusting to things," he said. "I'm focusing on what I can do to get better. Coach [John Hynes] says to keep focusing if you want to get better. I've developed a lot more in all phases of the game. My line has been good on the defensive zone and in not giving up any goals. I can also work hard to kill a lot of penalities. I'm out there to block a lot of shots. I'm out there working on a little bit of everything."

As the regular season nears its end, Gaul and the rest of his team are setting goals for the postseason. "We think we can win three-quarters of the rest of our games and get a good playoff spot [in the North American Hockey league]," he said. "When we're at our best, we can play with anyone."

Last season, the 5-foot-8, 165-pound Gaul played in 86 games for the Pittsburgh Hornets of the Midget Major AAA in the Midwest Elite Hockey League and totaled 101 points with 29 goals and 72 assists.

Gaul also captained the 2006 U.S. Under-17 Select Team at the Three Nations tournament, where he recorded five points on two goals and three assists in four games.
With Team USA's U17s, he said, "I'd like to get better on my speed and overall on my physical strength. I have good defensive awareness."

His defensive skills just came naturally for Gaul. "I played defense for the first six years in hockey life," he said. "My dad has coached for 25 years, so that helped me, too. My dad isn't exactly a hockey pro, but he learned to play when he was 8 or 9 and is a good coach."
Being with the NTDP has been a boon for the Pittsburgh native's hockey career.

"Our weight-training program here is second to none," Gaul said. "I don't think I'd be able to push myself as effectively as the way I'm pushed here."Gaul has already committed to play college hockey at Notre Dame starting with the 2008-09 season.

"Coach [Jeff] Jackson has a good history," Gaul said. "He knows how to win. The coaches there at Notre Dame are very personable. They care about you as a person as much as anyone can."

Story courtesy Red Line Editorial, Inc.