Hudson Cath. 2, Seton Hall 1 (2000)

Hudson Catholic 2, Seton Hall Prep 1
03/18/2000 - Parochial Final

There may not be another championship-round contest where goaltending dominated the headlines from pre-game to post-game!

And on top of that, the comments made by both coaches and players proved that. But, it wasn't all about goaltending. Hudson Catholic coach Cory Robinson and Seton Hall Prep's Peter Herms also had a little rivalry going on and, make no bones about it, each was gunning hard for this 'W'.

Robinson knows a little bit about goaltending (he was an All-City goalie at Xaverian in Brooklyn and was the first hockey player inducted into the school's Hall of Fame in 1990) and the way in which he challenged his junior netminder -- Joe Aliseo -- prior to Hudson Catholic's biggest ice hockey game in school history was nothing short of splendid.

``I doesn't matter how many shots a team throws at you; goaltending is the equalizer of every facet of this game,'' Robinson said. It's a comment every goalie should take to heart and one I come back to time and again because in order for a team to contend at any level in this sport, goaltending is essential. Joe Aliseo was proof of that in 2000.

Aliseo would stop 35 shots to help bring the Hudson County school its first state championship before 3,100 at Continental Airlines Arena. Not only was Hudson Catholic the first team since 1995-96 to defeat The Hall twice in the same season, but it also snapped the latter's three-year reign as parochial champion.

It may surprise some, but Robinson, The 1999 Star Ledger Ice Hockey Coach of the Year, is fifth on the state's all-time coaching chart. He entered 2005-06 with a 249-76-24 mark through 14 seasons. He has lost the fewest games of any coach among the Top 10.

Hudson took a 2-0 lead with 8:24 left on a terrific play by senior captain Ryan Trott. After taking a pass from Mike Caputo at the bottom of the left-wing circle, Trott skated across the crease before throwing a blind backhand pass onto the tape of Frank Baker. Baker fired into an empty net while Seton Hall goalie Geordan Murphy was watching Trott skate through the slot.

Trott, in fact, would score Hudson's opening goal 1:25 into the second. How critical was the opening goal? Listen what senior Seton Hall forward Brady Crooks predicted just one day earlier:
``Whichever team allows the first goal will lose this game,'' he admitted. How crafty was that? Usually, players will admit, 'Whoever scores first will win.' But Crooks even sensed this was all about blockers and not shooters.

Seton Hall pulled to within 2-1 when Crooks ripped a power-play goal with 6:48 left in the third. Crooks took a pass from Alex Beatrice before blasting in his 16th of the season. Despite giving Seton Hall numerous power-play opportunities down the stretch, Aliseo and defensemen Brian Russell, Jason Ortolano, Bennett Shelley and Joe Cucci were up to the challenge.

Seton Hall outshot Hudson Catholic, 17-3, in the third. Aliseo stopped 16 of those attempts. ``Joe is the best goalie I've seen in my eight years of coaching,'' Robinson said following the contest.

QUOTABLES:
``This is the greatest feeling in the world. Coach Robinson doesn't usually talk to me before games, but he did tell me I could make history this weekend,'' Hudson goalie Joe Aliseo.

``We just ran out of time in the third period but played like champions up until the end. I'm not taking anything away from Hudson Catholic, but we did outshoot them, 17-3, in the third. But we just couldn't bury the puck. Hudson played a great game and will represent the parochial side well in the Tournament of Champions,'' Seton Hall co-coach Peter Herms.