NEWARK, N.J. – The 2016 USCAK Hockey Tournament was held on Saturday, February 13, as part of the Ukrainian Hockey Weekend that also included the New Jersey Devils Ukrainian Heritage Day on Sunday, February 14. The tournament was organized by the Ukrainian Sports Federation of the U.S.A. and Canada (USCAK) and featured four teams battling for the Alexander Cup in a round-robin format: the Montreal Ukie Club, the New York Kozaks, the N.Y./N.J. Kings and the Toronto Kontakt Kozaks. The games were held at the Prudential Center AmeriHealth Pavilion – the practice facility of the N.J. Devils.
USCAK President Myron Bytz welcomed the teams during the opening ceremonies and also thanked all the sponsors, which included Self Reliance New York Federal Credit Union, SUMA Yonkers Federal Credit Union, Selfreliance Ukrainian-American Federal Credit Union (Whippany, N.J.), Selfreliance New Jersey Federal Credit Union, the Ukrainian National Association, Tri-State Eye, Kontakt Ukrainian Television, TP Electric, the Irvington Ukrainian Center and Olympic Community Market.
Second-place winners N.Y./N.J. Kings.
Tournament organizers Mark Howansky and Bob Rad were recognized for their efforts. USCAK board members Ireneaus Isajiw and Walter Honcharyk, as well as Mayor Roman Hirniak of Randolph, N.J., were also on hand and participated in the ceremonial puck drop. The national anthems of Canada, Ukraine and the United States were sung. After an intermission, which treated the players and fans to a practice session of the Los Angeles Kings, the tournament resumed.
In Game 1, the newly formed N.Y./N.J. Kings took advantage of a Toronto team tired from its travels and jumped out to a 3-1 lead with goals from Michael Betley and Adam Gojdycz (two). But Toronto found its legs in the third period and fought back valiantly to salvage a 3-3 tie. Game 2 was a rematch of the Ukrainian Challenge Match in 2009 between the New York Kozaks and the Montreal Ukie Club. The fast-paced game was a back-and-forth affair, before Bo Pryjmak scored the eventual game-winner plus an insurance goal to seal a 4-2 victory. N.Y. Kozaks player/founder Taras Odulak and captain Sev Palydowycz were particularly proud of the club’s first ever win against Montreal in their 25-year series history.
Alexander Cup winners New York Kozaks and second-place N.Y./N.J. Kings after the final.
In Game 3, Toronto captain Yurij Rad and assistant captain Danylo Perciklijewicz tried to rally their team with early goals, but the superior firepower of the N.Y. Kozaks proved too much to handle. New York eventually won the game 9-4, behind a hat-trick by tournament top scorer Scott Esteyvich.
Game 4 was arguably the most exciting of the tournament with both N.Y./N.J. Kings and the Montreal Ukie Club desperately needing a win to stay in contention for the Alexander Cup. Again, the young Kings team jumped out to an early lead behind goals from team captain Stephan Kobyleckyj and Alex Wirt – with two goals each. And again, they almost let it slip away as Montreal scored three goals and were awarded a penalty shot with one minute left to give them a chance to tie the game. But N.Y./N.J. Kings goalie Matt Betley stopped the shot to preserve the win and was selected as tournament top-goalie as a reward for his efforts.
Game 5 was effectively the championship game, pitting the two undefeated local teams against each other. The New York Kozaks saved their best for last and used their tournament experience to shut-out the younger N.Y./N.J. Kings 5-0. The contest was much closer than the score line indicated though; with Kozaks goalie and tournament MVP Joe Burley making many timely saves. The last game of the day pitted the Montreal Ukie Club against the Toronto Kontakt Kozaks. Montreal captains Stefan Holowka, Yuri Mytko and Andriy Lysowych made sure they captured the Canadian bragging rights and led their team to a 9-4 win, with a particularly impressive performance by tournament top-defenseman Jeff DeBelle.
Fourth-place finishers, the Toronto Kontakt Kozaks.
Afterwards, all the teams enjoyed live music and a copious food spread at the pub night hosted by the Irvington Ukrainian Center. Replays of the games were shown in a side room as teams joked and reminisced. All the participants agreed that the inaugural USCAK Alexander Cup Hockey Tournament was a resounding success and looked forward to the next one.
Game Results:
Game 1 – Toronto Kontakt Kozaks 3 – N.Y./N.J. Kings 3
Game 2 – Montreal Ukie Club 2 – New York Kozaks 4
Game 3 – New York Kozaks 9 – Toronto Kontakt Kozaks 4
Game 4 – N.Y./N.J. Kings 4 – Montreal Ukie Club 3
Game 5 – New York Kozaks 5 – N.Y./N.J. Kings 0
Game 6 – Montreal Ukie Club 10 – Toronto Kontakt Kozaks 4
