Sun, Surf and Slapshots As the King Rebellion Bantam A Squad Capture Florida Tournament Championship Title, News (King Township Minor Hockey)

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17-18 KTMH - Bantam A | Dec 07, 2017 | Lucia Macedo | 2619 views
Sun, Surf and Slapshots As the King Rebellion Bantam A Squad Capture Florida Tournament Championship Title

by Matt Harbridge

Reporting live from the NHL Press Box in Coral Springs Florida – HOLY MACKINAW! It was sun, surf and slap shots as the King Rebellion Bantam “A” Team voyaged to Fort Lauderdale for a long weekend of hard hitting hockey action in the Florida Panthers Thanksgiving Tournament.



Players, Parents, Coaches and Fans from King Township’s Bantam “A” Team enjoyed the tournament of a lifetime, playing international teams from both the U.S. and Europe. Our Bantam “A” Rebels represented King Township and Canada with style, advancing through the Tournament undefeated, including a thrilling 6-2 Semi-Final win against the Slovakia Stars, and a gritty 6-1 Championship victory against hometown favourites, the Florida Panthers Bantam Gold team.

In between games, the King Township Bantams partied it up on the beach, surfed the waves, boogie boarded their hearts out – strengthening friendships, working on their tans, and bonding as a Team.

The U.S. and European Teams had trouble keeping up with the speed of our Rebellion Bantams, dazzled by the quick footwork of King’s Captain Anthony Macedo. Powerful shots from King Defencemen Liam Rider and Assistant Captain Derek Evangelista peppered opposing goaltenders and left them shell shocked. Several opposing teams were thrown off their game by the Rebellion’s physical style of play, with pounding hits being delivered by Chris Petrungaro, Robbie Forletta and Vince Marra.

King Township’s lines displayed skillful passing and puck control throughout the Tournament, that helped the Bantam Rebels dominate play in several periods. Aggressive high speed rushes from Assistant Captain Ryan Dimitroff and veteran Scott McCann, kept U.S. defenders on their toes.

The silky mitts of Francesco Filicetti repeatedly dangled the Slovaks out of their skates, while the versatile two-way style of Nick Gesualdo, playing both forward and defence, made him a highly dependable player in every game situation.

Team stalwarts Zach Romeo and Sam Degli Angeli created a defensive tsunami on the blue line that opposing teams had trouble getting by. Tenacious stick handling from bulldog Cam Robinson and some well delivered wrist shots from Matt Harbridge helped contribute to a number of scoring opportunities throughout the Tournament.

The Team’s “Double Threat” Goalies ultimately stole the show – with Matthew Maniatis and Brian Cook only letting in a total of 5 goals over the course of 6 games. International teams hoping to put a puck in the net had their scoring passports repeatedly rejected by the Canadian goaltending border patrol.

The King Rebellion Bantam A boys would like to thank their dedicated Coaching Staff, including Head Coach Dan Dimitroff, and Assistants Joe Petrungaro, Danny Macedo, and Jay Rider for all they did to support this Team throughout – which included tolerating the tropical stench of sweaty hockey bags. Visiting Minor Bantam Coach Gerald McCann kept the boys company while in the penalty box.  Assistant Coach Dennis Evangelista was unable to make the trip to Florida but his support was felt across the miles.

A special thanks to Bantam “A” Team Manager Lucia Macedo for flawlessly organizing the logistics of this amazing trip, and to the Forletta family for hosting a team dinner that brought the Rebellion families closer together. Undisclosed sources deep within the Rebellion organization suggest more sun and surf hockey tournaments could be in the Team’s future. Stay tuned sports fans…

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