With the Hun School boys’ hockey team making its first appearance in the Mercer County Tournament since 2009, Spy Avgoustiniatos and his teammates were determined to make their presence felt.
“We really want to get the Hun name out there and play hard and get the win,” said Hun senior forward Avgoustiniatos, noting that the Raiders have won the county crown three times. “Last year we won our league and we want to build on that.”
As the second-seeded Raiders faced No. 3 Robbinsville in the MCT semis last Thursday, things didn’t come easy at first as Hun found itself trailing 1-0 midway through the first period.
“Coach [Ian McNally] pulled us aside and said we didn’t get the start that we wanted but let’s get into it and beat this team,” recalled Avgoustiniatos.
The Raiders responded with three straight goals in a span of 2:37 and never looked back in a 7-2 rout of the Ravens.
“One goal came along, I put the second one in and we just kept on rolling and we knew we had them all the way,” said Avgoustiniatos.
On his tally, Avgoustiniatos banged in a feed from classmate Alec Karanikolas.
“It was all Alec, there was a scramble in front of the net and he got the puck,” said Avgoustiniatos. “I was saying ‘Alec backdoor’ and he passed it back.”
With 5:50 left in the third period, Avgoustiniatos added an insurance goal to make it a 6-2 game, diving to the ice and nudging the puck past the Robbinsville goalie as he flew past the net.
“I was 100 percent sure that didn’t go in; the puck was right there, I saw it and I took two whacks at it and I just really wanted to get it in there,” said Avgoustiniatos.
“I thought I didn’t have it and then I saw the other teammates coming up to me. It was a great feeling, they told me you got that one. It was sweet.”
A night later, Avgoustiniatos and his teammates enjoyed a great feeling as they topped Notre Dame 4-2 in the MCT title game. In his view, the combination of battle-tested upperclassman and the arrival of the precocious freshman trio of Evan Barrett, Jon Bendorf, and Blake Brown has made Hun a force to reckon with this winter.
“We were really excited for all the skilled freshmen that were coming in; it started from preseason going into the season, we really built that friendship,” said Avgoustiniatos.
“We are really getting along, there is not that huge gap between the older guys and younger guys. We really incorporated them and made them feel at home and come together as a hockey team and it is what gets a spark there.”
And helping to spark Hun on its MCT title run has left Avgoustiniatos with a lot of pride in what he has accomplished on the ice.
“It is an amazing experience,” asserted Avgoustiniatos. “I want to leave my legacy at Hun for the hockey team.”