LOCAL SPORTS: River Hawks Hockey Senior Wins National Championship

by Jonathan Weaver

An Armstrong River Hawks hockey senior last week won a national USA Hockey championship with a different organization.

Nick Long, of Cowansville, became a national champion with the Tier I U18 Pittsburgh Penguins Elite. The Elite beat Culver Military Academy (a private boarding school based in northern Indiana state) 3-0 April 4 in San Jose, Calif.

Long, a Penguins Elite player for the past three years and a former Armstrong Arrows player, registered a goal and two assists during the six-game championship tournament. He has played with some of his fellow athletes for the past three seasons.

“We’re a pretty tight knit group. We’ve been together for quite some time and have known each other for even longer,” Long said.

Long also stays in touch with former teammates who have graduated.

Head Coach Kevin Quinn praised Long – who will be deciding between junior hockey and college hockey in the coming weeks.

“Nick was outstanding – had his best year yet of Tier I hockey,” Coach Quinn said. “He’s a really tough competitor.”

Coach Quinn (also the head coach of the Quaker Valley High School Quakers – whom the River Hawks beat in the PIHL playoffs this past season) was proud of the team for not only their championship victory, but also their victory over No. 1 ranked-Shattuck St. Mary’s (the boarding school in Minnesota regionally known as NHL Pittsburgh Penguins forward Sidney Crosby’s former team).

The Penguins Elite was the eighth seed in their bracket.

“It’s a pretty incredible accomplishment,” Coach Quinn said. “A lot of really big wins against very big competition.”

The national championship might have been improbable after a 6-5 overtime loss to the Chicago Fury March 31 in the tournament’s first matchup.

“That game really was key for us – it gave us life,” Coach Quinn said.

Long also said that game was a turning point for the tournament.

“That (overtime period) really gave us the confidence to say ‘We can do whatever we want when we really put our minds to it,’ all work toward the same goal,” Long said.

Director of Hockey Operations Tim Cook watched the championship online from Pittsburgh. He said five Penguins Elite teams eligible qualified for their respective national tournaments.

The U18 midget major team secured the organization’s first national championship

Long hoped some of his former River Hawks teammates looked up to him because of his leadership skills and work ethic.

At the time of their victory, the Penguins Elite (which finished the season 49-16-6) was ranked No. 15 in the country, but have since improved to No. 10.

Long will also be playing for Team Pittsburgh – a collection of area high school players – in America’s Showcase at Robert Morris University this weekend.

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