2011-2012

Yearbook

Wonderland Wizards 2011-2011

Dear Wonderland Wizards Family:

The 2011-2012 hockey season was the most successful year our Wonderland Wizards have enjoyed so far. Our Peewee A, Bantam A and Midget Minor teams all won the Connecticut Tier II State Championship and all advanced to USA Hockey Nationals.

Our Peewee A1 team won the Tier III CT State Championship and advanced to the USA Hockey Sectionals. Our Squirt B1 team won the supplemental state championship. Additionally, our Bantam A’s won the New England Regional Silver Sick Tournament. Never before have we had such success on the ice.

Back in 2002, the organization playing out of the Wonderland of Ice decided that there were greener pastures elsewhere and left the rink that we call home.

A group of 15 or 20 parents decided that we would stay and launch a new program: The Wonderland Wizards. Many doubted we would ever make it. Some said we’d be done in a year.

They could not be more wrong.

Our goal when we started, was to be a solid, competitive Tier II program that put kids first. In doing so, we wanted to be thought of in the same regard as Darien and Southern – two of what we saw as the strongest programs around. That first year we had 8 travel teams, and roughly 150 kids in our programs and We competitive from the get go.

By our third year, we won our first of many State and Silver Stick championships. During Seasons four through eight, we won even more with multiple state championships and many others. They are in fact, too many others to list here!

Now at the conclusion of our 9th full season, we made an emphatic and undeniable statement that the Wonderland Wizards Hockey Organization is the premier organization in Connecticut.

Not only have our teams won, but our players have developed into premier youth hockey players in our state. In fact, most of the area’s high school programs are filled with Wizards Alumni. And, a number of our players have gone on to play at prep schools and college. Perhaps most importantly, our kids have taken what they learn on the ice and developed into confident leaders in our communities that embody sportsmanship, friendship and citizenship off the ice as well. And for that, we can all be very, very proud. These successes can be attributed to great kids and players and terrific coaches who are dedicated and really care about them. Our organization is also backed by an amazing, supportive and loyal group of parents – who help our organization grow by leaps and bounds. Another key factor is the distinct home ice advantage we have at Wonderland. Lisa Fedick and John Ferguson have an unwavering passion and commitment for our organization and to our children, and they have made sure that we are not just the home team at Wonderland, they have made Wonderland our home. Our success can also be contributed to a tremendous group of volunteers. I cannot thank enough the following individuals: DJ Quinn – Co-President, Jackie Bunovsky – Registrar, Deb Kirvin - Treasurer, Wendy Lo-Naclerio –Treasurer, Bernadette Sudora – Secretary, Paul Shimko – Tournament Director, John Wiig – Scheduler Matt Naclerio – Webmaster, Lorraine Winslow – Director of Team Parents, Michael Ferguson – House Director, Gerry Carney – Communications Director While offering thanks to the above and many other volunteers, I’d like to also make a request to parents in our organization: Get Involved. Many of our board members have children who will be “graduating” out of the program and for continued success we need to replenish those that move on with people as dedicated and passionate as the one’s that came before them! So, your involvement is important. In conclusion, I congratulate and thank the entire organization for a wonderful season and I look forward to our tenth anniversary in the Fall. Best Regards, Bill D’Amore President Wonderland Wizards

The Wizards Story The 2002-2003 hockey season had just come to an end; and we all looked forward to next season. The spring hockey league was getting ready to start. Travel schedules and hotel plans were being made. Summary hockey camps were set and then the phone rang. We were informed that the hockey program at the Wonderland of Ice had decided to leave and move to a different facility. Instantly, after over 30 years of youth hockey at Wonderland, there were no kids and no youth hockey! It was at that very moment that we made the decision for the betterment of the kids as well as youth hockey in general, that a new youth hockey program was born, with the understanding that its always about the kids first and foremost.

Time was not on our side. It was April and we had only five short months to accomplish the impossible. The first step was to make sure that our Wonderland family know that there would still be youth hockey in Bridgeport in the fall. So we prepared postcard mailers and got the word out! Secondly, we needed a team. Not a hockey team, but a team of dedicated parents and friends that would do whatever it took to get hockey at Wonderland back to where it belonged. Numerous people were involved including John and Michael Ferguson, Lisa Fedick, Gregg OX Oxfeld and many others. A tremendous amount of work had to be done such as, filing with the State, set-up of a non-profit company, and instatement with USA Hockey through our local chapter: The Connecticut Hockey Conference. While all this was going on, Wonderland of Ice alumni and NHL player Chris Drury knew what had happened and was asked his opinion about a name. Without hesitation, he blurted out “The Wonderland Wizards” and the name was inked. Gregg Oxfield, the Wizards first President, and his office design team came up with a first draft logo. The original colors were green and dark blue (based on the Hartford Whalers) and soon with the additional input, the sticks were added to the logo and the colors were changed to light blue, white, and black.

The next month countless hours were spent creating forms, sending out mailers, attending meeting, speaking to parents, securing sponsors and collecting funds; always keeping in mind that this labor of love was all about this kids. We painted the locker rooms, hung banners and displayed our new colors. We organized fundraisers, open skates and barbeques all summer long while proudly wearing our new hockey sweaters. The effort caught on and our Wizard family grew from 10 to 20 then 50. By mid June 2003, we had over 140 kids ready to play.

Our greatest obstacle was getting sanctioned in the state by The Connecticut Hockey Conference. After many weeks and long hours of work, we preserved. On June 24, 2003, the Wonderland Wizards were included in the CHC with the stipulation that we could not participate in state finals for two years. To any other program this might have been devastating new, but not for the Wizards. Just like every other obstacle we faced, we just told the truth regardless of this prerequisite. Our new Wizard family got ready for the season with enthusiasm and pride. In our first year, we were very proud to dress two Mite teams, two Squirt teams, one PeeWee team and one Bantam team as well as House League teams. Many of those players from our inaugural season are still with the organization and thriving.

2011-2012 Board of Directors

Executive Committee President: Bill D'Amore Co-President: DJ Quinn Vice President: Anthony Giardina Co-Treasurer: Deb Kirven Co-Treasurer: Wendy Lo-Naclerio Secretary: Bernadette Sudora

Board of Directors Director of Hockey Operations: Eric Peterson Travel Registrar: Jackie Bunovsky Rink Liaison: Lisa Fedick Director of Coaching: John Ferguson Asst. Director of Coaching: Mike Beccaria Director of Scheduling: John Wiig Director of House : Michael Ferguson Co-Director of House: Stuart Johnston Director of Tournaments: Paul Shimko Director of Team Parents: Lorraine Winslow Director of Rules and Discipline: Joe Underkofler Director of Communications: Gerard Carney Tri-State League Director: Bill D'Amore CHC Representative: Carl Larouche Past-President: Michelle Marella

Committee Members Coaching : Director: John Ferguson Assistant Director: Mike Beccaria Members: Bill D'Amore, Glen Blanchette, Lisa Fedick, Paul Kelly, Michael Ferguson

Rules and Sportsmanship:

Director: Joe Underkofler

Members: Mike Beccaria and Michelle Marella

Wizards House Program:

Director: Michael Ferguson

Co-Director: Stuart Johnston

Members: Vicky Dinardo, Sela Esposito, Matt Naclerio

Silver Stick Tournament:

Director: Paul Shimko

Co-Director: Jackie Bunovsky

Members: Bill D'Amore, John Ferguson, DJ Quinn

Scholarship Committee:

Michael Ferguson, Michelle Marella, Chad Jacobs Foundation

Nominating Committee:

Laura Underkofler, DJ Quinn, Bernadette Sudora

Banquet Committee Members:

Michael Ferguson, DJ Quinn, Lorraine Winslow

Director of Referees:

Pat O'Reilly

Congrats Wizard Champions!! Bantam A – Tier 2 State Champs Pee Wee A – Tier 2 State Champs Midget Minor – Tier 2 State Champs Pee Wee A1 – Tier # 3 State Champs Squirt B1 – CT Supplemental State Championship

CONGRATS TO THE WONDERLAND WIZARDS FEARSOME FORESOME:

Billy Vizzo, Liam Ferguson, Darren Capobianco & Billy D’Amore 5 Straight Championship Seasons!

Midget Major Champs 2011-2012 Midget Minor Champs 2010-2011 Bantam A Champs 2009-2010 Bantam A Champs 2008-2009 Pee Wee A Champs 2007-2008

Around the Rink

I Love HVAC

Mite A

Head Coach: Paul Kelly; Coaches: Glenn Blanchette, Anthony Giardina Players: Jack D. Alecia, Patrick L. Benvenuto, Emma Blanchette, Jack Cullen, Lucas J. Di Chiara, Luke Giardina, John W. Grace, Teddy Gravanis, Alexander Joliet, Maxwell G. Maisano, Ronan O'Donnell, Sawyer Paul , Sam Swanson, Gavin V. Tadduni, Robert G. Winter

Mite B

Coaches: Gerard Carney, Chuck Wilkerson, Chris Lutzo, “Hot Oil” Shanahan; Rush Chairman: Larry Foley Players: Will Huntington, Kevin Shanahan, Ryan Wilkerson, Tucker Nightingale, Kevin Howard, Brendan Carney, Connor Collucci, Michael Choi, Aiden Foley, Garrett Lutzo, Jake “Tackals” Takacs, Michael Corusone, Andrew Shavinsky

Squirt A

Head Coach: Ed Lemaire Players: Kacy Adams, Michael Auray, Ryan Fleming, Patsy G. Harris, Andrew Hartman, Ian Hayden, Edward Martino, Michael McCann, Sawyer Meehan, Matteo Naclerio, Travis Nussbaum, John OConnor, Wesley K. Perler, Kevin Quinn, Calyb Reeves, Matthew Wiig, Lynn H. Wilson

Squirt A1

Head Coach: Paul Kelly; Assistant Coach Andy Csejka Players: Jack J. Carroll, Tess Csejka, Gina L. Driscoll, Cooper Eckert, Maris A. Estevez, Brendan M. Howard, Matthew Isenberg, Charles Miller, Declan P. ODonnell, Deaglan O'Donnell, Joseph Polzello, Tommy Quinn, Jeremey Rodriguez, Malcolm Shaw, Casey Winslow, Elizabeth Winslow, Tyler Woods

Squirt B

Head Coach: Joe Underkofler Players: Brendan Andros, Jake Banquer, William Bundy, Michael Bunovsky, Audrey Choi, Kyle A. Cirillo, Kyle R. Colucci. Ian P. Deiling, Brendan Dunleavy, George Englehart, Daniel Fitzgerald, Brendan M. Lynch, Charles R. Manger, Jeffrey Meyers, Aidan O'Rourke , Zachary S. Strober, Christopher R. Westerback

Squirt B1

Head Coach: Greg Mondo Players: Michael J. Dilley Player, John Guerrera , Jay Joliet, Dylan M. Lewis, Charles J. Monteiro , Randall Nightingale, Justin Pearl, Brady Pomer, Dylan Pomer, Sameer Sadarangani, Sanjay Sadarangani , Luke Samoskevich, Nathan O. Shemesh, Jacob Stanford , Geoffrey T. Takacs, George Wyckoff

Pee Wee A

Head Coach: Carl Larouche; Assistant Coaches: Jesse Goldman, Stephen Daddio Players: Anthony Beccaria, Charles M. Csejka, McGovern Deane, Tommy E. Driscoll, Kevin M. Edmonds, Jack Feinstein, Nathaniel J. Gordon, Jack Hannan, Carter R. Kral, Christopher Ligas, Joseph A. Mancini, Kevin M. Oricoli, Aaron Pinto, Marc Pinto, Michael Shea, William Von Brauchitsch

Pee Wee A1

Head Coach: Mark Mongillo Players: Devin P. Blanchette , Cole Casl, Sawyer C. Coseglia, Matthew D'Amore, Ryan Eckert, William R. Foldesi, Dawson Gunn, Joseph H. Harris, Matthew Kernaghan, Michael Logan, Brendan MacDonald, Sean MacDonald, Kyle Mazza, Jack P. McGee, Shane Murphy, Trevor T. Rochelle, Matthew Stapleton, Evan Uva, Jason E. Ziegler

Pee Wee B

Coach: Jr Bria Players: Michael A. Ansaldo, Nicholas J. Buono, George Connington, Ryan Dowd, Mary Edmonds, Thomas J. Flynn, Griffin S. Garvey, Ryan Gove, Conor Hatton, Miles Kaps, Derek Lue, Emily Martino, Richard Offenberg, Ted Orben, Keegan O'Reilly, William Paul, Julianne Petrillo, Carson Rush, Quinn M. Sandor

Pee Wee B1

Coaches: Jerry Couden, Rich Minnix Players: Austin Allen, Nolan Anderson, Brock Butkovsky, Joseph Eamon Garrity-Rokou, Jack Hasenauer, Maclean Jacobs, Peter G. Kryspin, Nicholas Loris, Charles Millard, Alexander Mocarski, Matthew S. Mocker, Jake Ohara, Patrick Piekarski, Arel Ram, Alexander J. Sammarco, Michael Shavinsky, Thomas Sudora, Thomas Walton

Pee Wee B2

Coach: John FIori Players: Trevor Baer, Carson Brooks, Kevin A. Cirillo, Marissa A. Fiori, Michael R. Fiori , John E. Howard, Andrew Kelly, Carter R. Leibrock, Dustin Maher, Jeremy Martinez, Jonathan D. Mears, Evan C. Palumbo, Stash Pomichter, William J. Prezioso, Colin P. Raymond, Jacob S. Silliman, Robert Wehmhoff. Thomas C. Wyckoff

Bantam A

Coach: Jack Devine, Assistant Coach: Ben Vaill Players: Donald Battimelli, Dylan Beaudoin , Justin G. Blanchette, Connor J. Bunovsky, Vincent T. D'Amore, Andrew L. DeLalla, Brian C. Denham Jr, John A. Edmonds, Kyle S. Greenhut, Tyler Henchcliffe, Christopher Kirven, Samuel J. Lambert, John W. Lannon, Derek Nussbaum, Ian Offenberg, Seamus O'Rourke, Christopher Peach, Ronald Petrillo, John Quinn, John-Paul Shimko

Bantam A1

Coach: Eric Peterson Players: Tommy Babington, Joshua Back, Quinn Cahill, Tyler S. Daniel, Lawrence J. Foley, Connor A. Forbes, Michael D. Grace, Joseph Holm , Ryan Johnson, Christopher J. Kral, Dalton E. Luciani, Robert G. McCrory, Connor Murray, Pj O'Reilly, Wade Petro, Matthew J. Roberts, Benjamin Romeo, Michael Sudora, Philip Uva, Thomas Wiig

Bantam B

Coach: Dale Wehmhoff Players: Connor M. Jones, Kyle Converse, Thomas D. Armas, Matthew Buckwald, John H. Wiig Jr., Tommy Malone, Elijah J. Begin, James Franzis, Xavier E. Estevez, Jack Fairfield, Jeremy C. Ziegler, Jacob D. Cameron, Morgan B. Sharinn, Geoffrey M. Hadden, William Stapleton, William Caracciolo, Hunter Pearson, Patrick Andros, Sidney Rodriguez

Midget Tournament Team

Coach: Tony Aponte Players: Luciano D. Amatruda, Matthew Beck, William V. Brophy, Darren Capobianco, Charles Christo, Ryan J. Corcoran, William A. D'Amore, Jamie DeNicola, Matthew Dostie, Timothy B. Edmonds, Timothy J. Eng, Joseph J. Esposito, Liam Ferguson, Andrew Hatton, Kenny H. Kochiss, Dean Lockery, Ryan McLellan, Robert Petrillo, Daniel Silvestri, Billy J. Vizzo

U19 Girls Travel

Coach: Paul Kelly Players: Gabriela Bochenczyk, Brooke C. Bonetti, Rebecca Buck, Sebryna Buskey, Tabitha Cascella, Anna Collimore, Lucie Collimore, Meghan K. Flynn, Sara Kalina, Tarah Kelly, Jade Powell, Paige Reynolds, Nikki Szymanski, Kathryn Ullman, Sara Walewski

U14 Girls Travel

Coach: Joe Underkofler; Assistant Coach; Michelle Marella Players: Bailey C. Brooks, Anna Collimore, Lucie Collimore, Isabella K. Cusano, Murphy Deane, Grace W. Flink, Maggie Kelly, Margaret Kryspin, Emma Leslie, Abi Lovegrove, Michaela G. ODonnell, Sarah Powlishen, Caroline Prezioso, Kayla Shemesh, Rachel Stanford, Madyson Whitney

Mite House

The Mighty Mites

Bruins:

• Aiden Cronin

• William Donovan

• Theodore Geary

• Tyler Nash

• Charlie Orben

• Timothy Sullivan

• Charlie Swanson

• Mark Valus

Devils:

• Hayden Dubac-shiplee

• Tyler Fox

• Mary Lundregan

• Christian Maher

• Graham Michener

• Dylan Walton

• Tim Walton

Islanders:

• Kevin Barrett

• Matt Chamberlain

• Ryan Flynn

• Harrison Gordon

• James Mikos

• Jack Murray

• Dan Pepin

• Matt Vinoski

Kings:

• Sophia G. Cerroni

• Willem Donnelly

• Greg Hilinski

• Amanda LePore

• Maeve O’Donnell

• Cooper Paul

• William Richards

• Connor Zavory

Penguins:

• Joey Deren

• Chase DiTullo

• George Elias

• Liam Gordon

• Matt Ionescu

• Greyson McCormack

• Julian Pastone

• “Wheels” Shanahan

• Kyle Sutfin

• Hot Oil Shanahan Jr.

Rangers:

• Blake Baksay

• James Bauer

• Scott Conopask

• Andrew Kortmansky

• Matt Newton

• Josh Weinstein

Squirt House

The Super Squirts

Canadians

• Ryan Boyle

• Pete DiDomenico

• Abby Hart

• Sam Henchcliffe

• Nick Kennaghan

• Cooper Lee

• Claire Manger

• Jack McKenna

• Everett Nash

• James Pisciotti

• Sam Seymour

• Jake “The General” Takacs

• Jack Wallace

Capitals

• James Burris

• Tiernan Curley

• Leonard Dinardo

• Dante Esposito

• Mike Domenichelli

• Sean Fox

• Christian Gerard

• Ethan Hynes

• Griffen Hass

• Ryan Lauter

• Tim Oravec

• Aiden O’Rourke

• Chris Peritone

• Luke Welch

Flyers

• Ethan Van Loan

• Finn Sullivan

• Christian Scinto

• Ben Steele

• Chris Chartier

• Audrey Choi

• Quenton Conopask

• Aiden Conte

• Sean Hauton

• Dylan Mace

• Josh Schaffer

• Tom Schietinger

• Lightning

• Liam Foley

• Clare Foley

• Chris Allen

• Katie Aranda

• Lucas Baksay

• Sidney Falterer

• Dan Finizio

• Matt McCuskey

• Jack Minkowitz

• Aniruddah MuralI

• Sam Sheehan

• Connor Wackerman

• Sarah Witherbee

Pee Wee/Bantam House

The Pee Wee/Bantams

Hurricanes • Geoffrey Takacs

• Brandon White

• Mac Romaniello

• Jackson Seymour

• Cam Nash

• Jack Neal

• Jared Platt

• Jeremy Martinez

• Nick Massoud

• Clayton McGoldrick

• Dillon Mirible

• Griffin Adair

• Steven Alix

• Jacob DeLardi

• Mike Delgado

• Connor Jones

• Kendall Joslin

• Dustin Maher

• Buddy Moales

Panthers • Jason Wingate

• Austin Valus

• David Abrahams

• Connor Boyle

• Russell Capozziello

• Ian Cooney

• Clayton Crouch

• Jack Donovan

• Marshal Dubac

• Kaitlyn Fogarty

• Kelsey Fogarty

• Michal Jablonowski

• James Miniscalco

• Spencer Manning

• Chris Myers

• Austin O’Brien

• John Pacelli

• Kyle Ross

Thank You!

Special Thanks to DJ Quinn, the Wizards New President! Congratulations DJ!

Thank You Bill D’Amore for serving the

Wizards as President these last two years.

We appreciate all your efforts!!!

And: • Thank you Jackie Bunovsky! • Thank you Deb Kirven! • Thank You, Bernadette Sudora! • Thank you, Wendy Lo-Naclerio! • Thank you Lorraine Winslow! • Thank you, Lisa Fedick! • Thank you, Stuart Johnston! • Thank you Paul Shimko! • Thank You John Wigg! (The hardest working man in the ice business) • Thank you Matt Naclerio! (For all you do that goes unrecognized!) • Thank you Irene, for the best bacon egg and cheeses on the eastern

seaboard! And thank you coaches, managers, parents and volunteers! You make

Wonderland of Ice a special place to be and the Wonderland Wizards a very special family.

And a Special Thanks to John and Mike For Always Making it About the Kids!

P.S. Selling a Car? Call John

203-727-7973

In Memoriam Kyle Winslow 2002-2011

Kyle was a wonderful and happy little boy who went to watch all of his brother and sisters hockey games. He was the Wizards #1 Fan and we will miss him!!

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