Each week of the 2021-22 season, The Morris-Sussex Hockey Report will honor its Three Stars of the Week. We will also have our rankings of the Top 5 teams in the area. You can find out who made the cut this week below.
THREE STARS OF THE WEEK
Jason Cai, Delbarton, G, Jr.
Delbarton has had as good of a start to the season as could possibly be imagined, and its junior goaltender is a big reason why. In three games, Cai has a .969 save percentage with a 22-save shutout against Bergen Catholic and a nine-save shutout against St. Joseph of Montvale. He also turned aside 32 of 34 shots in helping his team earn a big 4-2 win over Gloucester Catholic on the road.
Luke Dickerson, Morris Knolls-Hills, F, So.
The sophomore was instrumental in his team’s first two wins of the year over Randolph and Morristown-Beard. He totaled four goals, including the first for his team in a 3-0 win over Randolph, before getting a hat trick in the team’s 7-1 win over Morristown-Beard, which was Morristown-Beard’s first Mennen Division loss in 2 years, snapping a 17-game division win streak for the Crimson.
Dylan Shea, Vernon, F/D, Sr.
Shea’s name was all over the scoresheet in Vernon’s three blowout wins to open the year over Johnson, Morris Catholic-St. Elizabeth and High Point-Wallkill Valley-Kittatinny. His team out-scored its opponents 31-6 in those games, and Shea amassed 23 points, including 13 goals and 10 assists. In a 10-0 win over Morris Catholic-St. Elizabeth, Shea was involved in nine of his team’s goals with five goals and four assists on the night. He also had five goals and two assists in his team’s 9-4 win over High Point-Wallkill Valley-Kittatinny.
To nominate players for the Three Stars of the Week, coaches are asked to e-mail Mike Gurnis at michaelgurnis@gmail.com by 12 p.m. each Saturday.
TOP 5 RANKINGS
1-Delbarton (3-0)
The Green Wave announced to the state loud and clear that its uncharateristic struggles from the last two seasons are behind them. It knocked off then-No. 4 Bergen Catholic and No. 2 Gloucester Catholic in the team’s first two games, before taking down No. 10 St. Joseph of Montvale. These wins propelled Delbarton to No. 1 in the state in NJ.com’s latest Top 20 on Friday.
2-Morris Knolls-Hills (2-0)
Despite being hit hard by graduation, Morris Knolls-Hills has continued its success in the early going this season. It opened with a nice 3-0 win over its rival in Randolph, before moving past the back-to-back Mennen Cup champions in Morristown-Beard, 7-1 on Friday night.
3-Morristown-Beard (2-1)
The Crimson opened the year with two-straight wins over St. Joseph (Metuchen) and then-No. 16 Pingry, by scores of 5-3 and 3-2, respectively. Then, without some of its best players it fell 7-1 to Morris Knolls-Hills on Friday night. It was the team’s first Mennen Division loss in two seasons.
4-Pope John (1-0)
Pope John is a team that has enough returning talent to surprise some teams in the Gordon Conference this season. It already did that in its first game, as it pulled off an impressive 3-2 win over Princeton Day on the road. Princeton Day was ranked No. 9 in the state at the time. The Lions will look to keep it going on Monday when it travels to face Seton Hall Prep.
5-Randolph (1-1)
The Rams were blanked by rival Morris Knolls-Hills, 3-0 in the season-opener on Tuesday. It bounced back with a big win over Madison on Saturday night to earn its first points in the Mennen Division this season.
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