Entering Friday night’s Northern Virginia Scholastic Hockey League final at Ashburn Ice House, Langley felt some pressure. Not only were the Saxons experiencing typical pregame jitters, they also knew that their opponent in the title game, Stone Bridge, wanted to be the ones to take them down, just like every other team in the NVSHL. It’s all part of being the best.
Langley shook it off, though, and proved its status again, adding a third straight league title to its two-plus year winning streak with a 4-1 victory over the Bulldogs.
“You could feel the emotions in the locker room before the game,” senior forward Noah Scheinerman said. “We just didn't want it to end here. We were so close. But we knew the drill, we’ve been here before.”
On its way to a fourth title in six years, Langley (13-0) dispatched Oakton (9-4) and last year’s runner-up, Briar Woods, in the playoffs. But in a title matchup, the Saxons knew they’d have to take their game to a higher level.
“There’s a weight that comes with winning,” Langley Coach Patrick Keough said. “You run the risk of players getting inside their own heads because the big fear is, ‘When is the shoe going to drop?’”
The Saxons came out on Friday looking authoritative and ready to add to their streak. After an early back-and-forth, freshman forward James Wu handed his team its first lead of the game after Scheinerman stole the puck from behind the net. Langley would find more opportunities in the second period, and forward Cole Samberg cashed one in on a power play with a shot that sent the puck to the top corner of the net.
“It was sort of like ding, ding, ding, bam,” Keough said of the clinical passing that led to Samberg’s strike. “It was poetic, that goal.”
The Bulldogs weren’t ready to go down just yet though, taking advantage of a power play of their own when all-league forward Jake Lauterstein nabbed a goal.
That didn’t appear to faze Langley, which scored two more goals in the period — first on a power play by forward Alexander Oehm, then on a cross body shot off a three-on-two by Scheinerman less than four minutes later — to deliver the finishing blow.
“You could definitely feel that the boys were like, ‘We can come away with this game,’ especially after that fourth goal,” said Scheinerman, who was named an all-league player after the game along with goalie Harrison Smith, who made 27 saves and captured NVSHL player of the year honors.
Langley kept the third period scoreless and ended the night tossing their helmets, gloves and sticks into the air in celebration of another successful title defense. The win extended their streak to 34 straight, yet also served as a reminder to the Saxons that the target on their backs will only grow next year.
“The problem with conquering the mountain,” Keough said, “is you become the mountain.”
