The Newtown-New Fairfield Rebelhawks hockey team hosted the Joel Barlow-Weston-Abbott Tech squad for the annual Wounded Warrior Cup contest, a special fundraiser game benefiting Wounded Warrior Project, at Danbury Ice Arena on February 25. With a commanding 7-2 victory, NNF claimed the Warrior Cup while helping raise more than $1,800 to support wounded veterans and their families.

The Rebelhawks set the tone early. Jackson Molison opened the scoring in the first period after forcing a turnover and finishing the play unassisted. With less than a minute remaining in the period, Jack Meade made it 2-0. Meade had a clean faceoff win to start the sequence and later buried the opportunity off assists from Colby Cheneski and Andrew Stango, sending NNF into the first intermission with momentum.

JBWA responded seven minutes into the second period, cutting the deficit to one. The Rebelhawks answered late in the period when Ryan Schmidt scored off a feed from Grayson Pimentel to restore the two-goal cushion. Schmidt wasn’t done — he struck again with just 23 seconds left in the period, finishing a beautiful two-on-one setup from Cheneski. Cameron Longhi added the secondary assist, and the Rebelhawks carried a 4-1 lead into the third.

NNF took full control in the final frame. Stango scored 11 seconds into a power play, assisted by Cheneski. Meade then netted his second of the night off assists from Stango and Cheneski. JBWA answered with a power play goal, but Meade restored the five-goal lead by completing his hat trick, finishing a play set up by Molison.

Cheneski led the way with four points in the night. Meade and Stango each recorded three-point performances, while Schmidt and Molison had two points apiece. Longhi and Pimentel each added one point.

While the Rebelhawks celebrated the win and the Warrior Cup, the night’s impact extended well beyond the ice. Injured veterans rely on Wounded Warrior Project for life-changing programs that help them recover, regain independence, and build fulfilling civilian lives at no cost, made possible through the generosity of communities like this one.

The fundraiser game featured an impressive prize lineup. Supporters had the chance to win a fly fishing trip from JPD on the Fly, an autographed Rangers jersey donated in memory of Blair Balmforth, and Hat Tricks tickets generously donated by Expedia Cruises in Brookfield. Local favorites Tacobarn and Boost Bowls also contributed, helping the team raise significant funds for the cause.

NNF dropped a hard-fought 5-4 decision to the visiting Masuk of Monroe Panthers, back in Danbury, on February 28, despite a strong offensive showing and stellar goaltending performance.

Masuk scored just 30 seconds into the opening period. The Panthers carried that advantage through a tightly-contested first period, with NNF battling to generate chances but unable to break through. The Rebelhawks responded in the second period with renewed energy. Meade got NNF on the board, finishing a play set up by Molison and Stango to even the score. Later in the period, Molison found the back of the net off a feed from Meade and Stango, giving the Rebelhawks a spark. However, Masuk matched NNF’s output with two goals of its own in the frame.

The back-and-forth battle continued in the final period. Meade and Molison each scored again, and fittingly, assisted on one another’s goals to account for all four Rebelhawk tallies on the afternoon. Despite the offensive surge, Masuk answered with two goals of its own to secure the victory.

In net, Carter Bisson was outstanding for NNF, turning aside 30 shots. The netminder came up with several highlight-reel saves on odd-man rushes and breakaways that kept the Rebelhawks within striking distance throughout the game.

The Rebelhawks came up just short, falling 4-3 to the Bethel-Brookfield-Danbury-Immaculate Ice Cats in a tightly contested matchup in Danbury on March 1.

NNF burst out of the gates, outshooting BBDI 8-0 in the opening several minutes and controlling possession early. Despite the strong start, it was the Ice Cats who struck first, capitalizing on their early opportunities to take a 2-0 lead. The Rebelhawks responded midway through the first period when Dylan Potter netted his first varsity goal. Potter blasted a beautiful one-timer from the point off a sharp feed from Ethan Freylikhman, who set up the play from behind the net, cutting the deficit to 2-1. NNF pulled even later in the period in dramatic fashion. After a faceoff win by BBDI in its offensive zone, Stango turned defense into offense, outracing an Ice Cats defenseman up ice and finishing to tie the game at 2-2. The teams headed into the first intermission deadlocked.

The Rebelhawks grabbed their first lead of the afternoon in the second period. Schmidt cleaned up a rebound in front after a point shot from Cheneski, giving NNF a 3-2 advantage. BBDI answered back, knotting the score at 3-3 by the end of the second. With just over three minutes remaining in regulation, the Ice Cats broke the tie. In net, Bisson delivered another strong performance, turning aside 32 shots to keep the Rebelhawks within striking distance throughout the game.