The Robbinsville/Allentown hockey team swept the Colonial Division schedule and Paul VI swept the Valley Division schedule, therefore, it’s no surprise the two are headed to the Colonial Valley Conference Tournament final. Face off is set for 5 p.m. at the Mercer County Skating Center in West Wind sor. This has all the earmarks of being a Puchalik Cup classic. The top-seeded Robbinsville/Allentown Co-op (17-4) comes into the final having won eight of the last 10, including two straight in the tournament, and No. 2 Paul VI (16-3) is in the midst of a six-game winning streak. Robbinsville/Allentown won the regular season match-up, doubling up PVI, 8-4, back in January. “It’s a great accomplishment by this group,’’ said Paul VI coach Chalie Hall. “Paul VI has never played for a CVC championship, so to get here says a lot about this team. To reach this stage shows how strong and resilient this team is.’’ Both team have responded to adversity well all season, and for the Ravens, it has been overcoming injuries. “The team is finally almost healthy again,’’ said R/A coach Dan Bergan. “We were running on all cylinders against Princeton in the semifinals.’’ Both teams have a player who is seemingly setting new records every time he take the ice. Jake Lachance became the all-time scoring leader in Robbinsville/Allentown history when he scored three in the semifinal against Princeton to give me 103 career goals. He is one of the top goal scorers in the state with 44 goals and 28 assists this season for 72 points. Paul VI has its own record setter in Nick Aversa. The senior has 27 goals and 39 assists this season for 66 points and he has 62 career goals and 113 assists. It will be a very charged arena on Friday when the two face-off as they have shown to be the best and emotion will play a part in the game. “We need to keep our emotions in check,’’ said Hall. “Our last game against Robbinsville we got way too high emotionally and tried to do too much; when things didn’t go our way we couldn’t find our way back. On the ice, we need to be much better defensively. Our backchecking was lazy and the defensive zone coverage was a mess; we just need to focus and stay disciplined at that end of the ice.’’ Besides Lachance, the R/A Co-op has plenty of weapons that can make staying calm a little difficult and a defense that can frustrate the best attack. James Morino has 16 goals and 32 assists, Jack Lawrence adds 16 goals and 27 assists, Cole Martinez has 15 goals and 13 assists and Alexander Margolin has 11 goals and 13 assists. Goalie Tyler Wagner has a 2.65 goals against average. It has been a very potent offense the Eagles have, as well. “Paul VI has a core of gifted finishers in (Nick) Lento and (Nick) Aversa among others,’’ said Bergan. “They have great firepower, excellent depth and strong tending. They are a complete team with no holes in the lineup.’’ Besides Aversa, the Eagles have Lento with 17 goals and 22 assists, Brayden Mills with 19 and 20, Brock Mission has 13 and 25 and Jason Bloor has 18 and 20. The defense, which is led by Luciano Lisanti with a 2.69 GAA, has allowed just 11 goals in the six-game winning streak. “We just have to focus on Robbinsville and not worry about what the game means,’’ said Hall. “We worked incredibly hard to get to this point and we deserve to be here. Don’t play the moment, play the game. If we keep things simple, stay resilient, and play for each other we’ll be successful.’’ The game plan and message is pretty much the same for Robbinsville/Allentown. “ We will need to put a lid on their great offense and play great defenseoff their rush,’’ said Bergan. “We need solid zone coverage and (Tyler) Wagner to come up big as he has all season.’’ It’s a very fitting final and could produce a classic. ...read more read less