Area ice hockey team eyes a trip to state playoffs

Photos by BILL SPARKES/Acorn Newspapers ON ICE- Above, Daniel Sulitzer, a member of the Southern California Midget 18AAA ice hockey team, looks for the puck during Tuesday's practice at the Easy Street Arena in Simi Valley. Below left, Thousand Oaks resident Austin Block tries to pass to an open teammate. With two outofstate tournaments the next two weekends and hopes of making the state playoffs, the Southern California Midget 18AAA ice hockey team has come together and learned how to win in its inaugural season.

Co-head coaches Scott Yorkison and Luc Beausoleil, both Simi Valley residents, took the team through an intense practice Tuesday night at the Easy Street Arena in Simi Valley and spoke enthusiastically.

Yorkison, who grew up in Pittsburgh, has more than 10 years of coaching experience, including for the Ventura Mariners Junior B Western States League teams during 1998-99, 1999-2000 and 2000-01 seasons.

The 1999-2000 team won the national championship. The other two were national championship semifinalists. He also coached the Mariners Midget AAA team in 1997-98.

Beausoleil, from Montréal, Canada, originally played 14 years of professional ice hockey at the minor league level as a right winger- eight seasons for the Tulsa Oilers of the Central Hockey League and six years for teams in Europe. He is the director of ice hockey at Easy Street Arena.

The Titans, with a record of 15 wins, 21 losses and five ties, are ranked 39th in the nation among teams in the Midget AAA Major USA under 18 years old tier.

The upcoming tourneys for the Titans will be today through Sunday at Ralph Engelstad Arena in Grand Forks, N.D., then Jan. 2528 at Dr Pepper Star Center- Farmers Branch in Dallas.

"The type of kids we are looking for," Yorkison said, "obviously are kids who have a strong commitment to the game, and they all have a desire to play at the next level. We ended up having 110 kids at our tryouts this year.

"We've got kids on this team who are not only local boys; we have some kids from Canada who are here on student exchange programs learning English."

Beausoleil said the coaches have been working hard to help the players support each other all the time.

"The game is so fast at this time of the year," he said, "and we want to support each other to play together. That's all we've been concentrating on. Without a doubt our kids are improving since the beginning of the season. They respect the plan. They respect that we teach them, and that's why they look real good at practice."

Local players on the Titans Midget 18AAA team are forwards Austin Block and Zach Cabrera of Thousand Oaks, defenseman Zach Bartholomay and forward Chris Moser from Agoura Hills, defenseman Daniel Sulitzer of Calabasas, defenseman Tim Bowman of Moorpark and forward Andy Monesi from Simi Valley.

Block, a senior at Oaks Christian, just signed with the Fairbanks Ice Dogs Junior A team in the North American Hockey League.

"I'm trying to play solid defense," he said. "In the defensive zone, I capitalize on the chances I get to score and just play as hard as I can and be dedicated to the team.

"Our team just gives it our all. It doesn't matter if we win or lose as long as we try our hardest and play hard. We started the season kind of slow, but we're beating some top teams now. We have some big playoffs and some tournaments in February."

Yorkison said Block is a special athlete.

"In all my years, even when I had the Junior teams," he said, "Austin would have come in and fit right in with those teams that won national championships. He is our captain, and that says a lot right there. He is just a quality character."

Block was the first player to sign with the Titans in May.

"He showed the commitment and belief in a firstyear program," the coach said. "It's a pretty special relationship our organization has with him."

Cabrera, a senior at Oaks Christian, said his main contribution to the team is being a playmaker.

"I'm not one of the bigger guys on the ice," he said, "but I am effective, making sure I get the puck to my teammates. A playmaker is someone who works hard and doesn't get all the glory, someone who does the dirty work and makes sure the team gets its goal- the win."

The relationship the players have to one another on the team is making a positive contribution to the team this season, Cabrera said.

"Some players have played with each other on teams before," he said. "Overall as a team our focus is to play hard, never give up and always play our best- whether we are losing by a goal or five goals, or are ahead."

Yorkison said Cabrera is an interesting story.

"Zach weighed in at our initial weigh in," the coach said. "He may be the lightest kid in this level of hockey. He weighs about 130 pounds soaking wet, but his heart is bigger than anybody. I'd put him up against anybody. He brings a lot of energy to us. He's been a real pleasant surprise for us. He's played a lot of different roles."

Yorkison said the first month or so the players all had the work ethic.

"It was more about getting them to understand how to play as a team, getting comfortable with each other, getting the right combinations," he said.

Beausoleil echoed Yorkison's thoughts.

"We went through a lot of it together during training camp," he said. "Our main goal was to create a family. On the team we have 18 brothers, and that's all it is.

"For us it's game by game. All we want to do, Scott and I, is to make sure we promote our kids game after game. Every tournament we go to we spend hours outside the rink with scouts and coaches talking about our players."

The coaches, Beausoleil said, made a commitment at the beginning of the season that when attending tournaments, in addition to coaching the players during the games, they would spend time talking to scouts representing Junior A teams and to recruiters from colleges.

"So far, we have done it and it's paid off," he said. "We have a couple of kids signed up with Junior A already. We've been working really hard, and we're looking forward and are really excited."

Working with Yorkison and Beausoleil is Ian England, strength and conditioning coach and an assistant coach, a person who has been actively involved in hockey for the past 18 years as a player and coach. He has coached A, B and Tier levels for the Ventura Mariners and the Thunder youth hockey program. Janice Bowman is the team manager.

Also part of the Titans program are the Bantam AA and Midget 16AAA teams. More information on the Titans is available on the team's website at www.sctitanhockey.com