The 2008-09 FHL Most Valuable Player BRIAN BARCA JETS There's a reason why Brian Barca has won the FHL Championship each of the three years he's been in the league. Talent. Barca led the Jets to a 13-4 record during the regular season, and a FHL Championship as he scored 35 Goals and added 31 Assists, easily leading the league. - - - - - -

GOOD GUY - Joe Rogers (Pirates) BREAKTHROUGH PLAYER OF THE YEAR - Ryan Cleary (Pirates) BEST DEFENSIVE FORWARD - Matt Wierchowski (Crosby's) ROOKIE OF THE YEAR - Ryan Mains (Jets) DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR - Tom Fetsko (Jets) MOST VALUABLE PLAYER - Brian Barca (Jets)

The 2008-09 Defensive Player of the Year TOM FETSKO JETS - - - - - STAY TUNED FOR TOMORROW'S AWARD WINNER ANNOUNCEMENT MOST VALUABLE PLAYER (WILL BE ANNOUNCED ON MONDAY, MAY 30TH) Tony Bonacorso (Pirates) Chad Kanz (Kings) Brian Barca (Jets) Roy McDonald (Crosby's)

The 2008-09 FHL Rookie of the Year RYAN MAINS JETS - - - - - STAY TUNED FOR TOMORROW'S AWARD WINNER ANNOUNCEMENT DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR (WILL BE ANNOUNCED ON FRIDAY, MAY 29TH) Tom Fetsko (Jets) Bill Seaman (Kings) Buddy Doyle (Crosby's) Zak Campbell (Jets)

The 2008-09 FHL Best Defensive Forward MATT WIERCHOWSKI CROSBY'S Coming off his first ever FHL Championship, Matt Wierchowski found himself in a new scenery. The Crosby's took "Mitch" in the first round of the FHL Draft, expecting goals, assists, and a solid backcheck. Wierchowski did just that. His season wrapped up with 13 Goals, 23 Assists, and behind named the Best Defensive Forward in the FHL. - - - - - STAY TUNED FOR TOMORROW'S AWARD WINNER ANNOUNCEMENT ROOKIE OF THE YEAR (WILL BE ANNOUNCED ON THURSDAY, MAY 28TH) Ben Bobick (Crosby's) Craig Hixon (Hawks) Josh Edwards (Jets) Ryan Mains (Jets)

The 2008-09 FHL Breakthrough Player of the Year RYAN CLEARY PIRATES Ryan Cleary was drafted by the Pirates 29th overall in the FHL Draft. The 5th rounder contributed 11 Goals and 10 Assists for the Pirates. Today he was named FHL Breakthrough Player of the Year. Cleary's season started off slow because he was a defenseman, but after a few trades, Cleary moved up to offense and his statistics skyrocketed. - - - - - STAY TUNED FOR TOMORROW'S AWARD WINNER ANNOUNCEMENT BEST DEFENSIVE FORWARD (WILL BE ANNOUNCED ON WEDNESDAY, MAY 27TH) Matt Wierchowski (Crosby's) Mark Fetsko (Jets) Nick Siniawski (Bishop Boyle) Ryan Cleary (Pirates)

The 2008-09 FHL Good Guy Award JOE ROGERSPIRATES Joe Rogers isn't a guy who puts up stats, or even cares about stats. He plays defense, and he has a good time playing. His 1 Goal, 3 Assist season along with his leadership and defense helped the Pirates along the way to making the FHL Championship. This is Rogers' second straight FHL Good Guy Award. - - - - - STAY TUNED FOR TOMORROW'S AWARD WINNER ANNOUNCEMENT BREAKTHROUGH PLAYER OF THE YEAR (WILL BE ANNOUNCED ON TUESDAY, MAY 26TH) Zack Siniawski (Bishop Boyle) Adam Cristallini (Kings) Ryan Cleary (Pirates) Gary Gerson (Hawks)

GOOD GUY (WILL BE ANNOUNCED ON MONDAY, MAY 25TH) Shane Lucas (Pirates) Joe Rogers (Pirates) Dan Powers (Crosby's) Chad Kanz (Kings) BREAKTHROUGH PLAYER OF THE YEAR (WILL BE ANNOUNCED ON TUESDAY, MAY 26TH) Zack Siniawski (Bishop Boyle) Adam Cristallini (Kings) Ryan Cleary (Pirates) Gary Gerson (Hawks) BEST DEFENSIVE FORWARD (WILL BE ANNOUNCED ON WEDNESDAY, MAY 27TH) Matt Wierchowski (Crosby's) Mark Fetsko (Jets) Nick Siniawski (Bishop Boyle) Ryan Cleary (Pirates) ROOKIE OF THE YEAR (WILL BE ANNOUNCED ON THURSDAY, MAY 28TH) Ben Bobick (Crosby's) Craig Hixon (Hawks) Josh Edwards (Jets) Ryan Mains (Jets) DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR (WILL BE ANNOUNCED ON FRIDAY, MAY 29TH) Tom Fetsko (Jets) Bill Seaman (Kings) Buddy Doyle (Crosby's) Zak Campbell (Jets) MOST VALUABLE PLAYER (WILL BE ANNOUNCED ON MONDAY, MAY 30TH)

Tony Bonacorso (Pirates) Chad Kanz (Kings) Brian Barca (Jets) Roy McDonald (Crosby's)

3-1 Box Score

Come Saturday, it will be 161 days since the 2008-09 FHL Season started. The end of the five month, ten day journey will be over. The 23 weeks of hard fought action comes down to one final series. Jets vs. Pirates: The Franklin Hockey League Championship.

Jets (1) vs. Pirates (4)

Captains Zak Campbell (Jets) Andrew McDonald (Pirates) 2008-09 Season Jets: 13-4 (45-27) GF: 104 GA: 61 Pirates: 7-10 (34-37) GF: 87 GA: 85 Top 5 Scorers • Brian Barca (Jets): 35 Goals, 31 Assists, 66 Points • Tony Bonacorso (Pirates): 28 Goals, 21 Assists, 49 Points • Andrew McDonald (Pirates): 21 Goals, 18 Assists, 39 Points • Drew Hruska (Pirates): 18 Goals, 19 Assists, 37 Points • Zak Campbell (Jets): 15 Goals, 17 Assists, 32 Points Head-to-Head Week 1: Pirates 3, Jets 2 Week 7: Jets 3, Pirates 2 Week 12: Jets 3, Pirates Strengths Talent: Brian Barca, Zak Campbell, Zack Wahal, Mark Fetsko, Tom Fetsko. These players are all so talented and bring the Jets to a number one seed, with a 13-4 record. There's a reason why they scored a league leading 104 goals and gave up 64 goals, also leading the league. Chemistry/Experience: There is chemistry for everyone on the team. Everyone knows where the other is on the ice, and it shows. Also, the Jets won the Championship last year. Players Zak Campbell, Brian Barca, and Mark Fetsko have all been there before. Offensive Depth: With five players scoring over twenty points in the regular season [Bonacorso (49), McDonald (39), Hruska (37), Cleary (21), Hreha (21)], the Pirates have a great variety of depth, including skilled scorers. For the Pirates, scoring can come from anywhere. Chemistry: The Pirates come into this week winning six of their last seven, since acquiring the likes of Brian Hreha, Shane Lucas, and Drew Hruska. This includes their playoff wins against the Hawks and Crosby's. They seem to be enjoying playing with each other, as they’ve outscored opponents 47-31 in those seven weeks. Weaknesses Pressure to Repeat: The Jets won the FHL Championship last year. Zak Campbell, Brian Barca, and Mark Fetsko led them last year to the win. After cruising past Boyle they may be a little easy on the Pirates squad. Everyone expects the Jets to repeat, but can they do it? Boyle's Damage: The Jets defeated Bishop Boyle in four games last week. Although the Jets outplayed them, Boyle left a lot of damage on their players. The physicallity of the Boyle players such as Hess, Gilson, Grise, and the Siniawski's caused damage to the Jets stars. The Jets players have had a week to recover, but they still may be in pain. Road to the Playoffs: The Pirates have had an easy road to the Championship so far. They made it look easy against the Hawks in four in the first round. They swept the Crosby's in the second round. They are now facing their toughest competition in the Jets. This won't be an easy match-up for them. They will have to use their strengths to their advantage to win this series. Championship Experience: Experience may be a concern for the Bucs, as not one of their players has ever been to a FHL Championship. This is the first year for Tony Bonacorso, Shane Lucas, Ryan Cleary, and Roy McDonald III. Andrew McDonald, Drew Hruska, Joe Rogers, Brian Hreha, and Neil Murray were all eliminated from the playoffs last season. This is the first Championship for every player on that Pirates team. Can they overcome the adversity and win it all?

3-1 Box Score 0-3 Box Score - - - - - - FHL Championship vs.

Jets (1) vs. Bishop Boyle (6)

Crosby's (2) vs. Pirates (4)