Buffalo Grove Co-op takes in state

Skating out on the ice at the United Center before the Blackhawk Cup varsity combined state championship game against Rockford Sunday was something the players on the Buffalo Grove Co-op hockey team will never forget.

“It was amazing to hear the horn ringing when you hit the ice and to be skating where the Chicago Blackhawks’ Patrick Kane does,” Stampede junior John Cappuccitti said. “To look up and see two sections of the United Center filled with our crowd was amazing.”

Added senior teammate Cody Turcotte: “I can’t even find the words to describe how I felt. Every single period went by in the blink of an eye.”

For the first two periods the Stampede, which draws players from Buffalo Grove, Hersey and Wheeling, was on track to bring home the Blackhawk Cup. The Stampede took a 1-0 lead in the first period and held that advantage until Rockford tied the score early in the third period. The score stayed at 1-1 until Rockford’s Andrew Cropp scored a little more than three minutes into the extra session.

“We had plenty of good chances that we didn’t capitalize on,” Turcotte said. “They got their chance and they put it away.”

Despite the defeat, senior Mason Vamvakos said the Stampede did a good job of staying in the moment.

“We didn’t think of it as one game as much as three 18-minute periods,” Vamvakos said. “We kept our heads in it the whole way, but once they scored, they had the momentum.”

What was particularly remarkable about the season was how muted the expectations were going in. The Stampede ended up 25-1-2 in the league and finished with 40 victories.

“We were thinking we would be above .500, but we weren’t expecting this,” Vamvakos said. “We had really good chemistry and we put together a 20-game winning streak. The season really took off from there.”

Turcotte said it was clear early on this would be a special year.

“This was one of the most incredible seasons I’ve been part of,” he said. “It was a great experience to be on the ice with the boys on this team.”

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