Bergen County Champions and Gordon Cup Winners
By Ross Vocaturo ‘25
RAMSEY, NJ – Another season of Don Bosco Ironmen hockey is in the books. Coming off a 2021-22 campaign that saw the Bergen County Championship return to Ramsey for the 9th time in 11 years, as well as being two years removed from their 3rd Gordon Cup back in 2021, the club had all the hardware in sight. The team lost six vital contributors to the program’s past success following their graduation (forwards Nick Milmore, Matt Imbriano, Giovanni Russo; defensemen Tyler Alesso, Joseph Bossolina, Lukas Klemm). However, despite these vacancies on the depth chart to start the season, the Ironmen would not miss a beat, in part due to the leadership of the team’s head coach, Greg Toskos (returning for his 17th season), as well as the team’s newly announced captains: Senior forward Ty Oller, Junior forward Dean Toskos, Senior defenseman Liam St. Pierre, and Senior goalie Ethan Marich.
The Ironmen kicked off their 2022-23 season with back-to-back games in their home barn, the Ice Vault in Wayne, New Jersey. Sophomore Matt Shpungin’s two goals would help Bosco take the season opener over Seton Hall Prep, 3-1. Two nights later, the Ironmen would put up a 5-goal first period and never look back, edging out St. Peter’s Prep 7-2. Bosco would start the season off 4-0 before playing their first tie, a 3-3 final against Boston College High School in Wellesley, Massachusetts.
To cap off their dominant December to start the season, Bosco had a home-and-away scheduled against the program’s biggest rival: Bergen Catholic. Bosco took both games, 3-1 and 2-0, respectively, largely in part to the success of goalies Ethan Marich and James Tarabocchia, who stopped 51 out of a combined 52 shots on goal between both games. Dean Toskos led the team in points in December with 15 (6 goals, 9 assists).
Entering the new month and year meant the start of the Gordon Conference & Harry Rulon Miller Tournament. To start off 2023, Bosco edged out Princeton Day School, 4-2. The following night, seven different players would score a point en route to Bosco taking home the Harry Rulon Miller Championship. Bosco would remain undefeated until the 18th of January, when they dropped their first game of the season, a 5-3 loss to Christian Brothers Academy. The team would bounce back a few nights later, however, with a 6-2 victory over Suffern High School sparked by a 5-goal period in the 3rd.
February started off rough for the Ironmen, dropping two of the first three games of the month. However, Bosco got back on their feet in typical fashion, cruising past Ramapo by a score of 8-3, highlighted by a Ty Oller hat trick. The following night, Bosco would get another crack at their longtime cross-county rivals, Bergen Catholic. In addition to a chance at making the season series 3-0 in favor of Bosco, both the Ironmen and the Crusaders were playing for the Bergen County Championship. Trailing 2-1 heading into the 3rd period, Matt Shpungin would get the equalizer with less than 7 minutes to go in regulation, forcing overtime. With about a minute and change left in overtime, Senior Kris Krumins would wrist one stick side-high past the Crusaders’ goalie, handing Bosco their 10th Bergen County Championship in the program’s history.
The NJSIAA Non-Public playoff hockey tournament was underway, with Bosco in search of its 2nd State Championship (2019). The Ironmen would start off the “round of 16” with an 8-0 annihilation of Paramus Catholic, a game which saw 12 players record a point, including a 4-point performance from Ty Oller (1 goal, 3 assists) and 3 points from Kris Krumins (2 goals, 1 assist) and Liam St. Pierre (1 goal, 2 assists). Next week would see Bosco take care of Pingry School in the quarterfinals, despite a 3-goal 3rd period rally from Pingry before falling just short at the final horn. The Ironmen would clinch a Semifinals matchup with St. Augustine Prep in hopes of punching their ticket to the NJSIAA Non Public State Championship Game at the Prudential Center in Newark. However, Bosco’s road to The Rock would come to an end in an overtime heartbreaker taken by the Hermits, the final score being 2-1. Despite not taking home the State title, the Ironmen still got their hands on an HMR Championship and Bergen County Championship en route to reaching the State Semifinals.
The majority of Bosco’s roster saw an increase in individual stats as well. The team’s first line (coined the “STY Line”) led the way on the season box score: Ty Oller (18 goals, 22 assists, 40 points); Dean Toskos (15 goals, 25 assists, 40 points); and Matt Shpungin (13 goals, 19 assists, 32 points). In addition, Kris Krumins (16 points), Luca Chiaese (12), Matthew Bossolina (11), Massimo Monteleone (10), and Liam St. Pierre (10) also finished the season with double digit points. Every skater on the team who played a minimum 10 games finished the season with at least a point. In terms of goalies, the platoon of Ethan Marich (90.8 SV%, 2.15 GAA) and James Tarabocchia (93.0 SV%, 1.77 GAA) excelled for the majority of the season.
All in all, the Ironmen would not exit the 2022-23 season empty handed, despite their Semifinal elimination in the State Tournament. The season had many memorable moments and brought home many additions to the already lengthy resume of the Bosco hockey program. Along with continuing their winning ways, the Ironmen also kept up with the annual tradition of honoring former hockey player and alum, Major Thomas Kennedy; Kennedy was on the hockey team during his Bosco tenure and would go on to play competitively at West Point afterward. Unfortunately, Kennedy was one of the many lives sacrificed abroad while defending our nation. Today, Bosco keeps his legacy alive by wearing a jersey with a “TK” crest on the front for select games, as well as dedicating a stall in the home locker room to Kennedy in his honor. A season filled with memories, tradition, and brotherhood, the Don Bosco Ironmen’s 2022-23 campaign was one that will be remembered for years to come.