Jersey Rockhoppers

Jersey Rockhoppers
City West Orange, New Jersey
League Eastern Professional Hockey League
Founded 2008
Home arena Richard J. Codey Arena
Colors Black, Orange
Owner(s) Curtis Russell, Igor Mrotchek
General manager TBA
Head coach Brian Gratz
Franchise history
2008 to 2009 Jersey Rockhoppers
Championships
Regular season titles 1

The Jersey Rockhoppers were a professional ice hockey team based in West Orange, New Jersey, in the United States. They played the 2008-2009 season as members of the Eastern Professional Hockey League and played at the 2,500 seat Richard J. Codey Arena.

The Rockhoppers name was chosen by the team's owners after a name the team contest. The owners decided on an animal name, co-owner Igor Mrotchek stated “We think that Rockhoppers makes a nice match and is identifiable with grace, agility and an aggressive nature compared to other penguins”.[1]

The 2008-09 Rockhoppers were coached by Brian Gratz.[2] On March 28, 2009, the Rockhoppers won the EPHL Championship by defeating the Brooklyn Aces 2 games to 1.

Notable players

On March 21 and 22, 2009, former New York Ranger great, Ron Duguay, suited up to play two games in the EPHL, one game with the Brooklyn Aces and the other with the Jersey Rockhoppers, to raise money for the Garden of Dreams Foundation, a nonprofit organization associated with Madison Square Garden.[3]

Roster

Forwards
# Player Pos. Shoots Height Weight Place of Birth
6 United States John Morea LW R 5' 9" 180 lbs. Brooklyn, New York, USA
8 United States Chris Ferazzoli C L 5' 6" 165 lbs. Floral Park, New York, USA
10 Canada Ron Duguay F R 6' 2" 210 lbs. Sudbury, Ontario Canada
16 United States Anthony Becker F R 5' 11" 173 lbs. North Tonawanda, New York, USA
17 United States Matt Tyree F L 6' 1" 210 lbs. Spooner, Wisconsin, USA
18 United States Logan Bittle F R 6' 1" 200 lbs. Peoria, Illinois, USA
19 United States Tom Boudreau F R 5' 8" 159 lbs. Oak Lawn, Illinois, USA
20 United States Drew Sanders F L 5' 8" 175 lbs. Modesto, California, USA
21 United States Kyle Bozoian F L 6' 2" 205 lbs. St. Louis, Missouri, USA
22 United States Jason McCrimmon F R 6' 4" 238 lbs. Detroit, Michigan, USA
25 United States Joe Welgos F R 6' 2" 190 lbs. Darien, Illinois, USA
27 United States Patrick Serpico F R 5' 8" 180 lbs. Marlboro, New Jersey, USA
Defensemen
# Player Pos. Shoots Height Weight Place of Birth
5 United States Mike Bouchard D L 6' 1" 220 lbs. Smithfield, Rhode Island, USA
11 United States Rich Jondo D L 6' 3" 215 lbs. Baltimore, Maryland, USA
23 United States Alex Hager D R 5' 11" 198 lbs. Warwick, Rhode Island, USA
24 United States Dustin Henning D R 5' 11" 185 lbs. Steamboat Springs, Colorado, USA
Goaltenders
# Player Pos. Catches Height Weight Place of Birth
1 United States Rob Lemelin G R 6' 1" 205 lbs. South Hamilton, Massachusetts, USA
39 United States Nick Niedert G R 5' 8" 185 lbs. Hudson, Iowa, USA

References

  1. ↑ West Orange Professional Hockey
  2. ↑ "Standings for the Jersey Rockhoppers of the EPHL at". Hockeydb.com. Retrieved 2010-07-03.
  3. ↑ Klein, Jeff Z (March 22, 2009). "Locks Still Flowing 20 Years Later, Duguay Returns". The New York Times.

External links