Brian Miller scored four goals and brother Boomer added a goal and two assists as Cherokee advanced to the finals with a 6-2 win over Washington Township. Moorestown and Cherokee will now meet in the best of 3 for the Championship beginning Monday night at the Skate Zone in Voorhees. Township led 1-0 on a laser shot from Colin Valentine that found the top corner ten minutes into the game and that was the only goal of the period. Zachary Burkhardt got the surprise start in net, coming off a mild concussion; Zach was cleared by the doctor as he had no headache symptoms for seven days.

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Once again SJIceHockey.com is pleased to announce our annual award recipients. This year there seemed to be more balance throughout the league and with the playoffs upon us we could be in for a few surprises. Listed below are the 2013-2014 winners:

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John Martino scored three goals, including two in the third period as Cherokee defeated Washington Township 4-0 to open defense of their SJHSIHL title last night at the Skate Zone in Voorhees. Jimmy Witkoski stopped all 25 shots for the win. Martino scored the lone goal of the opening period as his shot found the corner on the long side for a 1-0 lead. Township, playing under former head coach Mike Glick played a very strong game defensively and it was obvious that shutting down Brian Miller, the league’s leading scorer, was the top priority and that strategy worked. Cherokee however has other offensive weapons and Martino stepped up in this game.

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The SJHSHL has just released their 2013-2014 Nominees for the Junior-Senior Showcase game and we have them. Each team was asked to submit 5 players from their roster, must be a Junior or Senior. With the weather causing havoc on the scheduling of the playoffs, the date has not been set, but once it is we will let you know. This year the league is experimenting with a new method of selections, there will be a draft, unlike past years where a selection committee handled the picks.

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Moorestown used a four goal third period to erase a 4-3 deficit and defeat Cherokee 7-4 in a battle of the top 2 teams in the American division. Moorestown finishes the season with a 15-2-1 record and cannot be caught, the best Cherokee can do is 14-3-1 and fall 2 points short of first place. Eric Schwartz and Chris DeRose each scored two goals for Moorestown; Boomer Miller netted two for Cherokee.

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Brian Miller scored two goals; including the game winner with just over one minute remaining as Cherokee defeated Washington Township 4-2 at Hollydell. It was the second straight Friday night matchup between these two teams and unlike last week, Township did not generate much offense. Cherokee controlled the first period out-shooting Township 16-9, but thanks to the strong play in goal by Zachary Burkhardt, Cherokee failed to score, despite having a two-man advantage for a full two minutes. Township took advantage of their man advantage as Matthew Bierman would score the first of his two goals on the night and Township led 1-0 after one period.

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Nick Urban and Colin Valentine scored two goals apiece as Washington Township began the New Year with a 6-2 defeat of Cherokee at Hollydell on Friday evening. Having lost their last 2 games of 2013 to Moorestown and Cherokee by a combined score of 11-3, the Minutemen needed a strong performance from Zachary Burkhardt in nets and some offense if they wanted to at least let the Chiefs know that they are a contender. Tonight they got both as Burkhardt was solid and they scored six goals against a top team.

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Thomas Janus had three goals to lead Cherokee past Washington Township 5-1 in a penalty filled contest at the Skate Zone in Voorhees. Total of 33 penalties were called, with Cherokee getting 17. That means both coaches are suspended for the next game having exceeded the amount set by the league, which is 15. Janus scored a natural hat trick in the first period.

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Tim Papagno stopped all 18 shots a Cherokee defeated Clearview 6-0 in cross-over action played at the Skate Zone on Monday night. Thomas Janus led the Chiefs with two goals and one assists. Cherokee took a 1-0 lead with six minutes left in the opening period as Anthony Principato scored his fifth goal of the season. Janus made it 2-0 just two minutes later deflecting a pass from Tim Schirmer for his seventh goal of the season. The second period Cherokee would score three goals in a five minute span to break the game open, with Tim Ryan, Mike Buck on the power play and Janus’ eighth of the year getting the goals.

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What ever happened to that line?? “With all due respect”? Or, more simply put, whatever happened to respect? Having covered this league for 15 years now, you hear a lot of talk back and forth. Mostly it is just that, talk, chatter, harmless banter just shy of being aggressive or outright rude. Sometimes, though, it seems players lose sight of the fact that the referees are there for a reason. They are part of the game. Are they always right? No. Will they change their mind if you argue and curse at them about the call? Heck no. I have never seen a ref change his call after a player argues his case over a penalty that he believed he did not commit.

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