The faces of the contributors may change on the blue line but the constant has been the frustration that the Don Bosco Prep defense instills in its opposition.

Don Bosco, No. 3 in the NJ.com Top 20, proved that even after playing its third game in four days which included a trip to Massachusetts that its defense is still very much a force to be reckoned with after a dominant outing in a 4-0 victory over No. 1 Bergen Catholic at the Ice Vault Monday night.


The Ironmen held its opposition to just 15 shots on net, as opposed to the 40 it put on Crusaders goalie Brendan McCaskey, in frustrating Bergen Catholic throughout the night.

“Our defense is, in my mind, the best in the state," Don Bosco Prep coach Greg Toskos said. "It’s hard to get pucks through out guys and our transition is darn good where we can get up ice. Even with 10 new guys on the roster, we just move and go. We had a game plan and...our guys stuck to it.”

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That suffocating defense coincided with Don Bosco getting healthier as well as the production of some new faces. Four freshman had their fingerprints all over the win with Sal Guzzo scoring the first goal, Ethan Marchin posting the 15-save shutout, Eric Vivinetto setting up the second goal of the game and Drew Fortescue, who alongside Guzzo and Zachary Hammond returned from injury, coming into his first scholastic game to pitch into the dominant defensive effort.

“You’ve got three freshmen that contributed and then Drew Fortescue, his first high school game, he steps into the lineup and shuts down those guys," Toskos said. “I think we played our game really well. When we’re playing our game, we’re really hard to beat. Plus (Marchin) in that environment comes in and shuts out one of the top teams in the state? Pretty good by him."

Added Guzzo on the underclassmen following a senior class that led Don Bosco to its first state title last year, “We have to follow in their footsteps. You have to keep it going and do what we do.”


Everyone had their hand on the win as the quick switch from defense to offense on the counter attack kept Bergen Catholic on its heels for much of the night with very few legitimate offensive chances.

“Our defense was playing well, blocking shots and everything," Marchin said. "We had our wingers coming down too to chip the puck on them and we got odd-man rushes on them all night.”

For much of the game, Don Bosco was able to keep out of the penalty box and took advantage of Bergen Catholic penalties, resulting in a Michael Rubin goal to give the Ironmen a two-goal advantage at the end of the first period.

Frustration boiled over, first for Bergen Catholic then for Don Bosco Prep, in the final six minutes of the game as both sides took multiple penalties.