High School State Hockey Championship — Valor Christian Celebrates in Denver

Ice hockey, or simply hockey, has been immensely popular in the US since its appearance in 1894. That year, the country got its first artificial ice rink in Baltimore. At first, hockey was mostly played in states with cool climates, but it shortly spread over the whole country.

The formation and expansion of the National Hockey League made hockey betting fans happy, as it created opportunities to earn money while watching their favorite sport. Apart from the NHL, hockey significantly developed on a high school level too. Moreover, the high school league attracts a vast number of spectators, just like major leagues.

The latest high school game was part of the Colorado High School State Hockey Championship between Valor Christian and Fort Collins. The game was spectacular and, in the end, Valor Christian came out on top.

Without further ado, let’s get down to the details.

Valor Christian Victorious After 5OT

The High School Hockey Championship game was filled with action from the second it started. This was expected since none of the two teams has won the state championship in ice hockey before.

However, even though there were plenty of attacks, both goalkeepers managed to save their nets during the regulation time. Since no goals were scored, sudden death periods followed. Again, both teams were scoreless in four overtime periods.

Finally, during the fifth overtime, Valor Christian managed to score and bring the first hockey title to the school. The man of the action was Evan Pahos, the junior forward of Valor Christian. After the game, Pahos, both thrilled and exhausted, shared his opinion on the most splendid aspect of the entire game — goaltending.

Pahos explained that the game lasted long thanks to Fort Collins’ fantastic goalkeeper, Sam Simon. Out of 121 total shots during the match, Simon managed to stop 84. On the other side of the rink, Valor Christian's goalie, Trey Hirschfield, managed to save the goal 36 times.

During the fifth overtime period, Simon happened to be the one to let the puck shake his net. While he was quite disappointed with the final result, he ended up the star of the match. Even though his team lost the match, his 84 defended attacks became a national record for saves in a high school hockey game.

The Man Behind Valor Christian’s Success

Valor Christian was not that prominent in the high school hockey league in the past. Then, in 2015, George Gwozdecky decided to change that. The school hoped that Gwozdecky, the former University of Denver coach who won consecutive NCAA titles, would make a difference.

Gwozdecky didn’t disappoint. In three years, he transformed the hockey team from almost forgotten into one of the favorites. Valor Christian appeared in the state final in 2018 but lost to Regis Jesuit.

However, they did not give up and kept working hard on their skills, strength, and tactics every day. This year, they finally got their hands on the long-awaited title, and have all the right to be proud of themselves.

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