Division 3: How 10 regional players are making positive impacts

Nick Grupp (Depew, N.Y.) is a junior defenseman at Cortland. (Photo by Darl Zehr Photography)

As the battle for Division 3 supremacy heats up, New York Hockey Journal spotlights some of the top players with roots in our region.

Their mission: Help their teams emerge from the pack and book a ticket to the 2022 Div. 3 Frozen Four, set for March 25-26 at Herb Brooks Arena at the Olympic Center in Lake Placid, N.Y.

Tyler Antonucci
Saddle Brooke, N.J.; D; Sr.; Oswego

Antonucci enjoyed a breakout campaign as a sophomore, playing in 19 games, scoring his first goal, and finishing with a plus-11 rating.

This season, in a game on Nov. 6, with Oswego down 2-0 against longtime rival Plattsburgh, he scored a second-period goal to put the Lakers on the board in a game they eventually would come back and tie, 2-2.

Not only does he provide a lift on the ice, he has played an essential role in practice and in the locker room helping the young defenders on the roster get acclimated to the team.

“‘Nuch’ has a high hockey IQ, is solid with his puck decisions along with being a very good teammate,” said Oswego head coach Ed Gosek. “We will rely on his experience early on with our young (defensive) core along with helping our new players adapt to the college game.”

Tyler Barrow
Massapequa, N.Y.; F; Sr.; Wilkes

The hardware has been plentiful for Barrow. He earned USCHO Rookie of the Year and MAC Rookie of the Year after scoring 13 goals and adding 23 assists in the 2018-19 season. He then was named MAC Offensive Player of the Year as both a sophomore (14 goals, 25 assists) and a junior (10 goals, seven assists). He’s in line for more awards in his senior season, and he is hoping for a championship for the team.

Justin Cmunt
East Amherst, N.Y.; F; Jr.; Geneseo

After two seasons with Division 1 program Mercyhurst, Cmunt transferred to Geneseo. He played in 39 games for the Lakers, scoring six goals and adding three assists. Not only does Cmunt offer experience at the highest level of collegiate hockey, but also he is the only player to have played in the 2020-21 season because Geneseo canceled its season.

Through seven games with the Knights, he was tied for the team lead with 12 points (eight goals, four assists).

“Justin has been a great addition to the program,” Geneseo head coach Chris Schultz said. “He brings great experience from both a junior hockey and Division 1 perspective. I think his experience at Mercyhurst has really prepared him to make a great impact at our level. Justin possesses a pro-level shot and is very good on the power play. We will rely heavily on him for both leadership and playmaking moving forward.”

Mitchell Hale
Oakfield, N.Y.; F; Jr.; Plattsburgh

Hale does a little bit of everything on the ice. As a freshman in the 2019-2020 season, he scored two goals, added eight assists, won 87 faceoffs and blocked 23 shots. He was named a team captain for the 2021-22 season and is continuing to contribute all over the ice. Through the first eight games, he had three goals and seven assists (his 10 points were second-most on the team), with 32 faceoffs won and seven shots blocked.

“Mitchell Hale is a leader on and off the ice,” said Plattsburgh head coach Stephen Moffat. “He has a high compete level, goes to the dirty areas, and keeps the opponent honest. He finishes checks, forechecks and plays in all situations. He is a Swiss army knife.”

Nick Grupp
Depew, N.Y.; D; Jr.; Cortland

As a freshman, Grupp displayed an ability to not only be a successful distributor but also step up in big moments; he had two game-winning assists in the 2019-20 season in games against Buffalo State and Hamilton.

In the 2021-22 season, the defender has again displayed a penchant for the offensive aspect of the game, trying the team lead in points through seven games with seven points (two goals, five assists).

“Nick is a physical presence but has a good touch with the puck and is getting rewarded with four points in two games,” said Cortland head coach Joe Cardarelli. “He is playing top-pair minutes and logging time in all situations, including the penalty kill, where he already has two shorthanded goals.”

Andrew Logar
Niagara Falls, N.Y.; F; Sr.; Buffalo State

As a senior, Logar has stepped up his production for the Bengals. After finishing each of his first two seasons with eight points (three goals and five assists in 2018-19 and two goals and six assists in 2019-20), he notched seven points (three assists and a career-high four goals) through the first eight games.

“He has really taken a significant step forward after his first two seasons here,” Buffalo State head coach Steve Murphy said. “He is more confident and more aggressive with the puck than he’s ever been, and it showed with his two goals in the first weekend of play. He has the ability to be a high-end player in our conference if he continues to work hard on and off the ice.”

Aaron Maguyon
Margate City, N.J.; F; Sr.; Hobart

Maguyon made an immediate impact in his debut season in 2018-19, totaling 16 points and credited for a team-best four game-winning goals. The following season he again totaled 16 points and scored another two game-winning goals.

As a senior captain of a 6-1-1 team before Thanksgiving, Maguyon had nine points in eight games. His seven goals were tied for the team lead, as were his two game-winning goals. On Nov. 22, he was named New England Hockey Conference Player of the Week after he scored a total of five goals and added one assist in victories over No. 15 UMass Boston and Johnson and Wales; his three goals against Johnson and Wales tied for the program record for goals in a game.

Craig McCabe
Webster, N.Y.; D; Jr.; Fredonia

In his first season with the team in 2019-20 after transferring from Monroe Community College, McCabe added four assists and blocked 15 shots in 22 games. He’s back this season continuing to provide grit on the defensive end, tying for the team lead in plus-minus (plus-5) through the first seven games of the season with three assists.

Ryan Romeo
Fairport, N.Y.; D; Gr.; Brockport

In his first three seasons, Romeo improved his production, going from seven points (two goals, five assists) as a freshman to 17 points (four goals, 13 assists) as a sophomore, and a team-high 24 points (nine goals, 15 assists) as a junior. After his senior season was canceled, Romeo returns as a graduate student and the captain of Brockport. He again started out as the team’s leading scorer, totaling 10 points (three goals, seven assists) in the first seven games.

Cooper Swift
West Hartford, Conn.; D; Fr.; Hobart

In his first collegiate season, Swift is making an impact on both ends of the ice. He had four blocks and a team-best nine assists in the early going of the campaign. In those seven games, he had at least one assist in five of them, including a four-assist outing in the team’s 6-1 victory over Southern Maine.

Editor’s note: This article appears in the November/December print edition of New York Hockey Journal.