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The Florida Eels are excited to announce that forward Ciro Calvanese 5’10”  from Naples Florida  has Re-Signed with its junior program for the 2020-21 season. In fact, Calvanese was originally born in Springfield Massachusetts where he first started his hockey career. He came to the Eels last year as a rookie. He played midget and high school hockey locally here in the Ft Myers area. The Eels were thrilled to have one of its local players advance to its junior program.

 

Ciro is a high character player. A real team guy. He brought huge energies to the team on and off the ice. He was like a sponge. Eager to learn and develop.  He knew he was coming to one of the best junior programs in the USA. It was a team that advanced 250 players to college. He wanted to be part of that. To one day be an Eels who advanced to college.  It was a team who recruited some of the top players from Europe, Canada and in the USA. This was a quantum leap for him, and he was excited to be part of such a storied and herald program. There was no doubt, anyone knowing Ciro readily recognized he was extremely dedicated to this Eels program. Loyal as the day is long. He wore his Eels jersey with great pride.

 

From the Eels Pre-Season Sr Chowder Cup in Boston Mass in July, to  beginning of training camp back in August of last season, and throughout the 8-month season, Ciro was one of the hardest workers on the Eels Elite team. He was very determined to close the gap. He would stay late every day and shoot 100 pucks. He picked up extra ice in the evening to help develop his skills.  His strongest attribute as a player is his speed. He could be downright explosive. The Coaches know this is Ciro’s year to put it all together. We need that on this team echoes GM Scarpaci. When Ciro combines his speed with scoring, he will make a huge impact on the team’s success. We have high expectations of him this season. He is no longer a rookie. He knows what is expected.  Moreover, he will be graduating from High School next month, so this upcoming year, he will have so much more time to develop  his skills and elevate his game to the Next Level.

 

Ciro is very proud of the Elite team’s accomplishments as they not only finished the regular season in first place, the team held on to that spot the entire season. That is indeed a lot to be proud of. He  was very much a  part of capturing the Regular Season Divisional Champs. But Ciro says, so succinctly, he has a job to finish. He is determined as ever to get his team to return to Nationals and win it all. That is the attitude we need and that is why all of the coaching staff are enthusiastic   about him returning. Welcome back Ciro

The Florida Eels are pleased to announce the Re-Signing of 2003 JJ Peters to its 2020-21 Eels program. He is 5’8” 160 pounds RW forward from Houston Texas. The Eels scouted JJ at the CCM Junior Prospects Showcase in Denver CO. He was one of ½ dozen players  the Eels signed there. Coach Sanchez and Coach Scarpaci liked what they saw in Peters. The coaches believed that JJ was a young man with good skill set who was young, and with the Eels patterned training program, could develop  into quality player. He showed incredible passion at the CCM Showcase games they scouted  and was very enthusiastic about coming to the Eels and developing as a player

 

Peters  was among  27 rookies who joined the Eels program last season.  That right there showed the world, the Eels were a program built on player development.  Some teams focus exclusively on older players so they can garner quick wins. Our teams were young, and we looked towards its future as well as the present . When mixed with key veterans we witnessed an incredible foundation for success. Well, the Eels model, undoubtedly was the correct one. As it has been consistently for over 10-15 years. The proof is black and white. Both the Eels Premier and Elite teams not only finished in first place at the end of the season, they owned first place all season!!!

 

 

JJ knew full well that it would be a formative year for him He was making a quantum leap from high school and midget hockey in Texas to Jr A hockey – to the Eels Jr A hockey no less.  The USPHL was a very prestigious league with incredibly talented young men. And the Eels were amongst the best in that league. The speed of the game, the explosiveness of players, the heighten skill set, the quality of goalies – everything had to be in 3rd and 4th gear. It is like every shift of every game is in overspeed. It wasn’t easy.    The Florida Division of the USPHL was one of the top divisions in the league. The Eels Elite division was made up of key veterans  who played entire seasons with the Premier Division. So, JJ knew he had his work cut out for him. But that made him tick even more.

 

JJ’s energies were ignited. He knew he would have to work harder than anyone. It was not surprising to the coaches to witness JJ’s development as player. You could see the “Fire in his Eyes.” He had unwavering commitment and he knew it wasn’t enough to give lip service on the concept dedication and determination. He came to practice hours before others. He stayed later every day. He attended extra practices in the evening with the Midget team. He shot every day 100-220 pucks. He not only trained at our off-ice training facility, he worked extra at the Skatium’s gym after practice. He trained extra hard at practice pushing himself. The net sum at season’s end, he elevated and ripened into a solid consistent player.  He was a solid contributor in his team winning the Regular Season Championship in his division. But he wants more this year from himself and his team.   As a 2003 this was impressive. Think about it he played with and against 1999’s and 2000’s. That is two levels above players he played with back in Texas.

 

JJ is ready to take his game to the Next Level.  But he knows there is still much to do to improve his game. But he is not afraid of hard work.  He is looking forward to the season to start.  GM Scarpaci says “He  has the work ethic , determination and unwavering commitment  every day be it practice or in games.” One thing for sure is when you talk with JJ, he is always ready, hungrier than most and willing to “go through the wall” for the Eels.  He has great character and a team guy. We expect this to be a huge year for him. Having that one year behind him will prove volumes to his game. The Eels welcome back JJ Peters to its program.

The Florida Eels are excited to announce the Re-Signing of 2001 Defenseman Stephen Huitt  from  Broomfield, CO 6’02 150 lbs. Stephen is  a  right -handed  shot that brings good size to the Eels blue line.  He was one of six  players who came to the Eels last season from Colorado. In fact, the Eels have had over 20 players from Colorado to have played for the Eels including Coach Alex Sanchez.

 

 

The Eels coaches first scouted Huitt at the CCM Junior Prospects Showcase last May. Premier Coach Frank Scarpaci and Elite Coach Alex Sanchez were indeed impressed with Stephen’s skill set and intestinal fortitude on the ice at the CCM Showcase  and knew right there he had the makings of an Eels. He had size, good skating and was quite mobile with the puck. He joined the Eels in August as a rookie. He stepped right into the line-up. He used his 6’02 size to his advantage and was more than generous throwing his weight around on opposing players. He made opposing teams aware when he was out there. Huitt was a fast learner. He saw there were some very talented players on his team and on opposing teams.  Juniors was a big jump; the USPHL  had some of the best talent in the USA and there was no taking any time off;  he recognized he had to close the gap and become a student of the game real fast. There was a golden opportunity for him to be a key guy here and he seized the moment with hard work and determination.

 

Huitt became a steady force on the Eel’s blueline. He impressed the coaches with his development. Keeping things simple. Getting the puck quickly out of the zone. Nice first passes out.  Winning net presence battles. Jump in on the transition game. Deny zone entry and maintain his gap;  and when on the offensive blueline get the puck through to the opposing goalie. These were hard lessons for any defensemen to master. When playing defense, you have to be the smartest players on the ice. Making a mistake at the Junior level often results on shots on net. Huitt grew very versed in his task and became one of our most steady D men on the backend.

 

Stephen was a very determined young man. He had great work ethic and brought unwavering dedication and commitment to his team.   He did very well this season working with some of our veteran seasoned  players. He was like a sponge. He wants to be better.  He has a strong hockey IQ.  Moreover, he is a high character young man. He fits perfectly into the Eels mold as player they build their program around.

 

We welcome back Stephen to the Eels family. He like all of the returning players have a job to complete. He is eager to get started.

The Florida Eels are pleased to announce that 6’1”  ANDREW VAN OOTEGHEM    from Flagstaff, AZ has re-signed with the Florida Eels Junior Hockey Program for the 2020-21 season.  The Eels scouted Andrew at the Global Showcase in Las Vegas last summer. He was raw having played high school hockey and midget AA prior to joining the Eels. But he caught the eye of both the Eels General Manager and the Eels Premier Coach Frank Scarpaci. We liked his skill set. The way he attacked shooters. His hybrid butterfly style. The way he controlled rebounds. His overall demeanor at the showcase. In fact, he was the only goalie we recruited there echoed GM Scarpaci. 

 

As a rookie  Andrew was the Eels hardest working goaltender. Because of his work ethic he was invited to practice with both the Elite and Premier teams. Many times, 5 times per week. Think about that. That is twice as much ice time than any other goalie in the USA. The fruits of his efforts clearly paid off.  In 16  GP he had a 2.99 GAA and a .900 sav%. He won player of the week all star status and alternate player of the month selected by a panel of USPHL League coaches. This was very impressive accolades for a young rookie goalie.

 

Moreover, he had some huge quality wins against some very strong opponents including:

Charleston Colonials

New Jersey Rockets

Northern Cyclones

Florida Jr Blades

Hampton Road Whalers

Atlanta Madhatters.

 

In fact, GM Scarpaci commented that he was the go-to guy in our big games.  You have to be on your game when you take down all these  quality clubs, but you have to have outstanding goaltending when you defeat the Northern Cyclones the Whalers Charleston and the Madhatters. He never took any of these teams for granted and he had believability.

 

As a young player we readily discerned  that he shared the hunger and dedication that Eels have as their hallmark. Andrew helped lead and backstop the Elite team to regular season championship in the USPHL Florida Division. Indeed, the Eels hold the distinction of being the only program to have finished First Place in the Premier and Elite Divisions.

 

Andrew is a great team guy on the ice and in the locker room.   Equally important the Eels  are getting a first-class individual back. One who has impeccable character. We are excited he elected to come back. He knows we have a job to finish. And he is anxious to get back to work.