Wednesday February 25, 2026
Sectional Semifinals
Overtime: the Spartans are tied with reigning state champion Skaneateles 3-3– one goal away from celebration, one goal from history, one goal from one of the greatest turnarounds the section has ever seen.
You may be wondering how this all happened, how could a team that had only one win almost make the sectional finals a year later? Usually it takes years, decades even, to make such a great improvement but this team was special. They had a completely different mentality and approach, and it paid off.
November 15, 2025
First day of Winter Sports
Hitting the ice this year brought a sour taste in the mouth of the New Hartford spartan hockey team. Coming off a one-win season which followed a phenomenal 17-3 season where they had made the sectional semifinals as the #2 seed. Having a 1-18-1 season meant expectations were low this year. The community was not sure about how this season would go, hoping that they would scrape by with a couple more wins.
Senior captain Joe Mungari told me how hard it was going from top dogs to the bottom of the barrel last season.
“Going from a semifinal contender to a 1 win team wasn’t easy,” Mungari said. “It was extremely frustrating and exhausting, but I think it fueled us this year.”
It did a lot more than just fuel them, it reminded them when they were tired and exhausted to push that extra bit and give everything they had.
This team’s roster was not much different from last year with many returners that played a lot, so how would this team do any better?
“I think what changed the most from this year to last year was the mindset of our team,” Mungari told me. “We didn’t go in worrying about our record last year, but thinking about how great of a team we could be this year. That mindset propelled us forward to a great year.”
The team also knew they were destined for much more right from the start. They didn’t like how their previous season went, not only the record, but how they felt the fans and community “gave up” on them. Mungari highlighted the effort that went into practices this year as a factor in their improvement.
“The practices this year had much more intent,” Mugari said. “Everyone wanted to get better and have a successful season. our record and performances the previous year fueled the returners this year to never want to feel like that again.”
This year brought an unfamiliar face, a face that by the end of the season was not only recognized…but feared by all. Sophomore Matt McCraith told me why he decided to play for the Spartans.
“Playing on the hockey team isn’t about how good they are,” Matt said. “I played for the experience of playing the sport I love with my friends and making memories.” He told me how despite the previous season he was very confident in the team.
Senior Spartan superfan Joe Talarico had a lot to say about McCraith: “Matthew McCraith really brought a whole new energy to this squad that everyone noticed from the very first puck drop.”
The team’s mutual belief that they could be successful, inspired the fans’ increased confidence. Instead of giving up on them, senior football and basketball star Sam Beaton spoke to me about how important the senior class school spirit is for any sport, and how this senior class for the hockey team was special.
“I believe that the seniors this year were ready to take a leadership role and inspire the rest of the team to be great,” Sam said, adding a shoutout to captain Joe Mungari.
Flipping The Script
“Flipping the script” defined what this team did this season, what they did was not expected from teams around the section, but the team and community knew that it was possible.
Mungari had a lot to say about flipping the script “Flipping the script this year was awesome. Everybody gave up on us last year and wouldn’t take us seriously. This year we went out there with a point to prove and almost got it done, it was a great feeling going from a 1 win team to a 12 win team in the span of a year”
Joe Talarico had a lot to say about this “Before this season I knew this team was destined for greatness… The team was full of life and heart. A team with Joe Snow, Chris Vetter, Will Picolla, and Matt McCraith was in every single game no matter who was in their way they made every game a shoot out”.
This year brought the community even closer to the team, closer than it has been since the early 2000s when NH hockey were state champions. Beaton stated “This year’s games screamed community. Everyone and I mean everyone in New Hartford showed up to these games because these players played with a chip on their shoulder this year. They are a bunch of “dawgs””.
This team 100% flipped the script, but it was not immediate, the season started off just as the previous season ended. A 5-1 loss to rival Whitesboro could have derailed the whole season from the get go, but this team found a way to move forward, and become a completely different team.
Thursday December 18, 2025
The Win That Sparked Everything
As game number 6 came around, the Spartans had already shown they were a different team. They had a 3-2-1 record, already a way better start than the season prior. Sophomore Matt McCraith was turning heads and helping lead the team to multiple victories. Up next however was their toughest test, Skaneateles. The team headed on the road to face an opponent that had beaten them year after year, many players probably didn’t know the last time NH had beaten Skaneateles. The odds were not in their favor, an hour bus ride, relentless home crowd, and history. This year was different, after heading into the second period down 2-1, the Spartans came into the second period on fire. Something had set fire in the Spartan locker room leaving the entire rink speechless after the Spartans headed into the final period up 2 goals. Something that had not been done for many years, was one period away. With a final score of 5-3 New Hartford had finally beaten Skaneateles.
Talarico and Mungari expressed their emotions about the win “It was crazy, but I knew that they could do it” Talarico said. Mungari said “It was one of the best games I have ever been a part of, being able to finally beat them is wild and especially beating them at skaneateles”.
This was not only just another win, it was a stepping stone for something great. It showed the community that this team was something special and was the catalyst for an insane amount of support, and a catalyst for a great season to come.
January 9, 2026
Home Rivalry Win
The second of three matchups in the historic rivalry of NH vs Whitesboro was one for the ages. This one came at the rec center home of the Spartans. Coming off a tough home loss to Clinton the team hoped for a bounce back and so did the fans.
They got a little bit more than just a bounce back, Beaton described it as “ a classic” saying it was easily one of the best highlights of the season.
After a very promising start, the team started to head in the opposite direction but this game started in the best way possible. By the end of the first period it was 2-0 Spartans, the energy in the building was unmatched.
The second period began and for a moment it was all Whitesboro, 2-1, 2-2. The fans quieted down and momentum was lost. The game was tied and it did not look good.
After the brief tie it was over from there. The Spartans scored 3 unanswered goals to make it 5-2. The fans erupted with every single goal climbing the glass. Mungari scored an empty net to make the final score 6-3.
This win was more than just a rivalry, it was a matchup of the top 2 teams in the class and showed that this NH team could compete for a title.
January 29, 2026
The Anticipated Rematch
Clinton vs NH, one of the few sports where these two schools compete. This one, meant a little more; the previous meeting between these two teams took place at New Hartford and Clinton ran away with a dominant 4-1 win. The loss was disappointing for not only the team but the fans who felt that Clinton outperformed them in every way.
This game was anticipated from right after the first meeting. Despite being an away game, it sure did not feel like it. Talarico told me “It felt like it was a home game, we took over the rink with our Spartan Pride.” The pride, talking about the huge number of students and fans that made the trip to support.
The game started off with a Matt McCraith goal early and the first period ended with a score of 1-1. The student sections were going back and forth all period.
The rest of the game was all New Hartford. Players took turns scoring and making great plays to take the rematch with a final score of 6-2. The energy the New Hartford community brought was unmatched and it really did feel like a home game.
This was one of the most exciting games of the season and it was not even a home game. Beaton described it saying, “[It was]Definitely one of my favorite moments of the season. We all had a great time and watched some great hockey.”
February 18, 2026
Is It Over? Not Yet.
With the regular season over, the Spartans finished with a 11-9-1 record. Now it was the most important time of the season, what every single day had built up to: win or go home. The team was 1-3 in their last 4 games ending the regular season with a 4-2 win over Auburn. The team they were playing in the first round was Auburn, third matchup of the season, NH had won two, but this was the only one that mattered.
The stands were packed and the student section was huge. Everyone showed up for the last home game and first sectional game of the year. This game did not start how everyone thought it would though. It started off in the worst way possible.
Two periods had gone by, the student section was silent, and people were contemplating leaving. The team was down 2-0, but Talarico told me “A two goal lead is the worst in hockey.” On that cold February night, he was right.
Talarico gave me his rundown of the game: “ It seemed all hope was lost going into the third period. The student section felt deflated almost if you ripped our hearts right out of our bodies. But then something magical happens: Matt McCraith comes storming down the ice with no sign of stopping boom goal 2-1 the student section is hype jumping on the boards full of life. Shortly after this you guessed it, Matt McCraith buzzes down the ice and pins one for the game-tying goal bringing the student section back into full effect. OT is now upon us. Auburn is firing shots at Xavier, but he stands tall like he did all season and makes huge saves. So senior Will Picolla can do what he does best… bury an OT game winner to send the boys to Skan.”
The season seemed lost, but Matt McCraith said otherwise, tying the game and giving the team a chance to win in overtime. As the 3rd period ended and we headed into overtime, the student section found its stride and went crazy to give the team momentum. Three minutes in, Picolla scored the game winning goal to send them to the sectional semifinals.
February 25, 2026
The End
The Sectional semi finals, New Hartford vs Skaneateles. Many would think it would be easy to predict a winner, but not this year, this year was different as any team could come out on top. After starting down 2-0 again, the Spartans scored three unanswered goals to take the lead going into the 3rd period.
People watching from home could not believe their eyes– watch parties were being formed as everyone hoped they could hold on.
They had made the home fans quiet and the few fans that had traveled out louder than ever. Skan would score in the 3rd to force overtime and then end up winning 4-3 in overtime. A tough loss, but an incredible season.
The team held their heads high despite the loss, nobody expected them to be one goal away from a sectional title. Many predicted they would be just as bad as last year, they proved a lot of people wrong and had a great time doing it.
Looking Back
Beaton, when asked about what he thought of the season, said, “They turned a lot of heads and proved many people wrong this season. They played hard every minute of every game and that is why they succeeded”.
The future did not look bright for Spartan Hockey for a bit, but now, looks brighter than ever.
Star player Matt McCraith had a lot to say about the season and the future for NH hockey: “It was a surreal experience and I can’t wait to be back next year. Everyone on the team pitched in and I really think we can build momentum off of it going into next season and make a deep playoff run.”
When asked about how he thought the season played out based on his preseason predictions McCraith said,”After last year, nobody expected us to achieve what we did, especially losing some key players to prep school, so I think it played out better for us. It would’ve been nice to win that section title, but we will be back next year with a chip on our shoulder.”
After seeing how the team bounced back from a one-win season, you can bet that they will be back next season better than ever.
When it’s all said and done, New Hartford hockey is back.
