The boys’ hockey team has been fighting through their season led by new coach Greg Cappello, contributing to their hard earned record of 7-6-1.

The team had a lot of success last season, making it to the Division III State Championship game at TD Garden in Boston which resulted in a 5-1 loss against Hanover. The team’s strong spirit carried on from last year into the new season.

“With last year’s success brings a lot of expectations for this year’s team, and we can either embrace it and try to live up to it, or it could cause us to crumble under pressure,” senior captain John Paterson said. “Being around the middle of the season it’s yet to be seen which direction the team will go, but I have a good feeling.”

With this new leadership from Cappello, the team hopes to transfer their strong momentum from last season.

“Coach Cappello is a great addition to our program, he brings a great sense of enthusiasm and preparation to our team,” senior captain Kevin Reale said. “I’m looking forward to the rest of the season.”

“The season is going pretty well, and I think a big part of our success has to do with a strong coaching staff that has lead us to become stronger as a team,” Paterson said.

Cappello has made a good transition into his new position and is proud of the character his players have shown so far.

“The collective effort, enthusiasm and attention to detail has really exceeded my expectations,” Cappello said. “Our captains and returning varsity players have shown tremendous leadership.”

The team has many younger players who have also stepped up this season such as junior captain Nathan Anderson.

“Being a junior captain means that I get to look up to two great seniors and learn from them,” Anderson said.

Other players have showed their dedication to the team through their effort and dedication.

“We have a lot of skilled underclassmen this year,” Paterson said. “I’d say freshman goalie Matt Bogdanski is having a great season.”

“The team has a lot of young talent, we just have to come together with a lot of energy,” senior Alex Pietropaolo said.

The team participated in a dodgeball fundraiser before the season began that helped bond the team and raise money.

“I was most impressed by the spirit of community, competition, and cooperation during the team’s dodgeball fundraiser prior to the start of the season,” Cappello said. “As my introduction to ARHS Hockey, it couldn’t have made me more proud to be a part of the T-Hawk family.”