Bloomingdale Ousted from the Playoffs

The Ice Bulls are eliminated from the playoff hunt by a persistent Plant hockey club.

For Coach MikeFalbo and his Bloomingdale hockey club, it was surely a must-win situation to stay alive. The fans did not anticipate this would be the final game of such a fantastic season. Each coach would sing to the tune of "win and we're in," and each player wore it proudly on their sleeves. Bloomingdale (11-7-0, 22 points, fifth place, Central Division) would not be able to pull out a rally to extend its  season over Plant (14-3-1, 29 points, second place, Central Division) in a 5-1 loss on Friday night. Needing help from Manatee, in the form of a loss; the Ice Bulls also needed a win to secure the last and final spot among the top four teams in the Central Division. Manatee would go on to win against 8-7 in a shootout against River …

• Photos (1)

Bloomingdale Suffers Setback With Loss To Wiregrass

The Ice Bulls can still make the playoffs.

Bloomingdale Ice Bulls (11-6-0, 22 points, fifth place, Central Division) needed one win to assure their spot in the Florida High School Hockey Association postseason. Wiregrass (11-6-1, 23 points, fourth place, Central Division), played their last game as if it was just that and may have earned a chance to play in the playoffs. Coming into Friday's game, Wiregrass was the second most penalized team in the association, averaging 16 penalty minutes per game. With only six minutes of penalties, Bloomingdale could not take an offensive advantage as predicted. Wiregrass sophomore Rick Sarginger would light the board first with an unassisted goal at 7:37 in the first- his 24th goal of the season. However, Bloomingdale's Anthony Puricelli added …

• Photos (1)

Wiregrass Visits Bloomingdale With Playoffs in Sight

Tonight's game in Brandon could be a playoff preview.

Bloomingdale Ice Bulls (11-5-0, 22 points, third place, Central Division) will host Wiregrass (10-6-1, 21 points, fourth place, Central Division) with playoff implications on the line for both teams. This will be the first meeting of these two teams who both battle with the upper echelon of teams fighting for position in the Central Division. Bloomingdale, coming off of a very tough home loss to Sarasota last Friday night, will look to rebound and  move one game closer to sealing their own postseason fate. Wiregrass brings a very potent offense led by their sensational sophomore Rick Sarginger (23 goals, 14 assists, 37 total points). This is an area the Ice Bulls have struggled with early in games. Bloomingdale will have opportunities as …

Ice Bulls Hockey Club Falls Short At Home

Bloomingdale plays again at home on Friday, Feb. 4.

Sarasota's hockey club blasted its way into the Brandon Ice Sports Forum on Friday night looking to avenge a humiliating loss in October and defeated Bloomingdale, 4-2. Bloomingdale Ice Bulls (11-5-0, 22 points, third place, Central Division) looked to push their win streak to two games with a win Friday night against Sarasota (7-8-1, 15 points, sixth place, Central Division). Defensively, the Ice Bulls held Sarasota's two most potent offensive weapons at bay by not allowing them to score. However, the defensive unit fell short giving up both short-handed and power play goals. Sarasota's Zachary Sarnowski scored late in the first with 4:11 on an unassisted goal that gave his team an early, 1-0 lead. At 13:09, Sarasota was assessed a two-…

• Photos (1)

Bloomingdale Eyeing Two-Game Streak

The Ice Bulls will host Sarasota Friday night.

Bloomingdale Ice Bulls (11-4-0, third place, Central Division) will once again look to dominate the Sarasota (6-8-1, sixth place, Central Division) hockey club on Friday night at the Ice Sports Forum in Brandon. Sarasota lost to Bloomingdale in late October, 8-3. Stellar Junior forward Richard Cassidy scored four total points in that game; one goal and two assists, to give Bloomingdale the lopsided win. That game eventually set up a three-game winning streak for the Ice Bulls. Sarasota has won three and tied one of its last five games. They have scored 33 goals behind offensive juggernauts Benjamin Winter (8 goals, 21 assists, 29 total points) and forward Max Mulholland (18 goals, 9 assists, 27 total points). Bloomingdale must once again …

• Photos (1)

Ice Bulls Outpace Dunedin/Tarpon Springs/Countryside, 4-3

Bloomingdale keeps postseason hopes alive with win.

Bloomingdale Ice Bulls (11-4-0, third place, Central Division) fought off a very stingy Dunedin/Tarpon Springs/Countryside (7-7-1, sixth place, Western Division) hockey club on Friday night to continue their playoff push. Another slow start to the first period, something The Ice Bulls have struggled with this season, was nearly the early blow that dealt them out of the game. Dunedin sophomore, Jordan Xiques (assisted by Roundtree) landed an early goal at 13:58 to give his team an early lead, 1-0. With 6:04 in the first period, Dunedin's leading goal scorer, Alexander Gibbons, with 17 goals and 29 overall points, looked to seal Bloomingdale's fate early with a power play goal making it, 2-0 Dunedin. Bloomingdale's outstanding forward, …

Ice Bulls Suffer Shutout by Steinbrenner, 3-0

The Bloomingdale Hockey Club, Ice Bulls, play again Jan. 21

On Friday night, the Bloomingdale Ice Bulls were blanked in front of their home crowd at the Brandon Ice Sports Forum by Steinbrenner High School, 3-0. Steinbrenner, (10-4-0, Western Division) who holds a firm grip on second place in the Florida High School Hockey Association, scored early on Bloomingdale (10-4-0, third place, Central Division) and never looked back. Steinbrenner's attack began early in the first period as Daniel Yurich (assisted by DeBenedet and Hase) scored at 14:11 giving Steinbrenner an early 1-0 lead. Bloomingdale's defense did strenghten as they kept Steinbrenner off-balance for much of the first period. The defense would, however, give way at 7:02 as Steinbrenner's forward Troy Pilawski (assisted by Schwer) would …

•  1 Comment

Bloomingdale Hockey Club's Coach Steers The Ship

Meet Bloomingdale Hockey Club's Head Coach, Mike Falbo

The Tampa Bay community has known its share of ice hockey glory in the recent past. The Tampa Bay Lightning is the only team in the South to win Lord Stanley's Cup and bring it to Florida for a sun tan. What you may not know is, nestled in the same practice arena in Brandon, where, yes, those same Lightning players practice, are high school kids who lace up and pound the ice. Leading those players is Head Coach Mike Falbo. Originally from Buffalo, N.Y., Falbo cut his teeth playing hockey at an early age. He has coached in the state of Florida for the past 17 years and has a combined 22 years of playing and coaching experience. Jokingly, he admits that even at his age, "I am still playing over-35 hockey and I love it." Falbo is currently …

• Photos (1)

Bloomingdale Hockey Club Kicks Ice

Meet the biggest ice skating secret in the Bay Area, the Bloomingdale High School Hockey Club

Among the professional hockey players that normally grace the ice at the Brandon Ice Sports Forum, the Bloomingdale Ice Bulls are also making their mark on the continually growing hockey community. In Hillsborough County, it is known that football is king. Someone, however, forgot to the mention this to the 20 kids who lace up every week to play ice hockey. In existence since 1996, the Bloomingdale Hockey Club may be the best-kept secret in high school athletics. The actual club is not affiliated with Bloomingdale High School per county guidelines. However, they adopted the name from the area in which they draw their talent. Players from Bloomingdale, Spoto and Riverview high schools make up the hockey club. Leading the young players is …

•  1 Comment
• Photos (1)