After winning the NC State Championship, the team was poised for a good showing at Nationals.  The team was matched up against some very tough competition including a former national champion Affton Americans.  They started their quest for a national championship by beating the Affton Americans (MO) 6-2. They followed up that win with a 6-1 rout of Team Seattle (WA).  They ended their round robin play with a 6-2 win over the Howard Huskies (MD).  A 3-0 round robin record gave the Eagles a #1 seed and trimmed the field from 16 teams to 8.  The Eagles jumped all over the Nashville Jr Predators (TN) in a quarterfinal matchup and completed a 9-1 victory.  A very tough Northern Virginia Ice Dogs (VA) team awaited the Eagles in the semi-final game.  Despite spotting the Ice Dogs a 2-0 lead, the Eagles persevered and scored 6 unanswered goals and solidified their spot in the national championship game with a 6-2 win.  The Eagles were matched up against the Arizona Hockey Union Knights coached by former Carolina Hurricanes player, Sean Hill.  Gavin Walker put the Eagles up with a first period goal only to be answered by the Knights tying the game 1-1.  The Knights then went up a goal but then Walker notched his second goal of the game.  The scored remained 2-2 at the end of regulation.  Overtime provided non-stop excitement.  As the Eagles were maintaining possession in the offensive zone, Matt Fuller received a pass at the blue line.  Fuller rifled a shot that found the back of the net finalizing the Eagles’ quest for their first national championship.

Coach Flagg and Coach Horn guided the boys the entire way and demonstrated a very committed, positive, and accountable approach and it proved to be highly successful.  The USA Hockey officials and the Eagles’ opponents had high praise for the way the players and coaches handled themselves adding to the positive experience for the team.

Congratulations to the U16AA East Coast Eagles, 2013-14 National Champions.

Additional USAHockey.com Recap

Winning Goal Video