Currently sitting atop the NE-10 standings and with an overall record of 13-3-0, the Assumption Greyhounds have had early success with a foundation of strong team play, great offensive talent and a legacy coaching staff that includes all former players at Assumption dating back to former head coach Lance Brady. Head coach Michael Looney played for coach Brady and then coached with him as an assistant and has built his staff building on the culture and legacy of Assumption hockey alumni.
“I was a four-year player for coach Lance Brady,” noted Looney. “It was a privilege to play and coach with Lance and I have tried to build off some of that culture and legacy with my staff who all played hockey here and have a championship pedigree with some of most recent titles in the NE-10. I think the players see the passion to the program and the focus and dedication of the staff wanting to continue the success of the program and that helps translate onto the ice. Nick [Blanchette], our goalie coach, played with me for four years under coach Brady and now has been coaching with me for several years. “Roachie” [Robert Roche] was part of the 2017 title team and our newest assistant coach, Robert Holyoke was part of our last championship team in 2022. Their collective experiences as Assumption alumnus and hockey players is something I think the current team relates to well and we are seeing that translate to performance on the ice.”
Leading the way for the Greyhounds is junior forward, Ronny Paragallo. Through 16 games this season, Paragallo has scored 14 goals and added eight assists for 22 points. In last Wednesday’s game against Wentworth, Paragallo’s hat trick helped the Greyhounds to a 5-2 win and bounceback from an overtime loss to Johnson & Wales on Tuesday night that opened the second half of the schedule for Assumption. Paragallo combined with teammates Jonathan Surrette and Ryan Decker account for 37 of the team’s collective 69 goals and the trio has been a threat to score in all situations.
“When Ronny was a freshman, Robert [Holyoke] was one of his linemates,” said Looney. “They paired up pretty well on the ice back then on that championship team in 2022 and now it is interesting to see how the relationship has changed with Robert as the coach and Ronny as the player but both focused on helping to improve the play on the ice. Ronny is very receptive to Robert’s suggestions and coaching and our team is seeing the benefits in his play and numbers on the scoresheet.”
After finishing the first half with an 8-1-0 record in the NE-10, the Greyhounds are firmly entrenched in first place but are not taking anything for granted with a second half slate including teams looking to qualify or improve their position for tournament action. A favorable schedule finds the Greyhounds playing their next ten games in a row on home ice including important league series with Southern New Hampshire, St. Anselm, Franklin Pierce and St. Michael’s.
“We can’t take our foot off the accelerator in the second half,” stated Looney. “Back in 2022, SNHU had a similar record in the first half and didn’t keep the momentum in the second half and was ousted early in the playoffs. We were beneficiaries that year moving on to the NE-10 title game, but we want to keep our positive momentum from the first half going in the second half. Dropping that overtime game to JWU was a tough loss but I liked the way we bounced back the next night against a tough Wentworth team. We will need a lot of that character and effort heading into our remaining league schedule with a focus to earn a top seed and compete for another conference title with our best hockey yet to be played.”
With Saturday’s contest with Post postponed to a future date, the Greyhounds hope to start another win streak in this weekend’s two-game series with SNHU that kicks off over a month of games on home ice and chance to solidify the top seed in the NE-10.
