Garden City Wings Ice Hockey Club

       The Garden City Wings Freshman team came to fruition in the summer of 1997. The idea was set in motion by Walter Holewa whose son had been assigned to play for the Levittown Freshman team in 1996-97, under the rules allowed by the NY State HS Hockey Association for out of district players. Upon learning there were players involved with ice hockey in the Garden City Middle School, an application to join the Nassau County HS Hockey League for the 1997-98 season was tenured.
       The purpose of establishing a team was to provide a forum for player's in grades 7-9 to play with their friends, learn the fundamentals and basics of ice hockey while acquiring the needed experience to compete at Varsity level where competition against players in grades 10-12 is keen. With 5 players coming over from neighboring Herricks, the Wings took to the ice and won their first game 8-5 over Carle Place. Playing in the "A" Division, the Wings finished 3rd of 9 teams with an 11-6-4 record and qualified for the playoffs. Four players were key in leading the way that first season. Justin Giberti was a tower of strength on defense for the young team. He was quickly elected team captain and later selected MVP. Offensively, three players who named themselves the "Orient Express Line" powered the Wings. David Hee, Andy Tse, and Kevin Maguire accounted for almost half of the 75 goals scored, establishing the Wings as a club that would be no pushover.
       Over the seasons, the Wings Freshman program has been one of the most consistent and competitive in the league. As any player who has put on the uniform can attest, there are no easy games. The success of the program is a tribute to the players and parents who have supported enthusiastically the efforts of those who coach and help out during each season.

Freshman Captains 1997-98 Justin Giberti 1998-99 Rob Ungar 1999-00 Rob Ungar 2000-01 Ryan Boelsen & Jim Butcher 2001-02 None Appointed 2002-03 Brian Kiernan & Ryan Norell 2003-04 None Appointed 2004-05 Tom Greco 2005-06 Spiros Markopoulos 2006-07 None Appointed 2007-08 Mark Brady
	2002-03 Captains

We encourage anyone with pictures, statistics, or articles from prior years to submit  them for publication on the website.

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