MASCOT IDENTITY CRISIS: MUSTANGS VS. THE MAROON LUMBERJACKS?

Look, I’ve spent a lot of time staring at the Avon Lake’s Mascot. I’ve done the research. I’ve consulted the ancient scrolls (Wikipedia). And I’m still confused. They call themselves the “Shoremen,” which sounds like a very sturdy, reliable brand of rain boots. But their mascot? It’s a guy who looks like he just walked out of a 1950s Popeye cartoon, holding an anchor over his head like he’s about to shot-put it into Lake Erie.

Is he a sailor? A dock worker? A guy who lost his boat and is now just really, really mad at the water? We may never know. What we do know is that tonight, at the Brunswick Auto Mart Arena, that anchor is going to feel a lot heavier when our Mustangs start circling.

Listen, gold and maroon is a bold choice. It says, “We want to look like a hot dog with fancy mustard.” Respect. But while the Shoremen are busy trying to figure out if they’re supposed to be rowing a boat or lifting weights, our boys are focused on one thing: speed. You can’t drop anchor on a horse that’s already halfway down the ice.

Speaking of speed, let’s talk about Lucas Haigh. We called him a “masterclass in hustle” last week, and honestly? We undersold it. Watching #19 chase a puck is like watching a heat-seeking missile that’s had way too much espresso. He plays with the kind of vendetta usually reserved for people who spoil movies on opening night. If the Shoremen think they’re going to have a relaxing “day at the shore,” Lucas is here to be the seagull that steals their entire lunch.

The Mustangs are ready. The ice is chilled. The snark is at an all-time high. Come watch us turn the Shoremen into… well, just men on a shore.

THE DEETS:

Opponent: Avon Lake Shoremen (The Anchor Tossers)

Time: 6:50 PM TONIGHT

Location: Brunswick Auto Mart Arena

Vibe: High-octane horse power vs. nautical confusion

Bring your energy. Bring your green. Leave the anchors at home. 🐴💚⚓️

#MustangsHockey #ShoreNoMore #AnchorDownMustangsUp #GCHSHL

The Eagles Have Landed (And We're Bringing the Lasso)

Look, I'll be the first to admit it: back in November, the Avon Eagles looked good. Their purple jerseys were clean, their redesign was sharp, and they managed to escape Columbus with a 7-6 win that felt more like a glitch in the Matrix than a hockey game. Scoring 13 goals in 45-minutes? That's not hockey; that's a game of air hockey where someone forgot to turn on the fan.

But here's the thing about Eagles. They're majestic, they're national symbols, and they spend roughly 90% of their time looking for a fish to steal. They're basically just seagulls with a better PR department and a fancy color palette. This Sunday, we're meeting them at North Park Ice Arena, and the forecast isn't looking great for high-altitude flight.

Our featured Mustang is Senior Captain Dustin "The Outlaw" Primozic (#24). If you haven't seen Dustin play this year, imagine a Yellowstone character decided to lace up skates and forgot to leave the "no-quit" attitude at the ranch. He's the kind of guy who hits hard, scores harder, and probably wears a cowboy hat to bed. He was all over the stat sheet in our last meeting with Avon, and he's been playing with a "baller" energy lately that suggests he's ready to turn those Eagles into some very expensive purple feather dusters.

We haven't forgotten that heartbreaker in Columbus. We survived "arcade mode," and now we're ready for the sequel.

Matchup: Strongsville Mustangs vs. Avon Eagles
Date: Sunday, Jan 4th
Time: 3:15 PM
Location: North Park Ice Arena (Elyria)

Leave the birdseed at home. It's stampede season. 🐴💚🤠 

#MustangsHockey #TheOutlaw #BirdWatching #StrongsvillePride

Rocket Science is Easy: Just Get Out of the Way

Look, I’m not a physicist, I’m just a guy who balances school budgets and watches a lot of hockey. But even I know that when a stationary object meets a 200-pound Mustang moving at terminal velocity, the laws of motion are going to have some things to say. This Saturday, we kick off 2026 by welcoming the Bay Village Rockets to our ice, and frankly, I hope they brought a flight plan that involves avoiding the middle of the rink.

The thing about "Rockets" is that they’re designed to go in a straight line and eventually run out of fuel. Our Mustangs? We’ve got four legs, all-terrain capability, and we don’t need a NASA countdown to get moving. While the Rockets are busy worrying about aerodynamics and blue-and-red paint schemes that look suspiciously like a Fourth of July clearance rack, we’ll be busy playing "Stay Out of the Crease."

Our featured player for this New Year’s clash is Sophomore Emmett "Freight Train" Wahl. Now, I try to stay unbiased, but it’s hard not to notice a kid who stands 6'2" and carries 200+ pounds of "Problem" for the opposing defense. Emmett is a graceful skater, think of him like a luxury cruise ship. It takes a second to get up to speed, but once he’s cruising, you really don't want to be the tugboat trying to stop him. Watching him barrel toward a defender is a masterclass in watching someone having deep thoughts about their life choices, their career path, and whether hockey was really the right sport.

It’s a new year, it’s the same mission, and we’ve got a massive Sophomore ready to turn the Rockets into scrap metal. Let’s start 2026 with a win and maybe a few dented boards.

🏒  Strongsville vs Bay Village

📅  Saturday, January 3, 2026

⏰  3:50 PM

📍  Brunswick Auto Mart Ice Arena

Physics is fun, especially when the Mustang is the one doing the math 🚂

#MustangsHockey #FreightTrain #NewYearNewProblems #RocketScience #NewYearSameStampede 🐴💚🚀

🏒 SNOW ROAD WARRIORS

The Strongsville Mustangs are trekking 35 miles east through a literal winter wonderland (read: 8+ inches of snow and counting) to Kent State Ice Arena to face the Stow Bulldogs. Because nothing says "high school hockey" like a Sunday afternoon road trip through a blizzard to play a team whose color scheme looks like it was designed by a confused traffic light.

Featuring Senior Captain Jack Katrinak—aka "KitKat"—who's about to snap off a performance sweeter than his nickname and well worth the drive.

And speaking of looks: the Mustangs are rolling out the black-on-black uniforms today. Black jerseys. Black helmets. Black pants. Black skates. Everything coordinated to absolute perfection. These steeds are looking FINE, especially against this god-awful whiteout. Like the Budweiser Clydesdales trekking across Northeast Ohio through the snow: majestic, powerful, unstoppable, except instead of delivering beer, they're delivering an absolute beatdown. 'Tis the season, after all.

Bulldogs are built low to the ground, move slow, and have absolutely zero chance of keeping pace with horses on ice. Especially Clydesdales in black who just drove through a blizzard, look this good doing it, and are absolutely not in the mood for games.

KitKat's been waiting all season to break off a big game. After this drive? He's earned it.

🏒 Strongsville vs Stow

📅 Sunday, December 14

⏰ 3:40 PM

📍 Kent State Ice Arena (bring a shovel)

Give me a break. Give me a break. Break me off a piece of that W. 🍫❄️🐴

#MustangsHockey #ClydesdalesOnIce #SnowRoadWarriors 🐴💚🐶

🏒 SHAKER HOLIDAY TOURNAMENT - CHAMPIONSHIP

'Twas the tournament finale, and all through Thorton Park,

The Mustangs were stirring, ready to leave their mark.

The skates were laced tight, the sticks taped with care,

In hopes that redemption soon would be there...

Read more

🏒 SHAKER HOLIDAY TOURNAMENT - GAME 2 🏒

THE CAT CURSE IS BROKEN

Last night, the JV Mustangs did the impossible: down 3-1 heading into the third period against the Benedictine Bengals, they rallied to score THREE UNANSWERED GOALS and finally—FINALLY—defeated a cat team this week. The curse is lifted. The nightmare is over.

Tonight? The host Shaker Red Raiders, and we need to talk about this mascot situation.

Shaker invites us to their tournament and shows up with a mascot that's literally a medieval knight riding a horse. So basically, they're fighting Mustangs... while riding a mustang. That's like challenging someone to a race and then stealing their car keys first. The strategy is bold, we'll give them that.

Featuring freshman speedsters #19 Lucas Haigh and #4 Anderson Purtell, who just learned last night that third periods are where legends are made. Down two goals? No problem. Comeback mode activated? Always. Now they're bringing that energy into the host's barn to prove that wild Mustangs will always outrun some knight's overworked ride.

One horse runs free. The other has a guy in armor sitting on it. We know which one wins.

🏒 Strongsville JV vs Shaker

📅 Wednesday, December 10

⏰ 5:15 PM

📍 Thorton Park Arena

Cats: defeated. Momentum: real. Home team: next. 🎄

#MustangsHockey #ShakerTourney 🐴💚⚔️

🏒 JV TOURNAMENT ACTION 🏒

The JV Mustangs head to Thorton Park Arena for the Shaker Holiday Hockey Tournament—the longest-running ice hockey tournament in Ohio since 1969. That's 55 years of tradition, history, and prestige.

First opponent? The Benedictine Bengals.

Oh, for the love of— ANOTHER CAT?!

Look, let's address the elephant in the room. Or rather, the cats. We've lost to TWO feline teams this week already. Wildcats got us. Panthers got us. And now here come the Bengals with their stripes and their attitude, probably thinking this is an easy W because apparently cats own us now.

Absolutely not. This stops today.

Featuring young colts #16 Nate Novic and #5 Mikey Giampietro, who have had ENOUGH of this week's cat parade. Two losses? Fine. That was a learning experience. Character building. Growth opportunity. Whatever helps us sleep at night.

But three? Three would be a pattern. Three would mean we have a legitimate cat problem. Three would require an intervention.

So here's the deal, Benedictine: You're cat #3, and we're 0-2 against your species this week. Which means you're walking into an absolute buzzsaw of frustrated Mustangs who are TIRED of losing to anything with whiskers.

Redemption starts now.

🏒 Strongsville JV vs Benedictine

📅 Tuesday, December 10

⏰ 6:00 PM

📍 Thorton Park Arena

Cat #3. Record vs cats: 0-2. Stakes: Everything. 🎄

#MustangsHockey #ShakerTourney #CatRedemption 🐴💚😾

🏒 GAME DAY SUNDAY - FOOD BANK NIGHT 🏒

Feline Weekend™ continues as the Strongsville Mustangs face the Elyria Catholic Panthers tomorrow at The BAM, and after Friday's loss to Mayfield, let's just say the Mustangs have some feels about cats right now.

Featuring Junior defenseman Eric Dubski, a guy who apparently missed the memo that defensemen are supposed to stay back and play defense. Instead, Eric spends his time doing rude things like jumping into the rush, quarterbacking the power play, and putting pucks in the back of the net like he forgot what position he plays.

Panthers are sleek, stealthy predators. Cool. Eric Dubski is basically a 6-foot spray bottle; cats see him coming and immediately regret their life choices. And after Friday? He's really not in the mood for more cats.

Christmas music. Food bank donations. Redemption against cats. It's the most wonderful game of the year.

🏒 Strongsville vs Elyria Catholic

📅 Sunday, December 8

⏰ 2:40 PM

📍 BAM Arena

FREE ENTRY with a donation to the Strongsville Food Bank!

Most needed: Cereal, Tuna, Mac & Cheese, Applesauce cups, Jelly, Peanut Butter, Hormel "Completes"

Help us Fill the Net—both literally and for families in need. 🎄

#MustangsHockey #FillTheNet #FelineWeekend 🐴💚🐾

🏒 GAME DAY -- THE WALL STANDS TALL

The Strongsville Mustangs host the Mayfield Wildcats Friday at The BAM, and we need to talk about Senior Captain Cole Clark—aka "The Wall."

Mayfield's bringing their Wildcats. Cool mascot. Very fierce. Except wildcats are basically just big outdoor cats, and we all know how cats react to obstacles: they sit down, stare at it judgmentally, then walk away and knock something off a table out of spite.

Bad news, Mayfield: Cole Clark IS the obstacle. The man doesn't move. He doesn't flinch. He just stands there between the pipes like a 6-foot brick fortress while your shots bounce off into the corner and your players wonder why they didn't just bring a laser pointer instead.

Cole's seen it all. Breakaways? Denied. Deflections? Robbed. Your hopes and dreams? Crushed. The man guards the crease like it owes him money, and Friday the Wildcats are about to learn that cats don't knock down walls—they just get confused, bored, and give up.

🏒 Strongsville vs Mayfield

📅 Friday, December 6

⏰ 8:30 PM

📍 Brunswick Auto Mart Ice Arena

Pack The BAM. Watch cats do cat things. LiveBarn's gonna look like a TikTok fail video.

#MustangsHockey #TheWall #CatsGonnaLose 🐴💚😼

GREEN vs BLUE. MUSTANGS vs BOMBERS.

🚨 REGULAR SEASON HOME OPENER 🚨

The Strongsville Mustangs kick off the home slate tonight, hosting the Kenston Bombers at The BAM! And we've got to give props where it's due, Kenston's coaching staff shows up with that coordinated drip. Matching shoes, matching shorts, matching everything. Respect the commitment to the aesthetic.

But style points don't win hockey games.

Tonight it's horses vs... bombs? Bombers? We're not entirely sure what a Bomber is supposed to do against a stampeding Mustang, but we're about to find out. Spoiler alert: it involves a lot of green jerseys in their zone.

Opening night energy. Fresh ice. The barn is READY. Come watch the Mustangs remind everyone why green > blue in the color hierarchy of high school hockey dominance.

🏒 Strongsville vs Kenston

📅 Friday, November 14

⏰ 5:50 PM

📍 Brunswick Auto Mart Ice Arena

Pack The BAM. Bring the noise. Let's make this home opener one for the books.

#MustangsHockey #HomeOpener #HorsesVsBombs #GreenSupremacy 🐴💚💣