When Town Rivals Join Forces

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It’s the most wonderful time of the year…hockey season!

As the exhilarating season begins, the players from Norwalk High School and Brien McMahon High School have ambitions set higher than ever before. Hayden Cincotta (’23) says that the main shift that separates this year from last year is the mindset of the players. He exclaims, “we have a great group of skilled players that are hungry for a successful season, we’ll do whatever it takes to win every game we can.” It’s evident that the boys want the 2022-23 season to reinvent NorMac hockey and brand the team as a force to be reckon with. Their biggest priority is to elongate their season as much as possible. Cincotta says, “the first step to getting closer to this goal is maintaining a healthy bond between one another so that nothing gets in the way of our priorities.”

As every other sport, it all starts at practice. The boys know that putting in 100% effort every practice will set them up for success in so much more than what they present on the ice. The foundation of NorMac Hockey is built around the hard work and dedication that the boys are able to mirror through their new head coach Todd DeKlyn. Coach DeKlyn has served as the Assistant Coach of the NorMac team since the 2019-2020 season, until just months ago when he accepted the Head Coach position after NorMac’s previous head coach stepped down last winter. Coach DeKlyn was unavailable for comments but Captain Johnluca Milone (’23) shared his thoughts on his new coach. “Coach Todd is a great coach who knows how to connect with his players and cares a lot about the team. I think we’re going to have a great season this winter.”

Coach DeKlyn has spent his life around hockey since childhood. He played for his high school team and has been coaching on and off since then. He currently coaches his son’s youth team at SoNo Ice House in addition to the high school team. His coaching career is not limited to hockey, as he spends a great deal of his time coaching baseball as well. He is heavily involved in the Rowayton Little League, as well as coaching the Junior Varsity baseball team at Brien McMahon High School. Coach DeKlyn’s leadership skills are boundless, as he holds multiple other leadership positions. He is the current Chief at Rowayton Hose Company No. 1, a volunteer firehouse in Norwalk, and also serves as the Assistant Superintendent of Parks in New Canaan. DeKlyn exhibits everything that NorMac hockey strives to represent day in and day out. The boys are confident that with his guidance they will be able to accomplish any goal imaginable.