The only team championship from the 2023-24 winter prep sports season for Aurora area teams came on the ice, where Regis Jesuit ended a long — by its lofty standards — drought with a rousing 3-1 win over rival Valor Christian at Magness Arena in the Class 5A final.
With an existence of less than two decades, Regis Jesuit now has seven all-time state ice hockey championships, while puts it second in Colorado history behind Cheyenne Mountain, which owns a whopping 14.
It had been since 2019 that the Raiders had hoisted a state championship trophy, however, and several members of the group that ended the drought appear on the 2023-24 Aurora Sentinel All-Aurora Ice Hockey Team, which was selected by the Sentinel in conjunction with the balloting of the two city coaches (Terry Ott of Regis Jesuit and Jeff Mielnicki of the Cherry Creek co-op team).
Ott — an assistant under original coach Dan Woodley, who took over prior to last season — deeply felt a return to the team-oriented culture that existed during the program’s most successful runs.
Besides that, the arrival of one individual — freshman goaltender Easton Sparks — had a transformative effect on the Raiders, who were galvanized around his unflappable presence in the sport’s most difference-making position.
Sparks proved his mettle time and time again, but especially in the postseason, in which he played all 153 minutes the Raiders were on the ice and finished 3-0 with a 1.67 Goals Against Average and a sparkling .940 save percentage. His signature play came in the opening period of the championship game when he cooly stonewalled Valor Christian star Maddux Charles on a penalty shot and he turned aside everything the Eagles put on goal until the final frantic minute.
For the season — which saw him start every game against a team that made the postseason — Sparks was 11-2-2.
Joining Sparks from Regis Jesuit on the All-Aurora first team are a pair of forwards in senior Ian Beck and junior Parker Brinner — who both had goals in the state championship game — as well as senior defenseman Dhilan Paranjape.
Beck scored with one second left in the championship game to put an exclamation point on the victory and it gave him five points (two goals, three assists) in three postseason games. He finished with an Aurora-best 15 goals plus 12 assists in 21 games.
Brinner scored an empty net goal with under a minute left in the championship game that actually turned out to be the game-winner after Valor Christian scored in a chaotic final minute and it gave him three points in three playoff games. For the season, he paced the Raiders with 13 assists, while he also had nine goals and 22 total points in 20 games.
Paranjape was an assistant captain and was steady presence on the back line in front of Sparks, while he also jumped up on the offense when needed. As he helped a defensive effort that saw his team allow just five goals in three playoff games, Paranjape dished out two assists and finished with three goals and 12 assists for the season in 20 games played.
The Cherry Creek co-op team — which mixes together players from across the Cherry Creek School District — advanced to the semifinals before it was stopped by Valor Christian in a 4-1 defeat.
Mielnicki’s team was plenty talented and landed a pair of All-Aurora first team spots for senior forward Dominic Suchkov as well as senior defenseman William O‘Grady (who attends Grandview).
Suchkov had two points on a goal and an assist in two playoff games, but his one goal was a huge one as it lifted the Bruins over Mountain Vista in overtime in the quarterfinals. He finished with 13 goals and 12 assists for 25 points in 21 games played.
Cherry Creek’s defense was bolstered by the veteran, physical presence of O’Grady, who had speed to go with his 6-foot-3, 185-pound frame. He was all over the ice for the Bruins and contributed greatly on offense as well, as he registered a goal and two assists in two playoff games to give him four goals and seven assists for 11 points in 17 games.
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter/X: @aurorasports. IG: Sentinel Prep Sports
2023-24 AURORA SENTINEL ALL-AURORA ICE HOCKEY TEAM
FIRST TEAM
Forward: Ian Beck, sr., Regis Jesuit; Parker Brinner, jr., Regis Jesuit; Dominic Suchkov, sr., Cherry Creek; Defense: Dhilan Paranjape, sr. Regis Jesuit; William O’Grady, sr., Cherry Creek (Grandview); Goalie: Easton Sparks, fr., Regis Jesuit
SECOND TEAM
Forward: Eric Burggraf, sr., Cherry Creek (Grandview); Vincent Cieslak, jr., Regis Jesuit; Austin Katz, sr., Cherry Creek; Defense: Zach Lorenzo, jr., Regis Jesuit; Ethan Robbins, sr., Cherry Creek; Goalie: Jack Ryan, sr., Cherry Creek (Cherokee Trail)
— Full 2023-24 Aurora Sentinel All-Aurora Ice Hockey Team, here
