Long Island college hockey prodigy Ethan Wyttenbach of Quinnipiac, which is ranked No. 7 in the country, continues stunning the sports world with a nation-leading 57 points in his first season, which just shattered the team’s freshman scoring record at the end of February.
“Coming into school, I didn’t really anticipate that, or have that in my thoughts,” Wyttenbach told The Post of the first-year milestone.
“As we got closer, I started thinking about it.”
On Thursday, days after the winger broke the Bobcats’ 54-point record set in 1999-2000, the 2025 draft pick by the Calgary Flames was named both the national forward of the month and runner-up rookie of the month.
Wyttenbach attributes his success to a message made famous by the great Herb Brooks.
“I sustained my confidence and kept playing my game,” added the 19-year-old, praising teammates who “made my life pretty easy.”
This highlight season battle-tested Wyttenbach for his future in Calgary — and how to deal with the chippy play that comes with being a superstar.
“Getting cross-checks every shift and just little things like that. I kind of have a big target on my back,” he said.
“I think dealing with that and preparing myself in that way has been big.”
His focus remains on the upcoming ECAC conference tournament, but the Roslyn native can’t help but feel excited about his magical year and what may come.
Wyttenbach is in conversations regarding the Hobey Baker Award, given to the most outstanding NCAA hockey player each year, which Sharks phenom Macklin Celebrini took home in 2024.
“As a kid, especially from the United States, winning the Hobey Baker Award is always the end goal,” Wyttenbach said.
“It would obviously be a really awesome moment for me, but we’ve got a lot of work to do left.”
Nassau County Boys AAA basketball final
Can the Port Washington Vikings stay the course, or will the Baldwin Bruins bear down?
It’s a thrilling Nassau County boys AAA basketball final Saturday between a 20-2 Baldwin squad that overcame massive injuries and a Port Wash bunch that graduated several key players in 2025.
The matchup pits champ against champ: Baldwin, which played in the AA conference last season, won Long Island, while the Vikings did the same at AAA.
“It’s unique, it’s different,” Bruins head coach Darius Burton, whose team hasn’t lost since January 7, told The Post.
The teams split their regular-season matchups, with the Vikings winning 43-36 in December, but Baldwin took round two in February, 49-32.
“They’ve bought in defensively… This is our time of year,” Burton said of his team’s “next-man-up mentality.”
However, Vikings head coach Sean Dooley, who led Port Washington to its first Nassau title since the 1940s last year, is ready to poke the bear.
“This team has their own story,” Dooley said. “We’re going to have to play our best game of the year.”
And the boys are willing to go to Valhalla to win it all.
“This group has done a great job of that all year, playing team defense, sacrificing their body, diving on the floor for loose balls,” he added.
“Hopefully, we can cap it off with a championship.”