SLP boys top rivals Tupper Lake
- SLP’s Ayden McCormick carries the puck during Tuesday’s game against Tupper Lake at the Saranac Lake Civic Center. (Enterprise photo — Parker O’Brien)
- Tupper Lake’s Brady Skiff looks to take a shot during Tuesday’s game against SLP at the Saranac Lake Civic Center. (Enterprise photo — Parker O’Brien)

SLP’s Ayden McCormick carries the puck during Tuesday’s game against Tupper Lake at the Saranac Lake Civic Center. (Enterprise photo — Parker O’Brien)
SARANAC LAKE — Senior captain Braydon Harvey put together a career day, recording seven points to help his Saranac Lake Placid boys hockey team beat the Tupper Lake Lumberjacks 11-0 on Tuesday night at the Saranac Lake Civic Center.
Harvey scored four goals and added three assists. Meanwhile, junior Ayden McCormick, who is nearing 100 career points, netted a hat trick and tallied an assist. McCormick is now at 97 career points — the most by an SLP player since the two schools merged teams in 2019.
Also for SLP, Oren Preston scored twice, while Ryan Bartholomew and Eli McCormick each tallied a goal. Bartholomew and Braeden Foley also had three assists, as Preston, Eli McCormick and Owen Lawrence chipped in one each en route to the win.
SLP is now 3-3-1 overall, and Tuesday’s win snapped a two-game losing skid. Those two losses came against state-ranked teams in Potsdam and Williamsville North, but SLP’s head coach Josh Spanburgh, said facing two high-powered offenses before taking on a rival in Tupper Lake was scheduled on purpose.
“We want to have that kind of barometer of games that can show us what we need to do,” he said. “While looking at what teams do that are at that higher level, so that we can attain that kind of goal and make that something that we want to try and do.

Tupper Lake’s Brady Skiff looks to take a shot during Tuesday’s game against SLP at the Saranac Lake Civic Center. (Enterprise photo — Parker O’Brien)
“So I am very happy with today in the sense that for three periods, they all did their jobs,” Spanburgh added. “As the game went on, very few of them started taking on and doing the wrong things. … So I was very proud of the whole team in general today.”
SLP jumped out to an early lead, scoring within the first four minutes of the contest, on a shot from Bartholomew. The team then added three more in the first period, and six more in the second to take a 10-0 advantage. Eli McCormick netted the lone goal of the third period, with Foley and his brother, Ayden, assisting.
The line of Bartholomew, Harvey and Preston was strong all evening, combining for six of SLP’s 11 goals. Spanburgh said it’s really nice to see them come together, especially since they just got together in the last week or so.
“That line had a great game,” he said. “I think everybody did generally play really well. Another hat trick for Ayden McCormick. So in general, I liked how the offense played. I liked how well they played in our own zone, which is just as important.”
SLP finished with a 47-19 advantage in shots on goal. Tupper Lake’s biggest opportunity of the night came when Brady Skiff had a breakaway in the second period, but his shot was turned away by SLP’s senior goalie, Scottie Nicholas.
The senior recorded 19 stops en route to his second shutout of the season for SLP. Meanwhile, Nolan Wilson started in net for the Lumberjacks and had 20 saves. Traxon Ellers entered the game in the second period and stopped 16 shots. Tupper Lake dropped to 0-6 overall with the loss.
SLP was down three players from its typical lineup in Carver Bell, Ethan Knight and David Montroy. Spanburgh said all three guys are important to the team.
“Ethan, our captain, obviously, is a major player for us, and he’s a workhorse,” he said. “Carver Bell does the same, and Dave Montroy. Both guys go out there with a lot of heart and they push themselves, they work really hard and they hustle. So not having those three was definitely a factor that we were worried about, but it’s nice to see the rest of the guys picking up from.”
Following Tuesday’s non-league matchup, SLP will return to league play with a handful of “important games” upcoming on the road. The team will travel to Rouses Point today to face the Northeastern Clinton Cougars at 6 p.m., and to the Plattsburgh State Field House in a game at 6 p.m. against the Beekmantown Eagles.
“We have to be ready and we have to push and we have to do our jobs,” Spanburgh said. “(Hopefully) we can do what we did today, but it’ll probably be tougher games and matches against NCCS and Beekmantown.”
The Lumberjacks are slated to host the Thousand Islands Vikings at 5:30 p.m. on Monday at the Tupper Lake Civic Center.





