By Dominic Konareski
Voice Writer
High school hockey, as we used to know it, is dying. Lack of participation and the sport becoming increasingly more expensive to fund for an average family has factored into a drop of teams, and for high school, their programs.
The last five years have seen rapid changes for West Haven High hockey. 2022 marked the first season that the team would be a co-op after a lack of interest. 2023 would then see the drop down to DII, ending an era of Division I hockey that spanned over 75 years for what was a powerhouse team.
Now in 2025, West Haven hockey is adding another team to their ever-growing co-op list and it’s a familiar rival. Branford.
Players from Shelton, Seymour, and Oxford have been allowed to join West Haven since 2022. Now Branford to the list and you have five towns total. Branford joining the co-op program ahead of the 2025/26 season, is part of a two-year deal with West Haven High School Athletics.
“I think I called every school in the SCC [Southern Connecticut Conference]” to see if teams were interested in joining Branford if the team was made a co-op, said Branford Athletic Director Brian Zaklukiewicz.
Last season, Branford hockey had 13 players on their team and went 9-9-2. The record was good enough to be the 13th seed in the DII playoffs, despite the team having just enough for two lines.
West Haven is coming off of a 7-11-2 season in what was a down year after being a legitimate contender in 2023/24.
“They are a well-run machine,” Zaklukiewicz said to The Buzz when he was speaking highly about West Haven’s rink and team facilities.
Hockey has the highest percentage of co-op teams for CIAC-sanctioned sports with over 20 programs running under the co-op banner. The CIAC views co-ops more so the program can field a team rather than be competitive.
“It’s about opportunity and not about competition,” CIAC Executive Director Glenn Lungarini told CT Insider back in February.
East Haven hockey seems to be the exception as after their addition of Sheehan, the team has been a contender and even won the Division II state hockey championship this past season.
The West Haven v. Branford rivalry isn’t one of the biggest for Blue Devils hockey as that goes to Hamden and cross-town Notre Dame. Branford has always given the Westies a good bout, but now it is time for a joint fight in hopes of bringing a state championship back to West Haven.
The 2025/26 schedule has not been finalized, but the first game is expected to be around the middle of December.