John Orlando has done more to
promote New York State high
school hockey than arguably any
other person. Born in
Manhattan, just above the exit
of the Lincoln Tunnel, and
raised in the Bronx, John went
to Cardinal Hayes High. He
played freshman basketball and
baseball there, as well as club
and pond hockey. As a
5-foot-4 sophomore, his
basketball career came to a halt
as he tried to make a team that
included, among others, 6-foot-5
future NBA guard Kevin Loughery
and future Holy Cross captain
Tim Shea.
After high school John went on
to college at CCNY, where he
played his first lacrosse game
(the sport got his attention
when he was "beaned" by a ball
as a bystander). He would
eventually become an
All-American attack at CCNY, and
led the country in scoring with
3.7 goals per game. After
college, he coached freshman
lacrosse for a year at Penn
State, then spent eight years at
West Point as the freshman and
assistant varsity lacrosse coach
for Army.
John started his teaching career at Suffern High
School in 1965, (he retired in 1996
after over 31 years).
While there he decided
to coach the varsity lacrosse
team. Soon after, he was
asked to coach the hockey
team as well. John had
played hockey, but coaching?
So he called his friend from
West Point, Jack Riley.
They used to play golf together,
along with Army basketball coach
Bobby Knight. Riley was
most famous for coaching the
United States to the Olympic
hockey gold in Squaw Valley in
1960, and for cutting Herb
Brooks from that team.
With advice from Jack, John went
on to build the Suffern hockey
and lacrosse programs from the
Pee-Wee level up, and went on to
coach his Mounties hockey team for the next
25 years, tallying an outrageous
record of 456-wins, 99-losses,
and 14-ties. This record
currently places him third on
the all-time New York State
Coaching Wins list. He
also served as Chairman of
Section 1 high school hockey a
position he still holds.
John also worked countless hours
as the Hockey Director of the Sportorama Rink in Monsey, NY.,
retiring in 2007, a position he
held since the arena's opening
in 1972. |
John Orlando's resume is
certainly the envy of any coach
and includes the following:
While coaching Suffern high
school hockey he posted-
-
456-99-14 record as Head
Coach for 25-years
-
18 League
Championships
-
17 Sectional Championships
-
23 consecutive sectional
wins (section 9 and 1)
-
12 Regional Championships
-
10 Appearances in the State
Tournament Final-Four (more
than any other team)
-
1991-92 NYSPHSAA Division 1
State Champions
-
NYSHSHCA founding member and
Vice President
His other coaching milestones
include:
-
10 Sectional Lacrosse
Championships in 22-years
-
282 wins as the varsity
lacrosse coach at Suffern
-
over 150 victories as a JV
football coach at Suffern
-
335 combined wins in
lacrosse- high
school/college as head coach
-
posted an 18-0 record, one
year coaching basketball at
the Henly School in Queens
Coach Orlando fondly recalls the
time he coached the West Point
freshmen lacrosse team in a game
against the varsity. The
freshmen defeated the varsity
16-7, in a year that the varsity
team went on to become
co-national champions.
John and his wife Anita reside in
Cornwall and spend their summers
on Lake George where the own and
operate the luxury tour boat
"Indian Pipes" at the Sagamore
Resort.
|
John was inducted
into the New York
State High School
Hockey Hall of Fame,
March 1996, for his
dedication to the
sport as a truly
great coach who has
contributed
noteworthy service
to New York State
High School Hockey.
Service that
continues to this
day, as he is
currently the
NYSHSHCA
Vice-President, a
position he has held
since the
organization's
inception in 1996. |
|
