Sitting atop the standings of the Lehigh Valley Scholastic Hockey League (LVSHL) over the past few weeks, Northampton apparently has shaken off all the rust from an uncharacteristic 2013-14 season in which they finished with an overall 6-7-2 record.

The perennial champions have regained their winning ways as they were undefeated in the first five games of the season and likely will be a contender for the LVSHL crown this winter.

"It appears that way," said veteran head coach Brian Ruff when asked if his club was back on track. "I think we have a pretty good team. We graduated seven seniors and we have a lot of kids back who gained some valuable experience last year."

The Konkrete Kids will be paced by a veteran defensive unit that has five seniors on the back line. Through their first four games, Northampton won each contest by two or less goals.

"That will be the backbone of our team," stressed Ruff of his defensive unit. "We will have a true balanced team this winter. We have enough players who can put the puck in the net and we will have enough players who can stop the puck.

"So far, things have been looking good and we're off to a solid start from last year."

Along with his stellar defensive core, Ruff also will look to goalie Pat Lothian to be the final wall.

"Pat (Lothian) played JV the past two seasons," stated Ruff. "We figured he might take some time to make all of the necessary adjustments. He is a pretty athletic kid who has looked pretty good in the early going.

"The guys are playing great in front of him, and that has helped him make the move to varsity."

Offensively, the Kids have been paced by Colin O'Donnell, who has a team-high 11 points (6 goals, 5 assists); Anthony Belsky (5-5-10), Gavin Carey (8-1-9), and Chris Croll (3-5-8).

With his team out of the gates quickly, Ruff doesn't see them looking back neither having any of the signs of last year's team.

"We look like we have put everything behind us from last year," added Ruff. "Nobody has mentioned it. This is a group that isn't as complacent as last year's team and they won't take anything for granted.

"This is a very hungry team that can go deep into the season this year."