He Didn’t Know How To Skate — Then He Won A State Title

ENFIELD, CT — As Connecticut’s high school hockey season intensifies, championship dreams are resurfacing — including one remarkable journey that began not on ice, but on the streets of Enfield.

In the late 1970s, Bill “Julio” Marino was playing countless street hockey games a year with friends across town. He guarded the net relentlessly, modeling his style after Gerry Cheevers of the Boston Bruins. His father had taken him to watch the Springfield Indians as a child, planting the seed for a dream.

There was one problem: Marino did not know how to skate.

In 1980, as a sophomore, he tried out for varsity hockey at Fermi High School with one goal — earn a varsity letter, just as his father had in football at Enfield High decades earlier. Coaches saw raw ability and kept him as a backup, believing he could learn the technical skills over time. He practiced relentlessly, improving his skating day by day, studying from the bench, and using setbacks as fuel.

His opportunity came during the 1981–82 season after an injury to the starting goalie. Marino finished the second half of the year, posting a 5–9 record on a team that went 6–14 overall. The experience hardened him.

By his senior year in 1982–83, Marino was the starter. The team gelled around a shared goal: a Division II, Class L state championship. Fermi compiled an 11–3–1 regular season record. Marino posted a 2.68 goals-against average with two shutouts.

That postseason culminated on March 12, 1983, at the New Haven Veterans Memorial Coliseum, before more than 4,500 fans. Fermi captured the Division II state title — a day later described as one of the greatest in Enfield sports history. Marino was named All-CCIL All-Star and the tournament’s top goaltender after four postseason wins.

Moments later, Enfield High won the Division I title in the same arena, marking a historic double championship for the town.

Both championship teams were inducted into the Enfield Athletic Hall of Fame in 1998.

Now living in Florida for more than two decades, Marino still reflects on that journey — from a street hockey goalie who couldn’t skate to a state champion. He has described the period as transformative, saying that every setback strengthened his resolve and shaped his success beyond the rink.

His story remains a reminder: championship seasons begin long before the first puck drops.

This article was written and submitted by Mike Cotnoir, a long-time Enfield, Connecticut community leader and volunteer.