In 1994, the Hudson Valley welcomed its first professional sports team—the Hudson Valley Renegades, a minor league baseball team.
To get the community involved, they held a fan vote for the name and the winner was the recognizable “Renegades” moniker. However, a close second was “Vipers.” Now, 30 years later, the Hudson Valley Vipers are a reality, but instead of hitting a baseball, they hit the ice.
The Hudson Valley Vipers became Poughkeepsie’s first semi-professional hockey team in 2023 and exceeded expectations. This was the first time Poughkeepsie had seen semi-professional hockey since the Poughkeepsie Panthers in 2003 and the Hudson Valley Bears in 2009.
They play at the Mid-Hudson Civic Center’s McCann Ice Arena in the American Premier Hockey League (APHL), a senior AAA semi-professional hockey league. The Civic Center also hosts the Marist College Club Hockey Team, which started in 1974.
Due to the success of the Vipers, there will be another professional team in the Hudson Valley, the Hudson Valley Venom. The Venom will play in the Federal Prospects Hockey League (FPHL). The FPHL is a single A minor professional hockey league above the APHL. They are the “brother” of the Vipers and will play at the Ice Time Sports Complex in Newburgh. With the teams being related, players can be called up between teams depending on the situation.
Pat Manning is the owner of both teams and has shaped sports in the local area by helping bring in the Renegades back in ‘94. Manning is a Southern Dutchess County native, a former state Assemblyman for 12 years and a baseball fanatic. When he got the call for a potential hockey team, he jumped at the opportunity even with no prior hockey experience.
“I saw the opportunity to bring the Vipers here to Poughkeepsie to be the winter Renegades,” said Manning. “I love Dutchess County, and thought it would be cool to have something that people could go to that was organized, hence why we had the Vipers start up because it’s the natural ending of the baseball season and the natural beginning of the hockey season.”
In their inaugural season, the Vipers were a smash hit in the town. They finished as the second seed in the standings and went on a historic run to win the APHL Championship in their first season against the Toledo Mobsters in Ohio.
Not only did they win a championship, but the support was second to none, with sold-out crowds at most games.
“They’re crazy. We can only fit about 900 people in the rink but they make up for it in noise and enthusiasm. The other teams were scared to play us but also respected us because of how great our fans are,” said Manning. “It made a difference and that enthusiasm got more people into the stands to the point that we were selling out and we couldn’t fit any more people in here.”
The Viper’s brand of hockey is an old-school style of play with big hits; lots of goals and fights. This style of play can be described by a simple catchphrase: “scrappy and classy.” It’s hockey in its purest form and is a reason why the fans are some of the most passionate in the APHL.
Every game, the “Snake Pit” (nickname for the arena and fans) is loud and aggressive, and makes McCann one of the hardest places to play. Some Vipers fans even traveled to Niagara in the playoffs and Toledo in the championship.
Behind the bench, the Vipers are led by coach Joey Bonitatibus. Bonitatibus is originally from Yorktown in Westchester County and has played hockey his whole life. After Manning bought the Vipers, the head coach spot opened up and Bonitatibus’ qualifications made him the man for the job.
Bonitatibus played varsity hockey for Yorktown in high school, including a section final appearance. He then studied at Providence College and eventually went to grad school at Western Connecticut State University in 2021 where he played hockey for two years.
He also coached youth hockey with the Bedford Bears and returned to Yorktown to coach his former high school in the combined “BYSNS” (Brewster, Yorktown, Somers, North Salem). After graduating from Western Connecticut State, Bonitatibus moved north to Poughkeepsie, where he currently resides.
“Honestly, I just took my resume and sent it to the rink director. It happened to be good timing,” said Bonitatibus. “We ended up getting together, went through a couple interviews, spoke with the league managers, and ultimately got the position.”
The rest was history, as Bonitatibus led the Vipers to the championship in his first season as head coach. The support and family vibe from the community surprised him.
“I think the rally behind the team has just been more than I could ever imagine,” said Bonitatibus. “We were packing this place out almost every night that we had a game, and even fans came to watch us six hours away. That was one of the biggest surprises and ultimately, the group of guys was amazing.”
Part of that group of guys is Max Henry, who rocks number eight for the Vipers and leads as a team captain. Henry is a Marist alum and played club hockey there from 2014-2017. Originally from local Mahopac, NY in Putnam County, he grew up playing hockey at Brewster Ice Arena and played juniors for the Brewster Apple Core.
Henry might not be the flashiest player on the ice, but does the dirty work required for winning.
“Probably the guy that’s going to be out there trying the hardest. He’s not going to always be the goal scorer,” said Bonitatibus. “He’s not always going to be the guy out there getting the points, but he’s the guy that’s going out there and rough somebody up and get in the corners and do the dirty work.”
Since becoming a member of the Vipers, Henry has had an amazing experience that he does not take for granted.
“I was playing contact hockey again at 28 years old. I didn’t think I was ever going to be doing that again,” said Henry. “It gave me a second life for my hockey career. The way I put it, it made me fall back in love with the game.”
A similar experience has unfolded for another top player on the Vipers, Rob Clerc. Clerc is one of the more experienced players on the Vipers, playing for the Hudson Valley Polar Bears and Brewster Apple Core in his youth. He then went to New Jersey and played for the Jersey Hitmen before moving to Canada to play in the Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL) for the Kingston Voyageurs in 2016.
After juniors, Clerc played for Division III SUNY Potsdam from 2018-2023 before discovering his latest playing opportunity.
“I saw a bunch of articles and posts on Facebook about the Vipers, but I actually played against [Bonitatibus] in men’s league,” said Clerc. “He approached me and asked me if I would like an opportunity to try out.”
“[Clerc] was one of our best players. He probably averaged four or five points a game,” Bonitatibus added. “It was pretty incredible seeing some of the things he did.”
As the Vipers head into year two, there is a primary expectation: winning. Everyone involved with the Vipers wants to repeat as champions, for the city, fans and team. With hockey booming in the Hudson Valley, the Venom want to make an instant impact in the FPHL similar to how the Vipers did in the APHL. To bring excitement to the new team, the Venom brought in Jim Cerny to be their main broadcaster, as he is highly decorated in the industry.
Cerny is originally from Queens, but has been a Westchester resident since 1994. From covering hockey and minor league baseball, Cerny is the former New York Islanders radio play-by-play and worked for the New York Rangers for 10 years as a reporter.
For baseball, he covered the Newark Bears minor league team. Cerny also worked with notable names such as Kenny Albert and Don LeGreca and was in the locker room after the New York Rangers won the Stanley Cup in 1994. Cerny has hosted radio shows with the Sirius XM Hockey-related show and was a managing editor for NHL.com. He now runs the website “Forever Blueshirts,” which covers the Rangers.
After doing more baseball in recent years, Cerny wanted to return to hockey and do something he enjoys.
“I really missed doing hockey and I just love the sport and I love broadcasting. It’s just a chance to marry both and enjoy it and help the organization and hopefully get them some publicity and all that as well,” said Cerny.
The Venom recently held a preseason matchup against the Danbury Hat Tricks on Oct.12, but officially started play on Friday, Oct 18 against the defending champions Binghamton Black Bears. The Vipers, on the other hand, kick off their second season on Jan 4.
With the mix between the two exciting and entertaining teams, the Hudson Valley has caught lightning in the bottle with the Vipers and Venom.
Edited by Marley Pope and Luke Sassa
Photo and graphic credit: Jaylen Rizzo
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