Norwalk firemen (from left) Tim Reardon, Bryan Fogle and Chris Roos stand with the championship trophy.

Photo Credit: Tom Renner

A team picture of the Norwalk Fire Department hockey champions.

Photo Credit: Contributed

NORWALK, Conn – The Norwalk Fire Department hockey team had a red-hot fall season, winning the Tier 4 championship in the Connecticut Hockey League.

Norwalk’s victory earlier this month at Shelton Twin Rinks is the culmination of a long, uphill climb for a team that disbanded in the late 1990s. The team started playing again in 2005 and gradually improved. After losing in the championship game during the fall season of 2010 and the winter season of 2011, the team was determined to bring back the top hardware. It won the championship, 8-4, over the Storm.

“We’ve come a long way,’’ said Tim Reardon, the team’s captain and a former player at Stamford High School.

There have been several keys to Norwalk’s improvement over the past few years. It has acquired several new players, including standout goalie Bryan Fogle. A former player at Fairfield High, Fogle has been the backbone of a strong defensive unit that has jelled the more the players have worked together. The team has also developed three lines that bring different strengths. “We have players with a wide range of skills,’’ Reardon said. “We’ve found a system that works for us.”

The team is a unique mix of young and veteran firefighters and players. “We have some players who played their first game with us,’’ Fogle said. “They have never played with a team before.”

Others, such as Chris Roos, were with the team back in the 1990s, when it played mostly against the Norwalk Police Department. “We may not have the most talent, but we play within ourselves,’’ Roos said.

The team has some disadvantages. It has 18 players, but they have to juggle time off to make games. “Trying to get 10 or 12 guys to a game this past season was pretty good, because everything was going right,’’ Reardon said. “Everyone wanted to be there.”

Norwalk went 12-2-1 during the regular season before its playoff run. The league places restrictions on checking, leading to a more wide-open style of play similar to the European style. That plays to Norwalk’s advantage, as the firefighters’ strength is their team speed.

The biggest advantage the firemen have, however, is their tight-knit unit. Almost all of the team members are from the New Canaan Avenue firehouse, which promotes bonding at work and on the ice. “We work as a team and that comes back to the firehouse,’’ Roos said. “That’s important.” Added Fogle: “We’re representing our department as well as our town. We want to make a good impression.”

The oldest player is 64-year-old retired firefighter Herb Kemp from Montreal, a neighbor of Roos. He is the only member on the team who is not associated with the fire department. Adam Tyrell, Mike McCallum and Marty O’Marra are members of the team along with Roos, who played with the squad nearly 20 years ago. Anthony O’Marra, Marty’s son, skates on the team’s top line with Reardon and Todd DeKlyn. “It might be better than any line in the whole league,’’ Reardon said.

The firefighters are now playing in a winter season that started last week. They expect to be one of the top teams again, but now they are a target for teams looking to unseat them. The memory of the fall league championship will stay with the team for years. “There was no way we were losing this year,’’ Roos said. “We weren’t going to let it happen.”

Norwalk’s team includes Bryan Fogle, Tim Reardon, Anthony O’Marra, Jamie Lasher, Mike Hazzard, Tom Hope, Andrew Carlson, Adam Tyrell, Justin Lehn, Marty O’Marra, Herb Kemp, Todd DeKlyn, Jay Herbert, James Doherty, Chris Roos, Roy Gagne, Tony Matera, Mike McCallum and Dave McCabe.