Emily Snodgrass and Courtney Kukowski grew up playing hockey primarily with boys. There were a few other girls with them during the winter seasons, but when summer hockey came around — well, it was just them.

That’s how a long-lasting friendship began.

“We kind of bonded out of commiserating about being the only girls,” said Snodgrass, who’s now a senior captain at Eastview.

“It’s always kind of interesting how the boys react to playing with girls,” said Kukowski, a junior forward and linemate. “We became closer being the only girls. That’s where our friendship started.”

That connection and experience have allowed these smooth-skating forwards to blossom into girls’ high school hockey stardom.

Through Tuesday night, Snodgrass had posted 34 goals and 25 assists while Kukowski added 26 goals and 31 assists.

Together, they’ve combined for 60 of the Lightning’s 93 goals this season, and they’re a huge reason why Eastview is shoulder to shoulder with the South Suburban Conference big dogs.

Fifth-year coach Herb Harvey has been there every step of the way. Both Snodgrass and Kukowski began playing varsity as eighth graders, making an immediate impact.

“Tons of experience,” Harvey said. “Even when they were young, they were offensively gifted.”

The tag team also shines as two-way forwards and the team’s top two penalty killers with a combined nine shorthanded goals on the year.

Ironically, this is the first time the girls have played together on the same line for a full season. Both will admit last season was a bit of a down year for them, but Harvey threw them together this year for good. The point totals started spilling like a winning slot machine.

“It’s kind of a miracle season,” Snodgrass said. “Personally, I had like 26 points last year. I don’t know what happened, but something connected.”

That connection came from years of hockey together: Both played peewee hockey with the boys; both played in the Elite League; both have been training at FHIT Players for several years. Triple-A teams ... summer leagues — the list goes on. After all that, it wasn’t much of a stretch to think they’d thrive together at Eastview.

Snodgrass, the power forward and finisher who will play for the University of Connecticut next year, plays a strong, physical game. She doesn’t lose many battles. And if you look closely, those 59 points also come with 52 penalty minutes — another trait that transferred over sharing the ice with the boys.

“A lot of girls fear physical contact, but with the boys it’s just a fact of the game,” Snodgrass said. “You’ve got to get tough skin to be able to stay on the puck.”

Kukowski, a junior who will undoubtedly spark interest from Division I schools, is the silky-smooth table setter. Snodgrass called her one of the best stick handlers she’s ever seen with great vision and speed.

“[Kukowski] makes things happen, draws players to her, and next thing you know she’s passing to Emily and she hammers it home,” Harvey said.

It’s the perfect combination of power forward and gifted playmaker. The secret has been out on Eastview for a while now, but come playoff time, can the competition do enough to stop it?

“I can’t believe there’s not a coach out there from an opposing team at this point of the season that says ‘Well, jeez, if we’re going to stop Eastview, we’ve got to stop those two,’” Harvey said. Because if you don’t, they’re trouble,” Harvey said.