BOSTON — History was waiting on the next goal, as Central Catholic and Arlington skated into overtime.
In a flash, however, the Raiders were left stunned on the TD Garden ice, with nothing but heartbreak.
Just 15 seconds into overtime, Arlington’s Mic Curran banked home a goal from an impossible angle behind the net, beating a shocked Central Catholic squad 2-1 in the Super 8 championship game.
“We laid it all out there and gave it everything we had,” said Central head coach Kim Brandvold. “Unfortunately that bounce didn’t go our way. It’s a shame it happened on the first shift of overtime, but that’s the way hockey is. Our kids still played an amazing game.”
It was the first Super 8 title for Arlington since the tournament was established in 1991, and just the third time a public school took the crown, following Hingham (2010) and Reading (2008).
It was Central Catholic’s first ever Super 8 title game appearance, and the first for any Merrimack Valley Conference/Dual County League team.
“This hurts,” said Raiders captain Matt Poulin. “We came out with a lot of energy and a lot of enthusiasm. We were feeling confident going into overtime. But they ended up getting the lucky bounce and that was it.”
Arlington led 1-0 heading into the third, but that was when Central Catholic seemed to steal momentum.
Raiders defenseman Joe Biddle picked off a pass and unleashed an absolute blast from the point that beat the goalie to tie the game 1-1 just under a minute into the third. It was Biddle’s third goal of the season.
“We felt like we were back in it after that goal,” said Poulin. “That was a huge goal.”
From there, Central continued to pressure Spy Ponders goalie Jack Pinard. But the junior turned away a few excellent attempts, including a redirect that he just grabbed out of the air with his glove.
“The Biddle goal was huge and I think after that we pushed for a little bit,” said Brandvold. “But then they came back and pushed a little. Either team could have taken it.
“Then, when you go into OT, you know it’s going to be a bounce or something. It’s just unfortunate how it happened.”
Off the opening faceoff of overtime, the puck went into the Central Catholic defensive zone. Arlington’s Curran raced it down, and from behind the net banked home a fluky score.
Before fans had settled into overtime, the Spy Ponders were already pouring out of the bench to celebrate the championship.
“Central is an outstanding team,” said Arlington coach John Messuri. “Their first line is terrific, their goalie is outstanding and Kim is an unbelievable coach. They do some little things so well that it shows how well coached they are. I told him, for him to take a team that young to this game is unbelievable.”
Central nearly took the lead in the first period, when a puck snuck through Pinard (26 saves). But the goalie dove backwards and managed to knock the puck away with his glove just before it touched the goal line.”
Raiders goalie Matt Pasquale finished his monster Super 8 tournament with another big performance. The sophomore made 28 saves, including a few dazzling stops. In four Super 8 games, he allowed just three goals.
“Matt’s the largest part of why we’re here,” said Brandvold. “His play in the quarterfinals and semifinal were excellent and today too he made some incredible stops. There were two or three on the back door that I don’t know how he stopped. He’s a rock back there.”
Just feet away from Arlington celebrating, Brandvold remained positive as he reflected on the season.
“The ride will stick with them,” said Brandvold. “So will the pain of losing in overtime at the Garden. But they will look back at the ride, doing it with your friends and how much better we worked to get every day. They’re going to look back at that with a lot of pride.”
With the pain of the loss still fresh, Poulin did his best to remember the good times as he prepared to leave the Garden in his final high school game.
“This season was awesome,” said Poulin. “It was an honor to be captain for this great group of guys. There was a lot of friendship and a lot of love. It was really special to get here.”
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Boys Ice Hockey, 03/19/17 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
BOSTON — History was waiting on the next goal, as Central Catholic and Arlington skated into overtime.
In a flash, however, the Raiders were left stunned on the TD Garden ice, with nothing but heartbreak.
Just 15 seconds into overtime, Arlington’s Mic Curran banked home a goal from an impossible angle behind the net, beating a shocked Central Catholic squad 2-1 in the Super 8 championship game.
“We laid it all out there and gave it everything we had,” said Central head coach Kim Brandvold. “Unfortunately that bounce didn’t go our way. It’s a shame it happened on the first shift of overtime, but that’s the way hockey is. Our kids still played an amazing game.”
It was the first Super 8 title for Arlington since the tournament was established in 1991, and just the third time a public school took the crown, following Hingham (2010) and Reading (2008).
It was Central Catholic’s first ever Super 8 title game appearance, and the first for any Merrimack Valley Conference/Dual County League team.
“This hurts,” said Raiders captain Matt Poulin. “We came out with a lot of energy and a lot of enthusiasm. We were feeling confident going into overtime. But they ended up getting the lucky bounce and that was it.”
Arlington led 1-0 heading into the third, but that was when Central Catholic seemed to steal momentum.
Raiders defenseman Joe Biddle picked off a pass and unleashed an absolute blast from the point that beat the goalie to tie the game 1-1 just under a minute into the third. It was Biddle’s third goal of the season.
“We felt like we were back in it after that goal,” said Poulin. “That was a huge goal.”
From there, Central continued to pressure Spy Ponders goalie Jack Pinard. But the junior turned away a few excellent attempts, including a redirect that he just grabbed out of the air with his glove.
“The Biddle goal was huge and I think after that we pushed for a little bit,” said Brandvold. “But then they came back and pushed a little. Either team could have taken it.
“Then, when you go into OT, you know it’s going to be a bounce or something. It’s just unfortunate how it happened.”
Off the opening faceoff of overtime, the puck went into the Central Catholic defensive zone. Arlington’s Curran raced it down, and from behind the net banked home a fluky score.
Before fans had settled into overtime, the Spy Ponders were already pouring out of the bench to celebrate the championship.
“Central is an outstanding team,” said Arlington coach John Messuri. “Their first line is terrific, their goalie is outstanding and Kim is an unbelievable coach. They do some little things so well that it shows how well coached they are. I told him, for him to take a team that young to this game is unbelievable.”
Central nearly took the lead in the first period, when a puck snuck through Pinard (26 saves). But the goalie dove backwards and managed to knock the puck away with his glove just before it touched the goal line.”
Raiders goalie Matt Pasquale finished his monster Super 8 tournament with another big performance. The sophomore made 28 saves, including a few dazzling stops. In four Super 8 games, he allowed just three goals.
“Matt’s the largest part of why we’re here,” said Brandvold. “His play in the quarterfinals and semifinal were excellent and today too he made some incredible stops. There were two or three on the back door that I don’t know how he stopped. He’s a rock back there.”
Just feet away from Arlington celebrating, Brandvold remained positive as he reflected on the season.
“The ride will stick with them,” said Brandvold. “So will the pain of losing in overtime at the Garden. But they will look back at the ride, doing it with your friends and how much better we worked to get every day. They’re going to look back at that with a lot of pride.”
With the pain of the loss still fresh, Poulin did his best to remember the good times as he prepared to leave the Garden in his final high school game.
“This season was awesome,” said Poulin. “It was an honor to be captain for this great group of guys. There was a lot of friendship and a lot of love. It was really special to get here.”
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Boys Ice Hockey, 03/19/17 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
LOWELL — Thomas Manty saw the puck come free, and with the opportunity of a lifetime in his sight, he reacted.
“I just had to dive,” he said. “The puck hit the goalie’s left pad and squirted out. I saw the loose puck, I dove and the next think I knew I was celebrated in the student section.”
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Boys Ice Hockey, 03/15/17 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
LOWELL — When your opponent nets the equalizer with 97 seconds left in a tense, playoff hockey team, a team is supposed to melt.
Andover High coach Chris Kuchar simply got his grease board and all the duct tape he could muster, calling an immediate time out and finding a way to hold his Warriors together.
Seventy-six seconds later, the coach — and the gritty Golden Warriors — reaped the rewards of that mental toughness when Caedon Dillman stole the puck on the forecheck behind the net, then fired a behind-the-back, backhand pass that Mike Reilly rifled home for the game-winner in a classic 2-1 Division 1 North semifinal over Austin Prep.
“He called for it, I didn’t really look for him, I just know where he always is,” said Dillman. “We have that chemistry, and we’ve worked at it. I just put it out front, hoped for something good.”
How stunning was the game-winner? Only the goal-judge and Reilly, leaping for joy into the boards, seemed to notice.
“I didn’t have to do much. I was ready for it, no thinking, just react,” said Reilly. “Caedon made an unbelievable pass, backhand behind his back, and he found me out front. Unbelievable pass. He’s been doing it all year.”
Reality hit and Andover went bonkers.
“We just said we were going to unload on them in the aggressive fore-check,” said Kuchar. “Caedon Dillman went in hard, Matthew Schuhwerk went in hard, and our third guy high, Michael Reilly went to the net where he’s supposed to. He got a feed out front, and the goalie never saw it. He buried it.”
The Golden Warriors, with a handful of guys in the room struggling with pneumonia, will get four days of much-needed rest before facing St. Mary’s of Lynn, Monday night back here at the Tsongas Center, for the North title.
“We’ve got a chip on our shoulder because we’re a public school,” said Reilly. “We just stuck together, worked hard and got it done.”
Andover struck first, midway through the second on a Mike Biddle goal that was 99.9 percent effort. Biddle just muscled his way from the left wing to the cage and slid the puck past Austin’s Dylan Regan.
That lead looked like it might hold.
Andover fended off every Austin challenge, and senior goalie Zach Laramie was on his game, turning away shot after shot.
But Austin’s desperation finally paid dividends in the final two minutes. The puck trickled loose around the cage, and in a scrum, Laramie lost his stick. When the rubber rolled out onto the stick of Nick Cafarelli, he buried it, knotting things at 1-1.
That’s when Kuchar used the timeout and told his Warriors to scrap their passive trap defense and get into the heavy forecheck.
Laramie finished with 26 saves. The senior with seven shutouts in the regular season has only allowed two total goals in the two postseason wins.
“This is the love of my life, hockey, it’s what I live and breathe,” said Laramie. “The regular season prepared us for this. I just tried to stay calm and be collected.”
“The saves he made at the end of the game were 10-bell saves. We’re not here without him,” said Kuchar. “He’s one of the best goalies in Massachusetts. We’re lucky to have him.
“To get scored on like that, our kids could have folded, they showed a lot of character and heart.”
Andover 2, Austin Prep 1
Division 1 North semifinal
at Tsongas Center
Andover (15-5-2): 0-1-1 — 2
Austin (17-5-2): 0-0-1 — 1
Second Period: And — Michael Biddle 12:22
Third Period: AP — Nick Cafarelli (Louis Finocchiaro, Jake Thain) 13:23; And — Michael Reilly (Caedon Dillman) 14:39
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Boys Ice Hockey, 03/08/17 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
EXETER — To say that Windham and Bow have gotten to know each other well over the past couple years would be quite the understatement.
Wednesday night, the two met again in a rematch of last year’s Division 2 championship game.
Except this time, the matchup came a round earlier, and ended with a different result.
Bow got a hard-fought goal in the second period, and blanked Windham at the Rinks at Exeter. The No. 2 Falcons added an empty-netter late in the third period to clinch the 2-0 victory in the Division 2 semifinals, denying the Jaguars a chance to defend their title.
The two teams skated to a 0-0 tie after the first period, but Bow’s Christopher Mead finally pushed one in through traffic during a scrum in front of the Windham net. The opportunistic Mead converted after two previous shots in front of the net were turned away by Jaguar goalie Max Daly.
“Daly made about three or fours saves to try to get that one, but somebody else has to pick (Mead) up,” said Windham coach Shawn Dunn. “But blown coverages happen. It really only happened once this entire game, and it ended up in the back of our net.
“It was as even a game as you could get. We played these guys twice earlier in the year and it was a 2-1 loss and a 0-0 tie. It’s just two evenly matched teams and somebody had to win. We were just on the wrong end of it.”
No. 3 Windham (13-6-1) did get some quality shots on net, including a blast from Nolan Cunningham in the first period that ricocheted off the left post.
But the Jaguars were either turned away by Bow goalie Nathan Carrier (15 saves), or stifled by the Falcons defensemen.
“There are obviously small things you could do to get yourself more scoring opportunities, but Bow is a well coached team,” said Dunn. “They adjusted every period and came out with a different look. So it’s just good coaching.”
Windham was out-shot 26-15, highlighting the stellar play of the junior Daly. He made 24 saves total, turning away half of those shots in a brilliant third period.
Daly lunged to make a great kick save in the first period, and then turned away Mead on a breakaway opportunity midway through the third to keep the Jaguars in it. His performance earned him high praise from his coach.
“He’s been huge for us all year. I can’t say enough about him,” said Dunn. “He keeps us in game. We have a really young defense, so he helps to hide their mistakes. We just couldn’t get that one goal tonight for him.”
Windham is losing key seniors in Owen McNamara, Tim Anderson, Brandan Madigan, Danny Donovan and Christian Bassi. But the Jaguars should be returning the majority of their roster next season.
Bow will play No. 1 Keene in Saturday’s championship game at Southern New Hampshire at 2:30 p.m.
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Boys Ice Hockey, 03/08/17 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
MANCHESTER, N.H. — Salem head coach Mark McGinn did his best to reflect on the bright side as Concord celebrated on the opposite side of the glass.
“Hey, it’s always better to play in the big game than watch it from the stands,” said McGinn with a hint of optimism. “At least we were here. But they were the better team today.”
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Boys Ice Hockey, 03/08/17 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
North Reading led by a goal late in the third period, but Stoneham scored to send the game to overtime, then added the winner in the second OT to beat the Hornets 2-1 in the Division 2 North semifinals.
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Boys Ice Hockey, 03/07/17 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
BILLERICA — For a few moments, the celebration was timid.
There were a few high-fives and pats on the back for goalie Matt Pasquale. But initially, Central Catholic held back its jubilation.
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Boys Ice Hockey, 03/07/17 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
LOWELL — The challenge facing Central Catholic was daunting, to say the least.
The Raiders skated into the opening game of the Super 8 tournament to face a Pope Francis team that had already beaten them twice this season, including a convincing three-goal victory just 10 days prior in each team’s regular season finale.
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Boys Ice Hockey, 03/05/17 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
SALEM — It may have been just the first victory in what Windham hopes is a deep playoff run towards a second straight state title. But the reigning Division 2 champions certainly sent a loud and clear message to the rest of the state.
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Boys Ice Hockey, 03/05/17 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
CHELMSFORD — Andover High shared the same disappointment as St. John’s Prep when a lumber-laden 13-5-2 campaign fell short of Super 8 worthiness, according to the committee.
There was no way the Warriors would suffer the same kind of heartache on the same ice as the Prep, the same night here at the Chelmsford Forum.
Minutes after St. John’s Prep fell 4-3 in sudden-death overtime to top-seeded Austin Prep, the fourth-seeded Golden Warriors simply pounced on No. 12 Winchester, breaking to a quick 2-0 first period lead and rolling, 4-1, in a Division 1 North quarterfinal that just wasn’t as close as the score indicated.
“It was a disappointment for the team, but we accepted where we are and put it behind us,” said Warrior Mike Biddle. “We all thought we should have been there. We’ve accepted where we are, and now we just keep moving forward.”
Next up for Andover is a Wednesday night, Tsongas Center date with Austin Prep, which rebounded nicely from its 4-3 Super 8 play-in loss to Marshfield last week.
“We took care of business tonight, and now the focus is on Austin Prep Wednesday,” said Andover goalie Zack Laramie, who was called on to make just 13 saves in the win. “We think we’re just as good as any team. We beat Central, the six seed in the Super 8. Not getting in just lights a fire under us to win this.”
Despite showing the rust of a two-week layoff, Andover made sure there would be no letdown.
Matt Schuhwerk opened the first period with a goal and Matt Belluche closed it with one as the clock showed just 24 seconds to intermission.
“Fourteen days off between games and it showed,” said Andover coach Chris Kuchar. “We played really sloppy. We didn’t have our legs underneath us, and we weren’t very crisp.
“We only gave up 14 shots, but we need to play better. We have to be much better to beat a team like Austin Prep.”
Biddle had the lone goal in the middle period and Brendan Croston made it 4-0 before Winchester spoiled Laramie’s bid for the playoff shutout late in the third.
All in all, fighting the layoff and the misfortune, Kuchar likes where his team is headed to Tsongas.
“There’s another tournament to be played,” the coach said. “Despite the fact we didn’t close out the season well, we truly didn’t earn our way into the Super 8, we have things to play for. This is our second time in the Division 1 North semifinal in the last three years and we are looking forward to it.”
Andover 4, Winchester 1
Winchester (12-10): 0 0 1 — 1
Andover (14-5-2): 2 1 1 — 4
Division 1 North Quarterfinals
Goals: A — Matt Schuhwerk, Matt Belluche, Mike Biddle, Brendan Croston; W — Jack Keane
Assists: A — Jeff Hurst 2, Pat Hughes, Mike Reilly, Matt Sharrio, Matt Croston, Biddle; W — Joe LePore
Saves: A — Zack Laramie 13
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Boys Ice Hockey, 03/05/17 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
SALEM — From the moment Matty Pappalardo’s alarm rang, nearly 12 hours before the puck dropped, the Salem star could feel something special was in store.
“From the second I woke up I was so excited to play and had a good feeling,” said the Eagle-Tribune area’s leader in goals. “It was a late one (8:15 p.m. start), so there was a lot of waiting. But once we finally got out on the ice we played our game and just killed it.”
Pappalardo recorded a hat trick, and Mitchell McGinn scored the game-changing go-ahead goal with 6:53 left in regulation as No. 3 Salem downed upset-minded No. 6 Pinkerton in the New Hampshire Division 1 quarterfinals.
“This is an amazing win,” said Mitchell McGinn. “We haven’t gone to the state semis in a long time. We came out and played. We stayed relaxed in the tough points, we kept pressuring and we finished off an amazing win.”
With the victory, Salem earns its first trip to the Division 1 semifinals since the 2005-06 season.
The Blue Devils (14-3-2) will take on No. 2 seed Concord (16-3-0) on Wednesday at the JFK Rink in Manchester (5:30 p.m.) Salem took the regular season matchup 4-3 on Feb. 17.
“We can’t wait,” said Pappalardo. “We are going to go out, give it all we can in the semis and hope to keep winning.”
For a time late in Saturday’s matchup, however, it looked as if Pinkerton could be on the verge of a playoff upset.
With Salem leading 3-1, Edward Welch cut the advantage to one goal with 1:04 left in the second. Then, midway through the third, Nathan Laliberte found a loose puck and buried it to make it 3-3, giving the Astros the momentum.
But McGinn — the area’s leader in points with 44 — turned the tide.
The puck found the sophomore’s stick near the right faceoff circle in the Pinkerton zone and McGinn fired home a slap shot to give his team the lead back with 6:53 left.
“I was hoping someone would put it home,” said Salem head coach Mark McGinn, Mitchell’s father. “That was a big one to get us over the edge when we needed it. Then Matty P took over and we finished it off.”
Just 1:03 after the McGinn goal, Pappalardo buried his second of the day to extend the lead to 5-3.
Then, with the clock running down, Pappalardo finished off his hat trick with a long shot into an empty net. That led a pair of overzealous Blue Devil fans to throw their hats onto the ice.
The three scores gives Pappalado an area-high 24 for the season, and it was his whopping fifth hat trick of the year.
“That Mitch goal really got our wheels turning,” said Pappalardo. “That got our heads up. Then I got the boys going with my goal, and then we were really rolling. Then the hat trick was a pretty sweet feeling, especially in the playoffs.”
Dylan Salvo and Kevin McGuire each added single goals for the Devils, and Alec Svenson had four assists.
Also turning in a huge performance was Salem goalie Paddy Capsalis, who made 33 saves including a few crucial stops in the third including one from his stomach. Pinkerton’s Dakota Robinson made 28 saves against a relentless Blue Devil attack.
Salem will now face Concord with the hopes of advancing to the Division 1 state title game for the first time since the 2004-05 season, the year after they took home the first hockey state title in Eagle-Tribune area history.
“I’m so excited,” said Mitchell McGinn. “If we play like we have been playing we think we can win that game and maybe make it to the final.”
Salem 6, Pinkerton 3
Division 1 quarterfinal
Pinkerton (11-7-1): 1 1 1 — 3
Salem (14-3-2): 2 1 3 — 6
N.H. Division 1 Quarterfinals
Goals: S — Matty Pappalardo 3, Mitchell McGinn, Kevin McGuire, Dylan Salvo; P — Patrick Hare, Edward Welch, Nathan Laliberte
Assists: S — Alec Svenson 4, McGinn, Aidan Breen, McGuire; P — Nick Trask, Colin Leighton, Gennaro Marra, Brendan Banks
Saves: S — Paddy Capsalis 33; P — Dakota Robinson 28
...
Reach sportswriter/videographer David Willis on Twitter at @DWillisET
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Boys Ice Hockey, 03/05/17 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
With just 3.2 seconds left in double overtime, senior defenseman James Doran deked the goalie and scored to give No. 2 North Reading a 1-0 victory over No. 7 Lincoln-Sudbury in the Division 2 North quarterfinals.
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Boys Ice Hockey, 03/03/17 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
Pentucket fell in its first tourney game in 14 years, a 3-1 loss to Lincoln-Sudbury. Anthony Orlando made 33 saves but L-S scored the winner with 6 minutes to play then an empty-netter in the final seconds. Johnny Orlando scored in the third for the Sachems.
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Boys Ice Hockey, 02/28/17 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
NORTH BILLERICA — Drew Cioffi is used to regularly lighting up the scoresheet during lacrosse season. Three, four, five goals or more isn’t uncommon for the University of Tampa recruit.
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Boys Ice Hockey, 02/28/17 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
