RallyNorth.net

Sat, Mar 06, 2021 04:00 PM @ Salem

Team	1	2	3	Final
Pinkerton	0	0	1	1
Salem	0	2	0	2

N.H. quarterfinals: Deane, Devils do it

Saturday, March, 06 By David Willis
Staff writer

A single victory is now all that stands between Salem High hockey and its first trip to the state championship game since the 2004-05 season.

The Blue Devils scored twice in the second period, and held strong to defeat rival Pinkerton 2-1 in the Division 1 quarterfinals on Saturday afternoon at the Salem Icenter.

“It was a great win,” said Salem star Ryan Pappalardo. “This is the second trip to the state semifinals for a lot of the guys. The last time Salem made the title game, I was 2-years-old. It would mean everything to us to have the chance to play for a state title. It’s an amazing opportunity for us, and I feel like we have a good chance to win it.”

The victory earned Salem (11-1-0) its second trip to the Division 1 semifinals in three seasons.

The Blue Devils will next face Bedford (10-4) in the semis on Wednesday (4:15 p.m.) at the JFK Rink in Manchester.

Salem went 1-1 against the Bulldogs in the regular season, winning 4-1 on Feb. 17 then suffering their only loss, 3-1, on Feb. 20. Bedford advanced by downing Exeter, 4-2, on Saturday.

“We’re thrilled to get through Pinkerton,” said returning Eagle-Tribune All-Star goalie Spencer Deane, who had 22 saves on the day. “We want nothing more than to win our semifinal and play for a state title. We feel like this is our year.”

After more than a period of back-and-forth play, Sam Maietta gave Salem the lead with just over 10 minutes to go in the second. On the power play, defenseman Austin Salvetti fired a shot on net that was saved, but Maietta hauled in the rebound and beat the goalie over his glove for his fourth goal of the season.Pappalardo No. 2

Last winter’s Eagle-Tribune MVP Pappalardo then added to the advantage with 18 seconds to go in the second. He picked up the puck just outside the blue line, seemed to lose it in his skates for a second, then recovered and slipped the puck between the goalie’s pads to make it 2-0.

With that goal, and an assist on the Maietta score, Pappalardo now has 126 career points, passing 2004 Eagle-Tribune MVP Chase Feole (125 points) for second most in Blue Devils hockey history.

Pappalardo has scored 14 goals for the season and 58 for his career, good for fourth in school history.

“It’s very exciting to achieve that,” said Pappalardo. “I wish we could have played a full season so I could have made a push for first place in team history (170 points by Pat Halligan). It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a long time.”

Corsetto goal

Pinkerton’s Lorenzo Corsetto cut the Salem lead to one goal when he took a pass from Ryan Leighton and scored at 10:49 of the third period.

The Astros continued to apply pressure from there, but Deane (22 saves) turned in a few key stops in the final moments to clinch the victory.

The Blue Devils will now look to advance to the title game, and keep their dream of winning the program’s first championship since 2003-04 alive.

“We know we can play with any team in the state,” said Deane. “We just have to go out and play our game.”

Salem 2, Pinkerton 1

Division 1 Quarterfinals

Pinkerton (4-6-0):     0 0 1 — 1

Salem (11-1-0):     0 2 0 — 2

Goals: S — Sam Maietta, Ryan Pappalardo; P — Lorenzo Corsetto

Assists: S — Luke Barton, Pappalardo, Ryan Allard; P — Ryan Leighton

Saves: S — Spencer Deane 22; Paul Lescovitz 26