ARLINGTON – As soon as the most well liked crew in Div. 1, a four-game skid to shut the common season had the Arlington Catholic boys hockey crew trending within the incorrect route heading right into a loaded state match subject.
Take into account it unfazed.
With a 4-1 win over Nineteenth-seeded Chelmsford in a Div. 1 first-round matchup Wednesday evening, the No. 14 Cougars (16-6-1) pieced collectively a lot of what anchored a 15-game unbeaten streak within the common season.
4 totally different gamers scored, together with one on an influence play. Sparks of power fueled game-winning performs all through. The penalty kill was tasked a regarding seven instances, however six kills behind freshman Stephen Camara’s 24 saves, and Arlington Catholic’s typical dose of physicality ensured it continued its season.
A rematch with the No. 3 St. John’s Prep crew that began their skid is subsequent for the Cougars within the second spherical on Saturday at 3:20 p.m.
“After shedding to (SJP), we had a pair cracks that opened up – profitable hides all that stuff,” stated Arlington Catholic head coach Curt Colarullo. “We had a bit little bit of a skid, however we got here again and had some actually good practices. The boys labored laborious. We type of bought it again a bit bit, I assumed we performed very nicely tonight.”
It took simply two minutes and 15 seconds for the Cougars to hit the reset button, producing a purpose from its third line for an early lead. Defenseman Sam Mathews’ breakout cross was tipped within the impartial zone by Connor Keough forward to freshman Landon Masters within the offensive zone, and he sniped the highest far nook for a 1-0 benefit from the correct circle.
That was precisely the type of tone-setter Arlington Catholic aimed for, understanding the urgency at hand.
“Everybody was simply working, everybody wished it,” stated senior co-captain Tyler Heldenbergh. “We go on the market, we’ve an incredible first shift. Everybody’s hitting, banging our bodies. Numerous good things like that, numerous blocked pictures. … This was our final dwelling sport right here. It meant one thing to us. All of us wished to win.”
Arlington Catholic dealt with its first penalty kill with ease, producing three short-handed high quality pictures that Will McNeal (34 saves) denied to maintain it a 1-0 deficit for Chelmsford. He couldn’t cease a 2-0 deficit a couple of minutes later, although, as Brayden Boczenowski tipped in a shot from Stephen Constantine on the level.
Penalties continued to rack up for the Cougars after Heldenbergh’s purpose early within the second gave them a 3-0 lead, and it lastly bit them on John Rossetti’s purpose to chop the deficit to 3-1. In any other case, Camara was wonderful in serving to kill off the opposite six penalties, in addition to 41 seconds of 5-on-3.
“He’s superior, I like him,” Heldenbergh stated. “He’s the spine of our crew, actually. After shedding a man like (All-Scholastic) Pat Clair, it’s laborious to discover a goalie to be the man and to bail you out in sure conditions. He’s undoubtedly our man.”
It didn’t even take two minutes for Arlington Catholic to get that purpose again, sparked by Boczenowski’s physicality.
He hunted down large hits in every of the three zones, punctuated by one on the boards within the defensive zone that arrange Constantine for a breakaway purpose and a 4-1 lead.
“At any given second, anyone on this crew can provide us some power,” Colarullo stated. “He gave us power everywhere in the ice. … That lifts the crew, that lifts the road, for positive.”
