Managing Editor Josh Perry described the scene for HockomockSports.com after a long, exciting day of hockey in Brockton:
The Hockomock League was victorious on a long afternoon and evening of hockey at Brockton’s Asiaf Arena. The Division 2 South semifinals will be an all-Hockomock affair after Canton, Oliver Ames, Mansfield, and Franklin survived and advanced in the tournament.
There was nothing straightforward about the day for Hockomock teams, however. Franklin was forced into overtime and Mansfield went all the way to a shootout before clinching wins. Oliver Ames and Canton were both pushed hard and late empty net goals added comfort to their wins.
Good thing the Oliver Ames High boys' ice hockey team didn't have to play in the 8 p.m. tournament game Saturday at Asiaf Rink in Brockton.
No, the first game of four tournament with the 2 p.m. start was just perfect for the Tigers, who posted a 3-1 win over Coyle-Cassidy in the Division 2 South quarterfinals, probably Wednesday. Now, the Tigers will be playing Canton, who beat North Attleboro, 3-2, Saturday.
"At this point, you just want to play," said Oliver Ames head coach Jim Sullivan. "You get up in the morning and you want to go."
In fact, Sullivan said he saw sophomore goaltender Jimmy Tierney early in the morning, getting a Gatorade at CVS.
After the Tigers defeated the Warriors, OA was able to watch all of their possible future opponents play Saturday.
"Now we can see what is happening," said Sullivan after his game. "The waiting time kills you."
So far, the tournament is working out perfect for the Tigers. In their first tournament game against Dennis-Yarmouth, they posted a 4-1 and the follow that up with the win over the Warriors, who they scrimmaged in the preseason.
"We went down to Gallo (Arena) and got our feet wet," said Sullivan. "Then, we came back here (to their home rink). In the tournament, you will take any advantage you can get."
Canton head coach Brian Shuman described the action on the team's website:
The Bulldog goal would fire up the enormous Canton crowd, who came out in huge numbers to support their team. However, the goal also seemed to fire up North Attleboro, who picked up their play for the rest of the period. A Bulldog breakdown two minutes after the first goal would lead to a partial breakaway and the NA equalizer with five minutes remaining in the period. After the first 15 minutes, Canton and NA would be deadlocked at 1-1.
In the second period, Canton would play much better defensively, but also kill off three NA powerplays, which would prevent the Bulldogs from sustaining a consistent offensive rhythm. However, once the Bulldogs would receive a powerplay of their own, Brian Brooks would take a Tony Francescon breakout pass and take the puck the length of the ice, finishing with a beautiful "top shelf" goal to take the 2-1 lead. It would be a huge relief for Brooks, who could not bury numerous chances early in the game. "One goal on 15 shots for me... not good," said Brooks after the game. "That means I'm only scoring on like 30 percent of my chances."
The third period proved to be an exciting finale to a great hockey game, with both teams unable to get on the board early despite numerous chances. Canton goalie Rich Nee (18 saves in the game) was up to the task and made several huge stops. The nail in the coffin would come with 1:14 left in the game when Brooks would fire a shot the length of the ice into an empty NA net after they pulled the goalie. The game would end 3-1 in favor of the Bulldogs.
Despite some first playoff game nerves, the Bulldogs earned the big postseason win. Canton will face Hockomock rival Oliver Ames in the South Sectional semifinal sometime this week, while the other side of the bracket features Franklin and Mansfield battling each other for a spot in the South Sectional finals. The tournament has shaped up to be the ultimate Hockomock League championship.
Josh Perry outlined the Panthers come from behind OT victory over the Vineyard, which seemed improbable after a shocking opening 10 minutes:
Three shots and three goals is not the start that Franklin wanted or that many observers would have expected in the day’s second game. The Panthers fell behind quickly and sleepwalked through the first period against number two seed Martha’s Vineyard. Despite the tough start, the two-time defending sectional champions would not go away easily.
Senior forward Cam Curley got the comeback going with a power play goal as he tipped in a shot from fellow senior Aiden Isberg to make it 3-1. Curley nearly made it a second a few minuites later, but after a great move his shot was directly into the goalie’s chest.
Down by two goals heading into the final period, the Franklin upperclassmen rallied the Panthers. Dennis Pisani tapped in a great move at the far post to bring them within a goal three minutes into the period. Curley struck again on a brilliant break just five minutes later to tie it. Pisani had the great flicked pass into the path of the onrushing forward and Curley showed his patience to force the goalie to commit before firing home.
The game would go into overtime, but it wouldn’t last very long. Isberg found space in the slot and. when the puck found his stick, he was able to fire through traffic to send the team into raptures and push them into the semifinals, 4-3.
Dan Libon wrote about the Hornets thrilling victory for Mansfield Patch:
The Hornets came out a different team in the third quarter, playing more aggressive and attacking the net with the season on the line.
“I thought we came out flat so I stressed that we needed to be more aggressive on our forecheck,” Anastos said. “One of the other things we stressed is we gotta get more shots on net, throw the puck low. Anything can happen if you throw the puck at the net.”
Throwing a puck on net resulted in Mansfield tying the game in the third period. With a shot from the far right in between the blue line and the top of the circle, Adam Blackman scored off of the deflection of the initial shot to tie the game at 1-1
Mansfield's momentum continued into sudden death overtime where the Hornets outshot North Quincy 8-4. A feed from Brendan Murphy to Kevin Flynn was stoned by North Quincy goalie Nolan Greene. Blackman had a chance to win the game late in overtime but could not get past Greene a second time.
In the five round shoot out, Blackman’s first round goal gave the Hornets a 1-0 lead. In the third round, Timmy Glynn made it a 1-1 game for North Quincy. The winner would come in the fifth round as Cam Neary was able to sneak one past Greene. A save from Shipman locked up the Hornets’ comeback and trip to the semi-final round.
The achievement of the Hockomock League in 2013 was especially poignant as next season Franklin, Mansfield, and King Philip are all moving up to Division 1. The "Hockomock Invitational" will look vastly different, but the league made sure to close it out in style.
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