By Allison Goldsmith
I&M Sports Editor
The club hockey team delighted the hometown crowd Friday night with a 4-3 last-second victory over the Dennis-Yarmouth junior varsity squad.
Freshman Taylor Thayer scored from the point off an assist from captain Harry Robishaw with 27.4 seconds remaining on the clock to give the Whalers their first win of the season. The goal capped a hectic third period, where four goals were scored, including three in the final three minutes of the game.
“We really didn’t have a whole lot of expectations. We didn’t know what this team might be like, so we were pretty pleasantly pleased to see that the kids were up to that level,” head coach Rand Smith said. “They have been around a long time. A win like that means a lot. A win like that is similar to the Vineyard, where they have a 22-year program.”
The Whalers won’t see much of a holiday break as they will be back in action tomorrow night when they travel to Cape Cod Tech and again on Wednesday to open the Chatham Tournament.
In the first game of the season against Dennis-Yarmouth, The Whalers showed coaches and the fans that they are ready to go for their second season of high school hockey.
“We were impressed with the way the kids found the open ice and that they were able to move the puck. The extra conditioning we did this year, sure looked like it paid off. Last year we didn’t have a third period. We were not in that kind of shape. The kids played a real physical game out there,” Smith said.
The Whalers conditioning showed with a relentless attack in the third period. Trailing 2-1 entering the final frame, Nantucket got to business by tying the score three and a half minutes into the period. Robishaw stole the puck at the blue line, skated uncontested into the zone with some shifty stick work and placed the puck in the upper corner of the goal.
With two and a half minutes remaining in the game, Chris Ray took a pass from Ethan Bell at center ice, skated down the left side and shot it into the net for the 3-2 lead. Not to be outdone, Dennis-Yarmouth fought back and with only a minute and a half remaining, right wing Ted Stafford skipped the puck past Nantucket goalie Joe Bopp to even the score.
The Dolphins’ Mike Eldridge was charged with a costly roughing penalty with 56.1 seconds on the clock and Nantucket took a time-out, where the coaches stressed controlling the puck.
The Whalers offense did just that. With the man advantage, Thayer knocked in the game-winner. Dennis-Yarmouth had a chance at the buzzer, but the shot went inches wide right of the post to preserve the victory for Nantucket.
The Whalers out-hit their opponents 46-31. While not all of the hits were legal, the Whalers staff will work with the team on good hits before their next game, Smith said. Nantucket racked up seven of 13 penalties in the game.
Two players – Nantucket’s Kevin Ramos and D-Y’s Josh Cummings – were ejected for excessive roughing during a scuffle.
Nantucket out-shot the Dolphins 26-24. Bopp put on a solid display in goal with 21 saves. In front of him, the defense was able to move the puck out of its end with strong performances from James McIntosh, Danny Kurash and Thayer, Smith said.
Dennis-Yarmouth got on the board first only three minutes into the game. Lorenzo Raully took the rebound off Bopp and knocked it back into the net for the 1-0 advantage.
The Whalers got the equalizer early in the second period as Robishaw skated down the right side of the ice and went one-on-one with the Dolphins’ goalie. The senior captain put the shot up high past the keeper to tie the score. With a minute and a half remaining in the period, D-Y’s Jeremy Gilliland’s goal re-took the lead at 2-1 for the Dolphins.
Reach Allison Goldsmith at sports@inkym.com |
