HINGHAM, Mass. — As Hingham junior forward Walter Dzavik came in slowly on a penalty shot with 8.2 seconds left in regulation, Pope Francis junior goalie George Ramsey steadied himself.
The netminder came out well above his crease. It was a good decision.
Dzavik opted for the shot, trying to go low glove, but Ramsey got it with his left pad, protecting the 2-1 lead for Pope Francis, which is how it ended.
It wasn't much of a surprise that the matchup was tight. Hingham ranked No. 4 in my rankings on Thursday, while Pope Francis slotted in at No. 9.
The scoring began early in the first period when Pope Francis sophomore forward Wolfgang Zinger connected with senior forward Liam Dolan off the rush for a goal, making it 1-0 at the 12:37 mark.
Pope Francis extended the lead midway through the second period when Whitaker Zinger picked off a Hingham breakout in the neutral zone and passed the puck up to senior forward Matthew Regan, who sniped one past Hingham senior goalie James Whitmore.
At the start of the third period, the Harbormen appeared to have scored, but the goal was called off. But Hingham didn't stop the pressure. Hingham senior Aiden Rotondo got a breakaway midway through the frame and buried a shot past Ramsey, cutting Pope's lead to 2-1.
The final minute was chaos, leading to Pope Francis junior forward Gabe Kolodjay diving behind Ramsey to save a sure goal, but covering it, which led to that penalty shot with 8.2 seconds left.
READ MORE: Our latest boys MIAA rankings
Pope Francis improved to 9-4-3 with the win, while Hingham fell to 10-3-1.
Let's dive into some standouts and takeaways.
George Ramsey
Pope Francis, 1/6/2009, G, catches left, 5-9/157
Hometown: Belleville, Ill.Â
Ramsey's stop on the penalty shot was massive and his biggest save in the game to that point. But his most important save was still to come. With 3.8 seconds left, Dzavik got a loose puck in the slot and fired a point-blank chance that Ramsey got with his blocker. Earlier in the game, Ramsey denied Hingham senior Quinn Allen on a breakaway. While Ramsey didn't face a heavy volume of shots, he made the saves he absolutely needed.
Liam Dolan
Pope Francis, 1/29/2008, F, right shot, 5-9/165
Hometown: Springfield, Mass.Â
Dolan's goal was impressive, as he was shot-ready for Wolfgang Zinger's small-area pass off the rush. Dolan's offensive IQ was high. In the third period, he got the puck in neutral ice, skated east-west and picked the perfect route to enter the zone. Moments later, he rang a shot off the pipe. He also made a heads-up chip past a defenseman to get a 2-on-1, where he faked the pass and got a quick, hard shot off.
John Goggin
Pope Francis, 8/10/2007, D, left shot, 6-2/170
Hometown: Longmeadow, Mass.Â
Hingham struggled to get into high-danger ice, and that's largely due to Goggin. The big defender had a great stick to cut off Harbormen from getting to the slot. He cleared various pucks from the front of the net, too, getting in passing lanes and intercepting potential scoring chances. Late in the second period, Hingham sent the puck to the net front on a power play, but Goggin was there to clear it.
READ MORE: Full schedule, results for Ed Burns Coffee Pot tournament
Luke Latulippe
Pope Francis, 2010, D, left shot, 5-10/155
Hometown: Feeding Hills, Mass.Â
Latulippe did whatever it took to win. On multiple occasions, he took big hits to make plays. Early in the second period, with Hingham pushing, he got down on his stomach to block a cross-zone pass on an odd-man rush. He picked off passes with his great stick and made smart decisions in positioning. On one sequence, he intercepted a pass in neutral ice, gained the red line and dumped it in while he was getting hit hard.
Sean Carroll
Hingham, 2007, D, right shot, 5-9/182
Hometown: Hingham, Mass.Â
Pilgrim Arena has jumpy boards, but Carroll retrieved pucks, and the way they bounced, cleanly and calmly. On junior forward Brendan McCarthy's goal that was called back, it was Carroll with the clean breakout that led to his goal. Pope Francis forechecked hard, but Carroll could always be counted on to have poise on breakouts. At the offensive blue line, he held onto pucks for better shooting lanes well and wasn't afraid to hold the line to keep pucks in.
Nick Bigelow
Hingham, 2009, F, right shot, 5-10/170
Hometown: Hingham, Mass.Â
Bigelow almost scored off a chance early in the first period, but he was most noticeable in the third. On a scoring chance at the start of the third period by Dzavik, it was Bigelow who dangled from the corner to the slot. He was able to drive play with his good hands and wasn't afraid to hold onto pucks to make plays. He also didn't mind getting low to help his defensemen in the defensive zone, at one point plastering a Pope Francis forward behind the net.
READ MORE: Our boys MIAA midseason report
Takeaways
- This was a big win for Pope Francis. Losses to St. John's Shrewsbury, St. John's Prep and Arlington put the Cardinals lower in the top 10 than normal, but head coach Brian Foley's team is 4-0-1 in its last five. According to Friday's MIAA D1 power rankings, Hingham was at No. 3 and Pope Francis was at No. 7. This will certainly help the Cardinals' standing.
- I don't think less of Hingham after Saturday's loss. The Harbormen were right there and had numerous chances to tie the game, especially in the third period. They're deep up front, have stout defensemen and Whitmore has proven to be a very good starter. Hingham is still the best public school. That could easily change after the second round of the Ed Burns tournament.
- Nothing says Pilgrim Arena quite like Hingham senior defenseman Nick Smith getting his arm caught between the glass. It didn't take long to remove him, but there was a long delay to tighten the glass to make sure it wouldn't happen again. Pilgrim has character, is a pain to play in for opposing teams and is a true barn.
- It's no secret that Hingham is one of the best hockey towns in Massachusetts. It was a 12 p.m. start time, and the place was filled. It was almost impossible to find a spot to watch the game in the stands or along the glass. The elevated viewing area on the second level had many men who had no issue shouting their opinions. At one point, they went crazy when the whistle was blown during a Hingham offensive zone cycle. The referee, hearing their displeasure, turned and shouted back at them that the net was off. That kind of passion can't be manufactured — towns either have that, or they don't. Hingham certainly has it.
