BELMONT, Mass. – Belmont Hill erased a two-goal deficit to force a 2-2 draw with ISL foe Milton Academy on a rare Thursday night game at the Jordan Athletic Center.
Milton scored a goal in each of the first two periods to take a 2-0 advantage to the third period. Fourth liner Jack Allieri (Wellesley, Mass.) poked home a loose puck in a mad scramble in front of the Belmont Hill goal to give the Mustangs a 1-0 lead. With 3:56 left in the second period, Milton’s power play helped extend the lead. Henry Cohen (Sudbury, Mass.), stationed in front of the net, collected a blocked shot from Mason Chen and deposited the puck into the back of the net.
The Sextants roared back in the third period starting with a power play strike. Lenny Greenberg’s shot from the point was blocked and found its way to the weak side where Yale commit and first-line right wing Ronan O’Donnell (Fairfield, Conn.) buried it into the open net. Belmont Hill got the equalizer when Brock Cummings won an offensive zone draw. Danny Markham (Winchester, Mass.) cashed in with a quick snapshot goal.
Here are the biggest takeaways.
- Belmont Hill coach Brian Phinney deserves a ton of credit for pushing the right buttons in the third period. On the game-tying goal, he put Cummings out for the draw instead of that line’s normal center. Cummings rewarded him with the win and the assist on the goal.
- In addition, Phinney gave the fourth line more ice time in the third period than he had in the first two. The fourth line of left wing Michael Sullivan (North Andover, Mass.), center Jin Lee (Natick, Mass.) and right wing Wyatt Schmidek (Weston, Mass.) gave a spark to the Sextants. The trio had three strong shifts, including one with prolonged attacking zone time thanks to strong cycling down low.
- An important moment in the game that shouldn’t be forgotten came early in the third period. With Belmont Hill trailing 2-0, freshman goaltender Jason Thibodeau (Waltham, Mass.) made a huge save on a two-on-one rush. The bench got up, banging their sticks on the board. It could certainly have been a turning point in the game, as Phinney’s team might not have been able to rally from three down.
- Belmont Hill’s best defensive pairing was Greenberg and Jack Duffy (Walpole, Mass.). Greenberg, in addition to his power play assist in the third period, had the puck on his stick a lot and had a presence running the point. Duffy is on the smaller side but continues to earn more and more ice time. He’s smart and makes tape-to-tape passes.
- Milton junior center Will Cannata (Milton, Mass.) is a fun player to watch. He plays the game fearlessly. He’s tenacious on the forecheck and not afraid to go to the boards first even when he knows a big hit could be coming. He plays the game on the edge and throws his weight around. A terrific backcheck late in regulation thwarted a quality scoring chance for Belmont Hill. It’s hard to believe the '05 wouldn’t help a couple of Ivy League teams, especially in a bottom-six center and penalty-killing role.
- Belmont Hill sophomore Andrew Waugh (Norwell, Mass.) is a good example of how to act when facing adversity. The '06 played on a sub-varsity team last year. Instead of sulking and transferring, he worked harder and earned his way into the top six. His compete level is his top asset. A strong skater, he’s a player to keep an eye on in the coming years.
- Uncommitted seniors in prep hockey are often overlooked when discussing prospects. The younger players are undeniably the better Division 1 prospects in most cases, but Belmont Hill and Milton both have talented seniors who could make Division 3 programs better over the coming years. Markham, a left wing, and Dane Carter (Concord, Mass.), a right wing, flank Waugh on Belmont Hill's second line. Cummings and first-line center Mason Daignault (North Providence, R.I.) also play key roles down the middle for Phinney’s team. Cohen and Allieri scored goals and Chen had an assist for Milton. Center Mikka Kelechian and right wing Jacob Pohl are other key contributors for the Mustangs.
- While Belmont Hill will lose a few key seniors at the season's end, the future appears bright for the Sextants. In addition to the aforementioned fourth line, Waugh, Duffy, and Thibodeau in goal, there are a number of other promising young players. A pair of freshmen, Pat Woods (Charlestown, Mass.) on the left and Jake Tavares (Belmont, Mass.) on the right, played the wing on Cummings’ line tonight.
- After regulation, the two teams skated five-on-five for a five-minute overtime period. Here’s hoping the NEPSAC comes to its senses and enacts a three-on-three overtime for future years.
- I usually focus on hockey only, but kudos to the Belmont Hill student section for staying in the game and supporting the home team with some good music selections, as well.
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Belmont Hill lines
McManus - Daignault - O’Donnell
Markham - Waugh - Carter
Woods - Cummings - Tavares
Sullivan - Lee - Schmidek
Cohen - Biotti
Greenberg - Duffy
Verville - Doolan
Kilcoyne
Thibodeau
Milton lines
Maher - Kelechian - Cohen
Shea - Cannata - Pohl
Sergeyev - Powers - Valencia
Careri - Landau - Allieri
Chen - Heath
Hunt - D. Lee
C. Lee - Amodeo
Brown
