SOUTHBORO, Mass. — How crazy was Monday's matchup between No. 1 Dexter Southfield and No. 5 St. Mark's?
Tommy Broderick's (Norwood, Mass.) shorthanded goal to put Dexter up by four with under two minutes to play in the second period was the eventual game-winner.
Yep. Wild.
Despite an incredible push by St. Mark's in the third period, Dexter held on to take down the Lions, 6-4, on the road.
Dexter was dominant in the first period. Senior forward Tyler Hamilton (Framingham, Mass.) opened the scoring less than four minutes into the frame. Just over two minutes later, senior forward Joe Marchi (Foxboro, Mass.) extended the lead to 2-0. Junior forward JP Messuri (Arlington, Mass.) made it 3-0 with a power play goal shortly after.
While St. Mark's junior forward Caiden Pellegrino (Uxbridge, Mass.) scored to cut the lead down, Dexter senior Jack Fitzpatrick (Canton, Mass.) wasted no time responding, giving Dexter a commanding 4-1 lead heading into the first intermission.
And when Broderick scored a shorthanded goal to make it 5-1 late in the second, the game looked over.
But St. Mark's battled back — and its best players led the charge.
In just under four minutes, junior forward Will Manchuso (Concord, Mass.) potted two — one off a rebound, the other off the rush — and senior forward Evan Nee (Arlington, Mass.) knocked in a rebound, cutting Dexter's lead to 5-4.
Dexter bench boss Danny Donato used his timeout, and moments later, Messuri one-timed home a pass from junior forward Noah Survilas (Winthrop, Mass.), making it 6-4.
With the win, Dexter improved to 17-2-2, while St. Mark's fell to 15-3-0.
Let's dive into some standouts and takeaways. There's a lot to parse through.
Tyler Hamilton
Dexter Southfield, 12/7/2006, F, right shot, 5-11/170
Hometown: Framingham, Mass.
NCAA: St. Lawrence (Lacrosse)Â
Hamilton was arguably the best player on Monday night. His early goal set a tone, as senior forward Owen McHale (Charlestown, Mass.) capitalized on a bad change by St. Mark's and hit Hamilton off the rush. But Hamilton's impact was especially felt deep in the offensive zone. He protected pucks extremely well and led his line on long offensive zone cycles. In the second period, his line had multiple extended possessions in large part due to his grit and anticipation of where the puck was going.
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JP Messuri
Dexter Southfield, 6/19/2008, F, left shot, 5-8/165
Hometown: Arlington, Mass.Â
Messuri is hot right now with six goals in his last three games. His power play goal came on some nice passing from Marchi and senior defenseman Myles Brosnan, while the second goal highlighted his growing chemistry with Survilas, as the Northeastern commit won a puck battle low and found Messuri in the slot for a one-timer. Later in the third period, Messuri had a terrific touch pass between his legs to Survilas, who hit sophomore forward Tom Moore (Milton, Mass.) across the zone for a chance.
Myles Brosnan
Dexter Southfield, 10/19/2007, D, right shot, 6-0/190
Hometown: Winchester, Mass.
NCAA: HarvardÂ
Brosnan had an assist, bringing him to 40 points in 21 games. But what stood out most with Brosnan was his physicality and defense. On his first shift, his 1-on-1 defense broke up a play with a great stick. Midway through the second, he laid out Manchuso, and in the third, he laid a huge hit in the corner on St. Mark's senior forward Max Santos. Brosnan was a part of that stretch when St. Mark's got back into the game, but he was a massive part of Dexter's response, which was to play tight defense and manage the lead. For NHL scouts in attendance, a game like that checks a box.
Joe Marchi
Dexter Southfield, 10/30/2007, F, right shot, 5-8/170
Hometown: Foxboro, Mass.Â
This was a fast game with an absurd pace, which fit Marchi's style perfectly. The Catholic Memorial product scored with great awareness to follow the rebound, even after St. Mark's sophomore Julian Herrara (Providence, R.I.) somehow got a piece of Dexter senior forward Jake Assad's (Franklin, Mass.) shot. But Marchi also had several rushes where he used his speed to put St. Mark's defenders on their heels. If I were a NESCAC school, I would want to lock Marchi up.
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Logan Cotter
St. Mark's, 8/10/2010, D, left shot, 5-10/160
Hometown: Marlboro, Mass.Â
I'm obviously not at every St. Mark's game. But when Cotter accomplishes more down the road, I'll look back on this game as a monumental night. He was superb. His patience, puck decisions and skating helped him make the correct reads on breakouts. Even in the face of pressure, he either navigated around it or curled back with those great edges to gain space and restart. He was also fearless in his defense, keeping up with Dexter's speedy forwards and matching their physicality. At one point, he even got into it with McHale, which is essentially a badge of honor. Cotter is legit.
Will Manchuso
St. Mark's, 2/5/2008, F, left shot, 6-0/175
Hometown: Stow, Mass.
NCAA: DartmouthÂ
Manchuso's first two periods were quiet. He was getting knocked around a bit, and my first thought was, "I wonder if he tries to lay some people out in the third." He was more physical, but he did one (or two) better — he scored twice. Both goals were due to his speed. On the first one, it started when he burned a Dexter defender and missed wide on the shot, but stuck with it and eventually put in a rebound off a shot from the point. The second was from him burning another Dexter defender and beating him to the far post, where he topped in a pass from sophomore forward Keith Olympia (Sudbury, Mass.). Manchuso helped his NHL Draft stock on Monday night.
Evan Nee
St. Mark's, 8/12/2007, F, left shot, 5-8/160
Hometown: Arlington, Mass.Â
Nee's goal came at a huge time, bringing St. Mark's to within one. It came off a long cycle by him, Pellegrino and senior forward Teddy Drury. Nee followed the play to the net and rifled a rebound past Dexter junior goalie Drew Karlovits (Cohasset, Mass.). When St. Mark's was struggling in the first two periods, Nee had his team's best chances using his speed to get outside on Dexter's defenders. The Arlington, Mass., native was also physical throughout, never hesitating to finish hits.
Caiden Pellegrino
St. Mark's, 12/4/2009, F, left shot, 5-8/155
Hometown: Uxbridge, Mass.
NCAA: Providence CollegeÂ
Pellegrino's puck play was strong on Monday. His goal in the first period all came from him faking like he was going to pass, with his body angled towards Nee streaking down the left side, and Pellegrino's quick release beat Karlovits. Pellegrino also opened the second period by ringing a shot off the post. His passing in the offensive zone led to scoring chances during the middle frame, and his passing led to Nee's goal in the third. Pellegrino also got a breakaway after stealing a puck from a Dexter defender late in the third, but was stoned by Karlovits.
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Takeaways
- There was a real chance this would turn into a rout. Dexter was dominant throughout the first period and much of the second. And once Broderick scored shorthanded, the game looked to be over. I don't root for teams, but I always want a good, compelling game (corny, I know), and this certainly was one. This lived up to the hype.
- The Lions came back because their best players played like it. Nee, Manchuso and Pellegrino led the charge and made statements of their own even in defeat. The lesson for St. Mark's is playing unafraid from the start and being more sound defensively. An experience like this should serve St. Mark's well as it guns towards its second straight Elite 8 appearance.
- This experience should also help Dexter quite a bit. The Shields went up against one of the highest-octane offenses in the region (St. Mark's is first in goals for) and kept them at bay for the majority of the game. And when things started to break the Lions' way in the third, Dexter kept its cool and held the lead. As the Shields hope to win the Elite 8 championship this time around, learning how to quell opposing momentum will be key for March.
- This was the best prep game I've seen so far this winter. The other contender would be Dexter vs. Kent, which was at the Phillips Exeter Invitational back in December.
- I think those in attendance on Monday will look back on this game in a few years and think, "Remember that random Monday in February when that Dexter team with Brosnan, Survilas, McHale and Kurt Beck (Arlington, Mass.) took on St. Mark's with Manchuso, Pellegrino, Cotter and Nee?" There was a lot of potential on that ice.
