ATTLEBORO, Mass. — On Sunday, the Long Island Gulls took down the Neponset Valley River Rats, 3-2, to win the 15O Beast championship.
The Gulls got the boost they needed with 2:40 to play in the game when forward Sean Miller got a shot off the rush and fellow forward Kevin Lyoshir tapped the rebound past River Rats goalie Vinnie D'Urso (Andover, Mass.) to give Long Island the eventual game-winning tally.
Both teams played close all game.
The Gulls opened the scoring midway through the first half when defender Dominick Mack's shot got blocked and forward Owen DeGraff picked it up and fired in a goal from the high slot. The River Rats responded later in the frame when forward Ethan Travis grabbed a puck off an offensive zone faceoff and rifled a shot over Gulls goalie Alexander Kim.
They traded goals in the second half, too. First, it was Gulls forward William Leonard. Then, it was River Rats forward Cam MacPherson (Hopkinton, Mass.).
Let's dive into the five standouts.
Vinnie D'Urso
Neponset Valley River Rats, 3/7/2008, G, catches left, 5-9/174
Hometown: Andover, Mass.Â
The Gulls spent a lot more time in the offensive zone than the River Rats did and piled up a bunch more chances. The reason the game was close was D'Urso's outstanding play in net. He made a number of saves early to keep the Gulls off the board. He showed a lot of poise on Gulls' odd-man rushes. A good example of that was stopping Miller on a 2-on-1 early in the second half — that came after stopping Gulls forward Dylan Dean on a Grade-A chance to open the frame.
Kevin Lyoshir
Long Island Gulls, July 2008, F, left shot
Hometown: Lake Ronkonkoma, N.Y.Â
Lyoshir scored the game-winning goal but also had numerous chances throughout the game. He hit the post early in the second half and followed it up with a breakaway midway through the final 22:30 minutes. His play along the walls impressed me most, as his good hands and ability to know when to cut to the middle to get to a high-danger area were noticeable.
Cam MacPherson
Neponset Valley River Rats, 6/19/2008, F, left shot, 5-6/130
Hometown: Hopkinton, Mass.Â
This game wasn't full of chances for the River Rats so when they got them, they had to make them count. MacPherson's game-tying goal in the second half was all hustle. He won a footrace with a Gulls defender, protected the puck on his left side and fired a shot through the legs of Kim. MacPherson also had a strong showing killing penalties and even earned a shorthanded breakaway at one point. It's been a big fall for MacPherson who entered the Beast playoffs leading the 15O River Rats in points.
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Rhys Medved
Long Island Gulls, January 2008, D, left shot
Hometown: Elizabeth, Pa.Â
I've liked Medved's game for awhile and he had a strong showing in the championship. He's a strong, two-way defenseman. For the most part, he made smart breakout passes and carried the puck intelligently, gaining offensive zone entries for his team. He's able to walk the blue line well with the puck and get shots through. In his own zone, he played tough and was usually in the right spots.
JT Rothstein
Long Island Gulls, 1/19/2008, F, left shot, 5-7/141
Hometown: New City, N.Y.Â
What stood out most with Rothstein's game was his playmaking ability. On the Gulls' second goal, it all started when Rothstein made a really smart pass across the offensive zone to Leonard for the score. He showed patience when he had the puck in the offensive zone and always seemed to hold out for the best seam to open up. Rothstein is going to be an '08 prospect to watch in prep hockey this winter when he takes the ice for Taft.
