BELMONT, Mass. — The puck wasn’t on Lawrence Academy right wing Sam Colangelo’s stick more than a second before it ended up in the back of the net.
That’s how quickly the game ended. Colangelo’s third goal of the afternoon, coming just 47 seconds into overtime, bolstered the Spartans past Belmont Hill, 4-3, in an ISL matchup.
Saturday’s hat trick showed why many scouts believe Colangelo, a late ’01, will be a top two round pick in the 2020 NHL Draft. His performance allowed the Spartans to escape with a win, despite playing without discipline in a lackluster effort.
Lawrence was whistled for eight penalties and gave up two power play goals in a game where the talent disparity was overwhelmingly in its favor.
Ethan Bastien scored the other goal for Lawrence, now 3-0-0 on the season, while goaltender Ian Graiff picked up the win.
Bastien started the scoring at the 10:20 mark of the second period when he forced a neutral zone turnover. He quickly picked up some separation and was able to fend off a Belmont Hill defender before depositing the puck into the back of the net for the 1-0 lead.Â
Just over a minute later, Belmont Hill capitalized on the first of its two power goals on the afternoon. Defenseman James Perullo moved the puck down from the point to the right circle and gave a centering feed right to left wing Andrew Holland who redirected the puck into the back of the net.
Jeremiah McCarthy’s team gave the home crowd some hope of an upset in the making less than a minute later when it took a 2-1 lead. Holland rushed the puck into the zone down the right wing side and flung a pass out to Robby Griffin for a tip-in score.
That would be the last lead Belmont Hill had. With 2:04 left in the second period, LA struck for a power play goal of its own to even the score heading into the third period. Colangelo sniped a wrist shot over the glove of Belmont Hill goaltender Michael Hauswirth from just a few strides inside the blue line. It finished off a nice sequence for Colangelo who made a nice cross-ice pass upon zone entry earlier in the shift. Boston University commit Braden Doyle had the primary assist.
The Spartans took the lead at the 7:10 mark of the third period on an even strength goal that was a power play tally for all practical purpose. After a great man advantage in which LA moved the puck really well, Colangelo found the back of the twine for the second time. With a Belmont Hill player exiting the penalty box, defenseman Drew Bavaro’s shot from the left point was deflected right to Colangelo who blasted it home from the bottom of the right wing circle. Providence commit Tyler Young had the secondary assist.
The Spartans’ lack of discipline would come back to bite them in the final minutes of regulation. Belmont Hill right wing Zephan Kraus redirected a point shot from Perullo to send the game to overtime.
That set the scene for Colangelo’s heroics. He finished off a tic-tac-toe passing sequence as the puck went from Bastien to UNH commit Connor Sweeney and back out front for Colangelo to finish off Belmont Hill.
Prospect Notes
Sam Colangelo
#16 Lawrence, 12/26/01, RW, Right Shot, 6-2/204
NCAA Commit: Northeastern
Colangelo can really shoot the puck. His first goal was a great example. It was a precision-guided missile that found the top corner of the net right over the glove of the goaltender. In the third period, he had a shot miss just wide where he pulled the puck back and unleashed it quickly. On both of the other goals, he showed he can get off a shot quickly and with zip. He made a couple of really nice passes, showing his vision. His skating has gotten remarkably better over the last year as he’s improved his lower body strength and gotten into better overall physical shape. Today’s game showed the dominant player he can be. As good as he is, it should be scary for opposing coaches to think just how much better he can be if he plays like this every game.
Braden Doyle
#7 Lawrence, 8/24/01, D, Left Shot, 5-11.5/167
NCAA Commit: Boston University
It was another impressive game for Doyle, who was a little bit more quiet Saturday than he was Wednesday. Nonetheless, he was a major reason for the Spartans having such success in transition. While he didn’t get an assist due to the turnover, his ability to push the pace got the puck from his own end to the neutral zone on the Bastien goal. He kept the puck moving and made the right play on Colangelo’s first goal. The Lynnfield, Mass., native made a great flip pass to fling Providence commit Riley Duran on a shorthanded breakaway bid.
Ryan McGuire
#8 Belmont Hill, 7/27/02, C, Right Shot, 6-1/180
McGuire’s offensive skill set isn’t great, but if a college program is looking for a center who can win draws, play responsibly in all three zones, backcheck, and kill penalties, he should be at the top of the list among players in prep hockey. If face-off stats were kept in prep, he’d have an extremely high percentage. He was really good on the dots today. He has high hockey IQ and it’s easy to tell he’s a student of the game based on how he reads plays. The New Canaan, Conn., native consistently plays well without the puck. While not an overly big player, McGuire made a great play on a backcheck in the second period to get back and angle off a LA forward into the boards.
Andrew Holland
#11 Belmont Hill, 2/17/00, LW, Left Shot, 6-3/195
Holland is a big power forward who uses his size and strength to his advantage, which he should as one of the older players in prep hockey. He rang the post with a hard, low wrist shot in the first period. The Winchester, Mass., native had a goal and an assist in the second period and he delivered a huge hit that knocked Duran off a puck later in the game. Holland has the potential to be a big, north-south, third line winger at a good Division III school or possibly an Atlantic Hockey school like Holy Cross.Â
Lawrence Academy Lines
4 R. Duran - 9 T. Young - 16 S. Colangelo
20 C. Sweeney - 3 C. Lovett - 18 D. Sacco
12 J. Pierce - 10 E. Bastien - 23 H. Oliphant
6 E. Burke - 24 J. Riggins - 17 J. Lucido
7 B. Doyle - 11 M. Connor
25 K. Furey - 22 D. Bavaro
2 G. Delaney - 15 R. Hubbard
1 I. Graiff
Belmont Hill Lines
11 A. Holland - 2 M. Hayes - 17 Z. Kraus
15 D. Blackwell - 8 R. McGuire - 7 J. High
14 L. Kelly - 8 R. McGuire - 18 L. Khozozian
11 A. Holland - 2 M. Hayes - 20 R. Griffin
7 J. High - 15 D. Blackwell - 16 P. Halloran
5 R. Radochia - 4 G. Litchfield
10 J. Perullo - 9 W. Killoran
22 B. Bliss
31 M. Hauswirth
* Belmont Hill did some line juggling and double shifting.
