Billerica, MA – In yet other early season match we took in a battle between Rte 128/Rte 3 rivals as Waltham traveled north to face off against hometown Billerica at Hallenborg Arena. The game featured raucous student and parent sections for each team and the puck was dropped a few minutes late to get this one started.
In the first period both teams were playing hard but it took some time to get into a cohesive game flow. The early minutes of the period featured a lot of missed passes through the neutral zone and more than a few turnovers, but no goals were scored as a result. Later in the period the referees entered into the picture, at one point calling three penalties in under a two minute span. That meant the back half of the period was a primarily a special teams battle. That led to the first power play goal seven minutes in as Waltham’s Justin Moran skated over the blue line off the left wing, feeding senior Brian McNamara near the net and after two whacks at the puck he cashed in: 1-0 Hawks. That momentum seemed like it would last all period, until a penalty was called on Waltham which gave Billerica a man-advantage late in the frame. With 1:35 left, sophomore forward Paul Egan fed junior defenseman Dominic Hall at the blue line who fired home a high riser to tie the score and the home student section erupted. But the Indians weren’t done yet. With only seconds remaining they were given another power play opportunity and sophomore forward Chris Viscione fed hulking senior attacker Jacob Marini who dangled a defender and flipped one home far side with 17.4 left in the period: 2-1 Billerica after one.
In the second period, both teams traded chances but ultimately the better chances belonged to Waltham who made themselves tough to play against with active sticks and good coverage in the D zone. Unfortunately for them, senior captain and Billerica netminder Connor Feeney shut the door on each breakaway and netfront shovel attempt. Most impressively he shut down a two-shot breakaway chance from different shooters at both sides of the net. The score remained 2-1 headed to the third.
In the final frame, the Indians held the momentum and put the game away early in the period; netting an insurance marker, yet again from Marini. Just under three minutes in he skated through multiple Waltham defenders from his own defensive zone coast-to-coast and ripped a wrister short side to beat the Waltham netminder, 3-1 Billerica. The coda on this victory came near the 11-minute mark from senior defenseman Matt Livingston who made a great individual effort. He won a battle at the red line, broke in on his own off the left wing and fired a seed past the goalie up high to make it 4-1 Billerica, which would be the final score.
Three Stars
- F Jacob Marini, Billerica (2 G)
- G Connor Feeney, Billerica
- D Matt Livingston, Billerica (G)
NZ’s Take
This was an entertaining game filled with twists and turns. Both teams were working to get their legs under them early but it didn’t take long for both teams to wake up after the power play and penalty kill chances on both sides in the first. From there each team settled into a rhythm. Billerica is a team that excels off the breakout, they have team speed that allows their forwards to do it by themselves, but their defenders also set up good routes out of the zone too. Waltham is a responsible and athletic team with some strong veteran leaders who set the pace of what real work looks like on each shift. They have a good mix which will allow them to win more games as their younger players get into the groove.
For Waltham, Justin Cormier was the most notable player on the roster. The 2004 birthyear has great lateral mobility and played the role of PP quarterback for stretches. His feet are always moving and while he has strength to add, his mobility and shiftiness causes coverage problems at this level. Junior forward Dylan Fogg played the rover position for Coach Maguire: he filled in both on forward and defense, and looked good doing both. He is a smooth skater who can rely on his edges to make quick cuts and adjustments in-motion. The tandem of two seniors: Brian McNamara and Justin Moran was trouble all night for Billerica. Both of them are big and strong but they use their sticks really effectively to create turnovers and deflections. While they created the opening goal of the game, we liked how effective they were on the PK and in the neutral zone: keeping tight coverage on puck carriers.
For Billerica, we came away very impressed by Jacob Marini, who previously logged time with the Islanders Hockey Club. He was hustling on every shift and there were stretches of this game where Waltham couldn’t contain his speed and acceleration. Pair that with a big body and smart puck handling: he might be a good under-the-radar candidate to do some offensive damage this season. His running mate in this game was all-everything senior defender Matt Livingston – who didn’t look like he came off the ice for more than a few minutes each period. He appears stronger than last season: blowing up the opposition on a couple of occasions knocking them off their feet. We like his ability to read the situation: he changes his shot angle for a better look at the net and he knows where the defenders are and protects the puck smartly. He has a knack for jumping up in the offense and he has the speed at this level to do it consistently. He may be one of the better defenders in the state if he keeps up this pace.