Lowell, MA – We drove up to the Tsongas Center tonight for a D3 rivalry matchup between the 14 seed Dracut/Tyngsboro Middies and the 19 seed Methuen Rangers. These teams met three times previously in the regular season and Methuen had the edge with two regular-season wins in the series coming into this Round of 32 playoff game. We arrived a few minutes before gametime and the line to get in the venue was stretched literally around the building. It took us 20 minutes to get in but we were able to snag a seat before a couple hundred more fans spilled in. All told there were very likely close to 2,000 fans at this game, one of the biggest crowds we’ve seen across the playoffs. Both teams had loud cheering sections and even students from other schools dropped by. In any event, despite missing the first two minutes of play, in we went and on went the show.
In the early minutes of the first, both teams were hyped up and playing hard. The physicality dial was already turned all the way up and neither team was giving an inch. There were some scrums in front of the net but ultimately not much sustained pressure to speak of. That all changed 10 minutes in when Methuen started to buzz. They earned a power play and took advantage as senior defenseman Cam Katzenberger took a shot from the point that found its way home through a couple of bodies top shelf: 1-0 Rangers. That goal woke up the Dracut/Tyngsboro offense and they would respond three minutes later. In a 4-on-4 situation, junior forward Tommy Workman took the initial shot that was deflected home by junior Colby Forestell (his first varsity goal to boot): tie game 1-1. Turns out the Middies weren’t done as they untied it a minute later as Workman entered the zone on the left wing on a 2-on-1 and looked off the goalie before firing it past him: a big goal to take a 2-1 lead into the room for Dracut/Tyngsboro.
In the second period, the Middies would take their game to another level, scoring a bevy of unanswered goals. Thirty-five seconds in, sophomore Mikey Desmarais threaded a pass down low, cross-ice over to Workman who buried on the weak side into an empty net: 3-1 Middies. About three minutes later they struck again when Desmarais found Workman (again) on the left wing and he flung a backhander up high over the goalie’s shoulder to make it 4-1 which gave the junior a natural hat trick after 18 minutes of play. Next up came a goal three minutes later when freshman phenom Cam Caron took a pass from Josh Savoie and ripped it home top shelf and celebrated with a Superman pose to give the Middies a commanding 5-1 lead. At this point, the Methuen coaching staff was smart to take a time out and settle things down. That tactic seemed to work well as the Rangers were harder on the puck and quicker in moving it up ice. They weren’t able to impact the scoreboard but they did tip the momentum back to even. Onto the third period we went.
In the final stanza, Dracut/Tyngsboro looked to use its speed and athleticism to make life tougher for Methuen. They were able to succeed in the early part of the period but ultimately Methuen cashed in about eight minutes into the period when senior defender Danny Field put a point shot on net through bodies on the power play that was tipped home by junior scoring leader Owen Kneeland: 5-2 was now the score. Once again, that goal woke up the Middies offense and just over a minute later they had an answer as sophomore Colin Underwood stole the puck at the opposing blue line, gained separation, and buried cleanly to make it 6-2, cutting short the comeback attempt. Things would get a bit chippy late and Methuen would add another score with 1:35 to go as freshman Aidan Cashman darted into the offensive zone and left a puck at the netfront for Nick Sanguedolce to bang home: 6-3 – which would be the final score of this Round of 32 playoff battle. The Middies advance to the Sweet 16 and await the winner of Hanover vs Old Rochester/Fairhaven to see where they will play next.
Three Stars:
- F Tommy Workman, Dracut/Tyngsboro
- F Colin Underwood, Dracut/Tyngsboro
- F Mikey Desmarais, Dracut/Tyngsboro