Boston, MA – Just when you thought we were done for the night we crammed in one more game as part of today’s MIAA Opening Night doubleheader. We made the drive from southern New Hampshire down to Warrior Ice Arena in Boston to catch the Belmont Marauders taking on the host Catholic Memorial Knights. Both of these teams were listed in our 20 Teams We’re Excited About preseason article and this promised to be the marquee game of the week. The game time was bumped up to 7pm and after parking, scarfing down a Jersey Mikes sub (#7) and scurrying to our seat, we were ready for puck drop.
Right off the hop, this game had a quick pace and there was certainly no love lost between these two teams who were engaging in extracurriculars just a few seconds into the game along the end boards. Eagle-eyed readers will remember that we were in the house to scout this season debut game last year and CM came away with the win in a closely contested tilt. It was evident those hostilities carried over tonight. We were impressed by the quality of play on both sides, considering it was the first game of the year. There were sharp passes, hard shots and smart decisions made at both ends. Still, the difference maker in this opening 17 was tenacity and determination, which Belmont native and CM sophomore Daniel Antonellis displayed on his team’s first tally. At the 8:40 mark, he took the fourth whack at a loose puck after Belmont goalie Ethan Bauer had made the first three initial saves to make it 1-0 CM. That’s how the score would stay as we closed out the first, onto the second.
In the middle frame, CM turned up the heat and they were pressuring the puck all over the ice. They made life difficult for Belmont because not only were they actively pressuring the puck but they made quick decisions in transition which were tough to defend. Their ability to get loose at the blue line and gain the zone with speed was a problem for Belmont defensively. It started early in the period as six minutes in, junior defender James Baker sent senior Tommy Hurst in on the breakaway and he finished 5 hole to make it 2-0 CM. Nearly 10 minutes later, Belmont would shift the momentum and get that goal back. Surprised surprise it was stud sophomore forward Liam Guilderson who collected a rebound and threw it upstairs to cut the CM lead in half. Just a minute later, however, the Knights had the answer. Freshman forward AJ Ankstitus threaded a pass to an open sophomore forward Christian Hinckle who slipped it 5 hole to make it 3-1, which would be our score after two. The final 17 minutes would decide this one.
In the final frame, Belmont made a push looking to amp up their physicality down low and punish CM below the goal line. They were able to win more battles in the attacking zone and put more quality shots on net, however, 8th grader and CCM 68 alum Jaxson Fleming turned them all aside. It also helped that the mobile CM D core could quickly skate the puck out of any harmful areas. It should also be noted that Bauer made a 10-bell save to keep this a two-goal deficit for Bemont, robbing the shooter with a full extension dive to snag a puck out of midair. The score remained the same when the clock hit triple zeroes: CM skates away with the 3-1 win.
Three Stars:
- F Tommy Hurst, Catholic Memorial
- F AJ Ankstitus, Catholic Memorial
- F Liam Guilderson, Belmont