North Billerica, MA – MassNZ made the trip to the Chelmsford Forum to see the home opener for the Lions of Chelmsford as they hosted the Colonials of Shrewsbury. The parking lot was packed pregame as the JV programs faced off just before varsity game time. It was a bit of a sparse crowd this evening for the prime time game but the hometown fans came out to represent their Lions in their opener. As is tradition, the Chelmsford mites started things off, leading the varsity players onto the ice. After a quick warmup for both squads, we were ready for hockey.
In the first period, both teams looked to establish momentum with different styles of attack. Shrewsbury played a speed game and looked to thread passes behind the defense whereas Chelmsford was a physical group who racked up some big body blows early in this one. Neither team held a territorial advantage early as both teams were getting a feel for the game pace. In addition, both teams had Grade A looks but they collectively did not find the back of the net. Shrewsbury’s best look came off a sneakaway pass for senior Ryan Kelley as he missed the top corner by inches. Chelmsford looked like they had taken a lead with two minutes remaining as senior Andrew Monahan shoveled one on net top shelf but the referees ruled that it hit the post and bounced out. We aren’t entirely sure that was the case, but regardless, the period would wrap with no score to speak of.
In the second period, Chelmsford came out of their locker room a couple of minutes late and if they were talking strategy, it certainly paid off in the opening two minutes. Johnny on the Spot just 1:42 in was freshman Ben Panzeri who grabbed a loose puck behind the net and quickly stuffed it home at the left post on the backhand before the goalie realized where he was. That goal lit a fire under Chelmsford and they controlled the majority of this period with their aggressiveness and strength. They were winning most of the battles along the walls and their strong sticks led to numerous clears around the net. Despite being whistled for multiple penalties, the Lions were undaunted and killed them all off in this frame. Shrewsbury had a couple of quality Grade A looks but Lions junior Will McNeil kicked them all aside. The Colonials had one more chance to get on the scoreboard.
In the third period, it was more of the same story from the first two periods: Chelmsford owned most of the possession and their physical presence was overwhelming for the Colonials. To Shrewsbury’s credit, they were able to get set up in the offensive zone working the puck around the perimeter, but the Lions’ defense around the crease was too stout to hop on rebounds in time. As the minutes ticked away, the Lions dialed up more forecheck pressure which led to more scoring chances, all of which Shrewsbury freshman goalie Morgan Carney kicked aside. The clock whittled down to 2:29 and the Colonials used their timeout. Shortly after, they pulled their goalie, but it was of no use as Chelmsford stole the puck in the middle of the rink and senior defender Logan Kowalik dished off to sophomore Cam Panzeri who fired it into the empty net from the blue line with 1:28 left to play. The remainder of the game was largely academic as the Lions pitched the shutout and the Panzeris each tallied their first varsity goals. They face a tough test in Billerica in their next matchup and Shrewsbury will face Lincoln-Sudbury.
Three Stars:
- G Will McNeil, Chelmsford
- F Cam Panzeri, Chelmsford
- F Ben Panzeri, Chelmsford