CHS Icemen topple undefeated Mansfield
By Jay Turner
The CHS boys’ varsity hockey team delivered its finest performance of the season on Saturday, beating a red-hot Mansfield team 2-1 at home in a clash of the Hockomock’s two division leaders.
Canton, which now sits alone atop the Davenport Division, improved to 7-1-1 with the win, while the Hornets, who had gone into the game riding a ten-game unbeaten streak, fell to 9-1-1.
CHS head coach Brian Shuman said the game played out as expected, with two evenly matched teams battling it out to the very end. Fortunately, his Bulldogs played well “right from the get-go,” and around the six-minute mark of the first period sophomore Nick O’Connor scored to give the Bulldogs a 1-0 lead, assisted by JC Marcone.
The score remained that way until halfway through the second period, when Mansfield tied it at 1. From there the Hornets seemed to steal the momentum back, but junior goaltender Nick Naples made several key stops to help keep his team in the game.
Shuman said Naples, who had earned a shutout in his debut start earlier in the week, was outstanding in net while collecting 27 saves.
About six minutes into the third period, Canton took the lead for good when sophomore Pat Ward took a pass from O’Connor and fired a wrist shot past the Hornet goalie to make it 2-1.
The Hornets, however, refused to go away, and their aggressive play led to several good scoring opportunities late in the game. But the Bulldogs were able to match their aggressiveness, and Shuman said his team did a “phenomenal job” making plays down the stretch.
Overall, Shuman described the victory as a total team effort and a “statement game.” He said the win also revealed the team’s depth as several backups, including juniors Justin Saccone and Alex Atocha and senior Greg McElroy, played significant minutes and played well.
Earlier in the week, Canton scored a decisive 3-0 victory over North Attleboro. O’Connor dominated the third period and finished with a pair of goals. The team also got a goal from freshman Brian Brooks, while Denehy, Ward, Kurt Leavitt, and Matt Lennon each registered an assist.
It was just the second time this season that Canton had held an opponent scoreless, and Shuman said a lot of the credit belongs to Naples, who finished with 11 saves in his first varsity victory.
This week, the Bulldogs were scheduled to play at Attleboro on Wednesday, followed by a game this Saturday at Oliver Ames at 4:30 p.m.
Short URL: https://www.thecantoncitizen.com/?p=396
Posted by Jay Turner
on Jan 27 2011. Filed under High School, Sports.
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