Boys’ hockey team falls to Oliver Ames, crushes Stoughton
By Jay TurnerThe Canton High boys’ ice hockey team played its first two division games of the season last week, and other than the venue, the games could not have been more different.
Sophomore Andrew Howlett (Mike Barucci photo)
On Tuesday, the Bulldogs lost a closely contested battle with Oliver Ames at Asiaf Rink in Brockton, falling 2-1. Canton then returned to Brockton on Saturday and proceeded to dominate a clearly overmatched Stoughton team, scoring early and often for a 10-0 win.
The two-game split put the Bulldogs at 4-1 for the season and 1-1 in the Davenport Division heading into last night’s home opener against Foxboro. They will need the win to keep pace with OA, which leads the division with a 2-0 record.
The Tigers also now own a two-game win streak over Canton, including a victory in last year’s Division 2 south quarterfinals.
In the game last week, OA built an early 2-0 lead and then held on for the win behind an exceptional performance by its freshman goaltender.
“Their goalie was just incredible,” said head coach Brian Shuman after the game. “We threw everything at him; we just couldn’t get any of them in.”
The Bulldogs’ lone score came early in the second period on a power play goal by Nick O’Connor, assisted by Pat Ward and Anthony Francescon. Canton finished with a two-to-one advantage in shots (34-16), but the Tigers played with more energy and made the most of their limited opportunities.
“I think they wanted it more,” said Shuman. “They just made the extra plays that we couldn’t seem to make.”
The Bulldogs, meanwhile, had no such trouble against Stoughton on Saturday, scoring at will against an inexperienced Black Knights squad. Canton was led by O’Connor, who buried his first goal just 11 seconds into the game and finished with a hat trick, as well as senior captain TJ Duggan, who scored two goals in two minutes early in the second period. Also scoring goals were senior captain Matt Malloy, Ward, Brian Brooks, Ryan Nagel, and Brian Hagan, with the latter two earning their first varsity points.
Michael Denehy, Steve Mullaney, and Tom Delsignore also contributed on offense with two assists apiece.
The Bulldogs will travel to King Philip on Saturday before beginning a brutal three-game stretch next week against the top three teams in the Kelly-Rex Division: Franklin on Monday, North Attleboro on Wednesday, and Mansfield on Saturday.
Short URL: https://www.thecantoncitizen.com/?p=10832
Posted by Jay Turner
on Jan 11 2012. Filed under High School, Sports.
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