Canton coaches, players make history at Xaverian
By Jay Turner
The Xaverian varsity hockey team celebrates their victory over CM in the Catholic Conference Cup finals.
Even in an abbreviated and highly atypical season marked by rule changes, postponements and the lack of a traditional playoff structure, hockey success still found its way to Canton this winter with notable achievements seen across the public and private school ranks.
On one end of town, at the newly reopened Metropolis Skating Rink, Canton High’s two varsity squads continued their domination of Hockomock opponents as they ran away with their respective league titles. The two squads combined for a sizzling record of 19-1-2 and finished at or near the top of the rankings among Division 2 schools — No. 1 for the boys and No. 3 for the girls according to HNIB News.
Meanwhile, over at the Canton Ice House, another team with strong local ties, the Xaverian Hawks, made history this season with not one, but two Catholic Conference titles — winning their first regular season crown in more than a half century and then capturing the inaugural conference tournament championship with victories over both Malden Catholic and Catholic Memorial. Three members of this year’s championship roster — seniors Shane Spinale and Joe Crowley and junior Owen Gunning — hail from Canton and are proud alumni of Canton Youth Hockey.
Xaverian head coach Dave Spinale, who also resides in Canton and has led the squad since 2001, considered it quite the accomplishment to achieve this level of success amidst the ongoing pandemic.
“We are very proud that the boys stayed safe and sacrificed to keep the season going,” said Spinale. “Many of them train together in the offseason and in season with [former college hockey player] Shane Relihan and he has helped our team become stronger to win 50/50 battles and foot races and compete for pucks all season. The fact that we were able to play an entire season and have [conference] playoffs was amazing. Winning the Catholic Conference for the first time in 52 years was really a milestone.”
In the absence of a Super 8 tournament hosted by the MIAA, Spinale figures that a 10-game slate and subsequent playoff against Catholic Conference foes — who have combined to win 25 of the state’s 29 Division 1A titles — would function as the next best thing. And the Hawks certainly proved their mettle, finishing 7-3-2 for an overall winning percentage of .667 — an elite mark against top-flight competition.
Xaverian saved one of its finest wins for last as they battled back on home ice to edge CM 2-1 in last weekend’s conference cup final. Junior Braden O’Hara and sophomore Joe DiMartino each had a goal and an assist in the win while senior netminder Kevin McGrath turned away 25 CM shots to cap off his career in a Hawks uniform.
Coach Spinale said the fact that he got to share this season’s accomplishments with his son Shane, a key defenseman and a team co-captain, along with the team’s eight other senior players made it all the more special.
“I had the pleasure to get to know this senior class on and off the ice … and being able to share this with [Shane] is something I will cherish forever,” he said. “It is a great group and we got contributions from this entire team all season. We also have a great coaching staff led by assistant coach Paul Todesca, who is from Canton. He has an amazing relationship with our players.”
Spinale described his son as a “physical, stay at home” defenseman and a strong leader who “made sure the older guys looked after the younger players — just like it was done for him as an underclassman.”
Gunning, he said, unfortunately had to miss most of the season due to an injury but turned in a great game in a big win against St John’s Shrewsbury. Crowley, who Spinale described as a “very fluid and quick forward,” had a huge goal against Malden Catholic and also saw time on the penalty killing unit. “Both boys come from great families and are character kids,” said Spinale.
All three Canton players on the team also played together at various points throughout their Canton Youth Hockey days, including a particularly memorable Pee Wee season under coaches Will Theodore and Bobby Hayhurst that ended with a run to states.
“Our team was fortunate to have these young men from Canton as part of our program,” said a proud Coach Spinale.
Short URL: https://www.thecantoncitizen.com/?p=73333
Posted by Jay Turner
on Feb 26 2021. Filed under Beyond CHS, Sports.
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