Written by St. Anselm College, Sullivan Arena, Goffstown, NH –
I suppose it must start somewhere, and as far as ‘keeping track’ goes, the 2015-16 Varsity Ice Hockey Season started tonight for Goffstown High School with a scrimmage versus Division I opponent, Central High School (Manchester). Actually Goffstown HS Hockey started on the ice at 5:30am last Monday morning, but tonight there was another team lined up against the Grizzlies.
Before we get to the game action, let’s meet the 2015-16 Goffstown Grizzlies (NHIAA Division II) players and coaching staff.
1 Colin Holt G Sr
5 Griffin Cook F Fr
6 Ben Roy F Sr
7 Alex McCarthy F Fr
8 Tyler Riendeau F Jr
9 Dylan Hyers D Jr
10 Max Lajeunesse F So
11 Jake Noonan D Fr
12 Mike Fortin D So
14 Kainen Lassonde F So
16 Nick Nault * D Jr
17 Sebastian Beal F Fr
18 Noah Charron F So
19 Sam Greenwood * F Sr
20 Stephen Provencher F Fr
21 Colin Burke D Fr
22 Brett Lassonde D Fr
* Captains
** Assistant Captain
Head Coach- Ben Slocum
Asst. Coach- Shane Tufts
Asst. Coach- John Nanof
Off-Ice Conditioning- Brian Bourque
Yes, that’s right, 3 Senior’s and 7 Freshmen.
Anyways, to the game. It took just 50 seconds of game time to require something be written on the game sheet. The first shot on goal in the game was a goal for Central High School. At 14:10 of the first period, Cody Lappas scored on a pass from Logan Pacheco, and Goffstown trailed 1-0. As the period would wind down, Central missed a couple of point-blank scoring chances where their shots just plain missed the net. The period would end with Central leading 1-0 on the scoreboard, and holding a 10-6 lead in shots on goal as well. Sam Greenwood took the only GHS penalty of the period on a tripping call. Central was whistled for two penalties, Stephen Langley was called for a minor of head contact, and Jack Compos was called for hooking.
Okay, realistically, the second period went by about as quickly as a period could go. There were no goals. There was one penalty to Dylan Hyers (GHS) for interference. There was also not much to see. The period was pretty sloppy really, or at least it lacked any sort of continuity. Goffstown mustered one shot on goal, while Central managed only 3 shots themselves. After two periods, Central 1; Goffstown 0.
The third period was much better. At 11:28 of the period, Sam Greenwood (GHS) scored an unassisted goal to tie the game at 1 for Goffstown. Greenwood’s goal came just 7 seconds after a Goffstown power play had ended. While the Grizzlies still held possession of the puck in the offensive end, they capitalized with the game-tying goal at even strength. The penalty called on Central had been a tripping call on Brendan Courtney. The overall play flowed much better for both teams throughout the final period. Regulation time would end with the score tied 1-1. In the 3rd period Central had 7 shots on goal, while the Grizzlies had 5 shots.
Quickly, the coaches and officials decided that the game would continue with a 5:00 overtime of 4-on-4 hockey to decide the outcome. The overtime play was crisp, and Goffstown had the better chances early on. Getting 3 shots on goal in the first minute. Then, at 3:31 of the overtime, Stephen Langley (CHS) scored on a wrist shot assisted by Nathan Potvin and Dakodah Currier to win it for Central High School. Final score: Central HS (Manchester) 2, Goffstown HS 1 (OT). Central goaltender Mathieu Cislak finished with 14 saves on 15 shots, earning the overtime win. Colin Holt stopped 19 of 21 shots for the Grizzlies.
Goffstown will play their second pre-season scrimmage on Wednesday night (Dec. 9) at 7:30pm against another Division I opponent in Trinity High School (Manchester). The game will be at St. Anselm College, Sullivan Arena, Goffstown, NH, with Trinity HS as the home team.