March 05, 2023 – NHIAA QuarterFinal – (#5) Goffstown 0 at (#4) Merrimack 3. There were 35+ minutes of scoreless hockey to start this game. Who netted the first goal was of the utmost importance. The Tomahawks cashed in on a 2-on-1. The Goffstown Grizzlies season ended in the NHIAA Quarterfinal.

The teams are ready to play. Honoring America with our National Anthem. (Photo by Jen Webber Photography)

The game would end with a 3-0 score and another crushing playoff loss for the Goffstown Grizzlies. The Goffstown hockey team exceeded everyone’s expectations this season. Without question. I know that doesn’t make Sunday night feel any better. One day, when the Grizzlies break through and run the table all the way to a title, and I think it will happen soon, I hope players from all the previous Grizzlies hockey teams will know that it would not have been possible without their contributions.

The Goffstown hockey team played sensational hockey against a very good, talented, physical team that they knew well. The Grizzlies couldn’t beat Matt Licata all night, and they easily could have scored 2 or 3 goals in the opening period alone. For the fourth time in the last 11 years, Merrimack knocked Goffstown out of the playoffs in the NHIAA QuarterFinal round. Merrimack will play #1 St. Thomas on Wednesday night, March 8.

Jake Webber makes saves in positions that most creatures cannot even get into. This was one of them. (Photo by Jen Webber Photography)

This type of thing has happened before. On March 2, 2019, the Goffstown Grizzlies pounded the Merrimack net with 36 shots while allowing only 13 shots against Kyle LaSella. Merrimack won, 3-0 after a pair of empty net goals, and Ben Hardy was unbeatable in net for the Tomahawks that night at Sullivan Arena.

Tyler Lessard and Nick DiMarzio, among others, had great chances to break the ice for the Grizzlies but Licata was equal to the task. Jake Webber made some out of this world saves to keep the Tomahawks off of the board for more than 35 minutes.

This was a good playoff hockey game over at West Side Arena. It was fast with a bounty of scoring chances in the contest despite the low score. It was physical and gritty at times.

Goffstown had 13 shots on Matt Licata in the opening period. Merrimack only had 5 shots on Jake Webber. Honestly, though, there were some pretty good chances mixed in for both sides. This could have easily been, 2-1, or 3-2 after one period. Goffstown had one power play opportunity in the period, but not much came from the advantage.

D-man rushing against D-man. Thirteen vs. Thirteen. Senior vs. Senior. Playing through adversity seen and unseen. (Photo by Jen Webber Photography)

In the second period, the Tomahawks upped their game. They outshot the Grizzlies 10-5 in the period and held the puck for long periods of time in the offensive zone. They also had a pair of power play chances in the period. I would almost guarantee that there were more blocked shots in this period than in any of the regular season full games for either team. There was a lot on the line for these teams, and they both played up to the intensity surging through the building.

After two periods, there was no score. Webber had 15 saves. Licata had 18 saves. There had been 7 penalties called in the game. I am not a betting man, but I’d bet that both sides had issues with the calls made and not made. Thankfully though, the players kept raising their games, playing through adversity, advantage, and disadvantage. It was great hockey. And for the most part, it was about the kids, and that’s how it should be.

In the final period, Licata made a couple spectacular saves in the opening minutes. Merrimack took a penalty. The Grizzlies had a power play. Then, Conor Dunn picked off a puck at center ice and raced up the left wing at full tilt. He centered the puck, perfectly, to Eliot Medlock for a one-timer from the slot. Webber slid side to side but couldn’t make the save. It was, 1-0 on the shorthanded goal, at 5:33 of the final period.

At 9:17 of the period Merrimack scored again. After Nick Caldwell was rocked at the offensive blue line (away from the puck), Noah Kahn threw a pass to the boards where Owen Miner skated up left wing on an innocent looking play. Miner flipped a shot off of Jake Webber’s pads and the puck came right to an open Conor Dunn who smacked the puck into the net. 2-0. It was a tough break for the visitors.

The Goffstown Grizzlies would get one more power play in the game. The advantage came at 11:20 of the period and Goffstown called a timeout. The #5 seed was not able to get anything to bounce their way or even to bounce past Licata. Merrimack added an empty net goal with 30 seconds left in the game. Medlock to De Beaucourt to Owen Miner. Goffstown had 11 shots in the final period while Merrimack had 10.

Goffstown finished their surprising season with a ‘better than expected’ 11-9-2 record overall. They absolutely improved as the season played on. They scored 65 goals as a team, and became much more difficult to play against. Yes, we will absolutely miss the seniors leaving the program behind for bigger and better things beneath the bright skies of their future. The Grizzlies graduate a lot of minutes, points, saves, and leadership. The returning players and upcoming Goffstown Grizzlies look to carry the banner forward and raise the bar in honor of the teammates before them.

At Sullivan Arena, on February 18, 2023. The Goffstown hockey program and their extended hockey family recognized the following Seniors in their Senior Night Ceremony. Thank you for being a part of this wonderful program.

Avery Morgan – Team Manager

#1 Jake Webber – Goaltender

#3 Brandon Bograd – Forward

#5 Jake Klardie – Forward

#10 Jack Wilkinson – Forward

#11 Corbin Huntley – Defense

#12 Xavier Bibaud – Defense

#13 Brennan Pierce – Defense

#14 Annie St. Cyr – Forward

#31 Ethan Santoro – Goaltender

The hockey for this season is done. The final buzzer has sounded: We will miss each of them, and we truly wish them the very best moving forward. It was my honor and pleasure to be a part of the ceremony this season. It has been my honor and my pleasure to be so close to the action for the entirety of your NHIAA hockey careers. Thank you.

Perhaps there have been better, and certainly there are worse. But we are the ones into the depths of adoration we deeply immerse. A career spans the utter joys and the unfortunate mishap. So, we say two words, Thank you, stand and tip our cap. (Photo by Jen Webber Photography)

After the weekend action in NHIAA Hockey – D2, here are the standings.

Standings: Boys Ice Hockey Division II

NOTE: The following are not official NHIAA standings. They are only the accumulation of game results as reported by the athletic directors and coaches.

Click here to view the schedules for all of the teams below.

School	W	L	T	Points	Rating
1) St. Thomas Aquinas	13	4	1	56.00	3.1111
2) Dover	12	6	0	49.00	2.7222
3) Oyster River	12	6	0	49.00	2.7222
4) Merrimack	11	6	1	47.00	2.6111
5) Goffstown Grizzlies	10	6	2	45.00	2.5000
6) Winnacunnet	10	6	2	45.00	2.5000
7) Somersworth-Coe-Brown	10	8	0	40.00	2.2222
Alvirne-Milford	7	10	0	29.00	1.7059
Spaulding	4	14	0	16.00	0.8889
Portsmouth-Newmarket	4	14	0	16.00	0.8889
Timberlane	0	17	0	0.00	0.0000

Bold Type = Playoff positions

NHIAA Hockey Bracket D2

You can follow other Goffstown Hockey stories, here.

You can also follow this blog here. I write a lot about hockey. It’s a long season. It’s not all just about the hockey, but rather about lessons and takeaways that come up throughout these seasons. Yes, I am biased. I am biased toward the truth and the right way to do things, whether anyone is watching or not.

The players play the games. The kids score the goals and make the saves. Most of the time, the kids band together for something that is bigger than themselves; the team. The kids do so many things right on any given play, on any given day. I have found that more often than not, the kids pleasantly surprise us all. It’s awesome. It’s all about the kids.

: Looking to the future. The show must go on. (Photo by Jen Webber Photography)

: There are two JW’s on this roster, and they were there for each other, in good times and tough ones too. Impressive. (Photo by Jen Webber Photography)

: These aren’t even my kids and I still have a hard time looking at these pictures after a tough loss. But then again, if we are true, engaged, and belong to one another, aren’t these kids all of ours. March, 2023. (Photo by Jen Webber Photography)

: They say a picture is worth a thousand words. Then, sometimes, those words just need to wait. (Photo by Jen Webber Photography)

NHIAA Hockey:

NHIAA QuarterFinal:

Updated records.

#5 Goffstown (10-7-2 NHIAA) (11-9-2 Overall) at #4 Merrimack (12-6-1)

West Side Arena, Manchester, NH

Sunday, March 05, 2023. 7:31 PM Start.

Summary:

Goals:

Goffstown: 00 – 00 – 00 = 00

Merrimack: 00 – 00 – 03 = 03

Shots:

Goffstown: 13 – 05 – 11 = 29

Merrimack: 05 – 10 – 10 = 25

Scoring:

1st Period: No Scoring.

2nd Period: No Scoring.

3rd Merrimack at 5:33. SHG. Eliot Medlock from Conor Dunn.

3rd Merrimack at 9:17. Even. Conor Dunn from Owen Miner and Noah Kahn.

3rd Merrimack at 14:30. Empty. Owen Miner from Ryan De Beaucourt and Eliot Medlock.

Special Teams:

Goffstown Power Play: 0 for 3.

Merrimack Power Play: 0 for 2.

Saves:

Goffstown: Jake Webber 22 of 24. (.917). (44:11)

Merrimack: Matt Licata 25 of 25. (1.000). (45:00)

(photo by Jen Webber Photography)

Remembering Jen Cheney…

The Jen Cheney Memorial Scholarship and Sportsmanship Award (awarded each season)

As a sixteen-year-old junior, Jen was a manager for the very first Goffstown Grizzlies hockey team in the 1999-2000 club season. Her infectious smile and friendly nature was a joy for everyone fortunate to know her. Jen is now our eternal team angel. The spirit of Jen lives on…our team champions an angel memorial patch sewn to each uniform jersey.

On Thursday, May 18th, 2000, Jen was killed by a drunk driver. We are dedicated to memorialize Jen’s life with the Jen Cheney Memorial Scholarship and Sportsmanship Award. But we also want to deliver a message from our team angel… simply…if you choose to drink, don’t drive.

The current look at my ‘hockey office’. So many hours spent in this space, tracking numbers and capturing season after season. (C) 1inawesomewonder 2023.

The beginning of every article. (C) 1inawesomewonder 2017.

The thoughts and opinions expressed here are those of the individual contributors, mostly mine, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the schools, coaches, players, or characters listed in any of these blog posts. Or, maybe they do, but you would have to ask them directly.

Either way, “It’s a great day for hockey” ~ the late “Badger” Bob Johnson.

“We should be dreaming. We grew up as kids having dreams, but now we’re too sophisticated as adults, as a nation. We stopped dreaming. We should always have dreams.” ~ the late Herb Brooks.

“To me, there are three things we all should do every day. We should do this every day of our lives. Number one is laugh. You should laugh every day. Number two is think. You should spend some time in thought. Number three is, you should have your emotions moved to tears, could be happiness or joy. But think about it: If you laugh, you think, and you cry, that’s a full day. That’s a heck of a day. You do that seven days a week, you’re going to have something special.” ~ Jim Valvano on how to live life, during his ESPY speech.

“I started writing sports stories 20 years ago. I still do. I write because somewhere, in some game, a kid might be having the time of his or her life. That’s awesome to think about. It’s all about the kids.” ~ Steve Beal Sr.