MIDDLETON – Coming off two losses by a combined seven goals, the last team that Central Catholic wanted to see on the schedule was the reigning Division 1 state champions Pope Francis.
And the last thing they wanted when they faced the champs was to be in an early hole.
After giving up three goals in the first 6:51 of the game, it appeared as if it would be a long night for Central Catholic.
Instead, the Raiders put forth an impressive charge over the final two periods, mounting a rally that fell just short as Pope Francis held off a late power play and then added an empty-netter with 19.4 seconds left to come away with a 4-2 win in the first round of the annual Peter Frates Winter Classic played Wednesday afternoon at the Essex Sports Center.
The loss puts the Raiders into Thursday’s consolation final (1:00 pm) against BC High, who was defeated 3-0 by St. John’s Prep.
“It’s a big tournament and for a lot of our guys, it’s their first time playing in this type of atmosphere,” said Central Catholic head coach DJ Conte. “We just came out a little flat-footed and were on our heels. We had our moments in the first period, but the kids responded well after being down 3-0. They came out battling in the second period. We scored two goals and we showed some character.”
The first two goals by the Cardinals came within 16 seconds of one another, and the third came exactly two minutes later, forcing Conte to call a timeout.
“I just wanted them to play with a little more confidence. I use the heel-toe theory – if you’re on your heels, you’re backing away from everything, you’re not attacking pucks and you’re giving them too much territory,” he noted. “We were trying to stay on them with our forecheck and we were just not skating. I think it was just a lack of confidence.”
The second period was a completely different story as the Raiders weren’t playing on their heels. Central Catholic got on the board just 1:51 into the period. Colin Moore picked up a loose puck at the right side and slid it over to the opposite side to Cameron Duval, who took two whacks at it before the puck rolled past goaltender Nick Ritchie.
Later on in the period, Central went on the power play. Cazimir Wotkowicz showed off excellent speed as he came down the right wing boards and got past a defenseman, before sliding the puck to the back post where Aiden Pinet snuck behind the defenseman to push it home making it a 3-2 game.
“We picked up our physicality in the second period and answered the bell. We were down 3-0 early in the first period and that’s a tough deficit to come back from,” said Conte.
Neither team had any legitimate scoring chances in the third, but Central Catholic squandered a big chance without putting a single shot on net in a power play opportunity coming with 6:27 remaining in the game.
“No, we couldn’t (get anything going). I don’t even think we got a shot on net. Maybe I’ll decline the next one,” Conte said sarcastically.
After giving up those three early goals, Central Catholic goalie Jake McLean (who picked up an assists on the second goal) played extremely well the rest of the way including completely robbing Mossy Kearney with a gorgeous glove save off a wrist shot from the low slot area coming with just under five minutes left in the first. McLean finished the game with 25 saves.
“(McLean) settled down. He’s a senior and last year he was injured so he doesn’t have a ton of varsity experience, but he’s a good goaltender and he’s building a lot of confidence,” said Conte. “We have three really good goalies, so it’s good to have a little competition during practice with those guys vying for the starting spot.”
Central is now 1-4-1 on the season, which includes a win over Shrewsbury, a tie with Andover and then losses to St. Mary’s of Lynn, Westford Academy, Archbishop Williams and now Pope Francis.
“This is a great tournament and we look forward to it every year. It’s a good gauge for us early on in the season to see where we’re at. Most of these teams are top five or at least top ten (in Division 1) in the state at the end of the year, so it’s good for us to get a good idea of where we stand,” said Conte. “We play a tough schedule. We’re certainly disappointed with our outcomes but it’s a long season and we have a lot of games left, a lot of league games left and a lot of strong non-league games as well. Nothing gets easier from here.”
Twitter: @Jamie Pote