MIDDLETON — There’s breaking the dam … and then there’s what the Essex Tech boys hockey team did in their Division 3 playoff opener on Thursday night.
The Hawks scored five times in the second period and were dominant throughout with an offensive avalanche that produced a 7-0 victory over Bishop Stang at Essex Sports Center.
Skill, guts and depth were all on display for No. 5 seed Essex Tech, which got goals from seven different skaters in the state tournament rout. Nursing a 2-0 lead after one, once the Hawks lit the lamp to start the second it was as if scoring became contagious. In the blink of an eye (or just over 6:00 of game time), four more were on the board.
“The bench just gets wicked excited anytime anybody scores. It’s like the rest of us can’t wait for our next shift so we can get out there and keep it going,” said senior captain Logan Casey, a Beverly native who scored in that middle period and was on the ice for four tallies.
Essex Tech (13-7-1) advances to face No. 12 Somerset/Berkley (16-2-2) in the Sweet 16 round back at Essex Sports Center on Sunday (5:30 p.m.). They certainly took care of business against the 37th seeded Spartans (11-10-1), putting 42 shots on goal (35 of them in the first 30 minutes) and forcing senior goalie Garrett White to make only 17 to earn a tournament shutout.
“I liked how we played … we didn’t overlook (Stang) and we came ready to play. It was nice to see the scoring spread out,” said Essex Tech head coach Mark Leonard after collecting the 15th state tournament win of his Hall of Fame coaching career.
Junior Anthony Bisenti netted the game winner in the first when defenseman Drew Carney won a puck at the blue line and sent Bisenti in on a mini-break away. In something of a hockey cardinal sin, the Hawks took a penalty a moment later … but junior center Brady Leonard made sure it was absolved.
After senior captain Chris Maher won the initial penalty killing draw, Leonard swooped on the puck and power his way by two Spartans for a breakaway. He finished off the shorthanded goal just nine seconds into the penalty (and 39 seconds after Bisenti’s goal).
“That shorthanded goal was huge, and it was Brady’s first shorty,” Mark Leonard said. “We’ve got a very good, very aggressive penalty kill. We’ve got speed so we want to use it, cause turnovers and get moving. That was a great individual effort by Brady, fighting a kid off then making a nice move and burying it.”
A crisp power play helped Essex Tech put the game away in the middle period as they connected twice on the man advantage. A great shot by defenseman Armani Booth (another captain) was tipped in by Jaydan Vargas to start the binge; the way the Hawks bounced the puck around the umbrella between Casey, Brady Leonard and the points to create scoring lanes was downright impressive.
“A lot of us have been together since we were eight years old … I’m probably the newest one, so we know where each other are at all times,” said Casey. “We practice it a tin … whipping the puck around and finding that open space.”
Ben Rehal’s knuckler from along the wall evaded Stang goalie Carter Vane thanks to a good screen from Tsoutsouris to make it 4-0. Senior Dominic Tiberii pounced on a Carney rebound for a 5-0 lead, Casey popped one in out front and Tsoutsouris rounded out the scoring with a rebound of his own.
Bisteni, Rehal and Carney all had multi-point nights. There wasn’t a ton of action in the third since the clock never stopped due to the Hawks holding a six-goal lead, but throughout the night the defensemen did a laudable job taking shots that were both accurate and tippable to create quality chances.
“We were hitting sticks. We work a lot on that,” Mark Leonard said. “Our defense is tremendous. They’re all good players, can skate and can move the puck. Those plays start with the D, but the forwards have to have good hands to get those tips.”
Booth stands 6-foot-3, Carney is 6-foot-4, Mason Sutcliffe goes 6-foot-1 and Andrew McKenna is 6-foot-3. That gives the Hawk defense an imposing look and none of them are afraid to set a physical tone.
“They’re all over six feet, besides my brother Cam. He’s 5-8 but he’ll go into a corner with anybody,” Logan Casey noted. “They all honestly love taking hits and that inspires us to work hard out there.”
A year after making the state quarterfinals, the Hawks will aim to return to that round with a win on Sunday. They know Somerset/Berkley, a 16-win club with 80 goals on the year, won’t be an easy foe.
“I’ve seen them play and they’re very good, a very dangerous offensive team. It’s going to be a tough game,” Mark Leonard said.
Essex Tech 7, Bishop Stang 0
Division 3 first round at Essex Sports Center, Middleton
Bishop Stang 0 0 0 0
Essex Tech 2 5 0 7
Scoring summary
First period: ET, Anthony Bisenti (Drew Carney), 11:55; ET, Brady Leonard (Chris Maher), shg, 12:34.
Second period: ET, Jaydan Vargas (Armani Booth, Bisenti), ppg, 2:26; ET, Ben Rehal (un), 4:53; ET, Dominic Tiberii (Carney), 6:19; ET, Logan Casey (Maher), 6:58; ET, Ted Tsoutsouris (Rehal, Cam Casey), ppg, 9:08.
Third period: No scoring.
Saves: BS, Carter Vane 35; ET, Garrett White 16.
Records: BS, 11-10-1; ET, 13-7-1.