It’s admittedly been a trying year for the Rockport boys hockey team.
But in their regular season finale, the Vikings came to play.
Taking on Lowell at Newburyport’s Graf Rink late Tuesday night, head coach Garrett Stevens’ group earned a hard fought 4-2 victory to close things out on a high note. Finnish transfer Juuso Pesonen scored twice to lead the charge while Hudson Wood and Ryan Meaney also found the back of the net in the win.
“We bookended our season with a truly team-first win,” said Stevens, his team snapping a 14-game losing streak with the triumph. “The usual suspects — Meaney, (Matt) Coughlin and (Ben) Ranier — were buzzing, but our depth was on display with the likes of Pesonen doubling his (season) goal total while playing alongside friend, linemate and an absolute nail gun of a player in Timothy Patrick. Ben Sperry also had a tremendous night and Ryan Fazio was a threat all over the ice.”
In a season where starting goalies Luke Holmes and Cooper Miller have regularly shined in net, Mike Bruce came on in relief at the end of the first period after Holmes was injured and made 17 saves on 19 shots. Miller was already skating on defense in the win.
“He looked stellar,” Stevens said of Bruce.
Patrick assisted on both of Pesonen’s goals on the evening while Ranier and Danny Brophy each tallied one helper.
Although they still have an outside shot to do so, Rockport (3-17) likely won’t qualify for the Division 4 state tournament again this winter (they were ranked No. 36 in Tuesday’s MIAA power rankings). But if nothing else, the season-ending victory will certainly provide a momentum boost heading into the offseason.