As junior Liam Duffy flew down the ice with complete control and confidence over the puck, the crowd watched intensely from behind the glass. With a strong shot straight into the goal, Duffy scored his second goal of the night, giving the Blue Devils a 3-2 lead. With two more goals early in the third period, Westfield solidified their win over Governor Livingston 5-2.
“Offense was cooking today. I felt like we didn’t let them get out of their zone, and we attacked there,” Duffy said. “We prepped before the game. We knew their [defense] was going to be weak. We knew if we attacked them, we could take control of the game.”
With multiple penalties throughout the game including a 5 minute major penalty, the team had to focus on making sure the Highlanders were not able to capitalize on power plays. Head coach Joseph Bertucci said, “We had to kill off a lot of penalties. Our penalty kill was strong. I think just focusing on playing 5-on-5 hockey and not going to the box every couple minutes was important.”
Bertucci continued, “We have to understand we have to play better hockey. We’re going to watch some film tomorrow, take a look at the little things and just focus on being mentally more prepared and physically heading into Wednesday’s game.”
Senior goalie and assistant captain Troy Conover played a crucial part in last night’s win for the Blue Devils. The defense was strong all night and allowed few chances for Governor Livingston. “We made sure to keep everything out of the front of the net, and play simple structured hockey,” Conover said. Conover recorded 22 saves including a couple huge saves in the second period.
With their 5-2 win over Governor Livingston, Westfield remains undefeated through their first three games. Outscoring their opponents by at least three goals in each game, the Blue Devils have proven their dominance early in their season.
The boys are back in action on Wednesday against Cranford at 6:30 p.m. The last 5 times the team has played against Cranford, they have outscored them 27-12, winning every game. They look to continue that rivalry dominance and keep the hot streak.
With a quick turn around, the team will need to rest and prepare for their home game against the Cougars. Senior defender Luke Fitzgerald stated, “We need to eat well, sleep well, drink a lot of water, go to film tomorrow and then, be back here on Wednesday ready to work.”
