Westfield entered the rink as one of the hottest teams in New Jersey, with a record of 5-0 and ranked as one of the top teams in the state. After two periods of their bout with Livingston, and a 2-0 lead heading into the third period, it was assumed the Blue Devils would uphold their dominant reputation.
However, Westfield took their foot off the gas just enough for the Lancers to score two unanswered goals and force overtime. Although energy was lacking, the Blue Devils knew they only needed one goal to remain undefeated.
Similar to the first two periods, Westfield maintained possession of the puck for a majority of the 5-minute timer. The Blue Devil attack was relentless, but couldn’t find its way to the back of the net with an impressive performance from Lancer goalkeeper Brody Teitelbaum and his overall 29 saves.
Livingston took the puck for just an instant and didn’t shy away from the opportunity. Sending a routine shot that snuck past the Westfield goalkeeper, the Lancer’s captured their victory over the Blue Devils, 3-2. Assistant coach Brendan Hickey said, “Our goalie played so well and it wasn’t really a good goal it was just a clunker that went in the net, he didn’t deserve to get scored on that way.”
Last year, Westfield defeated Livingston 4-1, and going into this game the team had plans of putting on a similar performance. Nevertheless, after the outcome head coach Joe Bertucci said, “We got complacent, instead of working hard we took our reputation for granted and thought that we would just continue to roll through teams.”
As the puck was dropped for the first face-off, players hit their sticks against the wall and spectators smacked the glass, creating a competitive atmosphere. For the first 10 minutes, intense defense from both sides kept the score 0-0. But, a pass from sophomore Liam Reed connected to senior Jackson Chicola’s stick flicked the puck into the goal.
Shortly after, with under two minutes left in the first period, sophomore Chris Smok gained another point for Westfield, and the scoreboard reflected 2-0.
The second period was 15 straight minutes of a defensive battle for the Lancers. But, even with a penalty on a Livinsgton senior Mitchell Friedman, the Blue Devils did not capitalize during their man-up. The second period gave no action to the scoreboard and many fans exited the rink assuming the outcome of the game to be solidified.
With 12 minutes left in the third period, a cluster surrounded the Westfield goal after a shot rebounded off junior Troy Conover’s leg gear, Lancer senior captain Matthew Zocks hit the puck past the goal line. Eight minutes later, senior Daniel Furman tied the game with a similar type of goal.
Overtime came and went, with Livinsgton advancing their record to 5-0-1 and Westfield’s undefeated record marred by a loss. Senior captain Jack Conrod said, “For the first two periods we were hungry, but in the third period we thought the game was over and we let them run all over us.”
Next, the Blue Devils will play away at 8:35 p.m. against Governor Livingston on Dec. 30. To prepare, Westfield will be focused on specific aspects of their gameplay during practice. Bertucci said, “We need to work on our power-play to build momentum. Also, in between the blue lines, we need to move our feet more.”
