Verona passed the puck up center ice, looking to convert on a five-versus-three power play in hopes of igniting a spark amongst a melancholy bench. The puck whistled past Blue Devil goaltender Andrew Raber, cutting the Westfield lead down to just one. As the second period came to a close, the life and energy had been sucked out of the Blue Devils.
“We wanted to work hard and simplify the game,” explained head coach Joe Bertucci on the Blue Devils’ strategy going into the game.
From the get-go the Blue Devils were aggressive in their defensive play, winning loose pucks and turning defense into offense thanks to help from seniors Simon Thompson and Jonathan Gorski. Defense was the name of the game throughout the first period, with both Raber and Verona’s goalies stepping up big to keep the score at an even 0-0. With a big opportunity for the Hillbillies, Raber shined. Three Verona players surrounded the crease, attempting to put in a rebound from a previously blocked shot, and as Raber fell onto the puck cheers erupted from the Blue Devil stands.
With five minutes left in the first period, the Blue Devils were faced with their first penalty kill of the night. Again the Blue Devils stood strong, not allowing any opportunities to develop. A huge chunk of time was ripped off the Verona power-play after Thompson was able to gain control of the puck and dump it into Verona territory.
A familiar face was scratched from the lineup in sophomore Aidan Wilson, Westfield’s leading points scorer. “That was a personal decision,” explained Bertucci, who added that he “wants to keep it personal and inside the family.”
The second period was an exciting one, with 3 goals scored. The opportunities came early for Westfield when freshman Andrew Lisnock ripped a wrist shot that was just saved by the Verona goaltender. The Blue Devils would really find their opportunity with 8:30 remaining in the second period when sophomore Jackson Chicola weaved through Hillbilly defenders to get the puck to captain Joey Tortorella, who would sink the shot to break the tie. Westfield would get another goal when sophomore Kris Richards found Gorski right in front, who would put it past the Verona goalie pushing the score to 2-0. “It takes the pressure off our backs defensively,” said Gorski.
However, the lead wouldn’t last long. With three minutes left in the period, senior assistant captain John McDonald found his way to the penalty box after a questionable roughing call, resulting in an uproar from the fans. Not even a minute after the roughing call, junior Alex Ebel was escorted to the penalty box after a slashing call, leaving the door open for Verona in which they would capitalize.
The third period was dismal for the Blue Devils. Early in the period Verona’s Rowan Brennan cut through Westfield’s defense, crossed the blue line and put it top shelf on Raber without a Blue Devil in sight. The Blue Devils would continue to have shots on goal, yet when the opportunity presented itself the Blue Devils couldn’t get a stick on the puck. Tortorella would make a centering pass—as the clock was winding down—to assistant captain Zach Park, who was unable to get a shot on net as the Blue Devils turned over possession to Verona.
“We’re not good enough right now,” said Bertucci. The Blue Devils had 46 shots on goal and were only able to come away with 2 goals. “It’s disappointing,” said Bertucci. Bertucci also added that “hopefully we can learn from this. It’s adversity and we’ll see how the team responds. We got to hit it head on right now.”
The Blue Devils will look to bounce back on Monday at Warinanco Park in the Union County Tournament quarterfinals.
