Arlington, MA – The Cougars of Arlington Catholic were looking for a win at home tonight against the Lions of Chelmsford HS in a Saturday night non-league game.
Both of these teams held nothing back to start this game. Lots of gritty plays and tons of physicality all over the ice, and Chelmsford would strike three minutes into the period. Senior captain AJ Bongiorno would run a give-and-go off the right wall with senior captain Cole Pelkey. Pelkey fired a shot from slot that bounced off the AC goalie Alex Gosselin. The puck would end up back on Pelkey’s stick and he would fire it five hole, giving Chelmsford the 1-0 lead. The Cougars worked extremely hard and smart on their forechecks and would carry most of the play the rest of the way but were ultimately held scoreless in the period.
From the drop of the puck in the second, AC controlled the second period. At the 11-minute mark they would finally get on the board. Senior forward Thomas Driscoll picked up a puck in the neutral zone with speed coming down the right wing side. He beat the defensemen then cut to the middle with speed and dragged the puck around Chelmsford goalie Mark Bierwirth, sliding it home, far side. Two minutes later AC would take the lead. Junior defenseman Patrick Mozuch hit senior forward Paul Magalhaes with a breakout pass and he drove through the neutral zone and right down to the bottom of the left faceoff circle. He then ripped a shot that Bierwirth stopped but freshman forward Stephen Constantine was on the doorstep to bury the rebound, 2-1 Cougars. Just a few minutes later Magalhaes would give AC their third goal of the period. Driscoll picked up a puck in the neutral zone and chipped it to Magalhaes who drove the net once again but this time he wouldn’t miss, beating the Chelmsford goalie glove side. Chelmsford made a push at the end of the period and scored their second of the night when sophomore forward Austin Marmo knocked the AC defenseman off the puck in the right corner and centered it to a wide-open sophomore forward Nicky Lafreniere who beat Gosselin over the blocker. The period would end 3-2.
Chelmsford came out flying in the third period. They played a hard and physical 15 minutes and tried to set the tone, looking to create turnovers on the forecheck. The Cougars had to pick up their pace and ultimately it ended up being a pretty even period. Both teams had a good pace up and down the ice and there were a few scoring chances but ultimately Arlington Catholic would hold for the 3-2 win.
Three Stars:
1. F Paul Magalhaes, Arlington Catholic
2. F Thomas Driscoll, Arlington Catholic
3. F Stephen Constantine, Arlington Catholic
