Magical Hockey Season Comes to an End

The magical playoff run for the SHS boy’s hockey team has unfortunately come to a close. After stunning upsets against higher-ranked Medway, Bishop Feehan and Canton, the Sailors fell just short in a hard-fought 2-1 defeat to top-seeded Medfield.

The Sailors played underdog for most of the season after going 2-6 to begin the year. They rebounded, though, and finished the regular season with a 12-8-1 record, earning them a number 10 seed in the 2016 MIAA Ice Hockey Boys South Division II tournament. This hot streak included a shocking win against Pembroke, one of the strongest teams in the entire state. Once the playoffs started, Scituate continued to embrace the underdog role as they dispatched several highly seeded teams, but in the end, Medfield proved too great a challenge.

The MIAA Boys Hockey Division II South Final game began with Scituate on the offensive. The first five minutes was filled with gasps from the Scituate crowd as several pucks were just shy from hitting the back of the net including a chance from Ryan Harrigan that hit the post but wouldn’t go in. Medfield’s Matt Treiber notched the first goal of the game, though, when he flung a powerful shot toward the net. Senior goaltender David Sheehan seemingly made the save, but the puck took a weird bounce off Sheehan — over his shoulder and into the net.  The first period came to close as Medfield clung to a one goal lead.

The game increased in physicality in the second. Jake McCarthy sent a Medfield player head-first into the boards. He went limp as soon as he hit the ice, but began moving around again just as the medical personnel made their way onto the ice. While the crowd fixated on the downed Medfield player, junior defensemen Cam Francis writhed in pain on the other end of the ice. While it is still unclear as to what happened with Francis (some say he slipped and others say he was hit from behind), he left the game with the help of two teammates. It was later determined that he had fractured his ankle. Medfield’s Brian Abely extended his team’s lead in the second as he beat Sheehan stick side after grabbing a loose puck.

Despite the two-goal deficit with only a period left to play, Scituate fans remained hopeful. This hope merely increased early in the third as junior Tommy Marhoffer scored from just around the blue line with a shot that sailed through a sea of players and found the top corner of the net. As time ticked down, Scituate continued to put pressure on the net, but they weren’t able to capitalize on these chances. With under a minute left, Scituate had a faceoff in the opponent’s zone. It seemed as if Scituate would be able to pull off another magical comeback. To Scituate’s horror, they lost the faceoff, and the time expired on their season.

Although Scituate wasn’t able to make it to the Garden, they shattered expectation and went on an astounding playoff run that epitomized David and Goliath.  The resounding reaction after the game is that even as time was running out, fans still believed that Scituate would somehow be able to pull out the victory — a true testament to their special playoff run. Scituate boy’s hockey may not be Garden-bound this season, but fans and players alike are already eager for next season in which they hope to finish the journey they started this year.