By DAN PAWLOWSKI
LEXINGTON — It took three periods and an overtime to determine that the Wakefield and Lexington boys’ hockey teams were even on Wednesday night at the Hayden Ice Arena.
Lexington took a 1-0 lead after one and the two teams combined for three goals in an exciting 2nd period, making it 2-2. A tense 3rd period and entertaining overtime went scoreless accounting for the tie after 50 minutes of play.
“It was a very positive outcome even with the tie,” said Wakefield head coach John Vater. “The group is starting to figure out their identity.”
Part of that identity is about getting the team to full strength, something they haven’t experienced all year with key players missing multiple games including senior captain Cam DePrizio who has been out for the season with an injury.
Junior goalie David Rocca was the latest to miss time with a concussion, leaving the Warriors without their starter for nearly three weeks. He made his return against the Minutemen and picked up 12 saves.
“I think he looked really sharp for missing almost three weeks,” said Vater. “It definitely affected the team in a positive way and made everyone a little more confident.”
The Warriors also adjusted their lineup, sending senior captain and four-year starting defensemen Trevor Veilleux up to the forward group, taking up left wing on the first line alongside juniors JP Casey and Brady Walsh. Veilleux responded by collecting 2 assists, consistently setting up his teammates for golden opportunities throughout the night.
“We had great results with that move,” said the coach. “It led to a lot more possession time.”
The Warriors certainly had more time in the offensive zone than the Minutemen in this one and Wakefield outshot Lexington 37-14, but sophomore goalie Timmy Rinaldi was the up to the task all night, making multiple highlight-reel saves to frustrate the visitors.
Wakefield played a sharper 1st period and outshot Lexington 9-3 but the Minutemen still took a 1-0 lead with about a minute left on a power play goal than came after a direct shot on net from the face-off dot.
Rocca made a key pad stop to start the 2nd and Wakefield killed an early penalty, leading again to more zone time and better opportunities but Lexington somehow put home another on a near-side finish off a rebound with 9 minutes left to take an improbable 2-0 lead.
Wakefield’s response was admirable, choosing to battle back rather than get down. Just 30 seconds after Lexington took a two-goal lead the Warriors got one back from Casey who ripped the puck top-shelf from the slot after a perfect feed from Veilleux.
After junior Tommy DeFeo nicely broke up a 2-on-1 chance, he helped Veilleux and Walsh keep the pressure on the Minutemen with multiple more great chances as the period was winding down.
Sticking with it, the Warriors found their equalizer with 58 seconds left in the frame from the stick of sophomore John Scarpello. DeFeo also earned an assist on the play, getting the puck to Veilleux who found Scarpello in front.
Unable to shake the injury bug this year, Wakefield had to adjust when senior defenseman Daegan Pothier exited with an injury in the 1st and the Warriors later lost junior forward Jack Simoneau as well.
Even still, Wakefield was the better team in the 3rd, getting great pressure from Walsh and Casey up front.
“Casey and Walsh carried the load offensively,” said Vater.
Wakefield also got terrific play from the likes of freshman defensemen Michael Yianacopolus and sophomore forward John Taylor. Taylor’s diving poke check stopped an odd man rush and soon after, Rocca kept the game level with a sprawling pad save.
The overtime, which features 5 minutes of 4-on-4 play, was even early with Rinaldi robbing Yianacopolus on Wakefield’s first good chance in extra time. That save only pushed Rinaldi on as he came up with stops on all four of Wakefield’s shots on goal in OT.
“We had our opportunities with multiple scoring chances,” said Vater.
In the end, the Warriors felt like a win was there for the taking, but earning points is always a nice result.
The Warriors fell to 1-13-1 after a 4-0 loss to Wilmington on Saturday afternoon.
They will host Melrose (7-7-1) tonight, 8 p.m. at the Stoneham Arena. Melrose won the first matchup 4-1 on Jan. 8.
The Warriors were ranked No. 23 out of 50 teams in the latest Div. 3 power rankings with their opponent ranking one of the highest in the state.
With five games left, a playoff appearance is certainly a possibility as the top 32 ranked teams automatically qualify. Melrose is ranked No. 7 in D3.