WAKEFIELD — The Wakefield High boys’ hockey team concluded their regular season on Wednesday night at Larsen Rink in Winthrop with a 2-2 tie against the Vikings.
With that, the Warriors (ranked No. 22 in Div. 3) finished their regular season at 2-16-2 but are expected to make the state tournament thanks to their strength of schedule, which along with other Middlesex League teams, is considered to be the toughest in Div. 3.
Wakefield can certainly say they’ve played their best hockey during the final five games of the regular season.
Following a 5-4 loss in a thriller against rival Melrose (No. 8 in D3) on Feb. 4, the Warriors hosted Stoneham (No. 1 in D4) for Senior Night on Feb. 8 with the Spartans winning another close one, 2-0.
Wakefield kept at it and finally broke through with a huge, 3-2 win over Burlington (No. 20 in D1) on Feb. 12.
That was followed by 3-2 loss to Watertown (No. 13 in D3) this past Sunday before the 2-2 tie against Winthrop (No. 3 in D4) this week.
Through this home stretch against playoff teams, the Warriors proved that they are ready for states. The brackets will be released on Saturday.
Wakefield celebrated their six seniors — captains Cam DePrizio, George Palmer and Trevor Veilleux along with Michael Carroll, Ryan Metsis and Daegan Pothier — before their matchup with Stoneham.
The Warriors played well, they just couldn’t capitalize on any opportunities.
“We played a great game, just couldn’t find the back of the net,” said head coach John Vater. “After the game, the Stoneham coaches agreed that we controlled it we just couldn’t buy a goal. Overall, it was a really great effort for the seniors.”
That effort was replicated four days later at the Burlington Ice Palace. The Red Devils won the first matchup 4-0 on Jan. 14, but a healthier Wakefield squad meant a more even matchup as the Warriors brought a renewed energy on the road and didn’t get down when they trailed 1-0 after one period or 2-0 in the 2nd. Wakefield tied it in the 2nd after goals by Metsis and sophomore John Taylor.
The game-winner was scored by junior Brady Walsh with 2:56 left in the game.
Junior goalie David Rocca held on for the win.
“We had a slow start to the first period,” said Vater. “But as we got going into the second we took over the game’s time of possession. The second and third periods, I felt we were the better team. For us, it’s all about our systems. The team is really starting to find their identity.”
Taylor’s goal came on a 2-on-1 rush with junior Jack Simoneau who fed one through a stick to Taylor, setting up a nice forehand, backhand deke and finish. Pothier also assisted on the goal.
The equalizer from Metsis came on the power play with just over a minute left in the frame. Taylor and junior JP Casey won a battle on the boards and eventually got it back to Veilleux whose point shot was tipped home by Metsis.
Veilleux picked up his second assist of the night on Walsh’s game-winner. The captain, who has played as both a defensemen and forward for Wakefield this year, burned a defender on a self-pass along the boards in the neutral zone before centering a perfect dish to Walsh who calmly collected it and buried it for the 3-2 lead. Sophomore Brayden Myette also assisted on the goal.
With their biggest win of the season in their pocket, Wakefield came up just short to Watertown back at the Stoneham Arena but their tie against Winthrop once again has the team trending up as the postseason looms.
There are plenty of talented teams in Div. 3 but the Warriors can throw their hats in the ring, confident in the fact that they have competed against the best teams in the state all season.
In addition to the previously mentioned tourney-bound teams, Wakefield has also faced off against Bedford (No. 7 in D3), Woburn (No. 2 in D2), Winchester (No. 11 in D1), Reading (No. 9 in D1), Belmont (No. 7 in D1) and Arlington (No. 6 in D1). That gauntlet means the Warriors won’t see any top-end talent in the D3 tourney that they haven’t already competed against.
There are projected to be 35 teams in the D3 tourney. If Wakefield’s ranking holds at No. 22 or 23, they would likely hit the road in the first round against either the 10th or 11th ranked team, right now Methuen (No. 10, 13-3-2) or Shawsheen Tech (No. 11, 14-3-1).
The tournament is expected to begin sometime next week after the brackets are released on Saturday. Brackets can be found at MIAA.net under the “Tournaments” tab.