Martlets Defeat NMH

“Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more . . .” So intones Henry V before the gates of Harfleur to rally his troops for one final push that may end the siege. This could well have been the JVs rallying cry this afternoon, too, as the Martlets prepared for their second game of the weekend and fifth game in the first eight days of this young season. Playing with only 13 skaters owing to injury and illness, and with the able assistance of Thirds goalie Ethan Choi ‘25 backing up starter Alex Martinez ‘26 (thanks, Ethan, for jumping into the breach with us!), the Black and Gold certainly had their work cut out for them. The team could easily have referenced Henry again at Agincourt: “we few, we happy few, we band of brothers . . .” But led by Jack Adams ‘23, who contributed two goals, and with four other Martlets finding the back of the net, the team rose to the challenge and defeated the visiting Hoggers at Jackson Rink. Ultimately firing 49 shots at the Northfield Mount Hermon keeper – who made several quality saves throughout the game to keep his team competitive – the JVs played (for the most part) good structure and balanced play in all three zones to control the game. The scoring was opened by Ben Norten ‘25, who took a perfect pass off the far wall in the high slot from Jack Carter ‘23 and fired it home six minutes into the game. Carter, who had a solid two-way game once again, had pinched down from the blueline to keep the puck in the Hogger end. Jake Timone ‘25 doubled the lead roughly five minutes later, after a long period of possession in the NMH zone, when he won a faceoff, stepped around his opposing centerman, and fired the puck over the keeper’s left shoulder. After the break, Westminster played a strong second period and scored four goals – two of them on the powerplay. Adams collected a pass from Jack Rockefeller ‘23 on the near faceoff dot and fired a laser-like shot just under the crossbar to put the homeside up 3-0, and soon after Corbin Simons ‘25 beat two NMH defenders with a series of quick moves to make it 4-0. Norten and James Frangos ‘24 assisted on Simons’s goal. Two more Martlet goals came in a span of 30 seconds late in the period: Adams notched his second of the game off a pass from Evin Curtiss ‘25, again from the right faceoff dot, and then Carter ripped an absolute bullet from the high slot that rang off the crossbar before falling behind the NMH goalie. Frangos and Jack DeGulis ‘23 assisted on Carter’s goal with two quick passes from behind the NHM net. The only blemish in the game was some sloppy play in neutral ice by the JVs, when two blind, backhand passes (verboten on this team) led to an odd-man break for NMH against Martinez. The Hoggers made a quick combination play and buried the chance for their only goal. Martinez, who ultimately made 15 saves (many bailing his team out of a miscue) played well, and the one goal against really falls on the shoulders of the five skating Martlets in front of him. That completed the overall scoring on the evening, leaving the JVs with a 6-1 victory – a good result that places the team’s record at 3-1-1 heading into the winter break. Thanks, too, to Coach Desjardins for hopping on the bench to help out. The JVs also would like to thank the Frangos family for the post-game snacks (this coach thoroughly enjoyed his cider donut). Happy Holidays to all Westminster families and hockey fans, and we look forward to seeing you in January. The JVs next game will be on the road against Trinity-Pawling.