Martlets Defeat Kent

The Martlets welcomed the Kent Lions for an early evening Founders League matchup at Jackson Rink. This annual tilt is always a tight game – in this old coach’s long memory, it always seems to be a one-goal contest one way or the other. This game did not disappoint, and the assembled faithful were treated to the most complete game the JVs have played this year as the team tallied four unanswered goals in the third period to skate away with the victory, 5-4. Putting sustained pressure on the Lion keeper (pun intended) and firing 43 shots on the Kent cage over the course of the game, the Martlets put in a determined effort and earned the dramatic victory. Though Westminster jumped out at the puck drop with good energy and pace, Kent, matching the Martlets shift for shift, scored two goals in the first to post an early 0-2 lead. Netminder Jake Holland ‘24, whose play improves with each game, was left alone on the first goal when the home side failed to cover the high slot, and the second Kent goal took a wild couple of bounces out of the corner and somehow found its way into the net. The Martlets absorbed those blows, buckled up their helmets, and got to work. Ben Norten ‘25 cut the Kent lead in half on the powerplay, collecting the rebound of a Reid Bulger ‘24 shot from the blue line and finding the back of the net with 4:38 remaining in the period. That goal certainly energized the Martlets, and they carried that momentum into the locker room for the break though trailing 1-2. The second period began where the first ended, with the Martlets peppering the Kent net. But an early miscue on the offensive blue line led to an odd-man break for the Lions, and suddenly the JVs found themselves down 1-3. Renewing their efforts, the team got back to work and generated several good scoring chances, but the Lion goalie was either equal to the task or the puck clanged angrily off the iron (the Martlets hit at least four posts or crossbars in the period). With the Martlets pressing, at the 6:35 mark of the second Kent took advantage of Westminster’s failure to get the puck out of the zone and hammered the bisquit past Holland to make it 1-4, and it began to look like one of those nights that all hockey fans dread: the scrappy home team simply without any puck luck. But with the coaches behind them, the team continued to battle hard, and in fact their play kept getting stronger. Holland led the way: from that point forward he was the Lion tamer (pun intended), shutting the door on the visitors and making several strong saves. Hollsey had 23 saves in the game and kept the Lions off the board for the final 24:25. That strong performance set the stage for the exciting third. Down 1-4, the Martlets played with the kind of true grit Rooster Cogburn himself would be proud of. Controlling the puck down low in the Kent end and creating chance after chance, the Jackson Rink ice slowly tilted in the Black and Gold’s favor. Jack Grahling ‘25, who had one of his best games of the year, cut the Kent lead to 2-4 when he took a pass from Anthony DiBartolomeo ‘25 from below the goal line and rifled it home. Though it’s not on the scoresheet, that play began in center ice when Jackson Alpaugh ‘24 retrieved a fifty-fifty puck and gained the zone before getting the puck deep. Grahling’s goal came with 9:44 on the clock, and the bench, and the capacity crowd, were on their feet. Blueliner Matt Hanrahan ‘26 made it a 3-4 game three minutes later with a low hard shot from the point through traffic; Auggie Barrett ‘24, fresh off the IR, fed Hanrahan to set up the shot. Less than a minute later, Dylan Ness ‘26 tied the game with a nifty goal from the slot, collecting a perfect pass from Daniel Venture ‘24 from the near side. Linemate Xavier Kahn '27 won the puck in the corner and found Venture to start that play. All three of those goals were the result of solid forechecking from all three lines (the JVs are still shorthanded). In particular, the line of Jack Peterson ‘25, Zac Jainchill ‘25, and Benji Hanson ‘27 did their blue-collar job well, bottling up the Kent defensemen and keeping the puck in the Lion end. When Kent did break the puck out, the Martlet defensemen (Bulger, Hanrahan, Norten, Lane Gallagher ‘25, Richard Kim ‘25, and Max Simpson ‘24, all of whom played solidly) managed the attacks well and held down the fort, with Holland there between the pipes when needed. And then came the thunderclap: with 3:03 to go, and the puck moving crisply around the Kent end, Hanrahan fired another low shot from the far point that Ness, perfectly positioned in the low slot, deftly deflected just inside the Kent post for the go-ahead goal. Though the ref instantly signaled a good goal, there was a discussion between the two officials and a call to the league office in Toronto while the fans waited on tenterhooks (unfortunately, no replay was available as the jumbotron was at the moment showing the “kiss cam”). After review, the goal stood and the Martlets were on top, 5-4. The final three minutes were thrilling, with the Lions desperately looking to tie the game and the Martlets holding on. Hollsey answered the bell a few final times, and both teams called timeouts to strategize and rest their legs and heighten the drama for the fans. But when the final horn sounded, it was the home Black and Gold with the dramatic come-from-behind victory – a well-earned and deserved win given the team’s terrific overall play this evening. The boys relished in the victory in the locker room for a bit and then enjoyed some pizza – which always tastes better after a win. The hard hat went to Hanrahan for his contributions, but in truth, the whole team deserves a hard hat for this one. The coaches could not be more pleased with the effort, the teamwork, and of course the result. The team will be back on the ice Monday and will have two days to prepare for the Winged Beavers of Avon Old Farms – perennially one of the strongest teams in the league. That game will be at home on Wednesday at 2 pm – reserve your tickets now as every true hockey fan in the Farmington Valley is sure to be at the gate. See you at the rink!