Martlets Fall to Bears

“Tell me, O Muse, of the man of many devices, who wandered full many ways . . .” — oh, I beg your pardon, I didn’t see you there. Those, of course, are the opening lines of The Odyssey, but you’re not here for Homer’s well-told tale. You’re here for some hockey. To the point: the Martlets went on a bit of an odyssey of their own Saturday night, departing campus in the afternoon to travel to the wilderness of Sheffield, Massachusetts and the Berkshire Bears for a Saturday evening contest, returning late in the evening. Though the Black and Gold battled with Myrmidon-like commitment, particularly in the 2nd and 3rd periods, ultimately the team fell short by a score of 5-7. A familiar refrain this year has been the strong goaltending of our opponents and this game was no exception: the Martlets dominated the game for good stretches and ultimately outshot the Bears, 43-24, forcing the Bears’ keeper to turn aside 38 Martlet shots. The Bears play an energetic, edgy, physical game, and the match was a scrap from the puck drop. There were 17 total penalties on the score sheet at the end - 12 for Berkshire and 5 for Westminster – a fair representation of the tenor of the game. The Martlets, perhaps a little flat after the long voyage northwest between the Scylla and Charybdis of bitter snow squalls and the Litchfield Hills, fell behind quickly, 0-2 five minutes in as Berkshire attacked with enthusiasm and took advantage of some untimely Westminster miscues. Netminder Jake Holland ‘24 had his hands full in those opening moments and made several strong saves, but too often tonight he was left alone on rebounds and melees in front. The game settled in after that, but once again the JVs found themselves the Menelaus to their opponents’ Helen, chasing the lead. Dylan Ness ‘26 broke through with a terrific goal on the rush with just under 4 minutes to play in the opening frame, taking a nifty backhand pass from linemate Daniel Venture ‘24 near the faceoff dot and firing the puck low off the near post. That certainly energized the Martlets, and after a quick chat about elevating their play between the first and second verses, the Martlets went back to work. Jackson Alpaugh ‘24 evened the score at 2-2 early in the second when he buried a cross-crease pass from Jack Grahling ‘25 on the power play; Westminster had maintained good zone possession and was assailing the Bear’s goalie when Anthony DiBartolomeo ‘24 - the team’s man of many devices – found Grahling below the goal line. Alpaugh almost added to the lead moments later on the exact same play but was denied by the Berkshire keeper on what was the save of the game – maybe the save of the year. This line had one of their stronger games this campaign, forechecking hard and generating productive offense. The trio notched 3 goals and 7 points to lead the Martlet effort. Grahling made it 3-2 Westminster barely a minute later, again on the power play, when he dug into the low slot and won a puck battle to score on a rebound of an Alpaugh shot; DiBartolomeo also collected an assist on that play. The Bears came right back, however, and taking advantage of a missed defensive assignment in front of Holland evened the score at 3-3. Berkshire got the next one as well, also on a blown coverage, to retake the lead. It didn’t last long: Grahling, playing tough physical hockey to match the Bears’ intensity and complementing that effort with his skill, scored his second of the night off a perfect pass from DiBartolomeo. Reid Bulger ‘24, who probably played over half of the game and, with Hector-like poise, led the team, also assisted on the play. Berkshire made it 5-4 in this back-and-forth affair with less than two minutes to go in the 2nd frame when a puck bounce on the Bears’ blue line led to a breakaway. That was unfortunate, as the JVs seemed to be taking control. Nevertheless, the Martlets welcomed the ice-cleaning after the 2nd, as undermanned again, particularly on the blue line, a rest was needed. Recovering and recommitting themselves to the effort, the Black and Gold came flying out in the 3rd and quickly tied up the game 5-5 on a goal from Venture. This time, it was Ness returning the favor, streaking up the right-hand side and finding Venture in the slot. Xavier Kahn ‘27 also assisted on Venture’s goal. At 5-5, the Martlets had regained the momentum and continued to attack. If this old coach were a betting man (which he’s not), he’d have laid a fair sum on the Martlets pulling away. But it was not to be: a mishandled puck here, another quirky bounce there, and Berkshire – who to their credit kept right on battling themselves – managed 2 more goals, the second a real soul-crusher, in the final seven minutes. For their part, the Martlets kept firing, but there were simply no more arrows in the quiver. When the final horn sounded the score was 5-7 in favor of the home side, and the JVs, to the man, had given everything they had. Epic poems could be written of the five stalwart blueliners who laced ‘em up for the Martlets tonight: Bulger, rock-solid as always, Dillon Seals ‘25, who played a very strong game, and Lane Gallagher ‘25, Richard Kim ‘25, and Max Simpson ‘24, all of whom logged major minutes and hung tough despite the challenge of playing on a big ice surface with thin numbers. Also contributing to the effort were centerman Reed Ghriskey ‘26, who gets better every game, and the forwards Zac Jainchill ‘25, Auggie Barrett ‘24, Benji Hanson ‘27, and Nick Wurts ‘24. The Black and Gold retreated from the “well-walled” Berkshire citadel with their heads high, confident they left nothing on the ice. Jack Grahling earned the hard hat for his grittiness and complete game – Grahling responded excellently to a challenge from his coach after his very first shift and played a really strong overall game. Hearing the distant Siren-song of the Canaan McDonald’s, the team loaded their armor and boarded their shiny, wheeled trireme for the long voyage home. To their sorrow, however, the lads found that alluring island closing for the evening – the bright “M” sign a true deception. Avoiding an impending shipwreck and under the guidance of a competent pilot, the squad got the wind at their backs and made their way to a safe harbor in Winsted. After a hearty banquet filled with boasting and song, the Martlets finally returned home to their Penelopes at 10:45 pm, the odyssey completed, the story told. The team will polish up their armor, sharpen their xiphoi, and prepare for the final week of the season. Next up: a rematch with Founders League rival Avon Old Farms on the road on Wednesday. The Winged Beavers ably snatched a victory from the Martlets last time around, so the team will be ready. Shields clash at 4:30 pm. See you at the rink!