By Avonlea Cummings
Hometown Weekly Sports Reporter
Walpole fans bundled up and traveled to the Boston Sports Institute on Wednesday, January 24. Fans ventured out to cheer on the Walpole boys hockey team as they competed against their hosts, the Wellesley Raiders. It was a vigorous competition for both of the teams as they faced off in the league match, and the Timberwolves worked hard to defend their net but the boys would come short of the Raiders, falling 1-4.
As the puck drop commenced the first period, the Walpole boys were covering the ice with speed, and a strong wall of defense, denying any scoring chances the Wellesley Raiders were trying to execute. The Timberwolves wove around the Raiders across the neutral zone looking to take shots on the Raiders’ net.
Ten minutes passed throughout the first quarter, and the game was still scoreless. The Timberwolves showed their stick-work skills to slip past the Wellesley defense but were unable to capitalize on their shots taken. However, with three minutes to go into the first, the Raiders quickly snuck the puck past the Walpole’s defense to mark up the first point on the scoreboard, giving the Raiders the lead. Just 24 seconds after their first goal, Wellesley would strike again on the Timberwolves’ defense and slammed the puck into the back of the net once more to close the first period 2-0.
Once the second period began, Walpole was full of energy, with fire ignited underneath their skates. Soaring around the ice, Walpole was passing the puck well and defended their net closely. Just under five minutes into the second period, the Timberwolves responded to the Raiders' first two goals as sophomore Mike Conners slipped the puck past the Raiders’ goal line, narrowing Wellesley’s lead. Walpole fans grinned and celebrated the young hockey player’s goal that gave the Timberwolves another kickstart of energy pumping into the period. The Walpole boys would continue to silence any of Wellesley’s efforts to score throughout the rest of the second period, and Walpole would close the period 2-1.
The third period was full of emotion and grit as both teams were driven to score. The match became heated on the ice, and the Timberwolves were looking to capitalize on any power-play chances they got. However, the Walpole boys’ were faced with challenges in the third period as they were put to the test, having multiple penalty kill opportunities on the ice. The time clock continued to dwindle, and the Timberwolves got two penalties at once leaving the team to defend their net three on five against the Raiders. With a dual power-play, Wellesley capitalized and scored their third goal of the evening with just three seconds left. The Timberwolves worked diligently to defend their net, but the Raiders were able to sneak past Walpole’s defense. Pulling their goalie, Walpole added another player onto the ice hopping to get another point on the scoreboard before time was up.
Headed towards their offensive zone, Walpole’s possession was snagged away from the Raiders and Wellesley skated rapidly down the ice where they would get their fourth goal of the evening on an empty net with a minute to go in the third period. The Timberwolves were resilient in the competition never giving in to the Raiders’ challenges, but Wellesley would close the night on top, leaving Walpole 1-4.
Head coach Ron Dowd shared what his team has been focusing on so far this season, and spoke highly of the night’s goal scorer Mike Conners: “We had stressed that we have to forecheck better, and to get into the dirty areas of the net since we haven’t been able to score. We did something better tonight, we were able to take some strides forward but not as much as we needed. He (Mike Conners) is a very coachable kid, he is a sophomore, and he’s got a lot of heart… He’s got a lot of energy, he’s fast, and he wants to compete. He’s a sponge, you say something and he absorbs it. We kept saying to go to the net and go to the dirty areas of the net, and that’s exactly how he scored. He did the little things right,” said Dowd.
The boys will host Braintree High at the Rodman Arena on Saturday, February 3 at 1 PM.
