Normally, any hockey game that ends with a 15-1 margin has little interest other than the curiosity about how one side put up so many goals against the other.
However, when Baldwinsville beat Mohawk Valley by that lopsided margin last Saturday at Lysander Ice Arena, it was special because it gave the Bees’ long-time head coach, Mark Lloyd, his 400th career victory.
Lloyd has coached B’ville for more than 30 years, and the highlights of his tenure include a 2005 run to the state Division I title game and a Section III championship in 2015.
Against Mohawk Valley, there was little suspense. B’ville led 4-0 after one period, reached double digits and got a 10-1 edge by the end of the second period before a five-goal run in the final period.
What made it even better, from the Bees’ standpoint, was the sheer variety of who contributed as 13 different players earned goals, with only Quinn Sweeney scoring more than once as he netted a three-goal hat trick.
Parker Schroeder finished with four assists, while Cam Sweeney, Michael Carni and Tyler Derito had three assists apiece. Nick Glamos and Jamey Natoli both earned a pair of assists.
Everyone in that group had a goal, as did Mark Monaco and Luke Hoskin, who earned single assists. Christian Treichler, Matt Speelman, Alex Pompo, Matt Carner and Christian Ficarra earned goals, too.
The holiday season is a chance for people of all backgrounds to show their generosity, and the sports world is not exempt from this spirit.
B’ville had an opportunity to support several different worthy causes in its pair of non-league home games at the tail end of 2018.
First, B’ville hosted Auburn, the reigning Section III Division II champions last Friday night, and it was a fund-raiser for the Central New York chapter of the Autism Society of America, preceded by the program’s annual Alumni Game.
The Alumni Game had a large turnout, and with more than $700 raised for the ASA, it was time for hockey, a game where Maroons star Johnny Malandruccolo made the difference as he helped defeat the Bees 5-2.
Malandruccolo had, earlier this month, surpassed 200 career points, a rare feat for a high-school player. Among other things, he had scored all six goals in a 6-3 win over Cicero-North Syracuse.
Now Malandruccolo did something close to that against B’ville. The game was 2-2 through two periods, with the Bees getting goals from Schroeder and Braden Lynch as Monaco, Pompo and Hoskin each had one assist.
However, Auburn took over in the third period, finding the net three times – and Malandruccolo finished with four goals, assisting on the other Maroons tally from Austin Black as Ty Hlywa got two assists.
Another big part of the story was the way Auburn goaltender Erin Colwek frustrated the Bees, stopping 33 of the 35 shots he faced and recording a third-period shutout. Tommy Blais had 18 saves for B’ville.
A day later, the Mohawk Valley game featured “Beads of Courage” and benefited Maureen’s Hope, a charity that provided arts experiences for children with serious illnesses.
Having secured Lloyd’s 400th win, the Bees could now turn to 2019, and on Friday went to the Duke Schneider Memorial Tournament at Skaneateles, taking on Williamsville South (Section VI) in the first round.
B’ville roared past the Billies 8-0, and when host Skaneateles blanked Pelham 7-0, the stage was set for a marquee Saturday final between the Bees and the state Division II no. 1-ranked Lakers.
Skaneateles would prevail, 4-2, largely on the basis of a hat trick by Cam Lowe, who put the Lakers on the board late in the first period with a power-play goal that Glamos answered with his own power-play tally in the last minute of the period.
Jack Henry gave Skaneateles a 2-1 lead by notching the only goal of the second period. Then Lowe made it 3-1 by converting again on the power play early in thefinal period.
Pompo’s rebound goal cut the Bees’ deficit to one again, but with 2:22 left Lowe clinched it by finding the net on a two-on-one breakaway, his shot eluding Blais, who finished with 28 saves. Chris Falso stopped 26 of B’ville’s 28 shot attempts.
With the loss, B’ville fell to 8-4 on the season, with only one game this week, a Friday trip to the Twin Rinks to face Cicero-North Syracuse.
