Opponents of the Skaneateles ice hockey team are fast learning that knocking players down accomplishes little – except, perhaps, more trouble down the road.
New Hartford learned this lesson in the harshest way possible during Sunday afternoon’s Section III Division II final at Utica Memorial Auditorium, where the state no. 1-ranked Lakers saw Raymond Falso take a couple of hard hits – but rebound to record a hat trick in a 4-0 shutout of the Spartans.
It was, in Falso’s words, “a bit of unfinished business”, dating back a full year.
Even as reigning state champions, Skaneateles did not hold the sectional crown, having lost to CBA/Jamesville-DeWitt in last winter’s final before avenging that defeat as an at-large team during the state semifinals two weeks later en route to the state championship.
So this was the Lakers’ first sectional title since 2008, and head coach Mitch Major said he is quite aware of what his team accomplished.
“It’s nice to win the sectional title,” said Major. “This is a great section, and it’s tough to get out of it (and advance).”
Either way, Skaneateles was familiar with playing on the big ice surface at Utica Auditorium, and hungry for a sectional title.
It also wanted to conquer New Hartford, something it didn’t do Jan. 14 on the Spartans’ home ice, when it needed a last-minute goal in regulation to salvage a 3-3 tie after squandering an early two-goal lead. Falso said that his team didn’t finish on many scoring chances on that night and was determined to do so here.
The key match-up pitted the Lakers’ potent first line of Falso, Reece Eddy and Reggie Buell against a Spartans defense that had not allowed a goal in either of their playoff games against Cortland-Homer (2-0) and Cazenovia (4-0).
It took less than one period for that shutout streak to end. Late in the opening frame, Skaneateles, having just killed off a New Hartford power play, got a man advantage of its own and, at the 13:21 mark, Buell converted it when, at the doorstep, he tipped Devin Callahan’s shot from the point past goalie Tyler Hansen.
Skaneateles also started the second period with a power play, but didn’t convert. Instead, it waited until a two-on-one breakaway at the 6:41 mark to double the margin to 2-0 as Falso, charging in on the right side, faked a pass and instead shot it into the top right corner of the net.
A split-second after scoring, Falso got cross-checked. For a minute or so, he lay on the ice, but then managed to skate off on his own power. Matt Benson briefly replaced him on the Lakers’ top line.
But less than two minutes later, Falso returned to help the Lakers kill off a New Hartford power play. Then, with the Lakers continuing to apply heavy pressure, Falso pounced on a loose puck in the crease and converted again at the 11:36 mark to make it 3-0.
Much the same thing had happened late in the sectional semifinal against Auburn, when Eddy took a hard hit on the boards early in the third period and appeared hurt – only to return later in the period to net the clinching goal in a 6-3 victory.
Falso said that, whenever his team is on the receiving end of physical play, he and his teammates stay composed, which has much to do with the ability to recover and quickly respond.
The Spartans didn’t even get a shot in the second period until more than 12 minutes had elapsed, but that was much a tribute to the work the Skaneateles defense was doing.
Callahan, Jacob Patalino and the rest of the Lakers’ defenders shut down whatever New Hartford tried to establish, and goaltender Bennett Morse made several key stops early in the third period to maintain the shutout.
Then it happened again – Falso took a hard hit early in the period, slowly got up, quickly returned to action, and with 8:23 left took a pass from Eddy and, on a breakaway, ripped it in from left side for his third goal of the day.
Skaneateles will have to wait until Wednesday to find out which Section V opponent (Victor or Batavia Notre Dame) it will face for this Saturday’s regional final at Rochester Institute of Technology’s Gene Polisenni Center, which faces off at 7 p.m.
A trip to Buffalo’s Harbor Center for the March 12-13 state “Frozen Four” will be at stake. Falso said he still remembers how much fun it was to win a state title a year ago, and he and his Lakers teammates want to experience it again.
