Right to the last shot, the West Genesee ice hockey team thought it would happen.
Somewhere, the combination of talent, quality and effort that produced 20 consecutive victories and a no. 1 state ranking would shine through, and the Wildcats would be on its way to another Section III Division I championship game.
Except that, on this unforgettable Wednesday evening at Shove Park, it didn’t happen.
Through 45 minutes of regulation, 30 minutes of four overtime periods and six rounds of a pulse-pounding shootout, WG could not put away long-time rival Baldwinsville in a sectional Division I semifinal sprawled out over 3 ½ hours that left everyone, players and spectators alike, drained.
And when Tanner McCaffrey flung a shot past Wildcats goaltender Aidan Procopio in the sixth round of the shootout, the Wildcats’ season was over, and the Bees were on its way to facing Syracuse in Monday’s sectional final at the War Memorial after the Cougars beat Cicero-North Syracuse 6-1 in the other semifinal at Meachem Rink.
Everything up to this point had pointed toward, at the very least, a 10th sectional title in 11 years for the Wildcats. Not only had WG gone 20-0, it seemed to have improved plenty from the side that B’ville had pushed to overtime in a 3-2 game in mid-December.
Yet it was clear, from the opening face-off, that nothing would come easy for WG. The Bees were aggressive and physical, even when it wasn’t getting a large amount of scoring chances.
Frustrated by this, the Wildcats twice found itself two men down during the first two periods. But WG’s defense, led by Ryan Smith and John Bergan, did a tremendous job killing off both of the Bees’ two-man advantages, keeping it 0-0 going to the third period.
They were still scoreless when, on a power play with 5:08 left in regulation, Alex Schmidt, with feeds from Mark Monaco and Brendan Wilcox, put B’ville in front 1-0, only to have the Wildcats’ Timmy Winn answer just 34 seconds later, assisted by Bergan.
But that only began things.
In the first OT the Wildcats had most of the good chances, but B’ville goalie Jeremy Rappard made several key stops, including one on a Wildcats power play, on his way to 39 saves overall.
During the second OT, after WG killed off another B’ville man advantage, Rappard made a sprawling, point-blank glove save on Billy Fisher, who had scored the game-winner in OT the first time these teams met.
After a break to clean the ice before the third OT, both teams started to show fatigue in that frame, with few real opportunities. But it almost ended in the first minute of the fourth OT when Mark Monaco’s shot beat Procopio, only to clang off the right post.
Still at 1-1 when the fourth OT ended, this classic went to a shootout, scheduled for three rounds. WG had the first chance in each round, but Winn and Dan Colabufo could not find the net.
Then Schmidt converted to put B’ville in front, but Ryan Washo answered in the third round, and when Isaiah Pompo could not put it past Procopio, three more rounds of the shootout commenced.
Bergan missed. So did Dan Holzhauer. So did two more B’ville players. Then, at the start of the sixth round, the Wildcats’ Patrick McDonald took his turn, only to have Rappard make yet another big stop.
Now McCaffrey had a chance to end it. Originally, he aimed left, but when Procopio leaned that way, McCaffrey shot right and fit the puck inside the top-right corner of the net.
As B’ville celebrated its improbable victory, the stunned Wildcats slowly left the ice, many of them battling tears. But some of them took time to congratulate Bees players.
In time, all who were part of this game could appreciate the battle they waged and the effort they put out, whichever side they were on. But for a Wildcats team that seemed pointed toward sectional and state championship glory, the hurt might take a long time to heal.
