CENTRAL NEW YORK – With one week left in the regular season, the ultimate question for the Christian Brothers Academy/Jamesville-DeWitt ice hockey team was where it would end up in the eventual Section III Division II playoff bracket.
A key to this answer lay in Wednesday’s game against Oswego at State Fair Coliseum, where the Brothers would find itself shut down all night by the Buccaneers in a 3-0 loss.
All of Oswego’s goals came in the first two periods from three different players as Ian Cady, Duncan Baker and Marcus Baker each took turns converting and Lukas Cady gained two assists.
Despite these setbacks, CBA/J-D took nearly twice as many shots as the Bucs, but each of them were thwarted as Oswego goaltender Riley Wallace managed to make 39 saves.
When the snows stopped and action resumed on Saturday, the Brothers went to Ithaca and struggled again for two periods before the offense, led by Finn Wheeler, took over late to defeat the Little Red 8-4.
Through two periods, the game was tied 4-4, but CBA/J-D went back in front early in the final period and then proceeded to tack on a trio of insurance goals.
Wheeler led this late charge, setting a new career mark in points by landing four goals and earning a pair of assists.
Seamus Nicholson and Ty Parker each scored twice, with single assists going to James Stanton, Quinn Wimer, Gio Giamartino and Will Sharlow. Even goalie Joe Salvador earned an assist to go with his 21 saves
Back on Tuesday at the Coliseum, Fayetteville-Manlius was on the brink of defeating Liverpool, only to see it get snatched away late in a 2-1 overtime loss.
F-M took a 1-0 advantage in the second period on Nico Capriotti’s goal, assisted by Jonas Oesterle, and maintained that margin through most of the rest of regulation thanks to 23 saves from Chris Finger. But the Hornets couldn’t get anything more past Liverpool goalie James Welch, who also got 23 saves.
Still with that one-goal edge, the Hornets were defending against an extra attacker when, with 14 seconds left in the third period, Matt Markusz scored to tie it. Then Markusz returned in the OT and put home the game-winner.
