CENTRAL NEW YORK – For an entire month, the Skaneateles boys ice hockey team had to stew about what happened Dec. 6 at Allyn Arena, where it blew a two-goal lead and lost in overtime to Cortland-Homer.
So when those two sides got together again at J.M. McDonald Sports Complex last Tuesday night, the Lakers were ready for it – and this time, it went out in front to stay, earning a 4-1 victory over the Golden Eagles.
This began the most crucial 48-hour stretch of the season, Skaneateles having a chance to move back up to the top of the Division II standings if it won twice on the road.
Cortland-Homer went first, and perhaps the best thing possible was that the Lakers didn’t get the jump, instead patiently working through a scoreless first period.
Then it scored twice in the second, negating the Golden Eagles’ lone tally from Chris Yang, and then played superb defense down the stretch would adding to that margin thanks mostly to Andrew Gaglione.
Having scored the overtime game-winner against reigning state Division II champion Pelham on Jan. 6, Gaglione built on that effort here, scoring twice and assisting on tallies from Henry Major and Jack Torrey.
Kaden Rutledge contributed, too, earning two assists, while Chad Lowe had another superb game in goal, turning away 22 of Cortland-Homer’s 23 shots.
Now came a clash Thursday at Onondaga Nation Arena with CBA/Jamesville-DeWitt, who had won eight in a row since its lone defeat of the season to the Lakers Dec. 8 and was no. 9 in the state rankings, two spots behind Skaneateles.
But here, just like in that first encounter, the Brothers would run into a defensive wall as the Lakers struck twice early and, with Lowe at the forefront, went on to win 3-0.
Any sense of worry went away in a 91-second span early in the first period, starting when Major, passing from the right side, found Rutledge on a breakaway and Gaglione put it past Brothers goalie Justin Buffum.
Then a Brothers turnover was converted by Carter Corbett, making it 2-0, where it would stay until the second period, when Major again offered a perfect pass, this time from the right corner to a wide-open Rutledge at the left post, who had an open net to deposit the puck.
Once it was out in front, the Lakers could afford to sit back on defense and watch CBA/J-D possess the puck in what turned out to be a game-long futile attempt to answer.
Three times on power plays, and plenty of other times at even strength, the Brothers’ attacks were turned back, Lowe not letting up until he had 31 saves and had equaled the shutout he had recorded against CBA/J-D the first time around.
Skaneateles resumes its Route 20 rivalry with Auburn Tuesday at Allyn Arena and stays home Friday to face New Hartford.
