After two dream periods against Bethlehem, reality hit the Guilderland/Mohonasen hockey team in the third period.
The Dutch Warriors – a group of 14 players, many of whom are juniors or younger – ran out of gas in the third period, which helped Bethlehem pull away for a 5-1 victory in the annual “Wooden Skate” game at Union College.
R.J. Diego and Andrew Carroll scored goals nine seconds apart within the first 1:17 of the third period to give Bethlehem (4-2-1 league, 6-5-1 overall) a 3-1 lead, and the Eagles never looked back.
“When it was 1-1 at the beginning of the third period, I told the guys it was important to get the lead within the first five minutes … because you never know what can happen,” said Bethlehem coach Andre Rodrigue.
Up to that point, Guilderland/Mohonasen (0-6-0, 0-12-0) had ridden the coattails of goaltender Austin McCrum. The Mohonasen senior made 27 saves on Bethlehem’s first 28 shots to keep his team in the game.
“He’s had games where he’s played like that,” said Guilderland/Mohonasen coach Ed Koivula. “When he’s on, it’s tough to get it by him.”
“Their goalie was playing well,” said Carroll, who recorded a hat trick to lead Bethlehem’s offense. “We had some good opportunities, and we just didn’t finish them.”
Guilderland/Mohonasen had a difficult time generating any offensive pressure to support McCrum, but the Dutch Warriors did give him a lead to work with when sophomore defenseman Dillon Kedik scored off a Troy Bennett assist with 4:26 left in the first period for a 1-0 advantage. Kedik’s goal was one of only 12 shots Guilderland/Mohonasen had in the game.
By contrast, Bethlehem threw shot after shot at McCrum through the first two periods. The only one that got past McCrum was a great individual effort by Carroll midway through the second period. Carroll skated through the Guilderland/Mohonasen defense and jammed the puck into the net to tie the score at 1-1.
“We played very well in the first two periods of the game, but we ran into a very hot goaltender and we started playing tight,” said Rodrigue.
All of the offensive pressure Bethlehem placed on Guilderland/Mohonasen in the first two periods turned into a four-goal outburst in the final 15 minutes. Diego got things going with his marker 1:08 into the period, and Carroll scored off a pass from behind the net nine seconds later to make the score 3-1.
“You could see the kids take a breath and relax,” said Rodrigue.
Carroll tallied his third goal of the game midway through the third period when he sprung himself for a breakaway McCrum had no chance of stopping. Carroll skated in ahead of the Guilderland/Mohonasen defense and wristed a shot inside the crossbar that knocked McCrum’s water bottle off the top of the goal.
“The key was to stay confident in the third period, which we did,” said Carroll, who is second on the team in scoring with eight goals.
Matt State capped the scoring with 4:56 left in the third period when he took Luke McGrath’s pass and slapped home a shot for a 5-1 Bethlehem lead.
Koivula said Saturday’s game followed a familiar pattern for Guilderland/Mohonasen.
“You can put two good periods together, but you run out of gas in the third period with only 12 skaters,” said Koivula. “But these guys play hard.”
“You’ve got to hand it to them. They came out and played a great game,” said Rodrigue. “They have a short bench and a great goaltender, and they gave it everything they got. It took everything we had and then some to pull it out in the third period.”
McCrum finished with 35 saves for Guilderland/Mohonasen, while Bethlehem goaltender Josh Banach stopped 11 shots.
The season doesn’t get easier for Guilderland/Mohonasen or Bethlehem. The Dutch Warriors’ next game is Wednesday against Shenendehowa (4-1-1, 6-5-1), and the Eagles head north Thursday to face Queensbury (3-2-1, 7-5-2). Guilderland/Mohonasen then hosts South Glens Falls/Hudson Falls (1-6-1, 3-8-2) Saturday at Union College, while Bethlehem battles Shen at the Bethlehem Area YMCA.
