Holyoke seniors cherish the ride
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SPRINGFIELD - Most of the seniors on the Holyoke hockey team played against each other growing up.
When they reached high school and joined the Purple Knights, the team came together. The results during the last two seasons speak for themselves.
Through the seven seniors' first 52 games, Holyoke went 23-23-6. Over its last 35, the team went 31-2-2.
That second loss ended their careers Thursday as Oakmont beat Holyoke 4-2 at the MassMutual Center to claim the Division 3A title. The victory avenged a loss to the Knights in last year's title game.
"It's been an incredible ride," said senior defenseman Jesse Cummings of Granby. "This year we came up a little bit short but there's nothing to complain about. It was an amazing ride. I wouldn't want to play for any other team."
When the seniors were 8th graders, Holyoke went 2-18. It was the second year in a row that the Knights missed the postseason. But thanks to the cooperative program Holyoke started with Granby and South Hadley in 2003, the team was infused with talent in 2007.
"Most of these kids know each other growing up playing in different organizations," Holyoke coach John Houle said. "The hockey community is tight. There was no us or them or you."
Goalie Tadd Goff and Cummings came from Granby. Defenseman Mike Bakos and forwards Cody Miller, Jake Bailly, Derek Pinciak and Nate Standen came from South Hadley.
"The locker room in hockey is unlike any other sport," Pinciak said. "We banded together quickly and friendships came out of nowhere."
As freshmen, the Knights went 8-10-2. As sophomores the group went 11-8-3 and lost 5-3 to Agawam in the semifinal round of the Western Massachusetts Division 3A Tournament.
Holyoke struggled at the beginning of the 2008-09 year, but closed the season on a 10-0-1 streak which brought the school its second hockey championship and first in 30 years. As seniors the Purple Knights went 21-1-1 before the loss to Oakmont.
"The last (35) games have been good and I have to credit the team," Pinciak said. "Everyone comes out motivated for every game no matter who we are playing."
Of the 17 players who returned from last year's title team, 14 are from South Hadley and three from Granby.
"Our coach is a great guy and he kept our heads up all the way through," Standen said. "He made us work hard and made us believe and that's the best part. He made us a believe as a team and it helped us get this far."
Senior forward Shawn O'Donnell of Holyoke also played his final game. O'Donnell was new to the team this year.
Bakos had a goal and an assist against Oakmont while Miller and Pinciak each had one assist. During the regular season, Miller had 17 goals and 14 assists and Pinciak had 12 and 20.
Goff made 36 saves in the loss, which snapped a 15-game winning streak.
Holyoke allowed three or more goals for the ninth time this season. The fourth Oakmont goal was an empty-netter.
PENALTY KILLERS - Neither team scored on a power play. Holyoke was 0-for-3 and Oakmont was 0-for-4.
"They were congesting the center of the ice so it was hard for us to go in the center of their zone," Cummings said. "We tried to skate the puck up but they were congesting the ice and we couldn't make a lot of passes and set up in their zone."
SPORTSMANSHIP - The Cathedral hockey team was given the MIAA James F. Malloy Sportsmanship Award between the second and third periods.
Brenden Geary of South Hadley, a junior defensemen for the Panthers, was one of four Cathedral players on hand to accept the award. Geary had six goals and 12 assists during the season.
Mike Moran can be reached at mmoran@gazettenet.com.
