The Randolph Boys Ice Hockey team pummeled Chatham, 7-1, on Friday, Feb. 2. The Rams improved their record to an undefeated 17-0-1 and celebrated their second win of the season against Chatham.
“The feeling of beating Chatham and getting the revenge from finals last year feels amazing, said Ashton Feinberg, senior defenseman. “We knew they were a strong and confident team, but we weren’t going to let them stop us from doing our job,”
“It feels amazing taking them down both games so far,” added John Krynicki, senior goalie.
The Rams started the game strong. Just two minutes in, sophomore Logan O’Malley ripped a shot following a face-off win by Shane Melly, netting the Rams their first goal. The game remained tight for the next eight minutes. Chatham failed to convert two power plays, and Randolph continued the defensive and offensive intensity.
Then with five minutes remaining in the period, Vincent Crisafulli scored a goal with an assist from Jacob Campbell and Isaac Stock. The Rams then continued to pressure Chatham defensively. All was looking good for the Rams as they got a power play within the final two minutes; however, Randolph turned the puck over and Chatham scored on a breakaway goal as time expired. Randolph ended the first period up 2-1 with a 10-7 shots-on-goal advantage. After dominating most of the first period, it was a frustrating goal for the players to concede.
“That last second goal was a setback for us walking into the room, but we knew we dominated the entire period and we couldn’t let two seconds stop us from playing our style of hockey,” Feinberg noted.
“We just never panic, never sit back,” Krynicki added. “We know when we are at our best that we are going to shut teams down.”
Randolph started the second period hot. Three minutes in, Ryan Thomas ripped a shot assisted by Shane Melly and Ashton Feinberg to score the Rams third goal of the night. Following the goal, the Rams soon found themselves in a difficult spot. They were down two men from penalties while Chatham possessed the puck in their end. Randolph seemed to attempt to stall defensively until they regained numbers, but then Jase Zangara made a stellar play. He intercepted a Chatham pass and skated down the ice on a breakaway to score the Rams’ fourth goal of the night. It was a special goal and was the start of a special night for Zangara.
Chatham was unable to capitalize on their powerplay, up two men, and Randolph later made them pay. With 43 seconds left in the period, junior Andrew George skated down the Randolph offensive end with the puck and made a beautiful pass to Zangara across the ice to net Randolph’s fifth goal. At the end of the second period, it was 5-1 Randolph.
The Rams and Zangara continued their dominance into the third period. Zangara scored on a power play in the 11th minute with an assist from Jacob Campbell and Andrew George. Following the goal, Randolph continued to push the offensive end. In the eighth minute, Zangara scored his fourth goal of the night with an assist from Andrew George and Ashton Feinberg. Randolph was able to score the final goal of the night to put them up with the final score of 7-1. It was a strong performance from Randolph, ending their regular season on a great note.
“These last few games of the regular season have been crucial, and they have allowed us to really find a team identity which we are trying to carry throughout the rest of the way,” Krynicki said.
“The regular season showed us how to battle through some really tough games and find our style of hockey and now we just have to execute it in the playoffs,” Feinberg noted.
Randolph plays Morris Knolls next in the Mennen Cup semifinals tonight, Feb. 7.
