St. John’s of Shrewsbury tops Westford Academy for a spot in the Div. 1 North final

LOWELL — Timely goals and strong goaltending were the recipe for success for St. John’s of Shrewsbury last night at Tsongas Center in Lowell.

Despite being outshot, the 11th-seeded Pioneers were opportunistic, and skated to a 3-1 victory over No. 10 Westford Academy, in the Div. 1 North semifinal.

St. John’s (12-8-5) opened the scoring 19 seconds into their first power play of the night, as Sean Clark fed a pass to senior Hunter DiGregorio in the low slot, who fired a wrist shot home far side over the blocker to make it 1-0 with 4:54 remaining in the first.

The Pioneers struck again just 13 seconds into the second as Max Shustak put a puck toward goal that was partially blocked before trickling to DiGregorio at the top of the crease who swatted the bouncing puck backhand through the five-hole for his second.

“He’s a three-year player and a senior leader,” said St. John’s head coach Michael Mead. “He’s a positive spirit on the bench, he’s always chirping, telling guys ‘Next shift, next shift, be ready’”.

DiGregorio, who netted four goals in the regular season, has three times in the last two tournament games.

Said Mead: “Just puck luck. … That’s what seniors do they find a way to score when you need them to in the playoffs.”

Westford Academy (12-9-2) cut the deficit in half with 9:29 to go in the second on the power play. Junior Matt Cielakie deposited a rebound into the open goal with 23 seconds left on the advantage.

St. John’s scored quickly in the third period, needing just 51 seconds, as an errant shot bounced off the backboard and came to Clark (goal, assist) at the right circle, who wasted no time firing it home to make it 3-1.

The Pioneers were outshot 34-16, but the clutch goals and a standout performance between the pipes from senior Dan Laursen were what propelled them into the Div. 1 North final for the first time since 2004.

“I wish we had more shots on net, I’m glad we had more goals at the end,” Mead said. “Dan has been huge for us. … He earned the position as we went through the end of the season. He’s played outstanding in the playoffs for us.”

Laursen was instrumental in sealing the deal, stopping all 14 shots he faced in the third period.

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/3czARH0