WEST SPRINGFIELD — Ben Zaranek was never really concerned about Pope Francis’ chances of returning to the Super 8.
The junior goalie from South Deerfield knew the talent of the young players joining the Cardinals this season, and was confident they would be able to pick up where they left off the previous two seasons. Pope Francis has fallen in the finals of the Super 8 each of the past two seasons, but many of the players from those teams graduated last year.
Coach Brian Foley wasn’t as sure about how his team would come together this year, but entering this season’s event as the No. 3 seed, he said he’s confident this group can return to TD Garden yet again next month.
“Losing 12 seniors last year, I’m not sure what a lot of people expected out of us,” Foley said. “I wasn’t sure what to expect out of the team, we have a lot of young kids, but the way they’re playing, we’re right up there with the top teams in the state, so we’re looking forward to the tournament.”
The Cardinals (14-6-2) ended their regular season with a convincing 1-0 win over St. Mary’s of Lynn in the final of the Cardinal Classic on Thursday at Olympia Ice Center. Freshman Ryan Leonard sniped home the game’s only goal with 2 minutes and 18 seconds left in the second period on Pope Francis’ third power play of the game.
It was the type of tight-checking, defense-first game Pope Francis should expect as the postseason begins. Defense has been an emphasis for the Cardinals since the calendar turned to 2020. In the first seven weeks of the new year, Pope Francis has lost just once in 14 games.
“We’ve been focusing on team defense a lot, which has been helping us out,” Zaranek said. “It was rough at the beginning of the year, but we’re finding it. We have some younger defensemen this year, and they’re starting to get it and it’s working out well.”
As the young team has matured, the results have come, giving Foley more confidence about his team’s chances in the postseason. The Cardinals have seemingly been at their best in the third period to fuel this 11-1-2 run that began with a Jan. 4 win over Bishop Hendricksen.
Foley said his team is peaking at the right time and heading into the Super 8 with a lot of confidence.
“We’ve had a lot of comebacks in the third period over the past few weeks,” Foley said. “The team is playing well at the right time of the year.”