WEST SPRINGFIELD — Few leads are safe in hockey.
In postseason hockey? Forget it.
Holding a commanding 4-0 advantage in the third period of Monday’s Western Massachusetts Class B semifinals, second-seeded Greenfield had one foot in the door for Thursday’s sectional championship game.
But Wright Division rival and No. 3 Belchertown had other ideas.
The Orioles rallied with a pair of goals in a span of just 50 seconds early in the final period. Belchertown threw the kitchen sink at the Greenfield defense and goalie Joshua Bordeaux over the final 10 minutes of regulation, but the junior netminder settled back in and the defending MIAA Division 3A state champions booked another trip to the sectional finals behind a 5-3 victory at the Olympia Ice Center.
Greenfield (11-6-2) will play No. 4 Chicopee in Thursday’s final after the Pacers knocked off No. 1 Chicopee Comp, 3-2, in double overtime during Monday’s other semifinal. Greenfield and Chicopee will meet back at the Olympia Ice Center at 6:30 p.m.
“To play for a Western Mass. title, that’s the goal from the first day of tryouts,” Greenfield coach Adam Bouchard said. “But we had to earn it. Belchertown didn’t make it easy on us. A four-goal lead, they came firing back and you could see the momentum shifting and they were coming. Credit to our guys for holding on and withstanding that charge. It wasn’t easy.”
Belchertown didn’t go away trailing 4-0. After Sammy Knight tallied to give the Wave a four-goal cushion just 1:16 into the third period, the Orioles chipped away.
First it was Francis Henderson, who took a wraparound feed from Andrew Fijal and got the first puck of the night past Bordeaux with 11:54 to play. Just 50 seconds later Fijal returned the favor, finishing a two-on-one feed from Brady Moreau that quickly turned a 4-0 game into a 4-2 tilt.
Fijal made it 4-3 with just 39.7 seconds remaining, scoring as Belchertown pulled goalie Timothy Mitus in favor of an extra attacker. But Greenfield’s Matthew Lavoine made a key block in the waning seconds of another extra-man situation, and Trevor Kuchieski chased after the loose puck and slipped it into the empty net with 8.2 seconds left to secure the 5-3 win.
“The kids showed some real moxie,” Belchertown coach Derek Chandonnet said. “We definitely didn’t feel like it was over (down 4-0). I’m proud of their effort. They just kept battling and we had some chances late in the game.”
It was Dylan Archer that broke the ice, so to speak. Archer sent a shot through heavy traffic that may have deflected off someone, or something, but ultimately beat Mitus and tickled the twine just 4 minutes, 54 seconds into the opening period to stake the Green Wave to a 1-0 lead. Jake Jurek was credited with the assist.
With the period ticking away and Greenfield clinging to the one-goal cushion, Kuchieski drew a tripping penalty with 2:10 to go in the frame, putting the Wave on their first power play of the outing.
Less than a minute into the extra-man situation, the defending champions struck again. This time it was Shane Prusak, as he pounced on a rebound off Mitus’ pads and one-timed it on the opposite post from where it came. Prusak’s blast fit into the tiny space between Mitus and the near-side post, and the crucial power-play goal doubled the advantage to 2-0 with just 1:18 to go in the first.
While the late first-period strike loomed large, Greenfield took control thanks to a fast start to the second period.
Just 25 seconds into the middle stanza, co-captain Kevin Baumann delivered the back breaker. The Greenfield defenseman pounced on a failed clearance along the side boards, and ripped a perfectly-placed wrist shot that took Mitus by surprise. It cleared the goalie’s shoulder and stayed just under the crossbar, turning a harmless looking play into a highlight-reel goal that gave the Wave a 3-0 advantage.
Moreau keyed a response effort three minutes later, weaving through three Greenfield skaters and wrapping around Bordeaux’s net. The puck snuck behind the Wave goalie, but he was able to recover and get enough of his body over it to draw a whistle and keep the shutout intact.
Bordeaux made a bevy of key saves in the middle portion of the second period, and he kept the Orioles off the board through two periods – stopping all 16 shots he faced through 30 minutes.
NOTES: It was the third meeting of the season between the two teams. They tied 2-2 on Jan. 23, then Greenfield won at home, 7-1, back on Feb. 5. That win eventually proved the difference in the Green Wave capturing the Wright Division title. … Greenfield entered the night at No. 32 in the MIAA Div. 4 Power Rankings, while Belchertown was No. 36. … It was the first postseason meeting for the teams since the 2019 WMass Div. 3A semifi nals – a 4-2 Belchertown win, also at the Olympia. … Belchertown held a 28-22 edge in shots on the night.