The Wellesley Applejacks ended a dismal season with a tough 4-0 loss to Thamesford Feb. 28, exiting the first round of the playoffs in four games.
Down three games after dropping the previous night’s match in Thamesford, it was do or die for the Jacks as they returned to home ice for game four.
Keeper Kent Stoltz put up a tenacious performance, stopping 41 of 45 shots, but the Jacks couldn’t break through Thamesford’s defence.
“Nothing worked. We couldn’t finish, couldn’t capitalize on our breaks,” said general manager Dave Litt after the game.
The Jacks scored just two goals in four games during the series. Feb. 27, they were shut out in game three, going down to the Trojans 6-0 in Thamesford.
In that game, Deryk Sherman and Justin Harburn put the Trojans up by two in the first period. Sherman followed that up with a pair in the second, and John Garbe made it five for Thamesford. Josh Van Eck capped things with a shorthanded, unassisted goal midway through the third.
With their backs against the wall, the Jacks got off to a decent start Saturday night, picking the Trojans’ pockets in the neutral zone. When Thamesford did get through the defence, Stoltz was there to make the save, snapping up two good shots with a fast glove and kicking out a third.
“He gave us a chance tonight,” said head coach John Tsai after the game. “That’s all we can ask from our goaltenders, is to stay in hockey games, and he did that for us tonight.”
Things began to break down at 9:46, when Matt Snyder was handed a tripping penalty. Thamesford made good on the power play, with Harburn scoring the first goal of the game.
With six minutes left in the frame, Mark Gibson picked up a bounce off the boards and crossed the puck to Travis Parkin, who went top shelf for Thamesford’s second goal.
In the second frame, Wellesley racked up three penalties inside of a minute. The Trojans capitalized again, with Harburn scoring his second power play goal of the game.
The Jacks held the Trojans off for the rest of the period, and pressed hard around the opponent’s zone. Five minutes into the third, they had several near misses that had Thamesford’s goalie sprawling in the crease and the hometown crowd groaning in disappointment.
Clark Hunter capped the win for the Trojans midway through the third, scoring a fourth and final goal.
Tsai said the game went much the same way as the entire season.
“[We] didn’t get many breaks. That’s kind of the way the year’s been,” he said. “Because the year went that way, we met probably the best team in the league, [the] defending champions, with a very good chance of repeating.
“Thamesford’s just been a great all-around hockey team. There’s a reason why they won it last year, and there’s a reason why they finished where they did this year. They’re a complete hockey team, it’s going to take any team’s best effort for seven games to beat that team.”
