With thirteen wins in a row, undefeated Walpole Boys Hockey is the top team in the Bay State Conference. The Rebels have dominated their competition all season, but on Wednesday, Jan. 25, the Rebels faced off against their toughest matchup yet: the Framingham Flyers.
In their fourteenth game of the season, Boys Hockey tied their Carey Division rival, 2-2, to improve their record to 13-0-1. Before puck drop, Walpole knew the importance of the game ahead.
“It was a really important league game because Framingham is always one of the better teams in the conference,” said senior captain, goaltender James Corcoran.
As soon as the puck dropped, both teams were already playing with the heart of a playoff game. In one of their more physical matchups this season, the Rebels met their match with the Flyers, for before three minutes had passed, the Flyers had out-hit Walpole four to one.
The Flyers physical start had got the best of them however, for they found themselves a man down with 11:45 left in the first period. The Rebels could not capitalize on any of their chances, though, and the Flyers’ penalty-kill was successful. As soon as the Rebels power play ended, they also received a penalty, but they too killed it off.
The rest of the period was just as physical, but Walpole held the advantage in time of possession. Walpole also had more shots and scoring opportunities, but could not capitalize on any. Another Walpole power play was also unsuccessful, and the period ended tied 0-0.
The second period was just as similar as the first, but the Rebels were the first to score with 11:15 left on the clock thanks to junior defensemen, Robert Colburn. After a Walpole shot deflected to the corner, junior Tyler Page collected the puck, passed it to a crashing Colburn, who one-timed it into the back of the net.
Only a minute later—Walpole on another power play—notched their second as a result of junior winger Matt Morris’s snap shot glove side high on Flyer goalie, junior Alex Moore.
Walpole could not hold off the Flyer offense, though, and so with 8:51 left on the clock, Framingham cut Walpole’s lead in half. Despite another power play for the Rebels, the period ended 2-1.
Fast forward to just over halfway through the third period, junior Tyler Page found himself in the penalty box with 6:36 left. To Walpole’s dismay, the Flyers scored to tie the game up at two apiece.
For the rest of the game, the level of competitiveness from both sides did not slow down. The shots from both sides continued, and so did the hits and scoring opportunities. Walpole called a timeout with 1:27 left in the game, but nothing changed. The game ended 2-2.
With the tie, the Rebels remain undefeated but also unsatisfied with the result.
“We needed more shots,” said senior Cam Martin.
“We played really well the first two periods,” added Corcoran. “But we let them back in the game and could not get the win.”
Despite being out-shot by the Flyers 24-22, the Rebels have set a record amount outscoring their opponents 73 to 6 this season. This impressive amount is highlighted by Martin on offense, who has notched 15 goals for the Rebels in their first 13 games. Meanwhile, Corcoran has also only allowed five goals total.
“The tie is unfortunate, but we played great, and will continue to play great for the rest of the season and playoffs,” said Corcoran.
