By Mike Gurnis
There was one penalty called in the entirety of Tuesday’s Delbarton-Princeton Day game.
When Dante Rodriguez was sent to the box for a tripping call in the final minute of the first period with Delbarton leading by a goal, it was a big opportunity for momentum to shift against the Green Wave.
Thanks to Jack Gerne’s efforts, Delbarton took back the momentum even while down a man.
The junior scored on a pair of shorthanded breakaways to extend his team’s lead to three, en route to a 5-2 win over Princeton Day at SportsCare Arena in Randolph.
“It comes from our coach,” Gerne said of the team’s mentality going into the shorthanded situation. “He was harping the last practice to be aggressive on the penalty kill. I think we did a good job of that today with the two goals.
“First one I’m just thinking I can’t miss this. Second one, I already scored and had some confidence. I had to bury it. “
Delbarton improved to 4-1 overall with the win, and 3-1 in the Gordon Conference-American Division. It already clinched a season sweep of Princeton Day after taking them down on opening day, 4-1.
The Green Wave set the tempo early on, with Aidan Pasic feeding Dante Rodriguez for the game’s opening goal 4:04 into the first. The game was mostly controlled by Delbarton early on, but had the opportunity to turn when it went on the only penalty kill of the game.
It allowed few chances throughout, and Gerne’s ability to capitalize on two breakaways gave the team a commanding advantage.
“I think it was just a whole team game,” Gerne said. “It took everybody today. On my goals it wasn’t just me. My linemate, Jack Ross, great play set me up. It was just a team effort.”
Delbarton coach Bruce Shatel said, “You get thrown into the season so quickly and I think a lot of our guys are comfortable playing passive on the PK so in the past couple of practices we’ve been working on being a bit more tenacious on the puck and on entry. I think Jack Ross did a great job closing time and space when they got to the red line and Jack Gerne was able to put a puck behind the defenseman and get off to the races. Little things like that, paying attention to detail, make a difference in the game.”
Princeton Day got a goal back midway through the second from Filip Kacmarsky, but Delbarton’s third line of twins John and Michael Good, along with Egor Andreev, combined for a goal just 1:27 later. It was Andreev, the sophomore, who finished off a feed from John Good, giving the team a three-goal lead.
For a team that graduated a strong senior class last year, which included a dynamic top line of Nick Faccone, Trip Pendy, and Duncan Stewart, Delbarton’s depth was going to be put to the test this season. So far, it has passed with flying colors, with 16 different players finding their way onto the scoresheet one way or another.
One tweak going into the season to help with that was moving Dante Rodriguez, a defenseman for the past two years, up front. Playing on a line with Aidan Pasic and Max Pendy, he has a team-high of 10 points (6 g., 4 a.). The addition of sophomore Egor Andreev has also given the team a nice boost, and helps balance out the lineup with multiple lines that can impact the game offensively at any time.
“We play 11 forwards every game and they all contribute,” Shatel said. “We have a lot of balance. Any time Egor’s (Andreev) on the ice or (Aidan) Pasic, they know how to play the game and they’re dynamic. You can call anybody’s number and sometimes as a coach it’s a hard thing when you have that kind of balance because you don’t know who’s going to have the hot hand on a certain day, but I feel comfortable with all of our guys up front on the ice.
“We’re kind of young on the back end but guys are holding up so far, and we’re young in the goal and we’re holding up there as well.”
After winning the Gordon Cup title and reaching the Non-Public state final, Delbarton appears to be a team that will once again be right in the conversation for both titles.
There is still a lot of hockey left to be played, beginning with a trip to Massachusetts to play a pair of out-of-state games over Christmas break, before a grueling stretch where it will face No. 1 St. Augustine, No. 2 Don Bosco, and No.5 Christian Brothers over a span of a week from Jan. 4-11.
“We feel very good,” Gerne said. “Even after the loss (against Don Bosco Prep), we didn’t like to lose but we felt good about our game. We showed that against Pingry and Gloucester Catholic. We’re really looking forward to playing games here.”
Shatel added, “I think we’re pretty excited going into Christmas understanding we have a grueling schedule after the break and hopefully we can perform. “
SCORING SUMMARY
First period
DEL — Dante Rodriguez (Aidan Pasic, Max Pendy) 10:56
DEL — Jack Gerne 0:32 SHG
Second period
DEL — Jack Gerne 14:39 SHG
PDS — Filip Kacmarsky (Chase Logue) 6:38
DEL — Egor Andreev (John Good, Michael Good) 5:11
Third period
PDS — Brady Logue (Wyatt Ewanchyna, Liam Jackson) 8:43
DEL — Aidan Pasic 0:09 ENG
Shots on goal: Delbarton 28, Princeton Day 16
Saves: George Cote (Delbarton) 14, Calvin Fenton (Princeton Day) 24
Morris-Sussex Hockey Report 