LUKE BAKER scored a hat trick including NR’s first two goals of the game in an 8-2 victory over Pentucket on Saturday. (Eric Evans File Photo)
After press time: North Reading defeats Northeast Metro 6-3 (Jan. 17)
By DAN ZIMMERMAN
HAVERHILL — In the wake of a loss to Triton last week, the North Reading ice hockey team bounced back on Saturday night with an 8-2 rout of Cape Ann League foe, Pentucket. Unlike the game with Triton, which featured a pair of disputable penalties that impacted the outcome, the officials at the Veteran’s Memorial Rink let the boys skate and decide the game on the ice rather than from the penalty box.
On the strength of a pair of first period goals from Luke Baker, North Reading set the tone early and continued to press, adding three scores in each of the next two frames. Baker, who is currently tied for third in scoring (6 goals, 1 assist), later added a third for the first hat trick of his varsity career.
“Getting those two goals in the first period definitely gave us the momentum boost for the rest of the game,” said the senior co-captain. “This was huge because it was a CAL game and will help push us forward for the rest of the season.”
“He reminds me of a kid I used to play with at North Reading by the name of Joe Tutrone (class of ’98),” said Coach Brian McAuliffe, when asked about Baker’s recent success. “Luke has such physical strength. He’s always in the gym, working out, and he looks like the Incredible Hulk. When he’s on skates, he applies that strength to his puck control and shooting. His work is paying off.”
Baker and Duncan Gulino combined for the go-ahead goal midway through the first and several minutes later, it was Tom Gazda feeding Baker cross-ice on a 2-on-1 break to make it 2-0. Pentucket goalie Josh Yoon, who yielded 8-goals on 26 shots, didn’t stand a chance on either tally. Throughout the night, North Reading skaters were shooting with pinpoint accuracy.
Early in the middle frame, during a prolonged offensive sequence, Gulino beat Yoon glove side from the right circle. Assisted by Max Forristall, the goal proved to be the eventual game-winner.
Pentucket’s Chase Pelletier snapped the shutout a minute later, sniping one past Hornet netminder Charles Cooper off a partial breakaway. As a result of the goal, the Hornets redoubled their efforts, scoring two more in a span of 1:16. Forristall, skating as part of a 4-on-4, took advantage of the open ice with a laser and was soon followed by John Harty, who made it 5-1 with his first of the season.
Unlike last year, when the bulk of the offense came from one player, the Hornets are now getting contributions across the board.
“Going into the season, I knew we would need a team effort to replace his output,” said McAuliffe, when asked about Robbie Daley, who transferred to Governor’s Academy. “We’re spreading the scoring across our two top lines. Right now, our second line of Christian Lava, Brendan Gazda, and Matt Mericantante is contributing quite a bit. Impressive, for a freshman line. You’ll see more from them, once they starting clicking.”
In the third stanza, Lava, Baker, and James Nelson, with his first of the year, added to the North Reading count. Of note, the Lava and Baker goals were back-to-back shorthanded while Pentucket labored on the power play.
“We’ve been trying to be more aggressive on penalty kills,” said McAuliffe, who is currently 5-3 overall (3-0 CAL), and holds a 19th place in the Division 4 Power Rankings. “Sometimes, when the opposition is skating on the man advantage, they can fall into a relaxed mode. Time to time, you can surprise them.”
At the outset of the season, the Hornets suffered a defeat to Northeast Tech (3-5-1). The pivotal rematch took place last night (results in after press time). Next Wednesday, North Reading will travel to face archrival Lynnfield (3-6) at 8 p.m.
