Lions want to shock state
Lincoln opposes reigning D-II champion Barrington
LINCOLN – There aren’t many people out there who believe the Lincoln/East Providence co-op squad has much of a chance to keep up with powerhouse Barrington when they face off in a Division II best-of-three quarterfinal series opener at 6, tonight at the Portsmouth Abbey rink.
Not only are the Eagles the top seed and the regular-season champion with a near-flawless 16-1-1 league record, but they also boast three of the league’s top five scorers.
They include seniors Luke Rudman (26 goals, 17 assists, 43 points), Dominic Robidoux (21-15-36) and Josh Roy (20-12-32).
As for the eighth-ranked Lions, they finished the campaign with a 7-9-2 mark and have struggled since beginning with five wins in their first six tilts.
Conventional wisdom dictates Barrington will sweep the set, but L/EP head coach Garrett Riel never was one to believe much in odds, and that’s what he’s trying to get across to his players.
“Whenever I see them getting lazy in practice, not giving 110 percent effort like they should be, I just stop them and say, ‘Do you guys realize you could be a part of something really special? That you could create the biggest story in high school hockey in all divisions this year?” he stated. “I’ve told them the story about when I played for Lincoln back in 2006, how we won the state D-II title over Moses Brown.
“That was a series we had no business winning, but I told the kids that we decided a little hard work and determination and buying into a mostly defensive system, we were able to pull it off. I explained it wasn’t easy, not against a vaunted offensie like Moses Brown had, but we did. We won the first (game), 3-0, lost the second, 3-0, then won the third, 1-0.
“I scored the clincher in the rubber game, and it was one of my life’s highlights. I told the guys they could live that, and that I want them to experience that. There were three different playoff series that year, and we had no idea how we were going to win any of them. These kids are feeling the same way, but I said, ‘We set those doubts aside, believed in ourselves and made it happen.
“This team could do the same thing, and I believe it with every fiber of my being. This team can do some huge things if the 20 players who dress can take all of that to heart and believe it’s possible.”
As for what made Barrington so consistent this past season, Riel indicated discipline while handling the puck, not turning it over and getting it to their playmakers.
“They’re stacked; they’ve got a lot of good players,” he noted. “They’re so strong offensively because they’re good with the puck, and they’re great down low when they’re cycling the puck. They can also put it in the net.
“Those guys – Rudman, Robidoux and Roy – are on the same line, I believe, and they feed off each other,” he added. “We have to disrupt those feeds. I don’t know what it is about their chemistry, but they just click. They not only have three good lines, but also a solid fourth.
“They’re also very well-coached (by Kevin Croke and his staff), so that’s another thing … The second our team starts to doubt itself, it’s over; if you doubt yourself against a team like Barrington, you’re not going to have much of a chance, but I believe in our guys.”
According to Riel, his goalkeepers, including senior Alex Peters and frosh Matt Pierce, will have to “stand on their heads,” and their defensemen must assert themselves on each and every shift.
“We just have to believe ourselves and have a little faith,” he said. “We may be out-skilled in this set, and they probably have more depth than we do, but it’s high school hockey, and everyone knows that anything can happen.”
No. 6 PSW vs. No. 3 Coventry
Like Lincoln, PCD/St. Raphael/ Wheeler co-op will also be an underdog when it takes on third-seeded Coventry in another best-ofthree Division II quarterfinal series, one that starts tonight at 7:20 at Benny Mageira Rink in West Warwick.
The Oakers will carry an 11-6-1 record into the first tilt, while PSW, the sixth-ranked club, mustered a 9-9-0 mark. When the two met in January, Coventry coasted to a 5-0 victory, but mentor Kevin Sullivan’s bunch turned the tide two weeks ago, 4-3.
“It all starts with their goalten- der (Brandon Ciampanelli); the kid is very, very good,” Sullivan stated. “He’s big, he anticipates well and he’s quick, but he also has a good group of defensemen in front of him that makes his job easier. Those guys are very skilled and really fast.
“They also have that No. 24 (Kolye Bankauskas), who was the leading scorer in all of Division III,” he added. “They’re pretty strong, from top to bottom.”
When asked what he believes the key to success is, Sullivan didn’t hesitate.
“It all starts with our forecheck and putting pressure on their defense,” he said. “We have to gain control in the offensive zone and set up shot. If we can take care of business in the defensive zone and move it up to the offensive without mistakes, we’re going to do good things.
“Another key is making their goalie move; if we don’t, we’re not going to score. We’ve got to make him uncomfortable, and also control their big guns.”