The Lynnfield/Saugus Youth Hockey League’s North Shore Stars captured two Valley Hockey League Championships over the weekend at Valley Forum in Haverhill, with the Mite 1 team defeating Winchester 5-4 and the Mite 3 team beating Wakefield 2-1. Both games were decided in exciting overtime periods.
In the Mite 3 victory, Michael Raposo scored the game winner after collecting a rebound of a Kyle McNaught shot and beating the goaltender just 21 seconds into the extra session. McNaught outmuscled two Wakefield players in the corner to dig out the puck and put it on net, setting the stage for Raposo’s heroics.
Earlier in the game, McNaught put the Stars ahead 1-0 on a pinpoint top shelf shot past the Wakefield goalie late in the first period. Luke Provenzano set the play in motion with a nice cross-ice feed. Billy Lauziere was outstanding in net for the Stars, stopping 25 shots in the victory. The team finished the season 21-5-1 and led their division from start to finish.
The Mite 1 victory was a back-and-forth affair, with both teams holding leads at different points of the final period before Luca DePalma scored off a great feed from Nico Bello to take home the victory. The winning play was set in motion following a great save from goalie Joey Ryan, when Bello collected the rebound and led the rush up ice to create a 3-on-1 for the Stars.
DePalma also scored a goal during regulation, while Max Pedersen collected a hat trick. Ryan was stellar in net, holding the fort in the extra session while under relentless pressure from Winchester. The Mite 1 team ended the season with a 22-2-3 and like the Mite 3’s led their division wire-to-wire. They finished with the best record of any division champion out of 152 Mite teams in the Valley Hockey League.
The two championships concluded a long, challenging season for all 13 teams in Lynnfield/Saugus Youth Hockey’s program. In all, four teams won their division championships, including two Mini-Mite teams. Registration and more information on the program can be found at www.lynnfieldyouthhockey.com.
