Behind strong penalty killing, North Haven High School boys’ varsity hockey out-skated the undefeated, state-ranked West Haven team in the first round of the annual West Haven Christmas Tournament.

“That was a big win for us,” said NHHS head coach Tom Roche of his squad’s 5-4 victory over West Haven on Dec. 28. “The boys came out playing hard and never stopped, right up to the end.”

North Haven’s participation in the West Haven Christmas Tournament represented a divergence from the Indians’ usual late-December schedule. During this stretch of season in recent years, NHHS had contended in the Maine High School Hockey Invitational Tournament. But this had been taking an unintended toll on the program. Last season, the Indians dropped a pair of close games in Maine, losses which counted against them in their overall record back home in Connecticut and became one of the reasons that North Haven couldn't qualify for the 2011 State Playoffs.

This year, the Indians opted to skip Maine. Instead, they entered the first annual West Haven Christmas Tournament, along with three other teams that call Bennett Rink their home: West Haven, Amity Regional and Notre Dame of West Haven. This was an opportunity to play two of the three teams from the SCC earlier in the season than they normally would, during a week of low pressure following the Christmas Holiday.

In the first round, North Haven faced West Haven, Connecticut’s fourth-ranked team. The Indians built up a 5-2 lead and held on in the final period for a 5-4 win, as senior goalie Mike Amarone made several outstanding saves to preserve a one-goal victory. 

Moreover, NHHS overcame several lopsided power plays in West Haven’s favor. “They had a couple of 5-3 power plays and we were able to stop them,” Roche said. “We were really good at killing penalties.”

Against West Haven, senior co-captains Mike Andreucci and Tyler DeMartin helped spark a potent Indian offense. “We were very aggressive in the offensive zone,” Roche said. “We seemed to click, whereas West Haven did not, even on their power plays.”

In the Tournament Championship game, played last Friday, North Haven did not fare as well and surrendered four goals in the opening period en route to a 7-2 loss to the state’s third-ranked team, undefeated Notre Dame (6-0). Andreucci and John Johnson both scored for the Indians, whose record dropped to 3-2 on the season.

“That score doesn’t reflect, in my mind, how well we played in that game,” Roche said. “In the first five minutes, our guys hit the post twice with shots on their net.”

“Then they got a couple of tip-ins that went off of our players. They got a couple of freebies,” he added. “The North Haven boys played well, even if it doesn’t reflect it in the score.”

Kevin Pataky is a professional photographer and longtime North Haven Citizen contributor. Website — KevinPataky.com