Algonquin’s Firepower Too Much for Hudson’s Youth

HUDSON – It was a game of frustration for the Hudson Hawks. They lost their first game of the season on Saturday, 5-1, in a contest where they were outshot and outplayed by a far more experienced Algonquin hockey team. However, when Hawks sophomore Riley O’Sullivan’s shot from beyond center ice squeezed through the pads of Algonquin goaltender Colin Connors and trickled over the goal-line with one second left in the game, their frustration turned to celebration. They finally broke through to get on the scoreboard and they were excited about it.

Perhaps it’s just a small victory in a difficult loss or maybe it’s a sign of a team not ready to give up on themselves after a rough start. The goal seemed to lift their spirits as they left the ice with the hope for future success.

Despite the inauspicious beginning to their 2021-22 season, the Hawks new head coach Scott O’Connor, a 1981 graduate of Hudson, said his team is currently in a transitional phase.

“As a new staff, where the kids are all new to us, and we are new to them there is obviously a period of adjustment,” O’Connor said about his team which is made up of more than half of underclassmen. O’Connor has years of coaching experience under his belt to help turn the program into a success. The Hudson alum returns to the Hudson hockey program after spending ten years as the assistant varsity coach at Hopkinton. He also worked as the Varsity B head coach at Cushing Academy and the head coach at Berkshire School. His other coaching experience includes serving as a co-coach at Montclair Kimberley Academy in Montclair, NJ and as a head coach at Whitman-Hanson Regional High School.

As the new Hawks coach, O’Connor looks to learn about what his team does best and build on that foundation. “On our side, [we are] figuring out what the skill set of each player is and how that will mesh with linemates or D-partners. For the players, they obviously need to understand our expectations of them on a daily basis; what it is we expect in practice day-in and day-out; and what we’re looking for in games.”

On the ice against Algonquin, O’Connor saw his team thinking too much throughout the game rather than reacting to plays instinctually.

“One of the things we’re dealing with, even with the older kids, is this is a new system for them and different points of emphasis from one coach to the next,”

Hudson senior captain Paul Melo, Jr. made 42 to saves in the loss to Algonquin. Photo by Kevin Paul Saleeba

O’Connor said immediately after the game. “A lot of what we are asking them to do is a little bit different and a little bit new. So, it’s just a learning process for everybody.”

Although the team may be inexperienced, O’Connor does have a few seniors he expects to make a positive impact this season. “I think first and foremost [making an impact will be] our senior goalie Paul Melo, Jr.,” he said. “A lot of our success will depend on what we do in our own zone, and our goaltender is a key piece to that.”

Melo was tested throughout the game versus Algonquin. He faced a total of 47 shots and at times was forced to make multiple stops in a row. He even stopped a breakout in the third period. Four out of the five goals he gave up came off second and third shot opportunities off rebounds and the other came off a screen in front of him. He finished the game with a save percentage of nearly ninety.

“He made some really good saves,” O’Connor said. “We got heavily outshot and he kept it as tight as it was. I thought he did a really great job. We need to do a little better job helping him out.”

Hudson found themselves down 1-0 after one period, but gave up four goals in the second period, which was capped off by a hat-trick from Algonquin junior Andrew Hodge. Algonquin’s senior Nicholas D’Angelo had a goal and two assists and senior assistant captain Sam Salvi scored a goal and assist to propel Algonquin past the Hawks at the New England Sports Center in Marlborough.

Algonquin junior Andrew Hodge celebrates his hat-trick. Photo by Kevin Paul Saleeba

The first two goals Hudson allowed in the game were on the penalty kill. O’Connor pointed to their penalty kill as an example of their young players overthinking on the ice. “Our kill is really aggressive and it’s not what the kids usually run and we saw them thinking too much on the ice and that hurt us early on … We were going up against a strong team. Early on we were kind of watching the puck and thinking and you could see us thinking and not reacting and being instinctive.”

The Hawks bounced back and showed improvement in the third period by keeping Algonquin’s high-flying attack off the scoreboard. “As the game progressed, between the first and second and the second and third periods, we started to do more of the things that we’ve been working on in practice. We started to support the puck a little bit better in the D-zone. We started to become a little more instinctive. It’s just a matter of continuing to practice and we’ll get better at it.”

Moving forward, in order for this team to improve, O’Connor is expecting strong leadership from his four captains, including Melo and seniors John DiFonzo, Parker Green, and Nick DiPersio.

“Their leadership this season will be a huge part of any success we have,” O’Connor said. “Their experience, as well as the relationship they have with our younger players, will be very important as the team gets to know us as a staff and what we expect from them.”

Hudson captains Nick DiPersio (21), Paul Melo, Jr. (1), and Parker Green (15) lead their young team to the ice. Photo by Kevin Paul Saleeba

DiFonzo, along with senior Nick Perez, will anchor Hudson’s defensive corps this season as the top D-pairing. Green and DiPersio, also make up the Hawks’ top forward line which includes senior Jimmy Ciancarelli. O’Connor said, “up front, our first line of Parker Green, Nick DiPersio and Jimmy Ciancarelli will be pivotal. Of course, lines and D-pairings can change throughout the season, but heading into our first couple of games these will be key pieces.”

O’Connor also said he was pleased with the performance of his young second forward line made up of sophomores Joe Lozoraitis, and Christian Stevens, and freshman Owen Nanartowich. “I thought throughout the entire game they came out and played hard and they’re relatively young so I was kind of impressed with what they did out there.”

As the season progresses, O’Connor said he expects all of his underclassmen to emerge as productive hockey players.

Hudson sophomore Joe Lozoraitis

“Of the twenty-three boys on the varsity roster, sixteen of them are underclassmen,” O’Connor said. “And twelve of those are eighth, ninth and tenth graders. We are a very young team, with some great senior leadership, so how quickly we can meld that together will play an important role in our success. So, for our younger players, it is a matter of being patient, but [we are] trying to bring them along quickly because they will play a big role this year, and in our future.”

The rest of Hudson’s coaching staff includes first-year assistant Ryan Moreau and Jim O’Brien, who has coached a few seasons at Hudson. O’Brien will also be the head coach of Hudson’s JV team. Justin Bush returns to Hudson after coaching a few seasons for Wayland and will act as an assistant varsity coach, assistant JV coach, and the goaltender coach.

O’Connor said they will put this game in the rearview mirror and continue to be optimistic for a bright future. “Again, I was not happy with the score and not happy with the result, but they started to play better as the game progressed. So, I was happy the way we played and improved from period to period and towards the end as a team. You know, we’ll get there.”