The Martha’s Vineyard–Nantucket game is always a big one, and Saturday afternoon’s bout didn’t disappoint. The Vineyarders collected yet another dominant win on the Whalers with the legendary matchup finishing 5-1 in the Vineyard’s favor, at home no less.
A sophomore for the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School boys varsity hockey team, Donnie Gregory (No. 12), put up a hat trick and assisted two goals to help pull out the win, but while the final score leaned heavily in the Vineyard’s favor, the score was close until late in the third period.
Scoring opened on Saturday with Gregory. After an offensive Vineyard rush was broken up in Nantucket’s zone, Gregory got back control of the puck, and fired it through traffic and into the back of the net, giving the Vineyard a 1-0 lead to end the period.
The Vineyarders extended their lead with a minute left in the second period when Gregory again lit up the scoreboard, shooting the puck short-side high from just inside the right face-off circle, assisted by senior Joseph Medeiros (No. 15), bringing the lead to 2-0.
The Vineyarders started the third period on a penalty kill, but seconds after getting back to full five-on-five strength, Nantucket scored a wraparound goal with 13:29 remaining in the period to cut the lead to 2-1.
The Vineyarders responded with a goal of their own minutes later, though, quelling Nantucket’s momentum. With 11:04 left on the scoreboard before the end of the game, a battle deep in Nantucket’s offensive corner sent the puck into the Whalers’ slot. After a scramble for possession, Medeiros was able to bury it to bring the lead to 3-1.
Then with six minutes left in the game, the Vineyard’s sophomore Rowan Huffam (No. 19) capitalized in spectacular fashion.
Huffam collected a pass as he cut across Nantucket’s crease, switching to his backhand with pressure on. In a move reminiscent of the legendary Bobby Orr goal that secured the Boston Bruins the 1970 Stanley Cup, Huffam tripped over the Whalers’ goaltender as he flew across the crease, and tucked the puck into the net to give the Vineyard a 4-1 lead.
With a minute to go, the Vineyarders found themselves on the penalty kill again, and this time Nantucket pulled their goalie to make it a six-on-five in an effort to make a last-second comeback. After a battle in the neutral zone earned the Vineyarders puck control, Gregory was able to cap off his hat trick, walking the puck into Nantucket’s zone with space and sliding it into the Whalers’ empty net to earn the Vineyard the 5-1 win.
The Vineyarders also defeated the Nantucket Whalers in December, 9-1. The next matchup on the Vineyard boys varsity hockey team’s schedule is at Falmouth High School in Falmouth at 5 pm on Jan. 9.
