ATTLEBORO, Mass. — The best championship game of the day came last.
With 8:04 left in the game, the Avon Regals had just given up another goal to the Yale Jr. Bulldogs and went down by two. It wasn't goalie Tyler Spokane's fault the Regals were down, but the coaches wanted to switch things up, swapping in Aiden Hopewell.
The Regals never looked back, scoring two goals in the final minutes and winning the game, 5-4, in a shootout. The victory earned them the 18U Beast championship.
With just over three minutes to play in regulation, Regals forward Patrick Walsh had the puck in the slot and fired it past Bulldogs goalie Kyle Ozgun to get Avon within a goal.
The game's final minute featured the Regals scrambling around the Bulldogs' zone for a chance and with 13.4 seconds left, it finally happened when defenseman Jake Johner knocked a puck in that was bouncing around the front of the net.
After a 3-on-3 overtime that failed to produce a winner, Tom Molson won the game in the shootout.
The Bulldogs got out to a 1-0 lead early when Cornell commit Gio DiGiulian (South Burlington, Vt.) scored on a rebound off the rush. Regals forward Hayden Hastings responded later in the first half when he had a 2-on-1, looked to pass it and then fired a shot through Spokane's legs to tie the game.
Both squads traded goals early in the second half. First, it was Bulldogs forward Ryan Flaherty (Milton, Mass.), followed by Regals forward Brendan Tighe.
At the 8:46 mark, Charles Blanchard (West Hartford, Conn.) netted the go-ahead goal to make it 3-2. Less than a minute later, he netted another.
Here are seven standouts from the championship.
Charles Blanchard
Yale Jr. Bulldogs, 1/18/2005, F, right shot, 6-0/185
Hometown: West Hartford, Conn.Â
Blanchard had two lamplighters for the Bulldogs in the championship game. In that great shift in the second half, his first goal came off a shot from the high slot; the second came by putting himself in the best position to put in a rebound. Blanchard has stood out a lot throughout the fall for his scoring touch and ability to get to high-danger areas. Blanchard also set up DiGiulian's goal early in the game.
Denver Damphousse
Yale Jr. Bulldogs, 3/6/2005, D, left shot, 6-3/181
Hometown: San Jose, Calif.Â
Damphousse's size came in handy in his own zone. He played a tough game, defending the front of his net especially well. His reach helped a bunch with that, helping him make life difficult on opposing forwards.
Connor Davis
Avon Regals, 11/9/2006, F, right shot, 5-11/170
Hometown: Vaudreuil-Dorion, Quebec
Davis never scored, but his compete stood out a lot. He played a very north-south game, using his speed to take defenders wide off the rush and generate scoring chances. On one of those rushes, he dangled a defenseman and earned a scoring chance. The '06 will be looked upon for production at Salisbury this winter.
Blake Jones
Yale Jr. Bulldogs, 2/22/2005, D, left shot, 5-9/161
Hometown: Winnipeg, ManitobaÂ
Jones showed himself as a strong puck-moving defenseman on Sunday. His best play came early in the second half when he made a smart read in the neutral zone to break up the Regals rush. He took the puck the other way and threw it into the middle for Flaherty to tip in. He was good at skating the puck out of his own zone with his head up, looking to make smart passes. He came oh-so-close to answering Molson's goal in the shootout, but he hit the crossbar and the game was over. He will be looked at to take a step forward as a senior with Avon Old Farms.
Tom Molson
Avon Regals, 1/5/2005, F, left shot, 5-8/154
Hometown: Montreal, QuebecÂ
Molson is one of the best playmakers I've seen at the 18U level this fall. He was instrumental in setting up two of his team's goals in regulation. The first came when he found Tighe streaking towards the net and hit him with a perfect pass for the goal. The second came on the game-tying tally with under 15 seconds to play. Molson had the puck high in the zone and sifted it through to the net front where Johner eventually scored. The Deerfield Academy product's goal in the shootout was clutch, too. It was a great day for Molson.
Drew Pitts
Yale Jr. Bulldogs, 3/31/2005, D, right shot, 5-11/174
Hometown: Minneapolis, Minn.Â
Pitts was a stable presence for the Jr. Bulldogs moving the puck out of his own zone. He was also good at moving the puck in the offensive zone, providing a strong outlet for forwards feeling the pressure down low. He defended well, too, and should be big on the blue line for Avon Old Farms come the prep season.
Patrick Walsh
Avon Regals, 9/16/2005, F, right shot, 5-11/174
Hometown: Bernardsville, N.J.Â
Walsh had a handful of chances throughout the game, but none were as important as his goal in the second half to cut the Bulldogs' lead to 4-3. Walsh has a good shot and found himself in good areas to get scoring chances on Sunday. He's a good candidate for a breakout season at Kent this winter.
