BOSTON – It was a slow start for Canton, but the Bulldogs came alive to win the MIAA Division 2 boys State Championship with a 4-1 over Hopkinton on Sunday at the TD Garden.
Four different Canton players scored as the Bulldogs’ size and depth prevailed in the end. The result was the finishing touches on a revenge tour after Brian Shuman’s team lost to Tewksbury in the final last season.
Hopkinton got on the board first at the 3:12 mark of the opening period and held a 1-0 lead until late in the second stanza. Senior sniper Pavit Mehra scored a rebound goal after Parker Winn’s shot from the right point was stopped, but squirted back out on top of the crease. Cam MacPherson had the other assist as he kicked it free to Mehra.
With Canton peppering Hopkinton goalie Jack Lang, it was looking like the Bulldogs might never break through until late in the second period. A flurry of activity in just over a minute gave Canton a 2-1 lead heading to the third period. With 1:48 left in the second period, Brendan Tourgee collected James Young’s point shot that had gone wide of the net and caromed off the end board. His first crack at it was stopped, but his second effort found the back of the net.
Brian Middleton gave Canton its first lead of the game with 33.9 seconds left in the second period. Jack DiGiralamo had brought the puck down the left wing, barreling his way through a Hopkinton defender. He lost the puck, but Middleton scooped it up and his wrist shot found its way between Lang and the near post for a 2-1 lead.
CHAMPIONSHIP SUNDAY: Check out all the scores from the MIAA state championships
The Bulldogs grabbed an insurance tally with just over three minutes to play in the third period. Jeffrey Chaput lifted a shot from in tight just under the bar after a slick pass down from AJ Thomas on a rush attempt. Young had the secondary assist, his third of the game.
Thomas added an empty net tally with 25.9 seconds to go to seal the 4-1 victory.
Here are prospect notes from the game.
Pavit Mehra
Hopkinton, 7/16/04, C, right shot, 5-11/165
Mehra had a quick stick around the net for picking up and burying a rebound on the first goal. He had a good chance later in the first period by hanging around the net. Mehra had a couple of chances on the rush while coming down the right wing. While the senior was undoubtedly one of the best players in the MIAA this season, his vision and ability to use his teammates is an area of his game he can improve on as he embarks on his junior hockey career.
Cam MacPherson
Hopkinton, 6/19/08, LW, left shot, 5-7/130
MacPherson went to the net on the first goal and picked up an assist. He competed hard on two separate wall battles late in the first period. MacPherson rang the post in the second period on a rush down the right side. He made a couple of nice low-to-high passes and showed that he is capable of thinking the game at pace. Look for MacPherson to become an even more effective player as he gets older and stronger in the coming years.
Dylan Mansur
Hopkinton, 1/12/05, D, left shot, 5-8/155
Mansur showed great poise on breakout passes all game, waiting for the right time to hit the left wing on several puck retrievals. There were numerous occasions where he displayed patience and precision for tape-to-tape passes on the breakout. He logs a ton of minutes for the Hillers. Mansur is a quarterback out there in terms of slowing the game down and having good puck touches. He might have been the best breakout machine I’ve seen all year in the MIAA. For him to take the next step in his development, he’ll need to concentrate on defending harder and competing better to get back after joining the rush.
Colin Davis
Canton, 9/8/06, G, catches left, 6-1/176
Davis was somewhat upstaged by Lang for the first two periods, as his counterpart at the other end stood on his head. In the end, Davis showed why he’s one of the best goaltenders in the MIAA. He’s fundamentally sound and made a few saves on Mehra look easy just by being in the right position, square to the shooter and challenging on the top of the crease.
Brendan Tourgee
Canton, 7/27/05, C, right shot, 6-0/155
Tourgee, Canton’s captain, got the Bulldogs on the board and helped initiate the flurry of scoring at the end of the second period. Throughout the game, Tourgee did a good job of winning battles and getting to loose pucks below the dots. A hard-nosed player, he centered the top line and was the leader of a solid group of centers that made Canton good down the middle.
Brian Middleton
Canton, 8/16/06, C, right shot, 5-10/160
Middleton scored the game-winning goal by following up the initial attack and burying a wrist shot precisely between the goaltender and the near post. One of the few younger players on this Canton team, he was solid in several viewings this season.
James Young
Canton, 4/17/05, D, left shot, 5-8/154
The senior concluded his high school career with three assists in the state championship game. That’s a pretty good way to go out for Young, who competed well and displayed a hard shot that got through to the net on a few occasions. The offensive leader of the Canton blue line, he was once again productive in jumpstarting the attack from the backend.
AJ Thomas
Canton, 1/1/05, RW, right shot
Thomas had a pretty assist on the third goal. It was an underrated play as he cut across the middle on the rush and slipped a pass down to Chaput. He hustled to beat out an icing and score the empty net goal to give the Bulldogs a 4-1 lead.
Jeffrey Chaput
Canton, 8/25/04, LW, left shot, 6-0/155
Chaput lifted a shot into the upper half of the net from in close to give Canton a 3-1 lead. He showed good touch on the goal, but also on catching the pass and releasing the shot without breaking stride.
HOW THEY GOT HERE: The full bracket for the MIAA D2 boys tournament
Jack Lang
Hopkinton, 1/1/05, G, catches left, 5-10/160
Lang stood tall for much of the first 28 minutes. He was peppered in the first period and kept Canton off the board until late in the second period. He made a terrific glove save two minutes into the second period after initially stopping the first shot with pads. It was possibly the highlight reel play of the game. He stuck leg out for a kick save 10 minutes into the second period.
Canton lines
Chaput - Tourgee - A. Thomas
DiGiralomo - Middleton - Blake
Drury - T. Thomas - M. Thomas
Young - Anderson
Owens - Hughes
Shuman - Lauro
Davis
Hopkinton lines
MacPherson - Mehra - Scardino
Iaricci - Durocher - Purpura
Iantosca - Teitel - Resnick
Mansur - Zolotarev
Morse - Winn
Hayward
Lang
