H.S. hockey: Cal Gworek scores in OT to lift Easthampton past Amherst, 4-3

AMHERST — The Easthampton hockey team defeated Amherst 4-3 in a back-and-forth overtime thriller at Orr Rink on Thursday night.

In the overtime period, the Eagles controlled possession for roughly 60 seconds in the offensive zone, keeping constant pressure on the Hurricanes. Just under a minute into the extra frame, Brayden Fennessy flung a shot on net, looking to create an opportunity for Easthampton.

After the initial save was made out front, Cal Gworek swung in to clean up the loose puck. The junior timed his crash to the net perfectly, burying the rebound into the twine for the game-winning goal.

“We spoke during the overtime intermission about how puck possession is going to win the game,” Eagles head coach Tim Pfau said. “Possess the puck, until we find the right plays, and that starts to pull [Amherst] out of the place where they want play positionally. We had a few opportunities before that, and we outworked them to get the loose pucks. The 50/50 puck-battles win hockey games, and then it’s just jamming home. Dirty goals will get you wins.”

Gworek had a huge night on Thursday in the victory for Easthampton, with his other goal serving as the equalizer at the end of the third period to force overtime.

Similar to his game-winner, the third-period goal came from great positioning out of Gworek. Down by a goal with just over two minutes in regulation, the junior was stationed out front and was first to corral the loose puck, stuffing it across the goal line to knot the game up at 3-3.

“[Gworek] works hard, and that’s the biggest thing I can say about him,” Pfau said. “Not just him, it’s the whole team. We have a hard-working team that will not quit, and that’s what Gworek is. He’ll give it to you from the first puck drop to the end.”

Although the Eagles had over triple the shots on goal as the Hurricanes (48-15, respectively), Amherst held a lead for a good chunk of the game.

The lead came in large part to a great night in net out of Jason Kim for the Hurricanes, who made 44 saves. Coming in to the game with a .937 save percentage and 2.39 goals-against average, Kim continued to build on an impressive season to this point.

“Kim gives us a chance to win every game,” Amherst head coach Mike Rousseau said. “We’re young, we don’t have a lot of depth. So when [he] needs to make a save, he makes the saves he’s supposed to, and then he comes up big and makes saves he’s probably not supposed to.”

Thursday night’s game featured a lot of physicality from both teams, with each side not afraid to throw the body around. The aggression led to 12 total penalties, with each side’s power play and penalty kill units being put to the test.

Easthampton capitalized on 2-of-5 power play opportunities throughout the night, while the Hurricanes converted on 2-of-3 man-advantages.

Josh Feldman scored a goal on the man-advantage in the second period for Amherst, capping off a two-goal night where he opened the scoring near the end of the first. Ethan Mooney scored the third goal of the night for the Hurricanes, flicking a deep wrister into the netting from the point on a power play in the third period.

The Eagles’ first two goals also came on respective power plays, with Wyatt Hunter lighting the lamp in the second and Grayson Prevey-Catrambone finding the back of the net at the beginning of the third period.

“The power play, we know we can be a lot better, I do, the kids do,” Pfau said. “The penalty kill has been outstanding. At times, we falter, but that’s to be expected. But, I think the penalty kill’s been great, and we know the power play could be a lot better with the skill that we have.”

With the tough overtime loss, Amherst’s record now sits at 5-5-2 on the season. It’ll look to shake it off on Saturday, Jan. 17, at 7 p.m. when it travels to McCann Tech.

“They didn’t quit,” Rousseau said. “We could have easily just folded at 3-3. We gave it a shot… Our heart showed tonight. If and when we get healthy, we’re going to be a team to be reckoned with in the Western Mass. Tournament.”

After the win, Easthampton improves to 4-7 on the year, putting a halt to a four-game losing streak. The team has a chance to continue stacking some wins together on Saturday, Jan. 17, at 8:10 p.m. on the road against Agawam.

“We will not quit, and we’re gonna be here till the end of the year,” Pfau said.