Dover-Sherborn/Weston head coach Alex Marlow knew his team had just competed in one of the most exciting hockey games in Dover Sherborn, Weston – (and Winthrop) – school history.
“It’s one of the greatest hockey games I’ve ever been part of, and I can’t wait to rewatch it so I can actually enjoy it,” Marlow told reporters after his team’s 2-1 victory in a shootout over Winthrop in the Division 4 state semifinals Saturday at Gallo Arena in Bourne.
Marlow said his team paid special attention to Winthrop’s Petey Silverman, the Vikings’ leading scorer, from the opening faceoff.
“I’m not going to sugarcoat it, he’s a special, special player,” said Marlow. “Obviously, he was a point of interest for us from the get-go. We just knew that at all times we had to know where Silverman was – always. And kudos to our players, with just two days to get a game plan for [Winthrop], and they all bought in and they knew where he was at all times.”
Dover Sherborn goaltender Andrew Goldstein (37 saves) said the team was well aware of the Silverman factor.
“We did a lot of research on him. He’s a tremendous player. I think he got the one [goal] on me, but credit to the ‘D’ just containing him. We did a great job – he’s one heckuva player.”
Goldstein realized early on that Winthrop’s goalie Michael Donahue was matching him in the save department.
“Their goalie played amazing – he was making a ton of saves,” said Goldstein. “Sometimes, it can be a little discouraging when your team can’t find the back of the net, but for me, I just stayed focused on what I need to do. My job never changes. It’s always to make saves and focus on doing whatever it takes to win.”
Goldstein was asked by the Sun-Transcript reporter about the shootout format that is used in the state tournament.
“I had a lot of fun. We came out with a win, so I think that’s a big part of it. But look, I’d say once it’s past two overtimes, I think it’s time to go to a shootout because no goals are going in. Win or lose, I would have had fun with it because as a goalie, that’s what you live for,” said Goldstein.
Marlow felt his team’s involvement in low-scoring games during the season prepared his team well for the state tournament. Dover-Sherborn (19-3-2), the No. 5 seed, had defeated Boston Latin Academy (6-1), Dedham (4-1), and Sandwich (2-1) in previous tournament games. Winthrop, the No. 1 seed, had rolled to victories over Tri-County (9-2), Hudson (6-1), and Ashland (7-0) in its run to the Final Four.
“[Winthrop’s season] is very impressive, and they’re an amazing team, but if you look at all our scores, we pride ourselves on team defense. We’re ready for the 2-1 games and the 1-0 games. We’ve had multiple overtime experiences earlier on in the season. This was the first to go two overtimes.”