BIDDEFORD — Brandon Daigle recorded his third straight shutout as the Biddeford boys’ hockey team blanked Thornton Academy 4-0 Saturday afternoon at Biddeford Ice Arena.
The Tigers (7-3-2) scored twice in the first seven minutes and maintained control throughout as they continued their push for one of the top seeds in the Western Class A playoffs.
Additional Images
Ricky Ruck opened the scoring with an unassisted goal just 3:22 into the game. A little over three minutes later, Tyler Bellerose struck to make it 2-0.
Thornton Academy (2-9), which lost 3-2 to Biddeford earlier this season, got its best opportunity to cut into the deficit just over two minutes into the second period when Eric Profenno stole the puck from Ruck. Profenno’s breakaway bid was stopped by Daigle, however.
“I actually played with (Profenno) in the fall, so I kind of know him. He made a couple of moves and I tried to make myself big. I went up with the glove and saw the puck all the way in,” said Daigle.
Considering how well Daigle and Biddeford’s defense have played recently, Thornton Coach Jamie Gagnon knew his team needed to take advantage of any scoring chances.
“Unfortunately for us (Daigle) made a great save, glove save going down. (Profenno) thought he saw a spot there, but Brandon has a very good glove hand and he showed it there,” said Gagnon.
Meanwhile, Biddeford Coach Rich Reissfelder knew his team got away with a bad play.
“We always talk about turnovers at the blue line, it being the worst possible place (for a turnover), and Rick knew immediately that he made a mistake there,” said Reissfelder. “I think the guys realized at that point that we can’t get sloppy.”
Daigle finished with 12 saves. In his previous two games, he shut out Falmouth – the top-ranked team in Western Class A – and Cape Elizabeth.
“I’m starting to get more comfortable as the season goes on,” said Daigle. “Just handling rebounds a little bit better, kind of getting in a groove. I’m not really fighting pucks, I’m relaxing.
“Daigle has been on fire. He’s just seeing every puck; he takes up a lot of the net,” said Reissfelder.
Just 82 seconds after the Trojans’ missed opportunity, Biddeford extended its lead when Joe Anders’ wrist shot found the top corner to the right of Thornton goalie Andrew Huot.
After a soft goal by Zack Thompson made it 4-0 with 2:10 left in the second period, Gagnon pulled Huot and put in Christopher Camire.
“We’re just trying to find a way to get (Camire) into games. We have a big stretch of games ahead and I didn’t want this to affect Andrew mentally,” said Gagnon. “It’s more of a mental break for (Huot) to get ready and recover for the next one out.”
Send questions/comments to the editors.
