Bedford claims Stone Tournament crown; Manchester tops Trinity for 5th

MANCHESTER, NH – Bedford scored a pair of goals, 21 seconds apart, in the second period and held on for a 4-2 win over Hanover in the final of the annual Brian C. Stone Memorial Christmas Tournament, held Thursday night at the JFK Collesum ice arena.

Ryan Lobdell scored a pair of goals in the third period to seal the game for the Bulldogs and was named to the All-Tournament team. But the MVP of the tournament was Bedford goalie Tristan Kerr, who allowed just three goals in three games and made 28 saves in the title game.

Manchester placed fifth in the eight-team tournament. The Kings were blasted by Exeter, 8-3, in the opening round but bounced back in the Consolation Bracket with wins over Bow (3-1) and Trinity (4-1). Exeter claimed third place with a 4-3 win over Concord.

Bedford had reached the final after beating Bow, 2-1, in the first round and knocking off Exeter, 2-0, in the semifinals. Hanover, which had entered the tournament at 0-3-0 in the regular season, romped past Trinity, 7-0, in the opening round and earned a berth in the final with a 3-1 upset win over Concord.

The title game was a hard-hitting affair that featured a scoreless first period. Bedford broke on top at 9:09 of the second, thanks to a power-play goal from Ryan O’Connor. The Bulldogs pressed the attack and doubled their lead just 21 seconds later when Brian Riccio scored off a brilliant centering pass from Parker O’Toole.

Hanover was able to keep things from getting out of hand and answered on a goal by Wyatt Seelig at 10:07. But that was as close as the Bears would get, as they found themselves stymied time and again by Kerr.

Bedford extended its lead to 3-1 on a nice individual effort by Lobdell, early in the third period. At times, the Bulldogs seemed ready to blow the game open but for the play of Hanover goalie JoJo Drent (31 saves).

Hanover managed to cut the lead to 3-2 on Seelig’s second goal of the game. But moments later, Lobdell netted an insurance goal. The score was set up on a sensational rush by Dominic Tagliaferro, who made a rush down the right side, swept behind the back of the Hanover net and managed to sweep a centering pass to Lobdell, while falling to the ice.

The annual Christmas tournament is played in memory of Brian C. Stone, an influential member of the Manchester hockey community, who passed away in 2018.

Stone played for the Manchester Flames, Central High and eventually at New England College. He went on to serve as an assistant coach at Manchester Memorial, head coach at Manchester Central and had just finished his first season at Trinity High at the time of his death. He was named to the New England College Athletic Hall of Fame in 2001, the Queen City Hall of Fame in 2002, the NH Legends of Hockey in 2006, and for the 2013-14 season, he was voted Coach of the Year by the New Hampshire High School Hockey Coaches Association.

The annual Christmas tournament, sometimes called “Manchester’s Beanpot,” began in 1981 and was renamed, in Stone’s honor, in 2018.

Brady Sullivan Properties is sponsor of this annual tournament.