Trinity rallies past Bedford, 4-3, in overtime

MANCHESTER, NH — Trinity High dug itself a deep hole by playing some of its worst hockey of the season.

The Pioneers then clawed their way out by playing some of their best, rallying past Bedford High, 4-3, in overtime, Wednesday afternoon at the JFK Arena.

Chris Centerino netted the game-winner for Trinity (4-1-0) with 5:46 to play in OT. The sophomore forward dug the puck out of the corner powered his way to the front of the net and flipped a shot over the shoulder of Bedford goalie Savo Ftorek.

”We probably didn’t have our best game,” said Trinity Head Coach Mike Connell. “We had a hard time figuring out their goalie. We probably weren’t getting to the net enough. But I thought the third period we came out and played a lot better than we did the first (two periods). And that was a great play by Cento.”

Trailing 3-0, Trinity got a power play goal from Max Beaulieu with 3:44 to play in the second period. More than just cutting into the Bedford lead, the goal seemed to give the Pioneers a much-needed energy surge.

Trinity rode that momentum into the third period and thoroughly dominated play. Aggressive forechecking kept Bedford back on its heels, struggling to clear their zone.

An aggressive “pinch” along the left boards by Trinity defenseman Colton Larue, extended a Pioneer attack and led to Brady Sirois scoring off a feed from Ben Siskavich, cutting the deficit to 3-2, early in the third.

With less than five minutes to play in regulation, Ftorek (28 saves) kicked out a shot from the point by Trinity sophomore Dylan Behnken. But senior Anthony Ronzello was sitting on the doorstep to pounce on the juicy rebound and tie the game, 3-3.

That set the stage for a final few minutes of regulation best described as “bizarre.”

The referees whistled five minor penalties over the final 2:30 (three on Bedford and two on Trinity), giving each team power plays and prime scoring bids down the stretch.

Bedford freshman Jayden Ritter was first to the penalty box, called for slashing with 2:30 remaining.

Trinity’s power play came to an early end when Behnken went to the box for a cross check with 1:06 left. Just 11 seconds later, he was joined by Sirois, also called for a cross check.

But before Bedford could settle into what would be a 5-on-3, senior Cameron Hadley was called for a slash with 52 seconds left.

Then, with 10 seconds left, Bedford’s Brendon Kaupp was whistled for charging after he buried Max Saluto in the corner from behind.

“There was some undisciplined play at the end. That will definitely be addressed,” said Connell.

With the ice opened up, speedy Bedford forward Parker O’Toole had more room to operate in the closing minutes. The result was a pair of prime scoring chances.

Twice, O’Toole walked in alone on Joe Ronzello, only to be turned aside by Trinity’s talented sophomore netminder. Ronzello finished with 30 saves but none were better than his stops on O’Toole in the final minutes.

“The play of our goalie and defense and all our guys, I thought, got stronger as the game went on,” said Connell. “I thought we have a little more legs in the third period.”

The first 16 minutes of the game could not have gone much worse for Trinity. The Pioneers came out a bit flat and lacked the physicality and grit they have shown in the early part of the year.

Trinity did pepper Ftorek with 12 shots in the first period but didn’t really test him.

At the other end, Ronzello kept the Bulldogs at bay until Parker Gupta scored with 1:29 to play, redirecting a slapshot by Ritter.

Just 20 seconds later, Sirois went to the box for slashing and it didn’t take long for Bedford to take advantage. O’Toole got a stick on a scramble in front of the net and slipped a backhand past Ronzello, giving Bedford a 2-0 lead after one.

It would jump to 3-0 less than 10 seconds into the second period, when O’Toole knocked home a one-timer off a perfect centering pass by Gupta.

Trinity, winner of three straight, is back on action Saturday at 4:10 p.m. at home against Londonderry.