By Larry Moko
A change in goaltenders midway through the game proved to be the right strategy for the St. John Henry Newman Cardinals.
Newman trailed its Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic high school hockey semifinal 3-1 when Alessio Menegazzo went between the pipes to replace starting netminder Ben Black.
From that point on, the Cardinals scored two unanswered goals to send the contest into overtime. And when a shootout was required, Newman outscored More 2-1 to claim a 4-3 victory at Morgan Firestone Arena.
The Cardinals will take on the Bishop Ryan Celtics on Feb. 20 for the league title at Mountain Arena.
"We just needed a spark to get the guys going," Newman coach Matt Pritchard said. "It seemed like Ben was fighting the puck.
"Alessio came in with no warmup and played great to hold down the fort for us. Ben took it (the switch) like a champion."
Deson Moriarity notched the deciding goal in the shootout. Earlier, he got the Cardinals on the scoreboard with a first-period power-play marker.
"Deson is a guy we can always rely on to get the job done," the Cardinals coach said. "When he gets a chance he usually buries it in close. We know he has a really good shot."
Nolan Methot and Dom Fidanza had the other goals for Newman, which finished second in the league standings (5-3).
Third-place More (4-4) got goals by Rogan Monaghan, Logan Slack and Julian Carbone.
"It's been the story of our team the last couple of years," Pritchard said. "We're never out of games. Last year we came from behind in both playoff games to win."
Knights coach Gino Leone called it a "crazy" ending to back-and-forth on-ice action.
"It looked like we had control, then the momentum sort of switched," Leone said. "Hats off to Newman. They played a strong game."
Newman had a golden opportunity to skate away with the victory during the first five-minute overtime period. That's when More was assessed a four-minute penalty for an open-ice knee-on-knee collision.
Said Leone: "Very rarely do you survive a penalty in overtime. A couple of years ago we lost to BR in a semifinal in the same fashion. We got a penalty in overtime and they capitalized on it.
"I'm proud of the guys for battling through that overtime period today. It wasn't easy to kill it off. The shootout is a coin flip. It could have gone either way.
Veteran left winger Fidanza struck for the equalizer with five minutes left in the third period. On the play, he received a long bouncing pass from Grade 9 defenceman Ryder Drennan to skate in alone.
"Ryder chipped the puck up the ice and it took a couple of bounces past their defenders," Fidanza said. "From there, I was off to the races.
"I missed that same breakaway last year in the final. This year, I capitalized on it."
Fidanza also set up captain Methot's goal late in the second period.
"Fidanza played a great game," the Cardinals coach said. "He was all over the ice generating a ton of chances. That's why we put him as the first (OT) shooter."
According to Pritchard, the Cardinals were fortunate to win after not scoring on their extended power play in overtime. "I thought it might come back and bite us," he said, "but the guys stayed resilient.
"Nobody wants a game to end by way of a shootout. But we're obviously happy to be on the winning side of it."
During the regular schedule the two teams split a pair of games (4-0 for Newman, 2-0 for More).
The Knights edged the Cardinals in the 2024 championship final.
Photos by R.F. (Bob) Butrym, RFB Sport Photography
More photos on the HWCDSB Athletics Page
