Satisfying, But Not Satisfied

Head coach Steve Scanlon was frustrated by the effort his boys hockey team put forth Wednesday night against Amesbury. All the Wildcats did, after all, was win by four goals, extend their league unbeaten streak to 13 games and pull within one victory of a Cape Ann League title.

“Games like this, you don’t want to be lowering your level of play,” said Scanlon after his team’s 6-2 defeat of also-ran Amesbury at . “I was disappointed in our performance tonight to tell you the truth. As we started to pull away, we stopped playing.”

Sophomore Cam Owens opened the scoring just 29 seconds into play as he cashed in on a pass from his brother, Andy Owens, for a first period goal. The brothers connected once more with the score tied at 1-1 with 22 seconds to play before the first intermission, and Wilmington mounted a lead it wouldn’t relinquish.

Freshman Brendan McDonough found the back of the net with a nifty move just over two minutes into the second frame, and Andy Owens added his second tally soon after.

Though Amesbury clawed back within two goals late in the period, the locals didn’t allow another score on the evening and went on for the victory.

“Our goal is to play the perfect game every time we go out, and I know that’s not realistic. We try not to turn it on, turn it off,” said Scanlon. “We try to play a consistent three periods. (If not), one night you try to turn it on and it doesn’t come. In the postseason, you can’t have that. That’s when you lose.”

With the victory, the Wildcats pushed their record to 12-0-1 in Cape Ann League play, sitting ahead of Newburyport, their next opponent on the schedule. With a road win on Saturday at 7 p.m., Scanlon said Wilmington would clinch the league title.

Scanlon’s charges recently after they let a 2-0 lead slip away in the third period. Andy Owens said the team is motivated and ready to seal the Cape Ann crown.

“I feel like everyone is starting to click together more,” said Owens. “They tied us in our place, so I want to go up there and win. (We need to improve on) the physical game. We’ve got to hit. Every time we go up there, it’s crazy.”