Clarkstown Hockey Season Ends With 7-6 Loss in 4 OT periods to Lakeland/Panas

Clarkstown and Lakeland/Panas entered Sunday night's game evenly matched and having both faced difficulties with injuries over the season. Despite these difficulties, both sides definitely showed up to play.

The two teams battled back and forth with a ferocious intensity and never-give-up attitude that brought them through nearly two full extra periods. Lakeland/Panas came away with a 7-6 win in the fourth overtime period on the ice at Palisades Center.

“It's impressive to go into four overtimes and to just keep playing and play very sound,” said Lakeland/Panas' head coach Bart Mucci.  “We were looking at the score sheet and the shots were 50/50.  They’re just very evenly matched teams and hats off to Clarkstown, they played great and I can’t say enough about them either.  In the end, we got a lucky bounce.  Sometimes better lucky than good, right?”

Lakeland/Panas forward Frank Celentano, who had the winning goal to end the marathon game, agreed, saying, “It tested your endurance a lot, but our offense programs, practicing at bear mountain and doing insanity once or twice a week, it really paid off and we showed it in those overtimes.”

Clarkstown’s head coach Andrew Trust elaborated on this, saying, “It’s hard, because neither of us have very much depth.  So, you’re riding the same guys, you know, we essentially played a game and a half, and even more than a game and a half, we played a game and three quarters, and it’s tough.  The guys get tired, but they battled through it.  Our guys, we hung in there in the end, we had our chances, we just couldn’t make the drain.”

Excellent efforts by both sides kept them neck and neck throughout most of the game, though it looked like Lakeland/Panas might pull away in the second.  Clarkstown fought their way back and neither side got more than a one-point lead after that.

“Our guys played good today,” said Trust.  “They came out a little flat and they battled back and scored two quick goals to tie it up, which is good, it says a lot about these guys, they’re good people.”

After three hard-fought periods and four excellent overtime periods, the puck bounced Lakeland/Panas' way, however both teams gave it their all and would have been deserving of a win.

“It was a good game of two evenly matched teams,” said Trust.  “Both teams were working very hard and, in the end, sometimes the ball bounces your way and sometimes it doesn’t.  They didn’t win it on skill, that’s for sure.  They won it on the fact that they worked harder and they got a good bounce, which, in games like this that go to three or four overtimes, that’s how it’s gonna end, where you least expect it.”

Halfway through the first, Lakeland/Panas' Robert Caffrey put his team on top 1-0 with his 200^th career point.  With 35 seconds left, Mitch Leseur answered back for Clarkstown to tie it 1-1.  Then, with under 10 seconds to go in the period, Caffrey flew in to score again and put his team back on top going into the second.

Almost halfway through the second, it was Caffrey again to put Lakeland/Panas up 3-1.  With the game beginning to slip away, Parker Dow came flying in, broke down the defense and finished with a brilliant finesse goal to bring Clarkstown within one.  Evan Byrnes, who had a stellar defensive night, then went on the offensive to tie it up 3-3 just 20 seconds later.

It would remain 3-3 until two and a half minutes into the third quarter.  Connor Bubolo was hooked up with the pass right next to the Clarkstown goal and slipped it in behind goalie Mike Levy to put Lakeland/Panas in the lead once again.  Clarkstown answered back with a prolonged offensive push that Leseur finally finished off with goal to tie it after a scramble in front of the net.

Just a minute after Leseur’s goal, Bubolo got the pass off the face-off and scored to put Lakeland/Panas on top again, 5-4.  The two teams battled back and forth through the next four minutes until Adam Myers tied it up 5-5 for Clarkstown.  Just 15 seconds later, Dow would score again on the break away generated by a strong defensive effort to put Clarkstown in the lead for the first time that game.  Caffrey would not let it slip away, however, and scored the shot that would send the game into quadruple overtime.

Overtime was a heart-pounding thrill-ride that sent the fans into a frenzy.  Both teams had numerous opportunities to end it, however stellar efforts from both goalies and their teammates, as well as some unlucky bounces and missed shots on both sides, nearly sent the game into its fifth overtime.  Finally, with 2:09 to go and after a number of brilliant saves by Levy, Frank Celentano found the net to win it for Lakeland/Panas 7-6.

“It was an incredible feeling,” said Celentano.  “This was my first game back in four games, so I had my doubts as to how I was going to play, but, in the end, it came out to be very, very good and I was truly happy about that."

Caffrey was the high scorer for the game with 4 goals.  Leseur and Dow both put up strong numbers with two goals a piece.  Both Lakeland/Panas' Nick Chiapparino and Levy put up excellent efforts against Clarkstown's 57 shots on goal and their opponents 50.

Despite facing this tough loss, Clarkstown can be satisfied with the fact that they gave it their all and finished off an excellent season with a game that was as exciting and hard-fought as they come.  They finish their season 10-10-1.

“This is a good season for us,” said Trust.  “This is the first year that we had the combined team.  I know a lot of our younger guys are looking forward to building a tradition and turning this program into a strong, state program and in a couple years it will be.  We had a lot of bumps and bruises this year, we have a lot of things to overcome, but we still managed to host a home playoff game.  We went to four overtimes, you know, that’s good stuff.  This is a tough sport, it’s a long season, there’s a lot of traveling involved, there’s a lot of late nights.  Our guys hung in there the whole season and managed to come out with a .500 record.”

As for Lakeland/Panas, they continue on in the post-season against White Plains, which currently holds the second best record in section 1, division 1.  Celentano, for one, is ready for the challenge, especially after Sunday’s win.

“They’re a very good team, but if we show that we can play to our capability like we did tonight, it should be a very good game,” said Celentano.  He added, “We could have had a much better season, but due to just a ton of injuries, it hurt us.  But playoffs are a brand new season and we’re gonna show, we’re here to play.”