Leominster girls hockey upsets high-seeded host Longmeadow in MIAA state tournament
WEST SPRINGFIELD ― The renowned "Miracle on Ice," the USA men's hockey team's legendary win against the Soviet Union at the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York, just celebrated its 44th anniversary on Feb. 22.
This heroic moment in sports history is retold in the 2004 film "Miracle," which also happened to be the inspiration for the Leominster girls hockey team as the co-op prepared for its appearance in the state playoffs.
After being seeded 27th and matched up against the No. 6 Longmeadow in the first round of the tournament, the Blue Devils knew they would need to channel some of that same underdog energy in their game. On Wednesday night, on the eve of the Division 2 Round of 32 game, they put on "Miracle" in the background during their team dinner. But as the big speech from coach Herb Brooks began to play, team members stopped talking and all eyes were on the screen.
"Tonight, we are the greatest hockey team in the world," Kurt Russell, as Brooks, recites in the movie. "You were born to be hockey players, every one of you. And you were meant to be here tonight. This is your time."
"The speech came on and we watched it," junior and leading scorer Rachel Simkewicz said, "and we all got hyped."
Facing an opponent they had lost to twice this season, Leominster carried that energy out to West Springfield on Thursday night, skating to an improbable 3-1 victory and advancing to the Sweet 16. The team next faces No. 11 Marshfield (13-8) at The Bog in Kingston on Sunday at 3:20 p.m.
'You have to be uncommon'
Blink, and you might miss it. Just eight seconds into the game, Simkewicz sent a feed from Carley Ewha straight into the net to take an immediate lead. Blue Devils supporters erupted as their girls made a huge statement and set the tone for the rest of the game.
"We've been stressing all year that we got to score early, put pressure on and get shots on net early and they listened," Leominster coach Nancy LeBlanc said with a chuckle. "We threw a puck on net and good things happen when you put the puck on net."
Blue Devils goalie Carina Eshbaugh's performance made all the difference Thursday night. The freshman totaled 48 saves and only let one slip by near the end of the third period. Eshbaugh has been playing since she was in middle school so is no rookie by any means. Diving, laying out, stretching herself as wide as possible, Eshbaugh reached practically everything – she appeared to know where the puck was before it was even there.
"You think you can win on talent alone?" Brooks said to his team.
From skating hard for every puck, to creating passing lanes and figuring out how to work around the steady Longmeadow defense, the Blue Devils did not relent Thursday night.
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"We've definitely gone through some changes, one of our defenders got hurt this week so we had to make a couple changes, but we all came together and knew we had to get the job done," Simkewicz said. "We did it."
Subsequent goals came from Alyssa Allan and Kailyn Hawkins in the second and third periods, respectively, adding to their lead. Longmeadow continued to shoot, and Leominster knew its opponent could close in quickly if it let up for even a second.
"We came out with a ton of fire and we knew we could beat this team so it was just about going at them trying to get them to make mistakes and pounce on that," Allan said.
Their own mini-miracle
The excitement of the blue-clad bunch in the stands was apparent as the game ended, as spectators smiled and cheered. "Let's go!" a father of a player yelled over and over at different family members, clapping them on the back and embracing them in hugs.
"My heart is beating so fast!" Another mom said, still on edge after the intense performance, not coming down from the adrenaline rush quite yet.
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As the team strode out of the locker room, their smiles stretched from ear to ear. "If we can beat this team, I think we can beat any team," Eshbaugh declared.
LeBlanc emphasized the commitment the team has made to buy in and do what they need to do to improve and win throughout the season, and now they are seeing the results.
"We've had some injuries, and the next person steps up and it just shows how hard they've worked all year and they have been ready for the opportunity," LeBlanc said.
To quote the late, great Brooks, "Great moments are born from great opportunity."
This article originally appeared on Gardner News: 'Miracle' locker room speech inspired Leominster hockey for playoffs
