Nauset boys hockey beats Nantucket in a battle of two of the state's best teams

It's a question that many have pondered before: What happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object.

In this case, the question is being asked in terms of high school boys hockey. On one side, there was the unstoppable force, the Nantucket Whalers. The Whalers entered the game as the No. 2 seed in the MIAA Division 4 Power Rankings, and were riding a 15-game winning streak, that began with a 6-4 win over Nauset way back on Dec. 13.

That was then, and this is now, which leads us to the immovable object in this scenario, the Warriors. Nauset holds the top spot in Division 3, and also haven't lost in 15 games (14-0-1). More specifically, the immovable object refers to the Warriors' defense, which has been by far the best on the Cape this season, and a major part of why they've been successful.

"We continue to get better," Nauset head coach Connor Brickley said. "It's been a great team to work with all season long. Our defense has done a great job playing the way we want to play."

The Warriors have only allowed 19 goals in their 17 games, 12 fewer than the Whalers in second place. They've only allowed three goals or more three times this season, and since giving up six to Nantucket, have only allowed 10 goals in 15 games.

In the end, the immovable object came out on top. The Warriors (15-1-1) turned a 2-1 deficit into a resounding 6-2 win over the Whalers (15-2). After the game, captain Logan Poulin said coming into the game he was extra motivated.

"I took a lot of melatonin. I went to bed pretty pissed off," Poulin said. "(I'm) texting coach all the time, (because) I'm pretty pissed about how that last game went. It's our only loss, and I wanted to avenge that more than anything."

It showed in his play. Poulin popped up time and time again in the right spots, often finding himself in shooting positions in the early stages of the game.

However, for all his, and the Warriors' effort, the opening goal was hard to find. Nauset was forced to chase the game early after Braden Knapp gave Nantucket the lead just 15 seconds into the game.

Poulin said the Whalers were doing a good job of stifling the Nauset attack.

"They just crash very well. They just play like their life's on the line you know, props to them," he said.

He eventually got his goal, tying the game at one in the second period.

Nantucket responded by taking the lead on a power play goal from Colby O'Keefe. The Warriors would need to mount a third-period comeback, something they haven't been accustomed to having to do, and after the game Brickley said he was curious of how his team would respond.

"We took this as an opportunity, being able to come into a game, down by a goal coming into the third period, and really seeing what our team is all about," he said.

The Third-Period Comeback

How they responded, was by scoring five goals in the third period, including a devastating stretch where they scored four goals in just over four minutes, sending the Warriors faithful into rapture.

The third-period barrage is becoming a calling card of this year's Warriors team. It's not the first time they've exploded late in games. Brickley said it's becoming somewhat of a calling card.

"We played D-Y (Dennis-Yarmouth) 1-0 after the first period, and that game ended 9-1. We played Barnstable the other night, 1-0 after the first, 7-1 (final)," he said. "We're a relentless team, and I've said it many times, you've got to play the full 45."

Another calling card of the Warriors is their depth, and this win was yet another prime example. The six goals came from six different skaters, (Poulin, Jake Eldredge, Logan Miller, Colin Ward, Sam Mayhew, and Max Lanzetta), with another four (Julian Krivos, Zach Weiner, Cam Connery, and Aaron Howard) tallying assists. Ten different point scorers in all, and Poulin said the team knows there's no such thing as too many contributors.

"It's massive," Poulin said. "You watch the NHL playoffs, the teams with more depth, they're winning more than the teams with a good first line, and second line. I think that's huge going into the playoffs."

Nantucket's Third-Period Letdown??

Nantucket head coach Jack Moran was proud of the effort his team put in, despite what the scoreline may indicate, but had strong opinions as to why he felt his team faltered in the third period.

"I think the officiating cost us that game," he said. "(It) absolutely took the momentum away from us, because of such bad calls that were made, and the calls weren't being made on both sides."

The Whalers were assessed six penalties in the game, four of which came in the final period. Conversely, the Warriors were whistled for five in the game.

Beyond that, Moran doubled down on the praise for his team. Specifically, he gave credit to senior goalie Griffin Starr, saying that the Whalers' captain was meant to be between the posts.

"He's a natural. It's almost like he has three sets of eyeballs," Moran said. "He really can read anything that's coming at him. It's almost like a chess player, he knows what the third move is going to be, even before it's happened."

Both the Warriors and the Whalers are playing for something far more than this win. After the game, Moran said the loss was already behind them.

"Whatever happened today is in the rearview mirror," he said. "We just keep focusing forward, like we have to do with every game. I'm not disappointed with the way my guys played today, they played very well. They skated hard, they skated well, they did a lot of really good things."

Brickley said his team has come a long way since that loss in their second game. As the season winds down, he said the team's focus has been exactly where it needs to be.

"This game is a perfect example of just gaining more experience," he said. "There's no panic in our game."

Next up for Nauset is another high profile matchup against MIAA Div. 3 No. 2 seed Scituate on Saturday at 5 p.m. The Whalers' next game is their season finale against Sandwich Friday afternoon at 2:40 p.m.

André Simms covers high school sports for the Times. Contact him at asimms@capecodonline.com. Follow him on X/Twitter: @that1guyandre.

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This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Nauset boys hockey beats Nantucket, snapping their 15- game win streak