Boys win two and tie one in last three ...
- Feb 18
- 4 min read
After blanking Cambridge 4–0 last Wednesday, the boys traveled to Oliver Ames and didn’t slow down — pouring in eight goals while also winning the physical battle. It was a dominant effort right from the opening puck drop.
Lexington wasted no time getting on the board, striking just 2:06 into the first period. With the puck deep in the OA zone, it rimmed up the wall to Karl Gude, who sent it back down low to Dylan Lane in the corner. Lane quickly found Ryan Li, who had peeled off the forecheck and headed to the net. Li made no mistake, snapping it top shelf to give Lexington the early lead.
Lexington found the back of the net again with just under 4:30 remaining in the first. Dylan Lane started the play behind his own goal, flipping a backhand breakout pass to Brady Kingsbury. Kingsbury slipped past a pinching Oliver Ames defenseman and accelerated up ice, with Ryan Li joining to create a 2-on-1 rush. The OA defender took away the passing lane, so Kingsbury kept it himself and wired a shot bar down, cleanly beating the OA netminder to extend the lead.
Just 15 seconds later, pressure from the line of Nick Piantedosi, Joey Dolci, and Aiden Neale forced an Oliver Ames turnover. Neale pounced on the loose puck in the slot and snapped it past the OA goalie, giving Lexington a 3–0 lead heading into the first intermission.
Late in the second period, Lexington was whistled for back-to-back penalties, handing OA an extended 5-on-3 opportunity. Dylan Lane, Connor O'Leary, Andrew Pechinsky, Will Pjura, Hunter Xu and goalie Timmy Rinaldi came up big, shutting down the OA advantage with a strong, composed penalty kill. That momentum carried over moments later when Ryan Jenness set up Brady Kingsbury in the slot for a hard, low turnaround shot. Ryan Li was right at the doorstep and buried the rebound, stretching the lead to 4–0. The second period would end 4-0.
Lexington wasted no time adding to the lead in the third, striking just 17 seconds in. Will Pjura stepped up in the neutral zone and stripped an OA forward of the puck, which Brady Kingsbury quickly collected. Kingsbury drove into the offensive zone and dished it to Ryan Jenness, who returned the favor with a perfect feed back to Kingsbury. Kingsbury finished the play for his team-leading 12th goal of the season, giving Lexington a commanding 5–0 advantage.
Oliver Ames finally broke through with a goal off a net-front scramble, cashing in on a rebound. They added another on a 5-on-3 power play following a couple of questionable calls, cutting the deficit to 5–2.
Any momentum OA gained was short-lived. Off the ensuing draw, junior forward Connor O’Leary pushed the puck ahead, then jumped a D-to-D pass in the neutral zone. Stepping between the defensemen, O’Leary picked it off cleanly and buried it, restoring control and extending Lexington’s lead to 6–2.
Lexington wasn’t finished yet. With the teams skating four-on-four, senior captain Dylan Lane won the draw cleanly back to Brady Kingsbury, who fired a quick shot off the faceoff. The goalie made the save, and the puck kicked to the left corner. Lane chased it down, slipped past an oncoming defender, cut hard from behind the net to the net front, pulling the puck to his left around the goalie, and calmly tucked the puck over the goalie's outstretched pad. The goal was Lane's 5th in his last 7 games.
Lexington closed out the scoring on a late 3rd period 4-on-3 power play as Kyle Li, whose also been on a scoring streak, scored on a top shelf snap shot on a nice feed from Andrew Pechinsky.
Final score - Lexington 8 - Oliver Ames 2.
Senior Night Game vs. Auburn
Riding back-to-back wins, the Minutemen welcomed Auburn on Senior Night. The team honored its six seniors — captains Dylan Lane and Caleb Fehm, along with Ryan Li, Vasili Splagounias, Karl Gude, and Coulson Roy — in a pregame ceremony.
In a back-and-forth, hard-fought battle, Lexington rallied from a 2–1 third-period deficit to earn a tie. Kyle Li, who’s been just as hot as his linemates Dylan Lane and his brother Ryan Li, continued his strong offensive play and delivered the comeback scoring his second goal in the contest.
The boys wrap up the regular season on the road Wednesday against Wachusett, currently ranked No. 14 in the state. Along with Burlington, Wachusett will be one of the toughest tests the Minutemen face all year.
We’ll have a full season recap coming in the next few days, breaking down the year that was and offering a look ahead at how the team is shaping up for next season.
