By BRANDEN MELLO

Contributing Writer

WEST WARWICK — For the first time in three seasons, the Coventry High hockey team is playing playoff-like hockey games in the month of February.
On Friday night against St. Raphael, the Oakers brought the requisite focus and physicality as they swept the season series with the Saints.
Saturday night against a very good Cumberland team, the Oakers weren’t as physical as the Clippers and they weren’t as committed to fore-checking.
After being dominated in the first period, the Oakers overcame a one-goal deficit in the second period, but Cumberland freshman defenseman Robert DeOrsey slid a shot from the blue line under the right pad of Coventry goalie Mitchell Beck with 57 seconds left in overtime to lift the Clippers to a 2-1 win.
“They came into the building with way more energy than us,” Coventry coach Ken Bird surmised. “They totally dominated us in the first period. We started playing and there’s no question they are a good team with a good goalie. I just didn’t see the energy we usually have. This was playoff hockey over the weekend because we will see either them or St. Ray’s in the semifinals.”
Saturday’s loss was the first for Oakers as they fell to 10-1-1 in Division II, while Cumberland improved to 9-4-1. The Clippers are solidly in third place, two points ahead of Saints, with a game in hand. Coventry is just one point in front of Portsmouth with six games left in the regular season.
Coventry’s only goal Saturday night came from defenseman Connor Forsythe. Forsythe, midway through the second period, ripped a slap shot over the glove of Michaelangelo Federici to tie the game at 1.
Bird was frustrated by the fact that his forwards didn’t pass the puck back to the blue line enough during Coventry’s two power-play opportunities.
“We had our opportunities and we talked about getting it to the point and we didn’t get it to the point once,” Bird said. “It’s just a case of stubbornness and it’s a case of the forwards trying to do all the work down there. We have to get it to the point and get more shots on net with someone screening the goalie.”
The Oakers came into the game averaging exactly five goals a game, but the Clippers held them four goals below their average by dumping the puck deep into Coventry’s zone and not allowing the Oakers to dominate the neutral zone.  
Cumberland completely dominated the first period, but the Clippers simply couldn’t beat Beck.
The Oaker senior, who Bird called the team’s best player all game, made a number of key saves in the first period
Junior Thomas Salisbury helped the Clippers take a 1-0 lead in the second period when he slid a pass back to captain Jake Howard at the blue line. Howard, with his team on the power play, smashed a shot over Beck’s stick 8:23 into the period.
Coventry responded 88 seconds later when Forsythe’s shot knuckled and confounded Federici.
Cumberland probably would have won the game in regulation if not for Beck’s heroics late in the third period. The senior made four fantastic saves in the final four minutes to earn his team a point for reaching overtime. Beck stopped chances from Nick Donnelly, Greg Miller and Howard to keep the score at 1.
Beck’s best save came earlier in the period when he swallowed up an effort by DeOrsey, who broke in on the only breakaway of the game.
“We got one point and he stole that point for us,” Bird said of Beck. “He played fantastic game. He was really sick (Friday), but he was confident he could go in tonight. It’s his turn (in the rotation with Spencer Patti) and he played great. They could have scored a lot of goals early in the game if he didn’t play so well.”
It looked like both teams would settle for a point until DeOrsey crushed a low slap shot past Beck.
Coventry is back in action Saturday night at the Civic Center against South Kingstown. The Oakers have beaten the Rebels twice this season.
“We know we have to play hard if we want to win games,” Bird said. “We have to fore-check because that’s how we score lots of our goals. That’s our game. They came into this building playing playoff hockey and we didn’t.”
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Cumberland  0   1    0   1 – 2
Coventry        0   1    0    0 – 1
First period – No scoring. Penalties – Cu 0-0, Co 2-4.
Second period – Cu, Jake Howard (Thomas Salisbury), pp, 8:23; Co, Connor Forsythe (unassisted), 9:45. Penalties – Cu 2-4, Co 1-2.
Third period – No scoring. Penalties – Cu 1-2, Co 1-2.
Overtime – Cu, Robert DeOrsey (unassisted), 4:01.
Goalies – Cu, Michaelangelo Federici; Co, Mitchell Beck.