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By MICHAEL PARENTE Sports writer PROVIDENCE – Though it wasn’t official, Mount Saint Charles essentially had this division wrapped up before Christmas break.
A convincing 6-3 victory over Hendricken on Dec. 21 made it clear the Mounties had reached the top of the Rhode Island hockey universe again, and no one was going to knock them from that perch for the next three months.
So how did they maintain their focus throughout the season despite never really being challenged for the Division I title? Who, or what, kept them from hitting the wall mentally during the dog days of February?
“Bill Belisle,” captain John Guay said Thursday as Mount’s legendary head coach sat just a few feet away. “He doesn’t let you take a day off. I think that comes from the five days of practice before the game. Everyday, high intensity as fast as you can go, so when the game comes, it’s easy. Practice is the tough part. It’s motivation just to play for him. You want to give your best, because he’s giving his best at the same time.”
The truth is this team doesn’t need much outside motivation as it prepares for its third consecutive appearance in the state finals beginning Monday night at Schneider Arena. The Mounties haven’t won a championship in four years since Toll Gate snapped their streak of 26 consecutive titles, but they’re the heavy favorite heading into Game 1 against Hendricken, the two-time defending state champions.
“This is the best club we’ve had in a good five or six years just because we’ve got more talent, there’s more cohesiveness, more depth, and they’re playing the coach Belisle style of hockey, which is relentless skating and passing,” Mount assistant Dave Belisle said. “If they continue to do that, we have a very good chance of winning, but if they’re hesitant and play afraid to lose, then that’s when the end result is not in your favor. They’re a confident, but focused, group.”
They should be. The Mounties were practically flawless in 2008, finishing 14-0-2 with only a pair of ties against Toll Gate spoiling their bid for a perfect season. Anchored by the return of junior forward Peter DeAngelo in December, Mount hit its stride the following month and won 11 of its final 13 games, including a pair of blowouts against the Hawks.
While Belisle insists Hendricken is still the team to beat – “Until they’re beaten, they’re still the state champs,” he said – the Mounties are confident they’ve already taken the first step toward clearing that hurdle by sweeping the regular season series. They outscored Hendricken 13-5 in their final two games, including a 9-4 victory on Feb. 8 in which they snapped a scoreless tie with seven goals in the second period.
“They are the defending state champions, but, at the same time, I think we’ve overcome that challenge three times this year,” Guay said. “I believe our first line has out-matched their first line. I’m not saying that’s going to happen in the championship. They’re talented players and it’s going to go back and forth, but we know what we have to do.”
The scores suggest otherwise, but Creamer insists his team made tremendous strides in each game against Mount. The Hawks bounced back from that 9-4 loss and closed the season with three consecutive wins before sweeping Toll Gate in the playoffs.
“I think the thing is we needed to improve,” Hendricken head coach Jim Creamer said. “In each game, it was a little something different. It’s a matter of, ‘Have we done our work to improve?’ Certainly, they haven’t sat idly. I’ve watched them. They’ve gotten better as the year has gone along, but we feel we’ve gotten better. We’ve learned.
“As a result of those games, we’ve learned, and as a result of some non-league games, we’ve really had to adjust what we do. We feel we’ve done that.”
The mood at Mount is relatively subdued despite the pressure of being the No. 1 seed. The players realize nothing is guaranteed, particularly after a humbling experience in last year’s finals. The Mounties won Game 1 and led 3-0 at the end of the first period of Game 2 before the Hawks fought back with four unanswered goals. Hendricken hung on to win that game, 4-3, and pitched a shutout in Game 3 to win its second consecutive title.
“We were so close and we just missed out, but it’s motivation to work that much harder,” Guay said. “In the days coming before the championship, it’s, ‘I’m not letting that happen again.’ It’s not, ‘I don’t want it to happen.’ It’s, ‘I’m not letting it happen. We’re winning the championship and that’s it. No one’s going to work harder than we work.’”
As the team’s only captain, Guay has the most playoff experience, though he’s yet to be on the winning end. His teams have never beaten Hendricken in the postseason either; Mount got swept by the Hawks in the semifinals three years ago and also lost in the finals in each of the last two years.
“What gets old is losing. You get tired of that,” Guay said. “You can’t get tired of the championship. It’s what you play for all season. In the summertime, you’re like, ‘When’s the season going to start, because I want to get back to Providence College.’ It’s all you think about.”
Mount has been thinking about a return trip to the finals since last year’s loss, which, ironically, might’ve set the stage for the team’s dominance in 2008. Now the Mounties are two wins away from their first state title in four years – a goal that seemed well within their reach as far back as December.
“I think you’ve noticed our play right out of the gate has been energetic – relentless is the word,” Belisle said. “I think last year’s team has given us a jump for this year. They’re about as focused as a group can be, and I think it has to do with depth.
“We have everybody on board. You know you have a good team when you enjoy the practices as much as we enjoy the practices. They’re a pleasure to watch in practice. That’s because we have more talent than we’ve had in the past five or six years. We’ve got some players.”
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