FOXBORO – The New England Nordiques ended the 2016 Midget Fall Classic as the team atop the mountain. They closed out the tournament in near flawless fashion on Monday, posting three-straight shutouts en route to the U18 division’s championship.
First it was a 3-0 shutout of the Rhode Island Hitmen in the quarterfinals.
Another 3-0 shutout in the semis, this one over the NH Avalanche.
Last on the list was the Bay State Breakers in the final.
Already leading 1-0 courtesy of a goal from Cooper Norton, the Nordiques broke the game open at 6:50 on a shorthanded score by Nick Vukota. From that point on, New England controlled play in the contest.
The lead grew again at the 11:46 mark when Tyler Lisieski chipped in his fourth goal of Monday’s playoff round. Up 3-0, the Nordiques seemed content to defend their lead until the game’s conclusion.
Vukota, however, still had one more left in him. The Nordiques defender closed out the 4-0 contest with another score coming at the 22:03 mark, ending with a game-high three points (2G, 1A). Both scores came shorthanded.
With the game’s end came the announcement of the 2016 Midget Fall Classics’ U18 All-Tournament team. Sean Colbert and Jack Grady of the Breakers, and Casey Rhodes of the Nordiques were the All-Tournament Forwards. Bay State’s Mark O’Rourke and New England’s Sami Pharaon manned the All-Tournament blue line. And Jonny Scotto was selected as All-Tournament Goaltender as part of a battery along with Donny Battimelli that did not give up a single goal on the tournament’s final day.
Nordiques’ forward Joey Pasquini, accumulating seven points (4G, 3A) in the three games of the tournament’s preliminary round, was named as the 2016 Midget Fall Classics’ U18 division Most Valuable Player.