Vineyard cruises to easy win over Lynnfield

PEABODY – It doesn’t seem to matter what year it is; the Martha’s Vineyard hockey team always is a contender in the Division 2 South tournament.Another thing the Vineyarders like to do is travel North and test themselves against the best that Division 2 North has to offer.On Saturday at McVann-O’Keefe Rink, the Vineyard did that against Lynnfield. And unfortunately for the Pioneers, the visitors weren’t exactly weary from the long ride to Peabody. Led by a goal and an assist from Chris Davies and Matt Flynn, the Vineyard rolled to a convincing 4-0 win that dropped Lynnfield to 7-6-4 for the season.”There’s no doubt they deserved to win (Saturday),” Lynnfield coach Vin Mirasolo said. “They are a good team, well-coached, and were a better team than us.”The two teams could also meet again next weekend as the Pioneers will make their annual pilgrimage to Oak Bluffs Arena for the Martha’s Vineyard tournament, where they will see Cape Ann League rival North Reading in the opening round.The Pioneers have five games left, beginning with Pentucket on Thursday night, and need four points to clinch a spot in the tournament.”We’d like to get our points done as soon as we can,” Mirasolo said. “But we do have a daunting task in front of us.”Early on, the Pioneers had the edge in play, including the game’s first power play chance when David Flanders was called for cross-checking at 5:59. But the Vineyarders killed off that chance and then took over the game.The Vineyard pelted Lynnfield goalie Craig Cataldo with 12 first-period shots and were held at bay for most of the period until Davies found a loose puck behind the net and fed a pass to Henry Smith in front, who beat the junior netminder for a 1-0 lead.The damage could have been even worse if not for a pair of spectacular stops by Cataldo on Nick Billingham and Darren Gaizelle late in the period.The Pioneers nearly got back even on the first shift of the second period when John Lee’s blast broke off the equipment of Vineyard goalie Mike Capen, but the senior was able to scramble back and deflect the puck out of the crease.Capen would play a huge role in the second period as Lynnfield dominated the play for the most part but saw all 13 of its shots turned away.Davies then gave the Vineyarders a 2-0 lead at 1:22 of the second when Flanders hit him with a breakaway pass, and he beat Cataldo with a backhander upstairs.Even more damaging for Lynnfield would be the Vineyard’s third goal midway through the second. Flynn fed a pass to the left point for Billingham, who unleashed a rocket that sailed over Cataldo’s glove.”They were very physical and played sound in all three zones,” Mirasolo said of the Vineyard.It stayed 3-0 into the third, where the Pioneers continued to be turned away by Capen. Flynn completed the Vineyard’s outstanding day at 7:02 of the period when he netted an unassisted goal.