Saugus icemen stay hot, beat Lynn

LYNN – Since its 1-3-1 start, the Saugus hockey team has been as hot as any team in Division 2 North over the past month.The Sachems came to Connery Rink on Saturday and completed a perfect run through NEC South competition as Kurt Rodrigues and Tyler Stretton each scored twice in a penalty filled 8-1 win over the Lynn Jets.Saugus now sits at 9-3-1 and atop the NEC North standings by a scant point over Danvers via an 8-1-1 league record. In their eight wins in a row, the Sachems have outscored the opposition by an astounding 38 goals.?We did what we had to do against the South teams,” Saugus coach Jeff Natalucci said. “These were the games we needed to win to keep pace with Danvers and Winthrop and we did that.”With a date with No. 1 ranked Malden Catholic on the horizon Thursday, it could have been understood if the Sachems might have been looking ahead to the Lancers. But that wasn?t the case as it took a little over four minutes for Drew Oxley to net a power play goal and a 1-0 lead.Three minutes later, Kurt Rodrigues finished off an Oxley rebound to make it 2-0. Stretton upped the lead to 3-0 at the 9:25 mark, assisted by Guy Capillo and A.J. Guthro.The explosion continued less than a minute later as Rodriguys picked up his 15th goal of the season for a 4-0 lead.?They get goals in bunches and that?s what happened (Saturday),” Lynn coach Joe Conlon said.The Jets (5-6-1, 3-6-1) gained a bit of a foothold late in the first when Kyle Devin got a pass in the slot and put a wrist shot over Nick Hegarty?s shoulder to cut the gap to 4-1 after one.Saugus quickly snuffed out the Jets momentum at the start of the second as Nick Taylor made a perfect pass to Stretton, who made it 5-1 just 10 seconds into the period.On the next shift, Taylor again made a nifty pass. This time, Capillo was on the receiving end and he snapped a shot past Mike Gately for a 6-1 lead.Third line wing Kyle Sanderson increased the lead to 7-1 at 4:27 before things began to get a little out of hand, with both teams making regular trips to the penalty box.The Jets would actually have a 5-on-3 for a full 1:30 after a scrum resulted in a major slashing penalty and a roughing penalty being called on the Sachems. But Saugus? penalty kill was strong and Lynn couldn?t convert.Defenseman John Morey completed the scoring early in the third with his first career goal, assisted by Stretton and Victor DiMatteo.?We?ve got a tough month coming up now so we?re going to find out the kind of team we have,” Natalucci said. “MC will be a tough challenge and they we have Gloucester, Winthrop and Danvers right in a row. It?s going to be fun.”