SAUGUS — On a frustrating evening, the Saugus boys hockey team lost 4-0 to Triton at Kasabuski Arena on Monday, in a contest where the Sachems were stymied on both offense and defense.
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Underscoring the offensive difficulties, the Sachems (1-8-1) only managed five shots on the Vikings net throughout the entire game.
“I don’t see them sustaining offense or having a sense of urgency to move the puck,” Saugus coach Jeff Natalucci said.
In the first period, Saugus played the majority of the period on its side of the ice, never quite able to clear the puck, and endured 12-plus minutes of offensive pressure from Triton (8-2).
“I just don’t see them playing with the urgency, heart, or gumption. They’re not playing tough or getting to the line and shooting the puck,” said Natalucci.
The Vikings offense was initially stunted by Sachem goalie Anthony Allan, who stonewalled the Triton team with 13 saves in the first period and 27 saves overall. In fact, after one period, it was a scoreless tie.
However, the Vikings steadily applied pressure on the junior Saugus goalkeeper, who would eventually surrender a hat trick to Triton’s Zach Dagastino and a late third-period goal by Jacob Wood (who also had helpers on two of Dagastino’s goals).
Dagastino broke the shutout in the second period and the Vikings held a 1-0 lead after two. Triton finally broke through in the third, when it scored three goals, two by Dagastino.
“We’re going to get back to work and I can’t quit on this. We’re not good enough because we’re not working hard enough,” said Natalucci.
