WINTHROP— This one was over just a few minutes after the puck dropped. A relentless Winthrop attack made it a long afternoon for the Peabody boys hockey team. The Vikings scored 30 seconds into the game, led by five goals at the end of the first period and coasted to a 10-1 win over the Tanners Saturday at Lawrence Larsen Rink.
“That’s our agenda, to come out with a fast start,” Winthrop coach Dale Dunbar said. “We had a bunch of different goal scorers, which is always good. It was a good win. We lost last week (5-2 to Mansfield) so to get back on the win column with a win at home is huge.”
Joey Holgersen and Sam Yarrow each scored two goals. Nick Deeb, Brian Chalmers, Cory Cherico, Joe Deeb, Luke Evangelista and J.D. Parker each scored one goal. Evangelista also dished two assists.
“It was good to see some of the younger kids get in and score some goals,” Dunbar said. “We definitely saw some good things out there.”
Winthrop scored four of its goals on power plays.
“They’re a much better team than us,” Peabody coach Mark Leonard said. “We made a lot of mistakes turning the puck over. We didn’t get many shots on net. We didn’t get many bounces out there either. They dominated us. They’re a much better team and they played that way. Hopefully we learn, eliminate our mistakes and move on.”
For the Tanners, Connor McCarron scored an unassisted goal in the third period.
From the early going it was clear this was going to be a game Peabody would soon forget. Holgersen fired in the game’s first goal with 14:30 remaining in the first period.
It was all downhill from there for the Tanners. Yarrow bumped Winthrop’s lead to 2-0 with an unassisted goal two minutes later. With 7:32 remaining, Holgersen scored his second goal of the game and Winthrop led 3-0.
Peabody held down the fort for the next six minutes but a pair of power play goals scored by Nick Deeb and Chalmers in the period’s final minute gave Winthrop a 5-0 lead at the first intermission.
“Penalties hurt us a little bit,” Leonard said. “They just put us away. We were never really in the game. Even though it was 3-0 we only had one shot in the first period. You can’t win with that. We’ll try to work on getting more shots, playing a little more physical and hopefully we can improve.”
It was much of the same in the second period. Cherico scooped a pass in front of the net and turned it into a 6-0 Winthrop advantage with 12:53 on the clock. Less than a minute later, Joe Deeb lit the lamp for the 7-0 Vikings lead. Evangelista (with 1:34 remaining) and Yarrow (with 10 seconds remaining) closed the second period with goals. The Vikings led 9-0 at the second intermission.
Peabody’s lone goal of the game was scored early in the third period when McCarron fired a shot into the back of the net, unassisted, with 13:55 left in the game. Parker closed the scoring at the 10:15 mark for the 10-1 final.
“Winthrop’s a great team,” Leonard said. “They’re the best team in our league and they played like it.”
Winthrop (3-1) hosts Falmouth (ME) Thursday (6) at Larsen Rink.
“I think we’re looking good,” Dunbar said. “We’re experienced in some ways and inexperienced in others. It’s a work in progress. I think we’re playing pretty well. We’re certainly happy with the results right now. There’s a lot to keep going but to win is always a good thing.”
The Tanners (0-4-1), still in search of their first win of the season, host Lynnfield Saturday (12) at James McVann-Louis O’Keefe Rink.
