Boys’ Hockey: Rebels Continue Mariners’ Misery

KINGSTON – During a hard fought first period, the Narragansett Mariners boys’ hockey team took a 1-0 lead after about 10:45 worth of play. Junior Robert Mitchell finished a pass from junior Andrew Morvan.

Unfortunately for Narragansett, the Rebels would score the next 10 goals Wednesday night en route to a 10-1 victory at the Boss Ice Arena at the University of Rhode Island.

South Kingstown (2-3-2, 2-3-2 Division II-South) took the lead in a six-second span before the end of the first period. Senior T.J. Lynch finished a rebound chance setup by Scott Campbell and David Reilly at 14:05.

The Rebels won the ensuing faceoff, and Lynch streaked up the ice to finish on another goal, six seconds later, with Reilly picking up another assist. South Kingstown didn’t trail again.

Rebels head coach Toby Gibbons said that even if the game was a blowout, he would take the result, nothing his team’s recently struggles on offense.

“We’ve been fighting it a little bit offensively,” he said. “Today it really seemed to happen for us.”

Gibbons praised the positive work of his top power play and on-ice lines. Lynch finished with a hat trick, and Brett Grimes also had a pair of goals. Eight different Rebels scored a point against the Mariners.

For Narragansett (0-10, 0-10 Division II-South), it was another disheartening game on the ice. While they went into the second only trailing 2-1, the energy level of the team seemed to tail off badly. The Rebels scored another pair of goals in the second, and then scorched Narragansett backup goalies for five goals on just nine shots in the third.

Both teams played physical against one another, with both earning seven minor penalties. However, the Rebels made the most of their shots and power play opportunities – They outshot the Mariners 47-33, as neither team excelled at puck control on a slick Boss surface.

“It’s one of those things,” Gibbons said of the physical play, which he didn’t find to be particularly rough. “It seems like Route 1 really does something to these kids.”

South Kingstown will play Toll Gate (5-6-1, 4-5-1 Division II-North) at the Thayer Ice Arena in Warwick 6:15 p.m. Sunday. It is a non-league tournament game for the two teams. The Mariners play in the same tournament at noon against Warwick Vets (0-4, 0-4 Division III).