The Dragons? season on the ice ended March 3 after a frustratingly close 1-0 loss to Eagles of Utica Eisenhower High School.
Head Coach Nick Field called the match a ‘very good game? and said there was no one unifying reason Lake Orion couldn’t bring back a win.
‘Both teams played hard, both had a lot of scoring opportunities and both goalies played well,? he said. ‘We just couldn’t get any to go in. We even had one go past their goalie and just sit on the goal line. Still I’m proud of what we were able to put together this season.?
The loss marked Orion’s third game into the state championship, having beat Lapeer and Clarkston on Feb. 28 and March 1 respectively.
First, Orion faced off against Lapeer in a high scoring 4-3 game. Field said the score was not indicative of the quality of play however.
‘We outshot them substantially but it was one of those games where we just couldn’t find the net and they could,? he said. ‘As usual our kids played well, but the game just ended up being tighter than we wanted.
The Dragons traveled back to the Detroit Skating Club to beat the Clarkston a third time, 2-1, despite another tight back and forth game. Orion opened the scoring in the first period, but the wolves held strong and tied the game in the second. Early in the third period, though, Orion sunk a second goal and held defensively to take the game.
Field noted an good performance from senior goalie Drew Galasso, but was quick to add the whole team performed admirably.
The end of the hockey season for Orion also marks the end of the Field’s first year as the head coach of the team. He was part of Orion sports prior as part of the junior varsity team and praised former Head Coach Pat Cherry for his work in molding the club.
‘Cherry did a great job at building this club into a quality program and we’re thankful for that,? said Field. ‘We just tried to keep it going this year. Everything is still going to be high quality at the high school level and we still have enough kids in the high school to continue to have competitive hockey in Orion. We’re losing some high caliber players next year and that will always raise question marks, but even then that gives the younger kids a chance to step up.
‘The goal, as always, is to win a state championship and that what we’ll work towards ever year.?
The Dragons finished with an 16-8-3 overall record including the state championship. The team took the OAA Division One championship, where their record was 8-0-2.