Oh Captain, My Captain 

History is written by the victors, and as of late the Smithtown Hauppauge Bulls have come out on top against Sachem when it matters most. That was the case on Monday night when the Bulls captain, Bobby Trites, scored the golden goal in a 3-2 overtime win. It was a heartbreaking loss for a Sachem squad led by Senior Thomas Konkowski, who scored the shorthanded, game-tying goal in the 3rd period. 

Nothing is guaranteed in this league, not for the Sachem captain or any other program. The Smithtown Hauppauge Bulls seem like they understand that.

Senior Patrick Ryan, who spent last year with the JV Champion Bulls, was stellar in his varsity playoffs debut. Sophomore Michael DiGirolamo made a series of show-stopping saves for a Sachem program that will see 12 players graduate this spring.   

Senior Richie Bovich scored his first career varsity playoffs goal on the power play to give Sachem a 1-0 lead with 1:47 left in the 1st period. Senior Sean Walsh fired a shot from the point that Bovich batted out of mid air and into the back of the net. 

Just 37 seconds into the 2nd period Junior Brendan Landrigan scored his first career varsity post-season goal to tie the game at 1-1. Junior R.J. Pfister created a 3 on 1 off a zone exit before carrying the puck from left to right as Junior Brendan Landrigan drove towards the net with Senior Victor D’Errico trailing. Pfister entered the Sachem zone and made a quick pass to Landrigan who sniped glove side high from the left wing face off dot. Junior Jackson Cantalupo followed suit with his first career varsity postseason goal with 10:48 remaining in the second stanza to give the Bulls a 2-1 lead. Cantalupo picked off a pass in the neutral zone, raced up the left wing wall as he blew by the defense and cut in from beneath the face off circle to snipe top shelf. 

Thomas Konkowski scored a shorthanded goal to tie the game with 6:20 left in the 3rd period. Sean Walsh forced a turnover, made a lead pass to spring Konkowski on a breakaway. With a defender right behind him, Konkowski went backhand-forehand to tie the game.  

Bobby Trites scored the game winner in overtime to send the Bulls to the semifinals. Junior Raymond Sherwood took a shot from the point that Trites redirected past DiGirolamo. 

Sachem will head into the off-season looking to replace five of their top six scoring forwards with only Sophomore Cameron Kalberer set to return. Junior Chris O’Hea and Sophomore Joey Capece will also be back next season along with the aforementioned Michael DiGirolamo. The future continues to look bright for a Sachem program that boasts the 3rd ranked team in the Junior Varsity Cinference and a Freshman Warriors squad that will likely finish 1st in their respective conference. 

Last season’s Smithtown Hauppauge team lost in the semifinals to a St. Anthony’s program that went on to win the SCHSHL before winning in Saugerties. The Smithtown Bulls are set to square off with the #1 seed East Islip Chiefs at the Rinx on Wednesday February 14th with puck drop set for 7:50 PM. The Bulls pulled out a gutsy win, but whether or not they can do it again on remains to be seen. 

Scoring Summary

Three Stars of the Game