Morristown High School outshot Mendham, outplayed Mendham in the corners, and outcheered Mendham from the stands.
But when the final buzzer sounded on Saturday, Mendham’s Minutemen skated off with a 2-1 victory over the Colonials in their season opener at Mennen Arena in Morris Township.
Police could have suited up their own team. Their strong presence at the arena was meant to discourage any sequels to parking lot fisticuffs that followed a Mendham/Morristown game last December.
(“You got beat up!” Morristown High students chanted during Saturday’s match.”We can’t hear you!” Mendham students chanted back.)
Morristown Police Chief Pete Demnitz was part of a Morristown contingent that joined forces with Morris County Park Police. There were no major incidents this time, according to the park police.
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On the ice, players were well behaved, with only one penalty (against Morristown) all night.
Brian Reed put Mendham on the board late in the first period on a pass from Matt Farina. Gerard Smith answered for Morristown in the second period on a bang-bang play, as Tommy Donofrio found the puck behind the Mendham net and slid it out front.
But moments later, Mendham’s Matt Farina got the puck deep in Morristown’s end and found John Gionco streaking in on Colonials goalie Shane Brown. John took the pass on his backhand and in one smooth move pivoted backwards and deposited the puck under the goaltender.
The Colonials had their chances, outshooting the Minutemen 26-15. Brian Keller rang a shot off the crossbar in the second period; Mendham goalie Connor Lam reacted as if it went in.
Near the end of the period, Morristown Captain Jordan Klotz appeared to have beaten Connor on a breakaway with a deke to the glove side. But Jordan could not sink his backhand and the puck tapped harmlessly off the side of the cage.
In the third period, Morristown’s Brian Begley caught a pass at his own blue line and charged down ice, wheeling to the left hash mark and whistling a wrist shot over Connor Lam’s shoulder. The shot may have been deflected by sprawling Mendham defenseman James Morsch.
Colonials Coach Bobby Jones pulled his goalie for an extra attacker in the last minute, and it almost worked. Morristown’s Luke Freeland blasted a one-timer through traffic, and Tommy Donofrio and Jordan Klotz each whacked at the puck in a goalmouth scramble in the waning seconds. Goalie Connor Lam was the difference for Mendham.
