In one season, Alex Parker has gone from student to teacher with the St. Dom’s hockey team.

The shifty Saints’ forward, a junior, leads his team in scoring with 15 points (six goals) through eight games, and has been a team leader on offense all season.

“He started playing a regular shift right from the beginning as a freshman,” St. Dom’s coach Steve Ouellette said. “Of course he had growing pains at first, but as he grew bigger and stronger as a sophomore and now as a junior, he’s really started to flourish.”

Parker was never blessed with height. One of the shorter players on the team even as a junior, the speedster makes up for that in many other ways.

“He’s not a big guy, but he always seems to be in all of the scrums along the boards and in front of the net,” Ouellette said. “We needed someone to step into a leadership role as a forward, and he’s one guy with a lot of experience at the position.”

Last season, as a sophomore, Parker skated alongside a pair of seniors. This season, as a junior, he is the elder statesman on his line, with sophomore Nate Bergeron and freshman Dakota Keene by his side.

“This year, he’s got two young and talented guys playing with him who can put the puck in the net,” Ouellette said. “He’s been great as an assist guy and he’ll score his share of goals. We’re hoping he takes that next step to be more aggressive. We’re going to need him down the stretch.”

Shutting ’em down

The old formula for success on the hockey rink rings true again this year at Lewiston High School. Mix a group of younger but experienced defensemen with one of the best goaltenders in Maine, and scoring just 3.38 goals per game doesn’t seem so bad.

The Blue Devils’ Cam Poussard is a big reason why.

Poussard has started and finished all eight of Lewiston’s games this season, posting a 7-1 record, a 1.25 goals-against average and a .941 save percentage with three shutouts.

“He’s the kind of player who gives us a chance to win every night,” Lewiston coach Jamie Belleau said. “Honestly, that’s the kind of play we expect of him, and the kind he expects from himself.”

Poussard’s latest win was a 1-0 shutout victory over Lewiston’s nemesis, Waterville. The Purple Panthers had shut out the Blue Devils in each of the teams’ three previous meetings — all three under Belleau, including last year’s playoffs.

Saturday, the junior returned the favor.

“Part of that has to do with the defense playing well in front of him,” Belleau said, “but let’s face it, Cam’s a good goalie.”

Among Eastern Class A goaltenders, Poussard’s .941 save percentage is equaled only by Messalonskee keeper Nate Delgiudice, who through seven games has face 70 more shots than Poussard has.At 1.25, Poussard’s goals-against average is .38 better than Waterville’s Ryam Cormier, the goalie he outdueled Saturday.

Not a surprise is the teams’ standings. Lewiston is at No. 1 in Eastern A, while Waterville sits in second.

Rick Hebb is the state-wide leader in GAA, though he’s registered just four wins in four games. His average sits at 0.92.

Signature win

It’s not often Leavitt has a chance to celebrate a win like this one on the road.

The Hornets have been tough-luck losers in recent years, especially against Cape Elizabeth on the road. With a 2-1 victory Saturday, Leavitt temporarily put that to rest, and bolstered its chance for a playoff berth this season.

“That was a pretty exciting win,” Leavitt coach Ronnie Rouillard said. “The shots looked a bit bad (43-13 in favor of Cape Elizabeth), but really we were right with them in both zones all night. There were a lot of blocked shots on their end against us. This is a game that helps us build a lot of confidence.”

The Hornets will have to play the rest of the season without defender Eric Theiss. The all-state football quarterback was also the Hornets power play quarterback on the ice, but a shoulder injury will force the senior to miss the rest of the season.

“That’s a huge loss, losing him hurts,” Rouillard said. “But our other guys are stepping up big to fill in, and they’re playing well, and the key for us on defense has been Cody (Violette) in the net. He’s the key to the defense right now, and he’s playing very well.”