AUBURN — In the blink of an eye — 22 seconds to be exact — the Edward Little boys hockey team had a three-goal lead over crosstown rival St. Dom’s.

The Red Eddies kept the lopsided score going and defeated the Saints 10-0 in the opening round of the St. Dominic Academy Hockey Classic at Norway Savings Bank Arena.

The game was also a Maine Principals’ Association regular-season game for both teams.

Wesley Clements had a hat trick and three assists for the Red Eddies (5-0) while Peyton Dyer added two goals.

“(Wesley) was dominating tonight when he was out there,” EL coach Norm Gagne said. “He’s big, strong and he can shoot the puck.”

The Red Eddies’ first goal came off a pass from Jack Keefe, who found Clements in the slot. Clements then slapped it past St. Dom’s goalie Jayden Lynn at the 3:26 mark.

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Edward Little came right back into the offensive zone and Peyton Dyer stretched the lead to 2-0 just 14 seconds later.

“We seem to take shifts off and it snowballs,” St. Dom’s (0-4) coach Dan D’Auteuil said. “Start of each period, we seem to play well and we can’t carry it forward. We get tired, we get lapses and it makes it worse.”

Dyer just joined a new line with Wesley and Andrew Clements on Monday.

“We passed the puck well and we are still getting used to it,” Dyer said. “We have only had one practice together. We are still getting things down like communication.”

Off the ensuing faceoff, Clements received a pass from Dyer and scored at the 3:48 mark.

Clements said it lessened the pressure on the team with a quick scoring outburst.

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“It’s kind of a relief because we put in all the work and time out there,” Wesley Clements said. “Getting a few goals early sets the tone early.”

Edward Little’s special teams got into the action when Tate Morse put the puck on Aiden Gonzalez’s stick and Gonzalez extended the Red Eddies’ lead with a power-play goal at the 5:44 mark.

Brooks Hefty’s point shot went under Jayden Lynn’s glove into the goal for a 5-0 lead in the final minute of the first period.

Hefty joined Dyer in scoring their first career varsity goals Monday.

Jack Keefe extended the Edward Little lead to 6-0 nearly six minutes into the second period.

“In a game like this, the most important thing is to keep running the system; and not be worried about getting your goals,” Gagne said. “That’s the thing we tried to stress to everybody. I thought our second period, we finally moved the puck down low and moved it well down low.”

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The Clement brothers extended the lead later in the period as Andrew scored, with Wesley recording the assist.

“I actually went over to talk to the ref to make sure my brother got the goal and not me,” Wesley Clements said.

Dyer scored his second goal of the game with a no-angle shot on the goal line that found a hole between Lynn and the post in the middle of the third period.

Wesley Clements and Campbell Cassidy also scored in the third period for the Red Eddies.

The Red Eddies will take on Medway (Mass.) at 4 p.m. Tuesday in the winners’ bracket of the tournament while St. Dom’s faces Bishop Brady in the consolation bracket at 4:20 p.m..

“I think we need to keep playing hard like we are and keep building ahead,” D’Auteuil said. “I think we will get other players in (who missed some time early in the season) when we can. We have to get the winning ways and some confidence in these kids.”

Other Monday’s results

Notre Dame (Conn.) 4, Lewiston 0
Medway 6, Bishop Brady 0
St. Thomas Aquinas (N.H.) 5, Smithfield (R.I.) 0

Tuesday’s Schedule
Winners’ Bracket
Notre Dame vs. St. Thomas, 2 p.m.
EL vs. Medway, 4 p.m.
Consolation Bracket
Lewiston vs. Smithfield, 2:20 p.m.
St. Dom’s vs. Bishop Brady, 4:20 p.m.


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