Bangor’s boys hockey team is going somewhere it’s never been – to the Class A state final.
The third-seeded Rams got a hat trick from junior Marc-Andre Perron and two goals from senior Jackson Guimond, and rode a four-goal second period to a history-making 6-3 victory over seventh-seeded Portland/South Portland/Deering/Waynflete in a semifinal Wednesday at Cross Insurance Arena.
“We’ve had some tough losses over the years, but this feels so good for the whole Bangor hockey community,” said Rams Coach Quinn Paradis.
The Rams broke the game open in the second period with three goals in just under four minutes.
Guimond, a semifinalist for the Travis Roy Award, made it 2-0 at 3:09, finishing a feed from Ty Walker.
Toby Lappin got the Beacons on the board just 22 seconds later, tipping in an Ian House shot. But then Walker set up Guimond, who was wide open at the far post, for a goal at 3:19. Randall increased the margin to 4-1 at 6:53, scoring on a power play with assists from Perron and Preston Henry.
Perron then tacked on another power-play goal with 43 seconds to go in the period.
“We didn’t get a lot of shots in the first period, but the power play really helped,” Perron said. “Our power play has turned it on nicely.”
Perron completed his hat trick at 3:06 of the third, assisted by Randall.
Ben Palson answered for the Beacons just 18 seconds later and Lappin scored at 9:02, but the Rams held on from there.
Bangor split with Lewiston during the regular season, and Paradis said the Rams will be up for the challenge.
“We’re looking forward to whoever we play,” he said before the second semifinal. “It’s always a fun environment down here and we’re excited for a good game.”
Cody McCue stopped 12 shots for Bangor. Zaccaria finished with 19 saves.
“Bangor was able to sustain their intensity for all 45 minutes,” Beaney said. “It was the first time here for everybody but two players (Lappin and Hewitt Sykes). The seniors said it was beyond their expectations to make it here, but they had so much fun playing every day.”
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