WINSLOW — The Lawrence/Skowhegan hockey team closed the regular season by winning 10 of its last 11 games. Winslow dropped two of its last three contests to miss out on a first-round bye.
Regardless of what happened for either team during the regular season, each has the same goal going forward: Win and advance.
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The fourth-seeded Bandits (11-6-1) will kick off a hockey doubleheader at Sukee Arena on Tuesday when they take on No. 5 Edward Little (9-9-0) at 5 p.m. in the opening round of the Eastern A playoffs. No. 3 Winslow (12-6-0) will follow at 7 p.m. with its Eastern B quarterfinal contest against sixth-seeded Hampden (7-10-1).
“We have to be prepared 100 percent and come off the bus with the attitude that it doesn’t matter who you’re playing, it’s five skaters and a goalie,” Lawrence/Skowhegan coach Ted Fabian said. “You have to come out ready every chance you get.”
Two of the Bandits’ 11 wins came against the Red Eddies, as they took a 7-3 decision on Jan. 19 and a 5-3 victory on Feb. 14. However, Lawrence/Skowhegan is not taking its opponent lightly.
“We’ve seen them twice; they’re a solid team all the way through. They have a lot of depth and they’re going to be tough,” Fabian said. “It’s tough to beat a team three times in a row. Right now it’s about us and fine tuning all the little things in practice leading up to the game.”
Edward Little does not have the firepower up front that Lawrence/Skowhegan does, but the Red Eddies do have balance. Defenseman Cade Chapman led Edward Little with 31 points this season, while forwards Branden Dyer and Liam Benson had their fair share of points as well. The matchup in goal is more or less a push, as Edward Little’s Devin Dumont and Lawrence/Skowhegan’s Curtis Martin were both solid this season and posted similar numbers.
As for the Bandits’ offense, it was led by one of the top scoring lines in Eastern A. Cody Martin (30 goals, 21 assists), Andrew Carpenter (18 goals, 25 assists) and Trey Michonski (17 goals, 21 assists) combined for 132 points this season and will need to have strong games for the Bandits to be successful.
“We definitely picked it up in the second half of the season and started scoring a lot of goals, playing like a team,” Martin said. “… I definitely think we can break through in that first playoff game.”
The Bandits actually scrimmaged against Winslow late last week and both teams are hoping that extra game will help prepare them for their contests Tuesday.
The Black Raiders finished well clear of Hampden in terms of Heal points, although when it comes to the Broncos those numbers are a bit deceiving.
Hampden got off to a disastrous 1-6-0 start that included a 4-3 loss to Maranacook/Winthrop, the Hawks’ only win of the season. Since January the Broncos have been one of the better teams in Eastern B though. In the final month of the season they beat Winslow 7-3, No. 4 Brewer 6-2, tied No. 5 John Bapst 1-1 and played very competitive games against No. 1 Messalonskee and No. 2 Waterville.
“My thoughts on Hampden are we have to play or we’re out. The season’s over if we don’t play,” Winslow coach Andy Dube said. “They’ve been one of the teams that have been slowly improving. They found something that’s working for them and they’ve been consistent in the second half of the year.”
Winslow has not been entirely consistent, but when the Black Raiders are at their best they are as good as anyone in Eastern B. Forwards Alex Berard, Jacob Trask, Jimmy Fowler and Jake Larsen are ever-dangerous, while goaltender Andrew Beals has the potential to steal a game.
“We have what it takes, it just hasn’t been put all together yet,” Berard said. “The Waterville win was big and we played Messalonskee tough. We know we can do it, we just have to put it all together.”
Elsewhere in Eastern B Tuesday, Brewer (8-7-3) will host John Bapst (10-6-2). The winner will get No. 1 Messalonskee (17-1-0), while either Winslow or Hampden will face Waterville (13-4-1) Saturday at Sukee.
In Eastern A, No. 2 Lewiston (12-5-1) faces No. 7 Windham (7-9-2) and No. 3 Bangor (12-6-0) hosts No. 6 Brunswick (11-7-0) with the winners facing each other in the next round. If Lawrence/Skowhegan can find a way to get past Edward Little, it will take on top-seeded St. Dominic Academy (15-2-1) in the semifinals.
Evan Crawley — 621-5640
ecrawley@mainetoday.com
Twitter: @Evan_Crawley
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