BY MATT SCHOOLEYAfter a taste of the postseason in 2009, the Bedford hockey team is ready for a larger portion next season. The sixth-seeded Bulldogs chowed down on No. 3 seed Somersworth on Saturday, March 7, in a 3-1 victory, but were sent home with an empty feeling following a 7-1 thumping from Kennett in the Division-III semifinals on ...

BY MATT SCHOOLEYWhen Matt Guerard saw the container of carnations carried to the ice for Pembroke Academy’s Senior Night, he wasn’t sure what to think. For now, Bedford’s head coach doesn’t have to worry about that kind of ceremony. The first-year BHS hockey team prepares to enter the Division III playoffs after a 12-5-1 ...

BY MATT SCHOOLEYSponsored by Indian Head AthleticsConversations in the Bedford High School hallways are going a little differently now. “We’re getting more fans, and we see more people come up to us and say, ‘Great game,’” said BHS right wing Trevor Sonovick. “We don’t hear people saying, ‘Oh, you ...

BY MATT SCHOOLEYAllowing more than four goals per game is not a recipe for a successful season. On the other hand, scoring more than four goals per game can help even things out. Despite giving up 39 goals in its first nine games, the Manchester West boys hockey team is near .500 thanks to a potent offense that has scored 39 times. Although a ...

BY MATT SCHOOLEYThe Bedford Bulldogs lost a 2-0 lead, watched a teammate leave the ice on a stretcher and still had two minutes of hockey to play. That’s not an enviable task, especially for a team without a senior on the roster. Then again, Bedford has proven it isn’t a typical first-year program. The Bulldogs bounced back in the ...

BY RYAN O’CONNORIt’s not supposed to happen this way. A team in its inaugural varsity season is expected to show marked improvement from game to game, but victories are generally reserved for the future. Yet the Bedford ice hockey players, minus a senior class, opened up 2008-09 play with a 2-1 upset on Dec. 17 at Pembroke Academy, a ...

BY RYAN O’CONNORSitting at a youth hockey conference, watching what was likely to be another boring prerecorded training video, Kermit Brunelle sighed. On the screen, Don Lucia, coach of the national champion University of Minnesota ice hockey team, was giving a speech. “A lot of people think I have the best job in hockey, and I tell ...

The New Hampshire Avalanche Squirt ’98 AAA team rolled through the Metro Boston Hockey League regular season, posting 35 wins without a loss. The postseason was no different. The top-seeded Avs, coached by Mike Potvin; his assistant coaches, Joe Silva, Mark Leach and Gary Saklad; and goaltender coches Bill McWhinnie and Bryan Ash, ...

BY MATT SCHOOLEYThe puck from the Division I boys ice hockey championship ended up where it spent a great deal of the game – with Bishop Guertin goalkeeper Dave O’Brien. O’Brien notched his eighth shutout of the year to lead his team to a 3-0 victory over Bishop Brady, stopping 23 shots as the Cardinals won their second straight ...

BY RYAN O’CONNORHome ice is nice, but Goffstown head coach Peter Bedford is more focused on the hot product skating on the cold surface. “I don’t care where it is, it could be in the pond out back … To me it’s an opportunity,” he said. Going into the final game of the season, the Grizzlies knew their ...