Ava Inesta ’22
EE Sports Reporter
The long-awaited ice hockey matchup between Trumbull and St. Joseph resulted in a 2-1 win for the Eagles. After originally being scheduled for January 17, 2022, this game was highly anticipated as it’s one of the best rivalries in Connecticut High School Hockey.
The Eagles came into this game with a 7-4-1 record and St. Joes with a 3-8-0 record. The difference is that Trumbull is currently placed at the top of the CIAC Division II standings while St. Joseph is competing more with tougher, top tier Division I programs. Either way, this game was set to be a competitive matchup with tons of tension due to the cross-town rivalry. With fan restrictions being lifted for Trumbull two weeks ago, the Shelton rink’s were filled to the maximum with two energetic student sections.
After St. Joseph scored in the first minutes of the game off a turnover in the defensive zone, Trumbull rebounded quickly. Senior captain Zach Jager scored the first goal for the Eagles by taking the puck over the blue line himself to tie the game.
“It was all so surreal after I scored, I thought about my friends and just started dancing. It was a great feeling beating St. Joe’s and for the rest of the seniors it’s amazing for us to have never lost to them. The whole team played amazing but a special shout-out to Adam Guttman for making some huge saves and we wouldn’t have won without him,” said Jager.
In the second period, senior captain Peter Antoniou scored a goal on a breakaway with him and junior Giancarlo Montanaro giving the puck back and forth until the final finish. This gave Trumbull the lead and sparked immense amounts of excitement from the Eagles Black Hole. For the remainder of the game, defense was what kept the Eagles lead and had the Cadet’s offensive at a halt.
Senior Adam Guttman was named player of the game by CTHS Hockey having 37 straight saves on 38 shots. Guttman held off the Cadets even after they removed the goalie to add an extra offensive player in the final minutes.
“The feeling in the building was electric. The boys were buzzing and the Black Hole was so loud, we just fought to the end with no quit. Eddy was special in all our hockey careers so it meant a lot bringing the trophy back for another year.” said senior captain Luca Minopoli on his team’s success.
The Cadets made the game a tight competition until the last seconds. But in the end, the victory and the Coach Eddy cup belonged to the Eagles at the sound of the final horn.