WATERTOWN – Belmont boys hockey head coach Tim Foley tried instilling a priority on winning the Ed Burns Coffee Pot Tournament’s Doherty division title in the John A. Ryan locker room ahead of Sunday afternoon’s tourney final.
It wasn’t hard to sell.
A year after losing the lower Brinn division’s title game, the No. 8 Marauders (12-4-1) claimed public-school supremacy and their first Burns Tournament championship with a 4-0 win over Middlesex League rival No. 3 Arlington despite a slow start.
Linemates Liam Guilderson, Adam Bauer and Leo Packard all scored and David Kioumejian added an empty-netter, backing sophomore Ethan Bauer’s 31-save shutout – 16 of which came in a lopsided first period.
The sophomore goalie won MVP honors for allowing just one goal against Concord-Carlisle, Hingham and Arlington, while senior older brother Adam Bauer (goal, two assists) notched all three points in a runaway third period to eclipse 100 on his career.
“It’s huge, especially versus all the public schools,” Ethan Bauer said of winning the tournament. “A lot of good teams in it, so it means a lot. … We had our eyes on this before the season even started.”
“This is obviously one of the goals that we talked about,” Foley added. “And win or lose, it’s always great to play against Arlington. They’re a great team, you know what you’re getting when you play them. They work very hard, they’re very well-coached, and they’re going to come at you.”
Ethan Bauer played phenomenally with a few highlight-reel saves in the first two periods to keep the Spy Ponders off the board, and gave the group’s top line plenty of time to grab the lead.
It came in a five-penalty second period, with Guilderson potting a power-play goal off feeds from John Connolly and Packard less than four minutes in. Belmont’s penalty kill was tested three times the rest of the frame, but didn’t allow many high-quality opportunities.
Ethan Bauer cleaned up the rest in an MVP performance, but the unit worked well together to shut out an Arlington group with 35 goals over its last six games.
“It’s great (to win MVP), but it’s a team sport,” Ethan Bauer said. “I couldn’t have done it without them. The D and the forwards did great blocking shots and everything, so it was a great team win.”
Belmont then erupted midway through the third period, starting with Adam Bauer’s rebound goal off a Michael Rowan shot from the outside. Only 24 seconds later, Adam Bauer centered the puck to the slot, which Packard tipped in for the 3-0 lead.
“When we get a lead, these guys get hungrier and hungrier,” Foley said. “It’s almost like they can taste it. … We’re not going to sit back.”
It marked the fifth time Adam Bauer, Packard and Guilderson all scored in the same game this year – showing off their chemistry and scoring prowess.
“They’re just clever, good hockey players – all three of them – and we’re lucky to have them,” Foley said. “When we come to practice and come on the ice, they’re already here. … Their maturity and the way that they work without instruction is just off the charts. And it shows in the games.”
What’s more is Ethan Bauer got to see his older brother notch his 100th point in a game both starred in.
“I could not be more happy for him,” he said. “Watching him the first two years, and then being on his team the past two years has been awesome.”