Nauset Boys Hockey Closes In On Undefeated Season

ORLEANS – The Nauset boys hockey team is four victories away from history. 

 Fueled by a 1-0 loss to Marblehead in last year’s Division 3 state championship, the Warriors are on the brink of an undefeated regular season with just four games remaining on the schedule.

 As the wins pile up, so too does the pressure of being the top team in the Division 3 power rankings. 

 “We’ve got a target on our back,” said senior goaltender Zach Coelho, a Truro resident. 

 The Warriors improved to 15-0-1 on Saturday after senior Logan Poulin netted a hat trick and junior Jake Eldredge also found the back of the net to propel the team to a 4-0 victory at Malden Catholic. 

It marked the second consecutive hat trick for Poulin, who also lit the lamp three times in Nauset’s 7-1 rout of Martha’s Vineyard on Feb. 5 at Charles Moore Arena. Senior Colin Ward tallied two goals against the Vineyarders, while junior Logan Miller and sophomore Andrew Reeves added a goal each. 

After Nauset defeated the Vineyard, head coach Connor Brickley praised his players for bringing a postseason attitude to the Cape and Islands League clash.

“Right now, it’s playoff hockey time,” Brickley said. “We’re trying to make sure the guys stay present and make sure they’re doing everything they can to get ready.

“We’ve got to make sure that every single shift the kids are getting the most out of it and we’re preparing ourselves for the [postseason] run.”

Nauset has demanded the respect of their opponents since the season began, earning the top spot in each installment of the power rankings. While some teams would crumble when facing the pressure of completing an undefeated season, the Warriors are embracing the role of being the team every opponent has circled on its schedule.

“We definitely embrace it,” said Ward, a Chatham resident. “Our record shows that we’re performing well, but we’ve got to stay at that pace. Everyone’s going to be gunning for us and we have to keep our heads up and go towards the goal.”

The goal has always been to hoist a state title. Last year’s team finished 22-2-1 and snapped a 20-year drought between the program’s state championship appearances. 

Although the Warriors reached TD Garden, the loss to Marblehead still stings and serves as motivation to end this season with a win on the same ice. 

“[The championship loss] is always going to be something that’s in the back of my mind, whether I’m in hockey season or not,” said Poulin, a Truro resident. “It’s always going to be something that kind of haunts me. I want to get back there this year and get a win.”

“Our goal last year was to make it to the Garden,” added Coelho, “but our goal this year is to win it.”

Nauset will host Barnstable on Wednesday and visit Plymouth North on Saturday before closing out the regular season with games at Medfield (Feb. 17) and at home against Pembroke (Feb. 19). Brickley said the team hasn’t lost sight of its ultimate goal of earning a state title. 

“The guys really take things seriously,” the coach said. “It’s a real professional approach every day at practice and in the games. 

 “If you buy into the cause, what we’re trying to preach and the team itself, it’s a snowball effect where you see all this stuff coming with it.”