Well-tested Larries ready for semifinals

It is hard to imagine any scenario the St. Lawrence Central hockey team could face this weekend in Utica that would alarm the squad.

While some of the eight teams who have made it this far have cruised through dominant seasons, the Larries have found themselves in just about every position imaginable.

SLC (17-7 overall) will face Section 2’s Queensbury (16-7-1) in a Division II semifinal at 5:45 p.m. Saturday at the Utica Memorial Auditorium.

Should the Larries win, they’d face either Section 7’s Plattsburgh or Section 3’s New Hartford for the state championship at 3:30 p.m. Sunday.

But just to reach Utica for the first time since 1990, SLC overcame a second-period deficit in the Section 10 championship game and then a 3-0 deficit on the road in a state quarterfinal game last Saturday.

The Larries trailed OFA 2-1 after two periods in the Section 10 title game, then scored three quick goals early in the third and wound up winning 5-3.

Last weekend they fell behind host Burke Catholic 3-0 early in the first period in Newburgh, then rattled off five straight goals before the period ended and cruised to a 7-3 win.

“This group has been very resilient,” said SLC coach Mickey Locke. “I just think it speaks to the maturity of our leadership. We have a great core of leaders and nothing has fazed this group, really, from the second half of the year.”

The trials the Larries have endured to get to this weekend could prove beneficial. While some of the teams have not faced much adversity, the Larries would hardly panic should they find themselves down by two or three goals at some point of Saturday’s semifinal.

“One of the things I told the kids on Monday is that they’ve faced just about every virtual scenario you can imagine this year,” Locke said. “Whatever transpires on Saturday they’ve been prepared for through the season.

“Every game tells a different story. When we play Salmon River, it’s always a physical, grinding game, and we’ve proved we can play that way. If someone wants to skate down the ice, we can play that game. If they want to play a low-scoring game, we can do that as well. We’ve seen all different kinds of styles this year.”

The players echo the confidence of their coach.

“We don’t really have any mental breakdowns,” said Jack Keenan. “It always seems to work out. We’re mainly calm. We just start playing. We’ve had a lot of different situations, and we’re pretty prepared.”

Said Charlie Dullea, “Once we get rolling, it’s not very easy for us to stop. I think we are a close-knit team. I just kind of think nothing is going to get us down.”

The Larries are also a very balanced team.

Brady Helmer leads the squad with 21 goals and 19 assists, but SLC has six other players with at least 20 points this season and two other players in double figures in goals.

Queensbury also has overcome some adversity to reach this weekend’s game. The Spartans have won 10 straight games but were only the No. 3 seed in the Section 2 playoffs, upsetting top-seeded Bethlehem 4-2 in the championship game.

The Spartans beat Rye 5-3 in a quarterfinal game last weekend and are led by goalie Dylan Hafner, a player who joined the team in midseason after playing the first part of the year on a private team in Clifton Park.

“When he started to play it really solidified the team,” Locke said. “They are very deep at the forward position and have a lot of talent up front and a lot of good puck handlers. Their blue line is very solid as well.”

Queensbury’s coach Dean Williams also has a history with the Larries. He was a member of the Glens Falls team that beat St. Lawrence Central in 1990, the last time the Larries played in the state semifinals.