The Pilgrim boys hockey team is looking to find its rhythm as it is battling for playoff positioning in the always competitive Division I group.
The Pats sit at 4-5-1 overall and 1-4 in the division. The team most recently lost to La Salle Academy on Tuesday night in a 5-1 decision. The team won its season opener against Barrington, then got some non-league wins against three out-of-state opponents before returning to its local slate.
“We’re still trying to figure things out. It is what it is, everybody goes through it,” said Pilgrim coach Mike Boyajian. “We played a very good first period (against La Salle), gave up four in the second then played solid in the third. We’ve just got to clean things up. They’re a good team, but everyone we play is good. The home opener against Moses Brown could have gone either way, the loss to Smithfield could have gone either way, but we’ve got to find a way to win games.”
Pilgrim is looking to get back into the championship mix after a down season in 2023-24. The Pats graduated some key players including guys like Ryan Barlow and Braxton Bragg. Jackson Bromage, Jackson Monte, Jack Sayler and Nate Kane have stepped up to replace Barlow’s production on offense while junior Michael Bessette has been the primary goalie, replacing Bragg.
“Michael has been stepping up. He had a big game against La Salle. He stopped 45 shots and a couple of those goals were just on weird bounces. Nate Kane is back, Jackson Monte, they’re playing well. We had four kids score goals against Smithfield which is a good sign for us. We have four lines this year, depth wise we are stronger than last year, they just need that experience,” said Boyajian.
The schedule this year will be tougher than ever for Pilgrim, as the bottom four teams from last year were moved down to Division II. As the team looks for answers in the back half of its lineup, Boyajian hopes the players will keep games close and outplay the opposition in the later periods.
“We’ve just got to find a way to keep games tight and win those games. We’ve just had some defensive breakdowns. You can’t have those breakdowns. We’re learning and that’s what we’re looking for. We just want to get better and figure things out,” Boyajian said.
Pilgrim will next be in action when it takes on Bishop Hendricken on Friday night at Thayer Arena.