The Wayland varsity hockey team came out with a vengeance last Wednesday night, after losing nine players from last year’s team, including six seniors. New head coach Eric Brown debuted the ’09-’10 Warriors against Dracut. Wayland entered the arena with just three seniors and 7 players who have never played hockey at the varsity level.

From the drop of the puck, the Warriors defense gave 100% and never stopped. Led by junior assistant captain Zach Bastarache, junior EJ Nicholas, and junior Ian Ball, the defense held strong. The Dracut offense pushed hard into the zone, but they were always met by a strong black jersey. When Dracut broke through the defensive line, junior goalie Cogan Register was behind them, stopping all 46 shots the Middies had to offer.

Although the Wayland offense was quiet, there is nothing to worry about; they have the potential in the offensive zone. “We could have gotten in better position for the puck as far as knowing when to dump it in the zone and when to carry it,” said Brown.

The Warriors peppered Dracut’s goalie with shots but he held strong and didn’t let anything by. With just 1:29 left in the third period, the Middies committed a penalty. The Warriors were a man up and worked hard to break the barrier, but the Dracut goalie was always there to shut the door. The Warriors just couldn’t find a way to put one home, and as the final buzzer rang the game was tied 0-0.

“Some good things some bad things, it was our first game against one of the top teams. We take it for what it is, we get back to work on Friday and another game on Saturday,” said Brown. Brown has incorporated a new system for the Warriors, and it really seems to be working. The in-zone and neutral-zone coverage was tremendous. Brown has also added two assistant coaches, Rian Murray and Dan Roselando, to his staff, who work alongside current junior varsity coach Mark Lange.

With one point through one game, the Warriors will look to add to their point total this Saturday in their game against the Tyngsboro Tigers, at the Warriors’ home rink, the New England Sports Center in Marlboro.