After shootings, Blackstone Valley team moves on as 'a hockey family'
· Yahoo Sports
MIDDLETOWN — Blackstone Valley Schools hockey is inseparable.
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The program of four different schools is, and always has been, one team. And it withstood more than any club should ever need to manage. The mass shooting on Feb. 16 at Dennis M. Lynch Arena shattered senior night for the St. Raphael, Providence Country Day, North Providence and North Smithfield students that will graduate in a few months.
Family dinners, Topgolf and skating were all forms of therapy needed to heal open wounds. A mixed scrimmage with Coventry/Johnston, Blackstone’s opponent on that tragic afternoon, reunited those programs at Levy Rink earlier this month. Finishing that match meant hockey could never be taken away from either team.
Resumption of scheduled games for Blackstone came 18 days after the shooting in a Pawtucket rink that ultimately claimed the lives of three victims. Circling a return date eventually became its own treatment. And that nearly three-week wait was fulfilling in a way only playoff hockey could provide.
Declan St. Vincent found the winning rebound on his stick and didn’t miss the opportunity from the slot. His BVS teammates rushed to him in a flash of Black and Gold in their first game back since the tragedy. The redirect and following three minutes of white-knuckled playoff tension lifted Blackstone Valley to a 2-1 victory against the Rogers/Middletown/Tiverton/Mt. Hope/East Providence co-op on Friday, March 6 at St. George’s School.
“What I’ve witnessed over the last two weeks since the unfortunate tragedy has been nothing less than amazing,” BVS coach Chris Librizzi said. “The way that this hockey family came together as one. We got together every single day except for two snowstorm days. Every day after practice we ate dinner together for about 11 days straight. They just came together as a family, which we tried to teach them from Day 1 is that we are a hockey family.”
Blackstone rallied to take the lead with 3:09 remaining, found a tying goal in the closing seconds of the middle period and denied a key 5-on-3 all in its first game. Blackstone Valley is now positioned favorably to capture the best-of-three quarterfinal series in the RIIL Division II playoffs. Game 2 is Saturday night at Rhode Island Sports Center in North Smithfield.
“I saw it coming to my stick, took the patience and took the shot,” St. Vincent said. “I just put my hands up and waited for my team to come to me and just celebrated.
“We got together every single day. We were spending time together, therapy, hanging out … this is more than hockey. We’re a big family here, and after this hockey season ends, we’re going to stay together no matter what. We’re one big family”
“They did it. They persevered,” Librizzi said.
Returning to the ice was a triumph in itself, but a playoff victory like Friday night’s only finds the closest of programs. The initials RD, AD and GD for the shooting victims — Rhonda Dorgan, Aidan Dorgan and Gerald Dorgan — were sewed into the upper right part of BVS’ sweaters. Those initials, etched onto a heart, won’t ever be forgotten.
“I’m getting emotional, but the way that everyone was able to bounce back so quickly,” goalie Jacob Faria said. “A couple days after it happened, all of us said we need to do this. We’re not losing another game. We just have so much more to play for now. Obviously playoff hockey is completely different, but we just have so much more than ourselves to play for now.”
Colin Dorgan took the first shift on the blue line for Blackstone Valley. He blocked a shot early in the third period. And he was part of the dash to celebrate Faria at the final whistle. He’ll continue to lead Blackstone Valley through its playoff run.
“The kid is just the heart of this team,” Librizzi said of Dorgan. “He’s been a solid captain for us all year. He leads by example, and him coming back to this team like he did, stepping up and trying to get back to a little bit of a state of normalcy. He’s just an amazing young man.”
Blackstone Valley held off a 5-on-3 with 10:17 left in regulation. Faria made 18 saves, six in the final period, to give the visitors a chance to rally. Alex Pickering delivered the first goal with 30 seconds remaining in the second period. And the senior followed Dorgan’s example with his own blocked shot with 1:30 left in regulation. It was all hands-on deck in the comeback effort.
Blackstone Valley is now just three wins away from a championship banner. A Frozen Four date at Schneider Arena awaits if it closes out the quarterfinals and then it’s onto the Amica Mutual Pavilion.
“There’s so much support, not just from Rhode Island, from around the country,” Faria said. “Everyone’s being so supportive of us. I just want to say thank you. It lights a fire under us that won’t ever be put out until we win that championship.”
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Blackstone Valley hockey team wins first game after fatal rink shootings