ROCHESTER – Spaulding High School sophomore goalie Collin McIntyre has been playing his best hockey as of late, and it’s no coincidence that coincides with the eighth-seeded Red Raiders making a run at a Division II state championship.
More: Oyster River head hockey coach raves about performance from Spaulding sophomore goalie
For McIntyre, there’s always a specific reason he plays his hardest every single time he hits the ice.
More: Oyster River boys hockey focused on clearing final hurdle of a potential historic season
“I like to play for (my teammates),” McIntyre said. “I like to play for the seniors, play for my teammates. I play for the people I see every single day. It makes me play better.”
McIntyre stopped 42 of 43 shots in Spaulding’s 3-1 win over rival Dover in Wednesday’s Division II semifinal at Everett Arena in Concord.
More: How Spaulding defeated Dover in D-II boys hockey semis: It starts with Collin McIntyre
Eighth-seeded Spaulding has emerged from a 3-2 overtime win over No. 9 Somersworth/Coe-Brown in the tournament’s first round to reach its first state championship game since 2015, a 2-1 loss to Dover.
After the first-round win, the Red Raiders beat top-seeded Merrimack, 3-2 in the quarterfinals, and then Dover, the reigning Division II state champions. So, in three tournament games, McIntyre has allowed a total of five goals.
“I want to win (games) for myself, but I also want to win it for (the seniors) more,” McIntyre said. “I still have time, but this is the last year for a couple of my teammates. I want to make it their best year.”
Next up for Spaulding is a date with No. 2 Oyster River in Saturday’s state championship game at Southern New Hampshire University Arena in Manchester.
The puck is scheduled to drop at 12:15 p.m. The two teams met twice in the regular season, skating to a 1-1 tie on Jan. 10 at Rochester Ice Arena, and Oyster River pulling out a 2-1 win on Feb. 18 at the Whittemore Center
McIntyre, Red Raiders hold defending champs in check
Ahead of Wednesday’s semifinal game, Dover scored at least two goals in all but four games this season. What’s more, the Green Wave had scored at least two goals in nine straight games. However, McIntyre was up to the task on Wednesday.
“I just told myself I was going to save everything,” McIntyre said.
“Collin played fantastic, I think it was his best performance all season,” Spaulding’s Wil Godbout said. “He’s had some really, really good performances this season, but I think (Wednesday) was his…
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