Sports

JIM’S VIEW: Boston Gold Kings Keep a Grip on Second Place as Season Winds Down

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The Boston Gold Kings (BGK), coming off a tough road loss back on Feb. 7th, put together a strong and disciplined effort on Valentine’s Day night in front of their home crowd, running away with a 9-4 win. Nine different Gold Kings littered the scoresheet and Goalie Mike Cowell, while maybe not as a sharp as some previous games, was still there when needed to post the win. The Gold Kings move to 7-5-0-2 on the season and with two games remaining in the regular season hold a 4-point lead over third place Holyoke. The Gold Kings got off to a great start when Nick McNally, flying down the right side and going upstairs with a wrister, made it 1-0 1:38 into the first period. But last-place Norfolk, with only two wins on the season, found their skating game and put two past Cowell 10 minutes apart to take the lead 2-1 for the one and only time on the night. The Gold Kings righted the ship with a huge goal with a minute forty one left in the period off the stick of fourth-line Center Mike Delisio to tie it two. Delisio and McNally both had excellent nights and were named two of the three stars post-game. One of the bugaboos for the defending champion Gold Kings this season has been a lack of disciplined hockey at times. Whether taking silly penalties or failing to clear the zone or missed assignments, their game has not always been as clean as they would like it to be. On this night, though, the Gold Kings looked much sharper and in control. Second period goals by M. Baldino, Drizen and Cebula paved the way for a third period explosion, as the Gold Kings simply wore down the Mallards. Despite being a last-place team, Norfolk could skate, but they were vulnerable with ever other aspect of their game, and the Gold Kings took advantage. Goal-scorers Forte, Carta, DiCostanzo and Smith made sure of it after a pretty quiet start to the third period.  But once the clock hit 8:54, it was all Gold Kings till the final whistle. Final score, Gold Kings 9 Mallards 4.

Sports

JIM’S VIEW: Hockey Plays D2 Squad Dover-Sherborn/Weston Tough in Regular Season Finale

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Watertown/Wayland’s 2026 regular season came to a close Wednesday with a non-league contest versus Dover-Sherborn/Weston(DSW). The game also served as Senior Night as six young men were recognized before the game for their contribution to the program. Once the game began, one and all were treated to an entertaining affair that saw the Raiders (DSW are the Raiders as well, but for this article, only Watertown is the Raiders) take the early lead and once again play a bigger, stronger, faster team (and D2 as well) pretty evenly. It was a 2-1 game DSW late into the second period, but a DSW goal with 30 seconds remaining made it 3-1 after two. That score swelled to 6-2 DSW by game’s-end, but the Raiders kept competing right up to the final whistle. 

Seniors Ryder Barenholtz, Odarjyo Cook, Matthew Wheeler, Griffin Wood, Liam McIsaac and Kingston Omolade were introduced as the starting lineup on this night, a nice touch by Head Coach John Vlachos. For goalie Liam McIsaac, it was a chance to see some action as junior Finnley MacDonald has seen most of the time in net this season. McIsaac did himself proud, making a number of Grade A saves and only surrendering one goal before being relieved by MacDonald half way through the first period. Wayland Senior Griffin Wood, a first-line winger all season long, got the scoring going for a team short on goal-scoring all season. He rambled down the right wing and put a shot on DSW goalie William Goldstein, a shot that wasn’t blistering but nonetheless on net and hard for him to handle: 2:29 in on Senior Night Watertown/Wayland had the lead. DSW tied it four and a half minutes late, but the Raiders, despite being outshot and defending their zone more then they would have liked, were right there with DSW after one period.

Sports

JIM’S VIEW: Boys Hockey Storms to First League Win in Impressive Fashion

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Watertown/Wayland Hockey deserves so much credit, in my opinion. From the coaching staff on down to the last player on the roster, there has been little to no quit despite winning very infrequently. They play in a very competitive and physical league with a young and undersized roster, yet they always hang tough, even when the score might indicate otherwise. With the regular season winding down and still no league wins next to their name, Watertown/Wayland found the secret sauce against a Wakefield squad, who in addition to clearly getting out-played, left their A-game, let alone their C-game back in Wakefield. Final score, which is music to the ears of EVERYONE associated with Watertown/Wayland, Watertown/Wayland 7 Wakefield 2. It started very rocky for the Raiders. SIX seconds in captain Luke Egan was sent to the penalty box for hooking. But the Raiders executed a good kill, and junior Goalie Finnley MacDonald, called upon all season long to make quality and quantity saves, faced two good scoring chances and steered them aside. But a funny thing happened on the way to getting back to full strength —the Raiders failed to execute the transition from Egan leaving the box to a line shift, and were immediately back on the penalty kill, guilty of a bench minor for too many men on the ice. 

Now, if you believe in fate, I’d recommend the story of the rest of the period as proof that it exists. The Raiders not only killed the second penalty, but settled down, played solid hockey, and at 11:14 went on the power play thanks to — yup, a Wakefield penalty for too many men on the ice. And 28 seconds later they were whistled for a tripping, giving Watertown/Wayland a two-man advantage. And what did the Raiders do better than Wakefield with their power play opportunities? That’s right hockey fans, they scored, first a 5-on-3 power play goal courtesy of a Griffin Wood wrister, and then they pulled off the daily double as Michael Philbin scored a 5-on-4 power play goal to make it 2-0. Now, to be clear, I’m neither making light or making fun of what I’m about to say, but there have been very few opportunities to say “Raiders are up 2-0 with two minutes left in the period.” It sounds good, right?

Sports

JIM’S VIEW: It’s Senior Night on the Hardwood as Both Raiders Teams Finish Out Their Home Regular Season Schedule

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Up first, the Boys… Senior night honored three young men who have devoted their time and effort to Watertown Basketball — Higor Camara, Andrew Malovanyi and Benjamin Teixeira. Congratulations to all three of them and a tip of the hat for their contribution to Watertown Athletics and Raiders Basketball! A season that has seen mostly struggles has been better of late, with the Raiders winners of four of their last five. Two were non-league blowouts against an inferior opponent (a home-and-home), but two were league wins, and one on the road. Every team wants to win Senior Night, and tonight was no different. For most of the contest it seemed as though Watertown would do just that — win — but, they went cold and flat in the fourth while Melrose, fighting to stay in contention for a D2 Tournament berth, found their way just in time to bring about overtime. And in overtime it was ALL Melrose as the Red Hawks outscored the Raiders 14-2 to defeat Watertown, 59-47. The first quarter was a bit of a slog, as both teams struggled offensively. The only offense for the Raiders came courtesy of junior Michael Nshanian, who scored 8, four of four from the line. Both teams lit it up, relatively speaking, in the second. While Melrose featured a balanced output, Nshanian added 9 more on the way to 36 on the night. But, despite that impressive number, it was a harbinger of sorts for how the night would turn out. As Nshanian continued to score, the rest of the team stood around and increasingly their half-court offense became downright stagnant.

Sports

JIM’S VIEW: Friday Night Basketball Doubleheader Sweep of Wakefield is Very Rewarding

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Girls Basketball, with but one senior starting along with two freshman, one sophomore and a junior, had the chance to clinch the Middlesex League’s Freedom Division crown Friday night with a win. They entered the game with a three-game lead with three league games remaining on the regular season schedule. The Boys faced a squad with but one win ALL season, and it came at the expense of the Raiders back in early January on a night when one of the Raiders key players got sick during the game, which left the team shorthanded. Revenge was on the mind of Boys Basketball on this night. So, onto the games… Watertown Girls Basketball has had a successful season by any metrics. A young team that really only goes six deep, has come to play most nights and has never suffered more than a two-game losing streak. In league play they have simply been outstanding, as they entered Friday night’s game at 9-4 and in first place by three games. They knew a win tonight at home would clinch the Freedom Division, and that’s exactly what they did as they beat Wakefield 53-41. The first quarter made one wonder if it was going to be the Raiders night though, as they just couldn’t get the ball to fall through the hoop with any consistency, scoring only 9 in the quarter. In the meantime, Wakefield, who came into the game 6-10 overall (6-7 in the league) and averaging only 39 points per game on the season, scored 17 in the quarter. Oh oh.s But, one quarter does not make a game, and the Raiders stuck with it and somewhat righted the ship despite what I’m about to tell you. The second quarter was a slugfest, with the Raiders managing all of 6 points. The good news?

Sports

JIM’S VIEW: Boys Hockey Takes Wilmington to OT After a Third Period Comeback

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An excellent hockey game was played at the JAR on Wednesday, with both teams deserving of a “W,” but it was Wilmington’s stud center, senior Isaac Tavares, who ultimately carried them to an overtime 4-3 win with his game-winning goal in overtime number one with teams playing four aside

The Raiders welcomed back junior Luke Egan to the lineup after a one-game absence, and he played a huge role, and almost carried the Raiders to victory much the same way Tavares did for Wilmington. But first, Watertown/Wayland had to withstand a barrage of early hits from a physical Wilmington team. While mostly clean, the hits were surely meant to intimidate the Raiders — and they didn’t. And in a matter of minutes in the first period, Wilmington’s penalty box turned into Wilmington’s alternate bench, as three players were whistled for penalties in a three and half minute span. Unfortunately, the Raiders couldn’t capitalize. And when teams were finally both at even strength, Emrich O’Brien made some individual magic stickhandling through two Raiders players on the way to scoring thanks to a top-shelf wrister that Raider goalie Finnley MacDonald had no chance of stopping. Twenty-two seconds before the end of the period Tavares scored his first of the game with a wicked wrister of his own, flying down the left wing and potting one to MacDonald’s glove side just inside the top corner of the goal posts to make it 2-0.  As always, though, Watertown/Wayland didn’t allow the deficit to stop them from competing. The second line of Jake Fijux, Ryder Barenholtz and Logan Desrosiers was really good on this night, and they got the Raiders on the scoreboard just 2:58  into the period with some nifty passing off of some effective forechecking. Once in the Wilmington zone Fijux hit Derosiers alone in the slot, and Derosiers wristed it low glove-side to beat Wilmington goalie Cam Thompson to cut the lead to one. The Raiders continued to press, and were the better team through much of the first 10 minutes of the second period. But one little let down, which has plagued Watertown/Wayland all season, and the inability to clear a rebound allowed Wilmington’s Gray to make it 3-1 after two periods. It took all of 43 seconds of the third period for the Raiders to make a statement — we are still in this game. Isaac Maillis did some effective dirty work in the corner, and Luke Egan made sure his effort was not for naught, picking up the puck and feeding Lukas Wynn in the slot who scored to make it 3-2. The next nine minutes and change found both teams skating up and down the ice, competing and hitting and looking to score the next goal. Another by Wilmington would most likely ice a win. The Raiders were looking for the equalizer, which is what they got when the tandem of Wynn and Egan struck again, thanks to Egan’s skating and stickhandling, which led to Wynn scoring the tying goal with just under 5 minutes left in regulation.  

Not 30 seconds later, Watertown/Wayland’s Adam Capello was called for tripping, but the Raiders showed no signs of panic and killed the penalty, and sent the game to overtime tied at 3. In overtime, Watertown/Wayland was not able to control the puck for long, and found themselves on their heels a bit in the 4-on-4, five minute format. The main reason?

Sports

JIM’S VIEW: First of Three Basketball Doubleheaders in 10 Days Ends In a Split Decision

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Doubleheaders are more commonly thought of as a “baseball thing,” but many public schools set up their basketball schedules in such a way that both the Girls and Boys play on the same night at the same gym, back to back. It cuts down on travel expenses and brings more support in the building for each other’s team. Some of the best atmospheres for Raiders sports in the time I’ve had the pleasure of covering various teams is basketball doubleheader nights. Tuesday night was the first of three over a 10-day period, with the Boys playing first at 5:30 p.m. and the Girls at 7 p.m. So, onto the games … Watertown Boys Basketball was looking to build upon there 33-point non-league win Monday night with another solid performance as they stepped back into the realm of league play. Stoneham arrived in Watertown at 6-6 in league play, 9-6 overall. The Raiders were looking to notch a third Middlesex League win in what has been a difficult league season. Watertown started slow and fell behind by 8, but Senior Andrew Malovanyi single-handedly kept the Raiders in the game with rebounding and hustle and 8 points, including two 3-pointers. When the dust settled on the first quarter, the Raiders actually held a 1-point lead. Unfortunately, it was all down-hill from there, as Watertown went down to defeat, 58-39. The Raiders, who a night earlier scored 21 points in the second quarter, could muster all of four points on 1 FG and two free throws on this night. In the meantime, Stoneham had their way, led by two 3-pointers and 9 points from Senior Weston Bunnell. The Raiders could not hit the side of the barn, as the cliche goes, and inexplicably, they couldn’t execute their half-court offense either. It was as Jekyll & Hyde a first half as you could get, and Watertown found themselves down 12 at the half. Things improved ever so slightly in the second half, but never enough or consistently to make one believe a run was coming, or convincingly enough to put Stoneham on their heels.  

Michael Nshanian got into foul trouble early and Coach Steve Harrington chose to keep Nshanian on the floor to figure it out and play through it.

Sports

JIM’S VIEW: Watertown Boys Basketball Enjoys A One-Sided Win

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Raiders Basketball enjoyed a fun night on the hardwood with a 76-43 rout of the CASH (Community Academy of Health & Science) Chargers Monday night. The first of two games (Feb. 9 @ CASH) with the non-league opponent from Dorchester (and a member of the Boston City League), was won early as the Raiders raced out to a 23-10 lead after one quarter. 

The Raiders needed only two players to register on the scoresheet, junior captain Michael Nshanian and sophomore captain Michael Caterino. Nshanian scored 11 points, doing most of his damage inside and at the foul line, where he was 5 of 8. CASH had no inside presence, and therefore had no answer for Nshanian, and he made them pay — and when he didn’t, Caterino did. He was running the floor, driving to the basket, hitting mid-range jumpers, and he mixed in a 3-pointer as preview of what was yet to come. Caterino had 12 in the quarter  

In the second and third quarters, it rained inside the Victor J. Palladino Gymnasium, as in “raining threes.” Caterino, a lefty with a pretty stroke and a sweet arc on his shot, especially when he is on, made five 3-pointers and finished the night with 29 points in only three quarters of play. Same for Nshanian, who sat the fourth after contributing four 3-pointers of his own as CASH went to a 1-3-1 zone to try and combat his inside prowess.