Cotter Blazes, Boston Swarms Minnesota 13-8
Following a two-game losing skid and falling below .500, the Blazers knew they needed to win to stay in playoff contention.
Forward Nick Cotter helped Boston do just that, scoring four goals and racking up two assists in Boston’s 13-8 victory over the Minnesota Swarm in Boston’s final home game of the season at the TD Garden.
“Our guys did everything they could to turn things around,” said head coach Tom Ryan. “We showed much better effort on the field.”
Daryl Veltman started the scoring for the Blazers 42 seconds in the game. “I’ve had a hard last couple of games,” said Veltman, who ended up with two goals and four assists, ending his tough streak.
After Minnesota’s Ryan Benesch tied the game at 1, forward Mat Giles scored a power play goal to give Boston a 2-1 lead. Reigning league MVP Dan Dawson scored an acrobatic goal nearly a minute after Giles’ to make it a 3-1 game.
Cotter was originally not going to play because of an exam he had to take, but Coach Ryan made a last minute decision to put him in. Cotter score his first goal 44 seconds in the second quarter after a pass from Veltman, which gave the Blazers a 4-2 lead. Giles’ and Minnesota’s Adam Wilson traded goals, and then Kevin Ross cut the deficit to one 9:18 into the second.
Then things changed for the Blazers. Jamie Rooney scored a goal that was ruled no-goal by the referees, saying that he was in the crease at the time. Coach Ryan challenged the call on the field, where replays showed Rooney did not step inside the crease. The referees overturned the call and gave Rooney his eighth goal of the year, which put the Blazers on top 6-4.
Rooney’s goal sparked a 4-0 Blazer’s run, which included an unassisted goal by Ryan Hotaling (12:58 in the second), Daryl Veltman’s twenty-first goal of the year (3:18 in the third), and Dan Dawson’s thirty-first goal of the season (4:50 in the third).
“[Rooney’s goal] was a bit of a momentum shift,” added Coach Ryan.
But the Swarm stormed right back, getting on their own 4-0 run on two goals by forward Aaron Wilson and two more by forward Sean Pollock.
Cotter took control when the Blazers needed to remain in control. With defenseman Rich Morgan in his face, Cotter scored after a Veltman pass 5:28 in the fourth to give Boston some insurance.
Cotter’s third goal of the night was similar to Rooney’s, as it was questioned whether he stepped in the crease or not. The referees ruled it no-goal, but Ryan threw the challenge flag on the field a second time and won the challenge again.
“You have to take both sides of the play, whether it is a goal or if it isn’t,” said Cotter on his reviewed goal.
Cotter scored again to give the Blazers a 12-8 lead after a Paul Dawson pass. Boston’s final goal of the night came with 57 seconds to go, as Ryan Hotaling scored his second goal of the night (fifth of the season) on a behind-the-back goal from a Giles pass. Hotaling jumped into the glass in celebration of his miraculous goal.
Goalie Anthony Cosmo was phenomenal in his twelfth game of the season. Cosmo stopped 46 of the 54 shots the Swarm took, which earned him the game MVP. Minnesota’s Nick Patterson stopped 32 shots out of the 45 that Boston took.
Dan Dawson, Veltman, and Giles each scored two goals and racked up four assists. Cosmo, Paul Dawson, Greg Downing, Brett Queener, and Kyle Ross each had one assist.
Aaron Ross (three goals, one assist), Sean Pollock (two goals), Ryan Benesch (one goal, four assists), Kevin Ross (one goal, one assist), Jay Thorimbert (one assist), Zack Greer (one goal, one assist) and Callum Crawford (six assists) led Minnesota in scoring.
Minnesota (5-9) will play Philadelphia next week while Boston (7-7) will play at Colorado. “We feel great about heading into Colorado,” Veltman said after the game.
Rochester and Buffalo also won their games Saturday, which means the three-way tie between them and Boston still remains intact. When asked about the playoffs, Dawson said, “We’re still hanging in there [for playoff contention]… But before we talk playoffs, we have to get there first.”
Matt Eisenberg is a 12th grader at Shrewsbury High School
The Blazers Beat is a student reporter program which provides high school students access to the Garden on game nights. Students will receive a media credential for a game of their choice, access to the post-game player and coach press conference and can write a game recap which the Blazers will help to publish with their local papers. For more information, contact Krista Olson, Marketing & Event Operations Manager at krista@blazerslacrosse.com.