HATFIELD— Every goaltender, at every level of hockey, starts a game hoping for a shutout. Kolton Galie archived that ambition Thursday night. The Plymouth Whitemarsh junior stopped 15 shots as the Colonials downed Truman 9-0 in a Suburban High School Hockey League American Division matchup at Ice Line.
It was the first shutout of Galie’s high-school career.
“It’s really nice,” he said. “They had a few nice shots on us and it felt really nice to be able to come out there and save them and our defense really put in the effort to keep the puck out of the front of our net.”
One observer who was particularly impressed with Galie’s performance was Truman coach Bill Keyser, who took it all in from his post behind the bench.
“(Plymouth Whitemarsh) played for their goalie tonight,” he said. “They played in front of him, the blocked shots for him, and they maintained the puck. They played really well today,”
Despite Tigers’ low shot total, Galie worked hard. At least half a dozen saves required maximum effort, notably on odd-man rushes. His best save of the night came when he denied James Gallagher on a breakaway 75 seconds into the third period to keep Truman (3-6 overall and in the division) off the scoreboard.
The Colonials (6-4, 5-4 in divisional play) dominated play from the start and recorded 36 shots themselves. Like many a goaltender elsewhere, Galie likes to stay busy.
“Of course, the less shots the better,” he said. “But then, when they do get a breakaway, I’m not warmed up enough to be able to it as quickly as I would with 30 or so shots.
The Colonials scored three goals in each period. Matthew Flynn finished with a hat trick and added an assist. Luke Weikel contributed two goals and four assists. Thomas Corcoran, Jack MIshkin, Aidan Keough, and John Cubbin scored one goal each.
“I think every line contributed,” said Colonial coach Josh Aiello. “Our offense played well, our defensemen made sure they covered, and adjusted to the two-on-ones and three-on-twos.
“And our goalie really played outstanding. It was Kolton Galie’s first career shutout at the high-school level. I’m just so proud of how. He’s really just getting stronger and stronger as the season goes on.”
Keyser was pleased with his own team’s effort. “My kids didn’t back down at all,” he said. “They worked hard. We had a couple injuries on the bench and running with a light bench, sometimes that can hurt you a little bit.”
Truman 0 0 0—0
Plymouth Whitemarsh 3 3 3—9
First-period goals: Luke Weikerl (PW) from Matthew Flynn, 3:48; Flynn (PW) from Weikel, 12:41; Thomas Corcoran (PW) from Zach Spera, 14:10
Second-period goals: Aidan Keogh (PW) from Weikel, :37 (pp); Jack MIshkin (PW) from Weikel, 5:49; Flynn (Pw) from Weikel and MIshkin, 11:56 (pp)
Third-period goals: Flynn (PW) unassisted, 2:08; John Cubbin (PW) from Weikel and Keogh, 5:53 (pp); Weikel (Pw) from Corcoran, 15:22
Shots; Truman 15, Plymouth Whitemarsh 36; Saves: Connor PIlla (T) 27, Kolton Galie (PW) 15
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