This game was beyond exhilarating. I was assigned to film the game and I knew I had to get there early. The game started at 9 AM but people could go in at 8:30 so I convinced all of my friends that we needed to be there by 8 AM so we could get some food. I woke up at 6 AM and got ready for the trip to the Garden. On the way there, nearly the entire school was with us. It was a great experience, seeing all of the Winthrop fans. There was the occasional Dedham fan but not too many. As we got into Boston we went to Dunkin Donuts before we went to the Garden.

As always the Garden was beautiful, I had a pass to film so I hurriedly skipped through the lines to get in. When I went in I had no idea where to go. The inside is huge. As I grabbed the equipment to film I went to the area which was designated for Winthrop, 114. I took an elevator to get to the top layer, the elevator was extremely nice. As I entered the top it was clear it was meant for celebrities or for people who could afford an expensive ticket. The entire top was much cleaner than the normal section and it was littered with suites. As I set up the camera, I realized I was above the Dedham student section. The Dedham student area was extremely convinced they were going to win, they were all extremely excited and it was clear they had a lot of trust in their team. I also noticed how much larger the Winthrop side was. Winthrop arrived in much larger populations than Dedham had. The second I finished setting up warms up started. Both teams came out in large numbers and began to stretch.

When the game started, they announced all of the starters on each team. Dedham was starting all Senior Captains. As they announced the starters of Winthrop, the Dedham student selection murmured in disbelief as many Sophomores were named as starters. When the game started things were not on the Vikings side. Winthrop goalie Michael Donahue was getting an onslaught of attacks and the Winthrop offense was struggling to create a formation. The Vikings were desperately doing sub-ins and sub-outs while Dedham seemed very happy and relaxed with their subs. Finally, it looked like Donahue had let in one. A Dedham player crashed into the net and Donahue and the puck went in. The entire Dedham section exploded in happiness while the Winthrop section looked in disbelief. After analyzing the score, it was turned back. The Winthrop section was relieved to see this. At this point, the game was 13:51 in period 2. The game was still 0-0. Suddenly, Philly Boncore got a break-off and began to march towards the net. In a panic, the defense quickly formatted in front of them and blocked the shock. The defense did not see Michael Holgersen rush in to finish the goal though. The Winthrop student section exploded as Boncore, Holgerson, and Joe Pumphret returned victorious from their advance. The goal greatly motivated the once-falling-apart Winthrop offense. The team quickly began to greatly outmatch the Marauders as they quickly fell apart.

Period 2 quickly ran on with no more scoring. The period ended at 1-0 Winthrop and the wait for the 3rd and last period began. The now nervous Dedham student section wasn’t so excited anymore. Many of the previously standing people were sitting down and many were murmuring in worry. The Winthrop section was feeling great though and somehow for the Winthrop side, there were still more people getting there. Midway through the 3rd period, Michael Holgorsen scores again, and excitement begins to brew. Could he hat trick? Holgorsen had never gotten a hat trick before but it was clear it was suddenly a possibility. By this point, it was clear who the game-winner was. Dedham was greatly struggling against Winthrop. No matter how many times they shot Donahue was able to stop it, no matter how many times they tried to block a shot it was clear they falling apart. Late into the 3rd period, Dedham made a sudden decision to pull the goalie. While this might have been seen as a good decision at the time, it ultimately failed. Holgorsen ended up with the puck and slowly began to go forward. A defender blocked the angle to shoot the puck at the net but he ended up tripping. As he tripped Holgorsen shot the puck and it slid halfway across the rink straight into the net. The Garden sounded like it was going to explode, the Winthrop section exploded in noise and began to throw their hats onto the rink. Holgorsen had scored a hat trick. At this point, the time was around 3 minutes in the 3rd period. The game was clearly over and some of the Dedham fans even began to leave early. The game was paused because of the hats on the rink. Some angry Dedham fans began to throw water bottles onto the rink as well. The rest of the game, Dedham tried to muster a strong offense but it was clear there was nothing they could do versus Donahue and the Winthrop defense. As the game ended the Winthrop section began to chant.

“10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1!”

The game was over 3-0, Winthrop had won.