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New Canaan's Lexie Tully (23) sends a shot towards the Stamford/Westhill/Staples net while Avery Askew gets back to defend during the FCIAC girls ice hockey semifinals at the Darien Ice House on Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2023.
Dave Stewart
DARIEN - It took more than 75 minutes of game time, but New Canaan finally skated back into the FCIAC girls ice hockey final.
Maddie Tully tipped in a shot by Amanda Benson 40 seconds into a third overtime, giving the Rams a 2-1 victory over No. 3 Stamford/Westhill/Staples and an amazing performance by its freshman goalie Clara Peroni in the FCIAC semifinals Wednesday at the Darien Ice House.
Peroni racked up 57 saves against 59 New Canaan shots.
That extended game followed a quick strike by Darien, which scored three goals in the first period and rolled to a 5-0 win over Greenwich in the early semifinal.
No. 1 Darien (18-2-1) and No. 2 New Canaan (17-3-1) will faceoff in the FCIAC final at 4:30 p.m., Saturday, at the Darien Ice House. The Rams are the defending champions, but the Wave has won both meetings this season 7-0 and 3-1.
That early shutout was an eye-opener for both teams, but the Rams are playing much more confidently now.
“We’ve gotten to a much better place,” New Canaan coach Rich Bulan said. “We’re peaking and we’re playing better hockey, but we know we’ve got a battle ahead of us with Darien.”
For the Blue Wave, the trip to the FCIAC final helps put last year’s 3-0 semifinal loss to SWS a little further in the rearview mirror.
“It’s so important to us,” Darien senior co-captain Chelsea Donovan said. “We really wanted to come out flying and make sure the same thing didn’t happen again. We gave the whole pep talk and we came out with speed and intensity.”
Amazingly, New Canaan’s win was its second straight playoff game to go to three overtimes. The Rams defeated Darien 4-3 in last year’s CHSGHA state final.
Bulan said he felt that experience helped on Wednesday.
“Everybody was tired, but it seemed like we had just a little more energy,” Bulan said. “The girls work hard and mentally, we’ve done this and they’re prepared for it. That’s a big part of it. We have that outlook that we can do it in games like this.”
SWS took an early lead on a goal by Paige Tuccinardi, who tipped in a shot by Kimberly Boyd with 4:03 remaining in the first period.
That score held up against consistent pressure by New Canaan, thanks to the play of Peroni, who had a spectacular game. The Rams outshot SWS 59-23.
“She put on a show and a half,” Bulan said. “You’ve just got to keep throwing the shots at her. Something’s got to go in when you’re taking that many.”
Lexie Tully tied the game at 1-1 early in the third period, and New Canaan then held a 24-9 shots advantage in the overtimes before Maddie Tully ended it.
The Rams also had a solid game from its freshman goalie Ashton Pinkernell, who made 22 saves against 23 shots.
“It was thrilling,” Maddie Tully said. “We had a lot of nerves and we were a little frantic at times, but we really put a lot of pressure on in the offensive zone. We did a good job of getting a lot of shots and one of them just happened to go in.”
In contrast, the Wave got on the board 2:18 after the opening drop, scored its second goal at 5:40, and held a 3-0 lead after one period.
“We haven’t played in a meaningful game in a while, so I think that after a few practices, they were ready to play,” Darien coach Jamie Tropsa said. “They moved the puck really, really well tonight. It was probably one of our best games all year.”
Donovan led the Darien offense with two goals, and Sarah Kellogg and Maggie Bellissimo each had a goal and an assist.
“We were really connecting on our passes, working well together and communicating,” Donovan said. “Postseason is like the real season beginning. It’s really exciting, everyone gets super-hyped and it’s exciting.”
David.Stewart@hearstmediact.com; @dstewartsports