Randolph 1, Chatham 0
There was not much offense on display at Mennen Arena Tuesday night, but defending public state champion Randolph isn’t complaining after a 1-0 victory over 19th-ranked Chatham kept the Rams in the thick of an already-intriguing Mennen Division race. Randolph and Chatham are now 2-1, tied with Morristown-Beard for second place after last Friday’s Chatham win over Beard. Morris Knolls has played only one league game, but expect all four teams to battle for the top two spots in the division and a playoff spot in the lower half of the Mennen Cup bracket.
Chatham had the better of early play Tuesday night but Finnerty and Randolph held strong before taking over five minutes into the period. Despite a first-period power play for Randolph, neither team could find the net. Despite the low scoreline, it was a fast, even, and exciting game worth watching for the good crowd on both sides.
Both teams lack a standout goalscorer, somebody who can take over a game, but each skates three capable lines with the emphasis on the first two. Randolph is younger and appears to be deeper, however, and the Rams started to take over after their second power play at the 8:13 mark of the second period. Chatham goalie Mike Cerick made several stops even after the power play had expired to keep the game scoreless.
Chatham, as the home team, appeared to get a significant mismatch late in the period with its first line against Randolph’s third line, which rotates four forwards through the two spots opposite freshman Robert Kral. Instead of a mismatch for Chatham, Randolph was able to break out of its zone, and Kral held possession in the right corner. After getting a return pass from Keith Gervis, Kral fired from the right corner into the crease and had his shot take a strange hop to get through Cerick and find the net for the game’s only goal.
Randolph had complete control of the second period and continued to control play in the final stanza. With the score 1-0 into the final five minutes, Cerick made a sprawling glove save to rob Randolph first-line forward Christian Valvano after linemate Mark Viera set him up on a three-on-two break. Randolph senior goalie Kyle Finnerty responded at the other end a minute later, first stopping a backhand from Cougar forward Rich Petersen and the long follow from defenseman Jeff Tompson.
Although the only goal came from an odd bounce, Randolph was the better team on the night, as seen by each team’s breakout. Randolph was more consistently able to clear its zone with possession and purpose, while Chatham often had to resort to icing the puck simply to get a line change and rarely carried the puck into the offensive zone. This was summed up in the final minutes when Chatham was looking to pull its goalie. Setting up behind its own net with one minute remaining, with its power-play breakout against a five-man Randolph trap, Chatham could not get the puck deep until there were 30 seconds remaining and only got one shot in the final 30 seconds.
Neither team has a dominant offensive player, but Randolph showed more promise for the future through the play of freshman Kral on the third line and diminutive classmate Kyle Krannich on the blue line. The Rams also have more options on defense, rotating six skaters, including senior Tony Rossi, instead of Chatham’s four (three of which are brothers). Both teams have solid goaltending and should show well against non-division public schools.
Player of the Game: Robert Kral (Ran)
Randolph
1, Chatham 0
Randolph 0 1 0 - 1
Chatham 0 0 0 - 0
Randolph
7 10 7 - 24
Chatham 5 3 10
- 18
None
12:58
Ran #9 Robert Kral (#20 Keith Gervis)
None
Randolph
0-2
Chatham
0-0
#31
Kyle Finnerty (Ran) 18-18
#31
Mike Cerick (Cha) 24-23