Suffolk University men’s hockey was eliminated from the Conference of New England playoffs, losing 4-2 to nationally ranked Curry College.
The Rams started off the game cold and couldn’t recover, falling into a 2-0 deficit within 10 minutes.
Suffolk’s first goal would come almost 19 minutes into the game, with Nolan Leonard sniping in an unassisted goal to cut the lead to 2-1.
Just over a minute into the second period, Curry scored the dagger goal to put themselves up 3-1 over the Rams. Suffolk saw their deficit increase again after Curry scored their fourth goal of the game late into the period.
“Have to give props to Curry, they’re a good program and we have lots of respect for those guys. Going through the week, [Thomas] Dempsey myself and the coaches came together and told the team that this is a great opportunity to play a ranked team in the playoffs. Have no regrets and leave it all in the tank,” said junior team captain Ryan Webb.
Sophomore forward Gavin Havens scored Suffolk’s last goal of the season, assisted by graduate forward Michael McEachern and sophomore defenseman Jake Grace, bringing the deficit down to 4-2.
The underdog Rams came into this game hoping to get an upset victory over the nationally ranked Curry team, who had beaten Suffolk twice already this season, but were ultimately outmatched.
Though the game didn’t go how they wanted, Webb viewed this game as a great learning experience for a young team who were going through their first playoff run.
“We had the time of our lives this year, being the underdogs is nothing new for us. Going into their building was a great opportunity for us. We have a great team, everyone gels well and nicely. Today was a great opportunity and great privilege,” said Webb.
Suffolk finished their season with an overall record of 13-11-3 and a playoff semifinal berth, an eight-win improvement over their previous year. Their 13 wins are the most since the 2015-16 season and is the most since Suffolk moved to the CNE.
Despite the tough loss, Suffolk looks to rebound off a very successful season and keep the momentum pushing forward.
“It starts with leadership and being accountable. We had a lot of guys step up this year and it was helpful with the new coaching change. There’s also the older guys keeping the newer guys accountable for their actions, which leads to success,” said Webb.
This season saw the Rams make their first playoff appearance since 2021-22, and the first under head coach Shawn McEachern. Webb credits McEachern for the turnaround this team has had since his arrival on the team.
“He’s meant everything. He’s brought in unbelievable recruits. He got us a new locker room and brought a new mentality with a focus on winning. Nobody wants to win more with Shawn himself,” said Webb.
The last time the Rams made a playoff run, it also came to an end at the hands of Curry. Suffolk hasn’t beaten Curry since November 2015. This loss marked their 12th in a row, putting their all-time record to 5-38-3.
Looking to rebound next year and potentially make it further, Webb hopes this team will continue to improve their leadership which he already credits for experiencing a step-up this season.
“As a group I want to see a lot of similar things. We have a lot of unspoken leaders who stepped up. We had a lot of freshmen in the lineup this year who played big roles in pivotal moments. The experience from this last team of the playoffs was new to us, older guys included. We were glad to get this experience and now we know what it takes to get to the finals next year,” said Webb.
