GOAL ORIENTED: Princeton Day School boys’ hockey player Ryan Lisk races up the ice in recent action. Last Wednesday, junior forward Lisk scored two goals to help PDS top Wyoming Seminary in a game decided by a shootout after the teams tied at 2-2 through regulation and overtime. On Monday, Lisk chipped in a goal and an assist as PDS defeated Hun 5-1 and improved to 8-4-2. In upcoming action, the Panthers host the Hill School (Pa.) on January 11 before heading to New England to face Northfield Mt. Hermon (Mass.) on January 13 at Amherst College and play at the Pomfret School (Conn.) on January 15. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

Ryan Lisk isn’t the biggest, fastest, or most skilled forward on the Princeton Day School boys’ hockey team.

But while Lisk doesn’t stand out, his wily play in the crease has helped him emerge as a clutch goal scorer for PDS.

In a 2-2 tie with Don Bosco in late December, junior Lisk scored both goals for the Panthers as they rallied from a 2-0 deficit. Last Wednesday, Lisk did it again, scoring both goals for PDS as it battled Wyoming Seminary (Pa.) to a 2-2 tie through regulation and overtime before prevailing in a dramatic shootout.

In reflecting on his recent surge, Lisk credited it to the chemistry he has developed with linemates, sophomore Coby Auslander and sophomore Ty Eastman.

“I have been playing with Coby for a while but putting Ty Eastman there, he adds size and honestly we just clicked,” said Lisk.

“Ty, Coby, and I all do our jobs, getting the pucks to the net and seeing if we can get a lucky bounce.”

In the game against Wyoming, the trio got PDS on the board 30 seconds into the contest as Lisk benefitted from a lucky bounce on a shot that trickled into the net.

“We just work on those odd-man rushes; we try to get the puck on net and see if we can get rebounds out there,” said Lisk.

“I was shooting it forward, trying to get it in Ty’s stick but I guess it went in.”

The game was tied at 1-1 after one period but PDS was on its heels for most of the second as it was outshot 15-10 in the frame, keeping the game tied due to sparkling work in goal by senior star Logan Kramsky.

“Our first period was great; it was even,” said Lisk. “We kind of lost it in the second period. With the captains in the room and everybody trying to support the team and battling behind Logan, we just came out and we were flying.”

Lisk came out flying in the third, swooping in and finding the back of the net on a breakaway to give the Panthers a 2-1 lead with 16:17 left in regulation. Wyoming answered with a tally and the game headed into a five-minute overtime tied at 2-2 with the teams playing 3-on-3 in the extra session under Mid-Atlantic Hockey League (MAHL) rules.

“It is kind of weird going into 3-on-3,” said Lisk. “We did it in practice and everything. We had momentum in the third when we tied it up. Everybody was piping up on the bench. We got in there and just tried to play our best.”

The contest was still tied after overtime and the teams went to a shootout to decide a winner. On Wyoming’s first shot, goalie Kramsky broke a skate and was replaced by back-up Boris Gorelenkov. The junior stepped up, making some key saves with senior Ian Zyvith tallying the clinching goal after several rounds of the shootout to give PDS the victory.

“We have got a great team, we are deep in all lines and in the goalies,” said Lisk, reflecting on the dramatic conclusion to the game.

“It is just great. Boris steps in does his job, does what he needs to do, makes some big saves. Logan and everybody in the locker room is glad that we had Boris to back us up.”

In Lisk’s view, PDS made a major statement with the win. “That is a good team over there,” said Lisk. “They are really good, they are physical. That is some street cred on the ice when teams come up to play us or we go to play them.”

PDS head coach Scott Bertoli knew his squad faced a very good test in the matchup against Wyoming.

“We hadn’t played a game in two weeks and we knew they were a tough group,” said Bertoli.

“We had a really good battle with them a month ago and lost in OT (3-2 on December 10). We are familiar with their style of play, they are an older, physical group which can definitely challenge us. We also felt like our speed and our skill level was our greatest asset and something that we needed to take advantage of.”

With his team getting worn down by Wyoming’s physicality in the second period, Bertoli urged his team to be tougher down the stretch.

“I simply told them you are not playing a bad game but we need to be tougher,” said Bertoli.

“I love the way the other team is playing, they are playing to their strengths. They are a big physical team and that is the way the game is supposed to be played. It is a tough game and we got to man up. We can’t use the excuse that we are tired or had a two-week layoff or they are older, bigger and stronger. You have got to go in and compete for those 50/50 pucks and play to our strengths, play in transition, and get going in the cycle.”

Bertoli likes the way Lisk has been going at the offensive end in recent play.

“Ryan is very opportunistic, he will go a whole game and you will not notice the kid; not that he is doing anything wrong,” said Bertoli.

“He plays the game the right way. You give him a puck in those scoring areas and the kid has a heck of a shot and a knack for the net. He does a lot of good things, especially in the offensive zone. He scored the last four goals for us in regulation against really good competition so that line has been doing well.”

The compete level of Gorelenkov under such trying circumstances in the shootout impressed Bertoli.

“What I give Boris credit for is that he is a confident kid,” said Bertoli. “He was ready to go and he was excited for the opportunity. As I called down the bench, he was ready. He did a heck of a job.”

Looking ahead, Bertoli is confident that the Panthers will take advantage of any opportunities.

“I like the group and the fact that I think at times we can be resilient,” said Bertoli, whose team defeated Hun 5-1 last Monday to improve to 8-4-2 and host the Hill School (Pa.) on January 11 before heading to New England to face Northfield Mount Hermon (Mass.) on January 13 at Amherst College and play at the Pomfret School (Conn.) on January 15.

“I told them January, as far as the schedule goes, is brutal. If we are not willing to dig in and compete and play a hard game and be willing to play teams that are going to play a hard, physical game against us, we are going to struggle. Having that game early against maybe the most physical and the biggest group we are going to play, I thought was great for us to battle through and find a way to win.”

Lisk, for his part, is primed for the battles to come. “We all understand that it is good competition all the time and we are not going to get any lucky breaks here,” said Lisk.

“It is just our mindset. We have to go into every game, thinking that we are going to play the best team on our schedule and that is what we have got to do.”