Lunenburg/Ayer Shirley

FITCHBURG — Buzzing early in Monday’s matinee contest against Greater Lowell/Nashoba Tech, the Lunenburg/Ayer-Shirley hockey team looked poised to have a strong outing.

But a poor start to the second period was enough to sink the Blue Knights, as the hosts dropped a 3-2 decision at the Wallace Civic Center.

The visiting Vikings (6-7-0) scored twice in the first 64 seconds of the middle period, breaking a 1-all tie and giving the guests all the momentum they needed to secure the win. Though the Blue Knights threw 26 shots on target, GLNT netminder Cole Currier was able to stop 24.

“We were playing with confidence early, but then we let in a couple soft goals and between penalties and being flat, we let the game go,” Lunenburg/Ayer-Shirley head coach Eric Short said. “We had our opportunities, but they skated hard and did what they had to do to hold on for a win.

“We learned a lesson in being disciplined today. It’s a contact sport and you’re going to get hit, but you can’t retaliate. We need to play hard and try to score some goals.”

Tied at 1 after one, GLNT snuck ahead just 17 seconds into the middle frame as Jayden Auger beat Lunenburg goalie Kyle McGrath (27 saves). And just 47 seconds later, the lead was doubled as Kyle Bouvier broke through the defense and found the back of the net.

“We let in a couple soft goals. We just weren’t ready,” Short lamented. “Kyle didn’t have his best game, but we didn’t help him out in the second half of this one. We were undisciplined, which is uncharacteristic. .. We didn’t take a lot of penalties, but they were in bad spots and preventable.

“They didn’t really capitalize on the penalties, but all that time in the box and not playing 5-on-5. … The game got away from us.”

The Blue Knights cut the lead to 3-2 at the 3:17 mark of the second as Nick Fortier walked in from the side of the net and snuck a shot past Currier. But the hosts were unable to pull even despite having five power plays in the contest.

Any momentum seized from Fortier’s goal was negated late in the middle frame courtesy of a major penalty assessed to a Blue Knight for contact to a GLNT player’s head. Though the visitors didn’t score with the man advantage, they were able to control the puck and burn some valuable time off the clock.

Lunenburg had a final power play go by the wayside when GLNT was called for a rough with three minutes to go in the game. The man advantage was nullified after a Blue Knight penalty in the offensive zone and even with McGrath pulled for an extra skater, Lunenburg wasn’t able to pot the equalizer.

The Blue Knights went ahead 2:42 into the game as Dom Benner collected a puck behind the GLNT net and sent a perfect pass to Logan Martin in front. Martin quickly snapped a shot past Currier’s glove into the top corner of the net for a 1-0 lead.

The guests managed to pull even before the close of the first period as Brody Simmons poked home a loose puck with 4:55 left in the frame.

FITCHBURG — Buzzing early in Monday’s matinee contest against Greater Lowell/Nashoba Tech, the Lunenburg/Ayer-Shirley hockey team looked poised to have a strong outing.

But a poor start to the second period was enough to sink the Blue Knights, as the hosts dropped a 3-2 decision at the Wallace Civic Center.

The visiting Vikings (6-7-0) scored twice in the first 64 seconds of the middle period, breaking a 1-all tie and giving the guests all the momentum they needed to secure the win. Though the Blue Knights threw 26 shots on target, GLNT netminder Cole Currier was able to stop 24.

“We were playing with confidence early, but then we let in a couple soft goals and between penalties and being flat, we let the game go,” Lunenburg/Ayer-Shirley head coach Eric Short said. “We had our opportunities, but they skated hard and did what they had to do to hold on for a win.

“We learned a lesson in being disciplined today. It’s a contact sport and you’re going to get hit, but you can’t retaliate. We need to play hard and try to score some goals.”

Tied at 1 after one, GLNT snuck ahead just 17 seconds into the middle frame as Jayden Auger beat Lunenburg goalie Kyle McGrath (27 saves). And just 47 seconds later, the lead was doubled as Kyle Bouvier broke through the defense and found the back of the net.

“We let in a couple soft goals. We just weren’t ready,” Short lamented. “Kyle didn’t have his best game, but we didn’t help him out in the second half of this one. We were undisciplined, which is uncharacteristic. .. We didn’t take a lot of penalties, but they were in bad spots and preventable.

“They didn’t really capitalize on the penalties, but all that time in the box and not playing 5-on-5. … The game got away from us.”

The Blue Knights cut the lead to 3-2 at the 3:17 mark of the second as Nick Fortier walked in from the side of the net and snuck a shot past Currier. But the hosts were unable to pull even despite having five power plays in the contest.

Any momentum seized from Fortier’s goal was negated late in the middle frame courtesy of a major penalty assessed to a Blue Knight for contact to a GLNT player’s head. Though the visitors didn’t score with the man advantage, they were able to control the puck and burn some valuable time off the clock.

Lunenburg had a final power play go by the wayside when GLNT was called for a rough with three minutes to go in the game. The man advantage was nullified after a Blue Knight penalty in the offensive zone and even with McGrath pulled for an extra skater, Lunenburg wasn’t able to pot the equalizer.

The Blue Knights went ahead 2:42 into the game as Dom Benner collected a puck behind the GLNT net and sent a perfect pass to Logan Martin in front. Martin quickly snapped a shot past Currier’s glove into the top corner of the net for a 1-0 lead.

The guests managed to pull even before the close of the first period as Brody Simmons poked home a loose puck with 4:55 left in the frame.