No. 10 E.O. Smith/Tolland, No. 5 Hall advance to CIAC Division III boys hockey championship

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E.O. Smith-Tolland Bucks #9 Cash Lacy, second from left, celebrates his second goal with teammates during the Division 3 Ice Hockey semifinals against Milford co-op at Quinnipiac M&T Bank Arena in Hamden, Conn., Monday, March 16, 2026. (Dave Zajac/Hearst Connecticut Media)


HAMDEN - The Division III boys hockey championship is set after E.O. Smith/Tolland defeated Milford co-op 4-1 and Hall beat Enfield 6-4 on Monday in the semifinals at Quinnipiac University's M&T Bank Arena.

The underdog story continued for No. 10 E.O. Smith/Tolland as Cash Lacy scored twice and Liam Petrella made 30 saves to secure the win in the first game of a doubleheader.

In the nightcap, Connor McHugh and Benjamin Putnam each had three goals and an assist to lift No. 5 Hall.

The final is Thursday back at Quinnipiac at a time to be announced.

E.O. Smith/Tolland coach John Hodgson credited Petrella, who was able to save several point-blank shots on breakaway attempts, for being the key for the Bucks.

"It always starts with [Petrella]," Hodgson said. "He's rock-solid."

Lacy got the Bucks on the board in the first period with a deflected shot past Milford goaltender Aiden Riker.

With E.O. leading 2-1 with less than four minutes left in the game, Lacy scored his second goal on a breakaway.

"That was big," Lacy said. "Once we got the two-lead goal, we knew the game was wrapped."

With the Bucks leading by one in the second period, No. 6 Milford's Blaise Strate scored the equalizer on the power play, assisted by Nate Cole. The Mariners outshot the Bucks 13-7 in the period.

"I didn't feel like we had a really good second period," Hodgson said. "They outhustled us, and I knew we had a lot more in our tank. We just challenged our guys to give it everything they had and put the pressure on the team."

The Bucks accepted the challenge and took back the momentum in the third, outshooting Milford 14-6. Brandon Fantry put E.O. Smith ahead for good with an unassisted goal halfway through the period. After Lacy's score, Zachary Kinkade iced the game with an empty-net goal.

"When we scored that goal, I was like ‘oh my god, we did it,'" Petrella said with a grin. "That was just the best feeling I have ever had in my life."

No. 8 Enfield and Hall scored four goals, two each, in the first six minutes of the game.

McHugh and Putnam led the way for the Titans. Hall coach Colin O'Connor said that he expects the team to win when the two standouts are scoring.

McHugh opened the scoring just 24 seconds into the game, on a pass from Putnam.

Enfield's Cooper Love responded with a long-range goal from the blue line, but McHugh quickly added another score on an unassisted breakaway goal.

Kyle Malecki's power play goal evened things at 2-2 for the Eagles.

"I never expect a high-scoring affair," O'Connor said. "I just know that we have the offensive firepower to score goals. Ben and Connor have shown that all season, and they have the ability to put the puck in the back of the net, especially when they are working well together."

The back-and-forth fireworks continued in the second period with Putnam's first goal.

Gavin Tamayo responded a few minutes later for Enfield with a goal assisted by Ethan Samek. Enfield's celebration did not last long as Putnam scored 10 seconds later for a 4-3 lead.

"I wasn't worried about goals because they just came to me as I [continued to] work hard," Putnam said. "I wasn't looking for three goals today, but they needed me [today to score], so that's all I'm happy about."

Hall increased its lead with Putnam's third goal of the game, but a roughing penalty with under 30 seconds left gave Enfield a power play going into the third.

McHugh, however, scored a shorthanded goal 20 seconds into the period, but the Eagles' Cody Sexton scored on the power play 22 seconds later, making it 6-4.

"[I've played in high-scoring games] a couple of times, but not with this sort of stakes," McHugh said. "It definitely takes a lot of energy out of you, but it was fun though."

When it mattered most, Hall's defense stiffened in the final 14 minutes of the game, and they held off Enfield's attack.

E.O. Smith and Hall split their season series.

Player of the Game (Semifinal 1)​

Liam Petrella, E.O. Smith/Tolland:The Bucks were outshot in the first two periods of the game, but Liam Petrella made 24 of his 30 saves during that time.

Quotable​

"I think we can take [the championship]. We just got to grind really hard. We've got to want it more."

- Cash Lacy, E.O. Smith/Tolland.

Players of the Game (Semifinal 2)​

Benjamin Putnam and Connor McHugh, Hall:Putnam and McHugh each had a hat trick and an assist in Hall's victory.

Quotable​

"[This team] is the most resilient group I've ever been on. Nobody gives up, everybody believes in each other, and it helps us win games. It just goes so far."

- Connor McHugh, Hall.

E.O. Smith/Tolland 4, Milford co-op 1​

E.O. SMITH/TOLLAND 1 0 3-4
MILFORD CO-OP 0 1 0-1

Goals:EOS/T-Cash Lacy 2, Brandon Fantry, Zachary Kinkade; M-Blaise Strate.
Assists: EOS/T-John DiStefano, Mason Cahill; M-Nate Cole.
Saves: EOS/T-Liam Petrella 30; M-Aiden Riker 32.

Hall 6, Enfield 4​

ENFIELD 2 1 1-4
HALL 2 3 1-6

Goals:H-Connor McHugh 3, Benjamin Putnam 3; E-Cooper Love, Kyle Malecki, Gavin Tamayo, Cody Sexton.
Assists:H-Putnam, McHugh, Charles DeBassio; E-Ethan Samek 2, Quinn Stefanowich 2.
Saves:H-Matthew Bonner 30; E-Matt McCaffrey 28.


This article originally published at No. 10 E.O. Smith/Tolland, No. 5 Hall advance to CIAC Division III boys hockey championship.

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