Greenwich Country Day School’s varsity hockey team has been playing great this season. As a result of COVID-19 restrictions, the team is only playing a four-game season, and in each game, players are required to wear masks at all times. However, both the players and coaches are extremely excited and grateful to get back on the ice and finally compete against other schools during the pandemic. So far this year, GCDS has been undefeated by winning against St. Luke’s twice. 

Of the amazing efforts by each of the players this season, Ben Offit, one of the team captains, has shined, scoring a combined four goals in just two games. I got the chance to interview him before tonight’s tough matchup versus King and get his thoughts on the unique season. 

Q: How has the hockey season been so far with Covid? 

A: It’s been tricky. At the very beginning of the season, we thought we were going to be playing a ten-game schedule, but then all sports got shut down. But, lucky enough, we got to practice in pods and at least we got to go on the ice even when other teams didn’t get that opportunity. And then, luckily, Lamont (CT governor) let us play hockey. We all got to go back on the ice and practice with full pads. But, honestly, the masks make it way more difficult to play hockey because it’s just harder to catch your breath.”

I also got the chance to catch up with Cooper Johnson, the other team captain, who further expressed his gratitude for being able to play despite the pandemic. He talked about the struggles of only having four players on the ice at a time during the beginning of the season. He said, “It started out a little slow. Luckily the regulations changed and we’re able to have full team practices now and scrimmage other schools so it’s starting to pick up and look good.” 

Tonight, the Tigers faced off against King’s varsity team in an away game. Offit mentioned how King “is going to be probably the strongest team we play all year,” and that their game plan was to try and “limit their offense.” 

As the game began, GCDS got off to a slow start. Through the first half of the first period, King controlled possession of the puck and eventually scored only seven minutes in. However, GCDS surged back into the game when Cooper Johnson responded quickly with a goal of his own just past the ten-minute mark. The game then quickly became a back and forth battle with both teams unable to capitalize on scoring chances through the rest of the period. 

The second period began and the game quickly became a physical clash between the two teams. King struck next, scoring just four minutes into the period. The physicality intensified, as did the chippiness shown by a scrum that broke out in the corner of the rink late in the period. Shortly after, King was able to cash in again by scoring its third goal with just three minutes left in the period, giving King the upper-hand. Despite not being able to score during this period, GCDS created some great opportunities. 

However, in the third period, King dominated, scoring three times before time was called. The Tigers suffered their first loss of the season, falling to the Vikings. 

Despite the tough loss, the team had some great individual performances from Connor Dougherty, Cooper Johnson, and, especially, Jared Maloney. Despite letting up six goals, Jared, the team’s goalie, was a brick wall for most of the game. He was a large part of why the team stayed in the competition through the second period. 

After the game, I caught up with GCDS’ head coach Dave Maloney, to get his thoughts on the tough loss. He said that despite the poor performance “it shows us what is lacking.” He talked about the team’s “room for improvement” moving forward. The Tigers will hopefully use this loss as feedback for what they focus on in their upcoming final game against Kingswood Oxford at Chelsea Piers this Friday, February 26, at 8:15pm.