High school hockey postseason is heating up all across New York

Video: Moriyah Tulloch's highlights vs. EBTE
See the Pelham Memorial player in action last season.

Hockey action throughout the state has reached a fever pitch as teams start the playoffs with an eye on the ultimate prize – a state championship.

This year's state semifinals and finals will be played March 12-13 at HarborCenter in Buffalo. With postseason time now upon us, here's a look at some big regular-season games played down the stretch that could be a preview of coming attractions in terms of excitement and intensity.

Canton comes back to win showdown vs. St. Lawrence
There's no chance for the Canton and St. Lawrence Central (Brasher Falls) hockey teams to meet again in the postseason since Canton is in Division 1 and St. Lawrence is in Division 2. But that fact might have actually added to the intensity when the upstate powers squared off in a thriller Feb. 1 at the Canton Pavilion.



Canton overcame a 2-0 deficit to pull out a dramatic 3-2 win.

Senior Joshua Huiatt scored off the opening faceoff of the third period to knot it up at 2-2 and Jack Finnerty then netted what proved to be the game-winner about three minutes later.

After goals by Kaci Pullano and Mark Krump gave St. Lawrence a two-goal lead, Canton's Cole Moore cut the deficit in half in the second period.

Canton entered the game ranked third in the state in D-1. St. Lawrence held down the top spot in D-2.

Pelham prevails in battle of Section 1 heavyweights
It was a similar scenario in another one-goal battle pitting a D-1 power vs. a D-2 heavyweight in Section 1, which includes Westchester, Putnam, Rockland and Dutchess counties.

Pelham Memorial, which entered the Feb. 4 game as the state's third-ranked D-3 team, pulled out a 2-1 win over Clarkstown (West Nyack). Ben Hurd snapped a 1-1 tie when he scored with just over three minutes remaining in regulation. A 23-save effort by senior A.J. Gugliara highlighted the Pelicans' win.

Mamaroneck ends Suffern's streak
Two teams that seem likely to meet again in the playoffs – Section 1 D-1 powers Mamaroneck and Suffern – met on Jan. 29, with Mamaroneck pulling out a 4-2 win that was a long time coming for the Tigers.

Suffern had won seven straight against Mamaroneck, which last beat the Mounties during the 2012-13 regular season.



Mamaroneck took control of the contest by outscoring the Mounties 2-0 in the second period to go ahead 3-1.Will Payne snapped a 1-1 tie off a nice feed from Jason Bienstock midway through the period. Goaltender Tommy Spero was instrumental in keeping Suffern's offense in check. He made 30 saves, including several spectacular stops from point-blank range. Suffern's goals came from C.J. Greco and Mike Ruthberg. Goalie Sean Gordon made 25 saves.

Mamaroneck entered the game ranked sixth in the state in D-1. Suffern was ranked ninth.

New Hartford pulls it out vs. Cazenovia
In a Section 3 showdown of D-2 state-ranked teams, No. 6 New Hartford prevailed 4-3 over No. 10 Cazenovia on Feb. 6. James Holmes had two goals for New Hartford, Alec Bard had two assists and Tyler Hansen made 22 saves.

West Genesee, Baldwinsville are all tied up
Syracuse-area D-1 powers West Genesee (Camillus) and Baldwinsville played to a 2-2 draw on Feb. 1. It was each team's first draw of the season.

Both goals for West Genny, ranked No. 2 in the state, came in the second period (scored by Matt McDonald and Marshall Winn). Third-period goals by Matt Metcalf and Ben Dwyer tied it for Baldwinsville, the state's 14th-ranked squad.

Multimedia news and sports editor and producer Joe Lombardi is director of media initiatives and managing editor of the DailyVoice.com, as well as the primary author of the most recent edition of "Lacrosse for Dummies." Follow Joe on Twitter @Joe_Lombardi.