Connor Galligan’s senior season of hockey was in peril after separating his right shoulder midway through the schedule, but last week’s triumphant return allowed him and his teammates to win a state tournament game and finish a challenging season on a high note.
“When he went out nine games ago now, all our hearts sank,” said Old Rochester/Fairhaven Coach Zach Ledogar, describing Galligan’s all-around effect on the Bulldogs’ 200-foot game after they defeated St. Bernard’s, 4-1, on February 26 in the first round of the MIAA Division 4 playoffs at Tabor Academy. “He’s the heart and soul of the team, especially on the offensive side of things. Getting him back was huge.”
Galligan’s ordeal began on one of the first shifts of a game against Dennis-Yarmouth, and the separation was initially classified as Stage 5, which would have ended his high school hockey career. That diagnosis was revised, according to Ledogar, to Stage 2, setting the stage for a three-goal performance in the opening round of the state tournament. Galligan returned to the lineup with two points in the regular-season finale against Apponequet.
Coming back and contributing was Galligan’s focus ever since learning of the possibility, and he wasn’t shy in re-engaging a rough-and-tumble sport.
“I try to not really think about it because (doing so) affects how I play, but at the end of the day I’ve just got to trust my body. My body’s taken time to heal,” said Galligan.
Ledogar leaned heavily on Galligan to drive the top forward line at 5-on-5, along with his playmaking and scoring ability on the powerplay and his offensive threat keeping opponents cautious when they have the man advantage.
Against St. Bernard’s, the Bulldogs were down a goal at the end of the first period, but they scored four straight goals en route to the victory at Tabor Academy.
“Very proud of the way the boys played. After being down 1-0 after the first, they never wavered from our game plan of executing our systems and winning puck battles,” said Ledogar. “The last half of the season has been strong for us, winning eight out of the last nine games. It’s a testament to their willingness to play good team hockey when we need it most.”
Connor Foley scored a goal and added two assists against St. Bernard’s, and junior goalie Tucker Roy’s 30 saves factored more than the scoreboard would indicate, considering the Bulldogs were chasing the game at first intermission. One of those saves was his 2,000th career stop.
“Tucker’s been unbelievable,” said Ledogar, noting the 1.98 goals-against average and .948 save percentage that he took into the postseason. “We talk about Connor Galligan being the heart and soul of the skaters, Tucker is the anchor to our team, he’s the MVP, definitely, to this team.
“He’s always going to stop the first puck, he’s going to stop the second and maybe the third and fourth, but we have the right guys in front of him. We know we’re going to be okay with him in net.”
“He’s good every night, I don’t think he’s ever had an off game … we’re lucky to have him,” said Galligan after the victory against St. Bernard’s.
As the son of Pat Galligan, who led Dartmouth High in scoring as a senior, Connor Galligan remains interested in playing hockey beyond high school. “I’m looking at Florida … I’m hoping to play on a club team,” said Connor, who also played golf at ORR.
The tournament road ended for ORR/Fairhaven against Hanover for the third time in the last four years. Saturday’s result was 5-2 Hanover, launching the second seed into a quarterfinal matchup against 10th-seeded Hudson on Wednesday.
Connor Foley scored both goals for ORR/Fairhaven with two assists from Chase Almeida and one each from Caleb Bousquet, Matthew Tobin, and Michael Brown.
Along with Galligan, Bousquet and Brown, 2025 graduates completing their high school hockey careers include Justin Marques, Jarrod Frates, Jack Langlais, Gavin Austin, Padraig Carrier, and Nate Lewis.
MIAA Division 3 Hockey
By Mick Colageo and Aiden Comorosky