Boston Sports Then and Now

Worcester Sharks opened their season at the newly remodeled DCU Center

The Worcester Sharks couldn’t shut down the Lowell Devils at their home opener Saturday night in front of 5,429 fans at the revamped DCU Center. Michael Wilson, Dennis McCauley, TJ Trevelyan, Logan Couture, and Steven Zalewski scored for the Sharks, but it wasn’t enough to take the win. Couture had a big night with a goal and three assists.

The first period was full of two things – fights and goals. After a short scramble around the net, Lowell’s Michael Swift tapped one past Tyson Sexsmith at 2:52, putting the Devils up 1-0. Michael Wilson started off the evening for Worcester by scoring his first goal of the season at 10:14, assisted by Logan Couture and Steven Zalewski.

Devils’ Matt Taormina took advantage of the power play when he wound up for a hard slap shot that snuck past Sexsmith at 12:42, giving Lowell the lead 2-1.

Tempers started to heat up and finally erupted when Worcester’s Dennis McCauley swung at Rob Davison, putting both in the box for fighting at 13:18. Seconds later, Tim Sestito tallied another goal for the Devils with the help of teammates Brad Mills and Patrick Davis.

Sharks’ Joe Loprieno didn’t like Mills’ participation in the goal, so he went after him and landed several solid punches. Both received five for fighting at 13:32. With the Devils playing two men down, the Sharks slowed down the pace and made well executed passes in front of the net that landed them a goal. TJ Trevelyan scored his first of the season at 18:31 assisted by Logan Couture and Joe Callahan, putting the score at 3-2.

The second period started off ugly for Worcester – two goals scored in just over a minute. Lowell center Tim Sestito grabbed his second goal of the night at 1:19, and Tyler Eckford tacked on another at 2:36, bringing the score to 5-2 Devils lead.

Logan Couture got into the scoring column during last night's game against Lowell.

Shortly after the scoring frenzy, Brandon Mashinter riled up with Worcester fans when he ripped off his gloves and grabbed Lowell’s Nathan Perkovich. Perkovich’s long arms kept Mashinter at bay and thus safe from any heavy blows. The two received five for fighting at 4:19. Dennis McCauley came up big for Worcester when he added on another goal with the help of Dean Strong and Michael Wilson, bringing the score to 5-3.

Logan Couture kept his hot streak going when he grabbed Nick Petrecki’s rebound and scored at 7:54, putting the tally at 5-4. Tim Sestito grabbed a hat trick when he scored his third goal of the game at 10:51 on the power play.

Worcester pulled Tyson Sexsmith from the net with a minute left to play in a final attempt to take the lead. With speed and manpower on the ice, Worcester Shark Steven Zalewski netted the final Sharks’ goal with help from Logan Couture and Brandon Mashinter at 19:05. Coach Sommer added an extra man to the ice again, but it proved to be detrimental. With Sexsmith out of the net, Tim Sestito landed his fourth goal on the night to end the game with a Devils win, 7-5.

NOTES: Three Stars: (3) Davis for Lowell 0-3-3, (2) Couture for Worcester 1-3-4, (1) Sestito for Lowell 4-0-4….It was the first game on the new ice surface at the DCU Center….Michael Wilson, TJ Trevelyan, and Dennis McCauley all scored their first goals of the season…Tyson Sexsmith made 21 saves… Gerald Coleman was in the net for Lowell, making 38 saves…Final shots were 43 for Worcester and 28 for Lowell…Three Sharks (McCauley, Loprieno, Mashinter) were sent to the box for fighting tonight… Worcester is now 2-1-0-1 on the season…. the Sharks are now 2-1-0-1 in home openers at the DCU Center.

The previous story is excerpted from a press release by the Worcester Sharks and reposted by Sports Then and Now writer Todd Civin. Civin is freelance writer for Sports, Then and Now, Bleacher Report and Seamheads. He is a supporter of the award winning children’s story, A Glove of Their Own.