Everett/Revere/Malden cooperative boys’ hockey team united in determination for strong finish

By Dom Nicastro

The Everett cooperative boys’ hockey team, which features players from Everett, Revere, Malden and Mystic Valley high schools, is heading toward the home stretch. The team is 5-11-1 after 17 games. While there likely won’t be any postseason appearance for the Tide, the team wants to finish strong in its final three games.

We caught up with two of its captains – senior forward and Malden’s Lukas Deguire of Mystic Valley and Revere senior forward Ollie Svendsen – in the meantime for a Q&A on leadership and the team’s progress lately.

Advocate: Three out of the last four games have been competitive. What is the team doing well lately?

  Deguire: I feel that our team has done a great job in these last four games at coming together and understanding that it would be a great memory to each of the 11 seniors on our team if we were able to finish off the season on a strong note. There is definitely a deeper sense of passion at this point in the season as the games quickly wind down, and we’re just giving all we have on and off the ice to be a competitive team.

Svendsen: The key to the team’s late success has been the amount of “grit” we have put in day in and day out. We have been in some high-scoring games, and we seem to never give up. We really work on getting pucks deep in the corner and beating those defensemen to the puck and gain control. Just getting the puck to the net has been huge for us especially when we crash for rebounds and deflections.

Advocate: What are some things you guys feel like you can improve?

  Deguire: Obviously, there is always room for improvement with any team, and we could definitely work on perfecting our systems, as these are what will win us decisive games. The effort has been there as of recently, but if we can master our positioning in each zone and further our chemistry together, we will be a definitively better team.

Svendsen: A huge improvement for us would be our first-period play. We always seem to come out flat, making us go down on the scoreboard early. After that buzzer rings to end the first, there is almost always a switch that turns on, and we start battling our way back.

Advocate: How do you go about forming team chemistry when you have four different schools and it’s hard to see each other outside the rink?

  Deguire: There is no doubt that team chemistry is hard to come by when combining four schools, but our coaching staff has done an incredible job at ensuring that we can have time to bond and create memories. This is done through our weekly team dinners, assigned locker room seating, and on-ice chats that allow us to express ourselves. All of these ideas help us form better relationships and give us an identity as a team, rather than four separate schools.

Svendsen: In my personal experience, I have been playing with Everett/Revere Youth Hockey my whole life. When I was about 12, our youth program joined forces with Malden’s youth hockey program so it was nice to meet some future teammates since Revere and Malden were combined for varsity high school hockey. I knew all the Everett players from playing youth hockey and was excited to get the chance to play against my friends. Instead, we once again joined forces and I was ecstatic to play with all my friends growing up.

Advocate: As a senior, how have you tried to work with the underclassmen to help them get better?

  Deguire: As a senior, there is a distinct role of maturity and setting an example for the younger players on the team. Throughout the season, I have made sure to maintain a positive attitude on and off the ice that reflects onto the underclassmen. Whether it is taking the lead in a drill or giving maximum effort on a skate at the end of practice, I have tried to set the bar for the younger guys to follow this season and for the rest of their high school careers.

Svendsen: I have seen a lot of improvement from the newcomers this season. I try to lead by example in practice. Furthermore, games can be nerve-racking, and when an underclassman makes a mistake, they tend to get really down on themselves. I try to explain that they won’t make the next play if they are still so focused on the last one and that they have to let it go.