Men’s Ice Hockey Secures The Senior Day Victory Against Trailblazers In Regular Season Finale

THE BASICS

Salem State, 5  vs. MCLA , 2

Records: 

Salem State University Vikings (8-12-4) 

MCLA (7-15-3)

Location: Salem, MA

Date: Saturday February 21^st, 2026 

THE LEAD: 

In a strong performance to close out conference play, the Salem State Vikings jumped out early and never looked back, using timely scoring and disciplined defense to skate past the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts Trailblazers, 5–2, in their final regular-season matchup.

HOW IT HAPPENED

In a conference matchup and the final regular season game the Salem State University Vikings delivered a strong performance, skating past the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts Trailblazers with a 5–2 victory.

The Vikings wasted no time setting the tone. At 12:30 of the opening period, Zach Dill found the back of the net off a strong setup from Landyn Greatorex and Eric Whitelaw, giving Salem State an early 1–0 advantage. The remainder of the first period featured fast-paced, back-and-forth action, with both sides generating quality chances. However, the Vikings' defensive unit stood strong keeping the Trailblazers off the scoreboard and heading into the locker room with the lead 1-0.

The Vikings would come out flying in the second period. Just 4:14 in, James Tatro extended the lead with assists from Zach Dill and Billy Dougherty. The momentum continued at 7:55 when Aidan Bender buried another goal, set up by Carson James and Owen Young, increasing their lead over the Trailblazers to 3–0.

MCLA responded with their first goal of the night midway through the period, but the Vikings refused to let the momentum swing. In another stretch of end-to-end action, The Vikings would respond after the Trailblazers goal off the stick of James Tattro for his second of the night off a pass from Landyn Greatorex, closing the second period leading the Trailblazers 4-1. 

The third period couldn't have started better for the Vikings. Just eight seconds in, Zach Dill struck again, finishing a play created by Landyn Greatorex and Billy Dougherty to make it 5–1. From there, the game continued at a high tempo, with chances on both sides. The Vikings would continue to consistently pressure the puck and limited the Trailblazers' opportunities, though MCLA would manage one final goal late in the game. That would complete the game and the Vikings would skate past the Trailblazers with a 5–2 win, closing out conference play and the regular season

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

James Tatro and Zach Dill would both record 2 goals in the game against the Trailblazers. 

Landyn Greatorex would lead the Vikings in assists against the Trailblazers recording 3. 

Hunter Thomas would record 22 saves on 24 shots to get the win tonight against the Trailblazers 

UP NEXT: 

 The Vikings are back in action on Thursday February 26, 2026, where they will take on the Trailblazers of MCLA for the MASCAC quarterfinal matchup. Puck drop is set to start at 7:00pm.