Cape Elizabeth scored twice on the power play and added a short-handed goal Thursday afternoon in a 4-2 boys’ hockey victory over Greely at Troubh Ice Arena.

The Capers got a pair of man-up goals from sophomore Colin Blackburn to help open a three-goal lead. Then, after cut the deficit to 3-2, junior Sebastian Moon answered with a short-handed goal to help Cape Elizabeth improve to 2-0 and some early bragging rights against the two-time reigning Class B champions.

“The rink was buzzing and the boys are having fun competing at this high level,” said Capers Coach Jake Rutt. “We obviously have quite a history with (Greely). They’re a really good team and we had to play our best to compete with them.”

Cape Elizabeth dominated the first period, enjoying a whopping 20-3 advantage in shots. But despite controlling the puck and even having a 5-on-3 power play, the Capers couldn’t score until 28.7 seconds remained, when Blackburn put in a rebound, with Phil Coupe and Moon getting assists.

Just over a minute into the second period, Blackburn made it 2-0, again scoring on a rebound on the power play, this time with Nick Laughlin and Connor Goss getting assists.

“We passed the puck around well and looked for rebounds,” said Blackburn. “I was fortunate enough to be in the right spot in front of the net. It’s effective putting a body in front of the net on the power play.”

Two minutes later, Cape Elizabeth took a seemingly safe 3-0 lead when Dimitri Coupe blasted a one-timer past Rangers goalie Keji Wiessner (40 saves). But Greely (1-1), which erased a two-goal deficit in a season-opening overtime win over Cheverus/Yarmouth, got some life on a rebound goal from freshman Rylan Haight midway through the second, then pulled within one when Evan Dutil notched an unassisted goal 38 seconds into the third.

But the Capers weren’t about to let this win slip away. They killed one Greely power play, then struck for a goal of their own during another Greely man advantage. Moon got to a loose puck that bounced off a Rangers defenseman and scored with 9:04 remaining to make it 4-2.

“It means a lot to win this one,” said Moon. “This gives us some more confidence. It was nerve-wracking knowing they’re a second- and third-period team and they have great players, but we did it.”

The Capers finished with a 44-18 edge in shots and got 16 saves from Will Depke.

Greely Coach Barry Mothes said that the Rangers will look forward to meeting Cape Elizabeth again down the line.

“It’s great to have this game early,” said Mothes. “Obviously, Cape is a team that will be battling for a top spot in our league. We like to think we’ll be there, too, and this gave us a measure of where we stand. Credit to (Cape) for playing a faster, stronger game today.”

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