Twenty-four skaters make up this year’s St. Dominic Academy squad — 13 forwards, eight defensemen and three goalies. 

Just five of those 24 players dressed in all 18 of the Saints’ games this season. Only Sam Story, Matt Chasse, Gavin Bates, Chris Laverdiere and Matt Keaney have been on the bench throughout the regular season, avoiding the injuries and sickness that plagued the team’s locker room.

Despite the 65 total games missed among 19 skaters, the Saints finished the regular season 15-2-1, going 8-0-1 against the East, and grabbed the No. 1 seed and a first-round bye in the playoffs as a result.

St. Dom’s medicine for the injury bug: Its depth. 

“They’ve come through quite a bit of adversity this year with dealing with a lot of injuries, dealing with a lot of sickness,” St. Dom’s coach Steve Ouellette said. “They’re well tested. They know other people can step up and it’s been that next man up, 24-man mentality. That’s been kind of our theme.” 

The injuries started before the puck even dropped this season. Senior captain Brad Berube missed the season opener against Scarborough after suffering a broken wrist in the fall. Adam Poulin and Noah Toussaint picked up the slack in his absence, each scoring a goal in the 2-1 victory. 

Berube has since been in the lineup and leads the Saints with 40 points (16 goals, 24 assists).

St. Dom’s injury and sickness woes reached its apex at Lewiston on Jan. 31. St. Dom’s was without Toussaint, Ryan Lutrzykowski, Austin Roy, Bryan Bonenfant and Dillon Pratt against the Devils. They’ve combined for 67 points (32 g, 35 a) this season. 

That night, the Saints looked to their veterans, and Berube and Caleb Labrie answered the call. The two seniors scored all five goals and recorded four assists in the 5-2 victory. 

All five have since returned to the lineup and Ouellette said the Saints are close to being fully healthy. 

“We still have a few nicks and bruises, but other than that we’re going to definitely be ready and healed up,” Ouellette said. 

It hasn’t just been the captains who’ve stepped up when their numbers have been called. Several others have answered the bell. On the blue line, when Bryan Bonenfant missed six of the final nine games, Laverdiere and freshman Gavin Bates played pivotal roles. The Saints have allowed 10 goals in those six games.

“A lot of them stepped up and that’s what we needed,” Roy said. “We knew they could and they had it in them.” 

Roy was another bitten by the injury bug. He missed five games with a wrist injury that kept him out of games against Lewiston, Thornton Academy (twice), Biddeford and Cony/Monmouth. Fellow forward Dillon Pratt was out for all five of those games, as well as five others. 

Roy said Lutrzykowski, Isaac Lapointe and Cooper Richard — the “red line” —  have stepped up with he and Pratt on the sidelines. Lutrzykowski had back-to-back multi-goal games against Lawrence/Skowhegan and Brunswick mid way through the season. Lapointe, who has missed four games this season, had a point in six of the 14 games he dressed. He scored his first goal of the year against Edward Little on Feb. 14. Richard has missed just one game this season and has contributed two goals and an assist.

“They did step up,” Pratt said. “They pulled through. I was proud of them to fill the positions and they got the job done.” 

It hasn’t been an enjoyable experience for any of the Saints who have had to miss time due to injury or illness, but their return to the lineup has been memorable. 

Berube had three assists in his season debut. Toussaint tallied a goal and three assists against Biddeford after missing St. Dom’s second meeting with the Blue Devils. Labrie recorded a goal and two assists against Thornton Academy after being out against Cheverus. 

Roy’s and Pratt’s return was just as good. Against Edward Little, Roy scored the Saints’ first two goals and Pratt netted the game-winner in overtime. Ouellette said both Roy and Pratt have done well coming back from injuries. 

“Their first game back was the EL game and those guys accounted for three out of the four goals,” Ouellette said. “We go to Bangor, they didn’t get any points other than Austin coming up with an empty-netter that he had to work hard for. As a line they weren’t getting the points. It just happened to be the night of our line led by a couple of seniors and you have a skilled sophomore getting a couple big goals at this point in his career. We have some depth that there’s always someone who should be able to step up and pick the team up.” 

All four goals against Bangor were scored by skaters who have missed time: Toussaint, Labrie and Roy. Bates and Laverdiere, who played key roles in their absence, fittingly recorded assists on those goals. 

The minutes St. Dom’s supporting cast has received during the season will pay dividends during the playoffs. With 15 wins thus far, the Saints are looking for three more. 

“It’s given us a lot of confidence to move forward in the playoffs,” Roy said. “We have a good team this year and we’re really looking to make a run.” 

The Saints play the winner of Lawrence/Skowhegan and Edward Little in the regional semifinal on Saturday.