Marc-Andre Perron said the last time his father saw him play was a year ago when his Bangor High School hockey team lost to eventual Class A state champion Thornton Academy of Saco in the playoff semifinals, 3-2.
His father, former University of Maine two-time hockey captain Guy Perron, died of pancreatic cancer on May 2, 2023.
Perron felt his father smiling down on him Wednesday night as Marc-Andre had a hat trick and an assist to lead the Rams to a 6-3 semifinal win over Portland/South Portland/Deering/Waynflete to earn their first ever state championship game appearance.
Third seed Bangor, 14-5-1, and top seed Lewiston, 16-4, will face off on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. at the Cross Insurance Arena in Portland.
Bangor’s first year of varsity hockey was 1985-86.
“I was definitely playing for something,” said an emotional Marc-Andre, who is a junior right wing and the team’s leading goal scorer with 13. “(Guy) is in the back of my mind all the time, even more when I step on the ice.”
Right after the game, he received a congratulatory text from his mother who was at the game. Marc-Andre is the youngest of Guy and wife Renee’s three children
“It was pretty crazy. I ran up, didn’t even take half my gear off, and gave her a big hug,” said Perron. “It was pretty emotional for us.”
After his playing career ended, Guy Perron had an extensive coaching career including stints at the University of Maine as a men’s assistant and women’s head coach; the head coach at Bangor High and a recent two-year stint as an assistant at Bangor where he got to coach Marc-Andre.
“He taught me all I know. I’m still growing from him, thinking about what he would be telling me after the game if he was here. I’m always reflecting on what he would say,” Perron said.
They used to watch a lot of video together so he could keep improving his game.
“He would point out some stuff I never even would have thought of. Now I get to pass it on to some of these guys out here,” Perron said.
Bangor High School coach Quinn Paradis got choked up when asked about Marc-Andre’s contribution in light of his father’s passing.
“I don’t know what to say. It’s a tough moment,” said Paradis, trying to hold back tears.
“I am proud of him. He earned it. He has worked hard. You couldn’t ask for more from him and you couldn’t have a better guy,” said Paradis.
“We wanted to win for ourselves but, more importantly, we wanted to win for Marc-Andre,” said Bangor senior left wing Jackson Guimond, who had a pair of goals in the win. “It’s a really emotional story for us.”
“We all loved Guy,” said senior left wing Miles Randall, Perron’s linemate along with Chase Caron. “He was such a good mentor and leader. It’s special for Marc-Andre to carry that on.
“All year we’ve been saying we want to do this for Guy. And now we have a chance to do it on Saturday,” said Randall.
He said Marc-Andre’s performance was amazing.
“He has stepped up his game a whole other level. He has performed (very well) every single game. This team needs him and he needs us,” said Randall, who assisted on all three of Perron’s goals and had a goal of his own with Perron picking up an assist.
“We had a connection out there. It felt pretty good,” said Perron.
Saturday’s state title game will involve two teams that split regular season games with Lewiston earning a 4-3 home victory and Bangor posting a 3-0 victory at its Sawyer Arena.
Both teams have scoring balance with five players scoring at least eight goals this season.
Besides Perron, Ty Walker has 10 goals and Caron, Randall and Michael Moscone have eight apiece.
Brothers Dylan and Ethan Blue have led the Blue Devils with 15 and 12 goals, respectively. Aizyk Laliberte has 11 while Cam Plourde and Deano Scalia have nine apiece.
The goaltending matchup is Lewiston junior Gabe Pomerleau against Bangor sophomore Cody McCue.
Lewiston will come into the game with an eight-game winning streak while Bangor is 4-1-1 in its last six.
Lewiston will be looking for its 25th state title dating back to 1927. It won its 24th in 2020 with a 2-1 double overtime win over Scarborough.
“We’re playing for something a little more on Saturday,” said Perron. “Not just for my dad but for the alumni. It’s something they haven’t done before so we will be playing for them, too.“
“It’s going to be a really good game,” said Randall. “They’re a really good team. It’s going to be hard-fought and hopefully we’ll come out on top.”
