GORHAM — A goal in the first minute of the game did little in providing any early momentum for Thornton Academy against Edward Little on Thursday in the Yankee Ford Hockey Holiday Classic. But the Trojans found their way midway through the second period, and then reeled off three goals in the third to eventually cruise to a 4-0 win over the Red Eddies at USM Ice Arena.

Thornton senior Alex Fallon scored just 43 seconds into the game, but the Trojans seemed content with that lead for much of the first period.

“I think the reason we created that goal is we actually executed on our forecheck, got it down deep, put the pressure on them, and we were able to capitalize,” said Thornton head coach Jamie Gagnon. “Then we got away from that a little bit.”

Edward Little spent plenty of time in the Thornton defensive zone during the latter stages of the period, including a three-minute span after the Trojans killed off a penalty in the final five minutes. The Red Eddies led in shots on goal in the period ”“ six to TA’s four ”“ but the Trojans held onto the 1-0 lead heading into the first intermission.

“It could have been a detriment. Maybe we fell asleep a little bit,” Fallon said of his early goal. “We didn’t get our legs moving after that, so that was part of the problem.”

Thornton continued to go through the motions to open up the second period, but a shift by TA’s top line of seniors Owen Lemoine, Drew Lavigne and Fallon midway through the period finally got the Trojans in gear. The trio was able to snap some shots at EL goalie Devin Dumont, and the Trojans began to even out attack zone time and shots on goal.

“Our offensive energy runs through them,” Gagnon said of his top line. “That’s not to say we’re not going to look for contributions up and down the lineup. But when they’re on their game, when they’re executing, it puts a lot of pressure on other teams.”

Dumont was able to hold off two TA shots in a 55 second span late, as Carter Davis was stuffed at the right post on a wrap-around attempt, and Lavigne missed high less than a minute later.

“I think it was about execution. Whether it be a tournament game, or a preseason, exhibition, regular season, playoff, it doesn’t matter. You still got to execute,” said Gagnon. “Once we settled in, and started to execute a little better, we started to get the opportunities ”“ we were kind of shooting wide or missing the net a little bit ”“ but the opportunities were there.”

Thornton was lucky to escape the period with its lead intact, as Cody Woodward nearly scored on a shorthanded attempt with 12 seconds left, only to miss high with the shot.

The Trojans continued on the power play as the third period began, and soon after EL killed it off, another Red Eddie went into the penalty box.

Thornton used up much of its two minutes on the mad-advantage trying to get into the attacking zone, then finally broke through with 35 seconds left on the power play, when Lavigne got the puck on the left boards, took it to the middle, then found Owen Elliot by the right post for a goal.

“The power play goal ”¦ anytime you get a power play goal, it’s a big momentum-booster,” said Fallon. “We were fortunate to get that goal, and it sort of gave us a comfortable lead in the third.”

The Trojans found themselves on the power play again soon after, but it wasn’t for long. Fallon was called for slashing just 15 seconds into the man-advantage, and EL then found itself on the right end of a 4-on-3 situation a minute later when TA’s Walsh Troiani-Gagner was called for hooking.

EL’s Branden Dyer had the best chance for the Eddies on the power play, but his backhand slap slid wide right.

Thornton extended its lead to 3-0 with just over five minutes to play when Lavigne was left all alone in front of the net, and Fallon fed him from the right point before getting checked off his feet. Lavigne’s first shot on Dumont was blocked, but he corralled the rebound and found the back of the net.

Lemoine put the final nail in the coffin with just over two minutes remaining, as he took a pass from Fallon between the circles and blasted a shot into the top-left corner of the goal.

The game doesn’t count in the standings, but Gagnon said he was happy to see his team get tested against a worthy opponent.

“We always strive to find competitive games during the holiday break, because ultimately these are the types of the games we’re going to be coming out of the break playing. And if we can get guys experience in these types of games, we’re much better off for it when we get out of the break,” said Gagnon.

“It’s good to get a lot of guys to see some ice in a tournament that really doesn’t mean anything,” said Fallon. “Just trying to get some pieces working together, and trying to figure it all out before we get back to regular season games.”

The Trojans played again in the tournament later in the day, where they tied a team from Tewksbury, Mass. 2-2.

— Staff Writer Wil Kramlich can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 323 or sports@journaltribune.com. Follow him on twitter @WilTalkSports.