Teen Hockey Player Scores Dramatic OT Winner After Family Tragedy

High school senior Colin Dorgan netted the game-winning goal in double overtime to advance his team to the finals, just weeks after losing three family members in a deadly ice rink shooting in Rhode Island. The emotional victory came as Dorgan and his teammates honored the victims with memorial patches on their jerseys.

A high school hockey player delivered an unforgettable performance on the ice Wednesday night, scoring a dramatic double-overtime goal that sent his team to the championship game just weeks after enduring unimaginable tragedy.

Colin Dorgan, a senior with the Blackstone Valley Co-op team, found the back of the net on a breakaway to defeat Portsmouth 3-2 in the semifinal matchup. The victory was especially meaningful as Dorgan wore a commemorative patch honoring three family members who were fatally shot at a hockey rink in Pawtucket, Rhode Island last month.

The February 16th attack claimed the lives of Dorgan’s mother Rhonda, his brother Aidan, and his grandfather Gerald, who succumbed to his wounds after the incident. Colin was playing on the ice with his team when the violence erupted in the stands during the game.

Authorities identified the gunman as Robert Dorgan, who took his own life at the scene. The suspect also used the aliases Roberta Esposito and Roberta Dorgano, according to police reports.

Following the tragic events, Rhode Island suspended all high school athletics for one week. When Blackstone Valley returned to competition earlier this month, team members wore heart-shaped emblems on their uniforms displaying the initials of the three victims.

“It was the greatest moment of my life,” Dorgan shared with WPRI-TV after his clutch goal sealed the playoff win.

Investigators determined the shooting was a targeted assault against family members. The attack was cut short thanks to brave bystanders who tackled and restrained the shooter while spectators evacuated the facility.

Two additional individuals were wounded in the incident: Linda Dorgan, who is Rhonda’s mother, and Thomas Geruso, a close family friend.