A month after a deadly shooting at a Pawtucket hockey rink took three members of Colin Dorgan’s family, the high school senior helped lead Blackstone Valley to the Division 2 state championship.
Colin stood beneath the roar of the crowd at Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence with three empty seats where his mother, brother and grandfather should have sat. The shooting occurred while he was on the ice with his Blackstone Valley Co-op teammates and claimed the lives of his mother, Rhonda Dorgan, his brother, Aidan, and his grandfather, Gerald Dorgan. Police identified the shooter as Robert Dorgan, who authorities say used other names; he died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound after bystanders intervened. Two other people were seriously injured.
To honor Colin’s family, the team added a red heart with the relatives’ initials to their jerseys. Colin, who returned to the lineup and served as team captain, said he felt his family close to him. “I truly felt it in my heart and my soul that they’re still with me,” he said after the championship game.
Blackstone Valley’s path to the title was charged with emotion. Earlier in the postseason Colin scored a game-winning goal in double overtime, and in the final against Lincoln High School he tied the game late to force four overtime periods. After several tense extra sessions, Jaxon Boyes finally scored the decisive goal and Blackstone Valley won 3-2.
Head coach Chris Librizzi described the last four weeks as deeply emotional. “For Lincoln High School and most people this is just a game,” he said, “but for us who lived through that shooting? It’s our lives.” Librizzi praised the team’s unity, calling the players a brotherhood that leaned on one another through workouts and counseling. He credited widespread support from across North America with helping the squad cope and added, “We won this tournament because of love.”
Colin said he was nervous about returning and speaking with teammates, but they welcomed him and treated him like family. He credited his mother with instilling a hard-working mentality—“grind it out,” go to practice and put in the work—skills he said helped the team persevere through the playoffs.
The championship provided a cathartic moment for players, coaches and the crowd as they navigated grief and trauma together. Librizzi, visibly moved before the game, said that returning after such loss gave the season special meaning. Fans and teammates applauded, wiped away tears and held their breath through three regulation periods until the extended overtime drama ended in celebration for Blackstone Valley.