There were quite a few postponements and cancellations (No. 14 Northeastern and No. 3 Boston College one of the notable ones) during this week of college hockey. However, the show went on, and there were some exciting games on Friday, including a few high-ranked teams getting taken down in an exciting fashion.
Big Ten
Penn State def. Michigan State, 3-2 in overtime
The Penn State Nittany Lions’ sixth win of the season was not an easy one, as they trailed the Michigan State Spartans 2-1 late in the third period, and were trying to kill off a penalty. Yet, Connor MacEachern scored to tie the game, and into overtime the game went. Just 30 seconds into the extra frame, Alex Limoges tapped in a Tim Doherty feed to give the Nittany Lions the victory.
Limoges assisted on the other two goals for Penn State, while Doherty had a helping hand in all three goals.
No. 9 Michigan def. Ohio State, 4-2
The Michigan Wolverines got back above the .500 mark after a tough battle against rival-Ohio State. Nolan Moyle scored twice for Michigan, while Nick Blankenburg and Thomas Bordeleau each had a pair of assists. Erik Portillo earned his first collegiate win for the Wolverines, making 19 saves in the process.
Notre Dame def. No. 1 Minnesota, 3-2
For the second time in three games, the Minnesota Golden Gophers, who started the season 10-0, have been defeated, this time at the hands of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. It was a true back-and-forth contest. Each team scored in the first period, then the same thing happened in the second, with Notre Dame’s Landon Slaggert tying the game at two. In the third period, Landon set up older brother Graham for the game-winning goal, giving the Irish their sixth win of the season. The Slaggert brothers combined for five points on the night, with Graham also posting a pair of assists.
ECAC
St. Lawrence def. No. 13 Clarkson, 2-1 in overtime
For the third time this season, the Clarkson Golden Knights have fallen to an unranked team. This time, it was the St. Lawrence Saints who played the underdog. David Jankowski tied the game for the Saints in the third, and in overtime, Luc Salem found the back of the net for the first time this season to give St. Lawrence the victory.
Emil Zetterquist had another outstanding game in net for the Saints, making 36 saves in the win.
No. 11 Quinnipiac def. Colgate, 3-0
The Quinnipiac Bobcats won a rather relaxing contest against the Colgate Raiders. Desi Burgart stayed hot, scoring his eighth goal of the season in the opening period, which was credited as the game-winning goal. Keith Petruzzelli stopped all 21 shots he faced, giving him his second shutout in a row, and third on the season.
Hockey East
Maine def. No. 16 Providence, 4-3
In a bit of a shocker, the Maine Black Bears were able to come from behind to knock off the Providence Friars. Trailing 2-1 in the third, Maine stormed back with three straight goals, which proved to be enough to pick up the win. Ben Poisson scored a pair for the Black Bears, with Victor Ostman picking up his second win of the season in goal, stopping 37 of 39 in the contest.
Connecticut def. New Hampshire, 6-5 in overtime
This game started off with guns blazing, as both the Wildcats and the UConn Huskies each found the back of the net three times in the opening 20 minutes. UConn had a 5-3 lead late into the third, before the Wildcats scored twice, including Filip Engaras’ tally with 35 seconds left to force overtime. Yet, the Huskies did not take long to swipe the win from UNH, as Carter Turnbull completed the hat trick with his fifth of the season to give UConn the wild win.
Vladislav Firstov also had a stellar night for UConn, scoring two goal and two assists.
NCHC
Western Michigan def. No. 4 St. Cloud State, 6-2
Well..if this just isn’t the upset of the week.
The Western Michigan Broncos, who had actually defeated the St. Cloud State Huskies in the Omaha Pod, repeated the feat in a dominating fashion. The most eye-opening stat is that the Huskies had not allowed more than four goals during the season, and the Broncos were averaging less than three goals-per-game. Yet, Western Michigan pulled out the win, thanks to six different goal scorers, including Tim Washe’s scoring his first as a Bronco.
Washe’s brother, Paul, along with Ronnie Attard and Josh Passolt, all had two-point nights for the Broncos.
WCHA
No. 5 Minnesota State def. No. 19 Lake Superior State, 3-0
In a battle between two teams that may be battling by the end of the season for the WCHA titles, it was the Minnesota State Mavericks that were victorious after a solid defensive performance. Dryden McKay made 23 saves in goal, and moves into sole position of seventh all-time on the NCAA DI Shutout list, passing former Cornell netminder David McKee, with his 19th career donut. Julian Napravnik led the Maverick attack, scoring a goal and two assists.
No. 8 Bowling Green def. Northern Michigan, 5-1
The powerful offense of the Bowling Green Falcons was prevalent once again. Max Johnson and Will Cullen each scored a goal and an assist, with Eric Dop earning win no. 8 on the season, making 36 stops.
Non-Conference
Army-West Point def. Long Island, 5-2
When the Long Island Sharks took on the Army Black Knights, it was a special contest for their respective coaches. Army’s Brian Riley went up against his nephew, head coach of the Sharks, Brett Riley.
In game one of their weekend set, the elder Riley had the last laugh, as the Black Knights outlasted the Sharks on Friday night. Colin Bilek had another great game, scoring a goal and an assist, but the first star was Mason Krueger. The senior from Iowa scored his first career hat trick in the win.
Other Scores This Week
Monday, Jan. 11
No. 2 North Dakota def. Colorado College, 2-1
After getting shutout by the North Dakota Fighting Hawks on Sunday, the Colorado College Tigers played another tight game against one of the best teams in the country. The teams traded power-play goals, as Riese Gaber and Ben Copeland scored for the Fighting Hawks and Tigers, respectively. Yet, early in the third, Grand Mismash potted his fourth goal of the season, and it ended up being the game-winner. Adam Scheel picked up his eighth win of the season, making 23 stops in the contest.
Wednesday, Jan. 13
Hockey East
No. 14 Northeastern def. New Hampshire, 7-0
In one of the best offensive performances of the season from the Northeastern Huskies, they had an easy time against the New Hampshire Wildcats. The power play looked good for the Huskies, as they went 2-for-5 in the contest, with both tallies coming in the second period. Zach Solow had a career night, putting four points in the win for Northeastern. Grant Jozefek, Jayden Struble and Gunnarwolfe Fontaine each had a goal and an assist in the win.
Non-Conference
No. 20 American International def. Long Island, 5-2
In their second meeting of the season, the AIC Yellow Jackets were able to fend off the Long Island Sharks. It was not a cakewalk, though, as the contest was tied at two heading into the third period. That was when Chris Theodore and Michal Stinil scored back-to-back goals for AIC, and Justin Cole capped off the game with an empty-net goal. Cole ended up with a three-point night, with leading-scorer Tobias Fladeby picking up three helpers for AIC.