The Miami RedHawks (NCHC) held on to win 4-2 over the Ferris State Bulldogs (CCHA) early Monday evening, claiming third place in the Great Lakes Invitational (GLI) and improving to 11-7-2 overall. The RedHawks finished non-conference play at a record of 9-1-0, with the only loss coming Sunday against Michigan Tech.
It was the third meeting of the season between Ferris State and Miami after the RedHawks swept the Bulldogs in the season-opening series in early October.
Related: Miami Falls 5-2 to Michigan Tech In GLI Opener
For the Bulldogs, Jacob Badal and Max Itagaki each scored, while goalie Hobie Hedquist stopped 18 of 21 shots. Badal’s first-period goal was his first of the season.
Scoring for the RedHawks were David Deputy, Max Helgeson, and Ryder Thompson. Deputy scored twice, including the first and final goals of the game.
Thompson recorded his first collegiate goal, while freshman goaltender Mathis Langevin made his first start as a RedHawk, stopping 30 of 32 shots.
Game Recap
Early on, Deputy sped up the ice around the Bulldog defensive coverage and chipped it home. After the puck went in, he took a shot to the head from Tyler Schleppe, but no five-minute major was called. Still not sure how it wasn’t.
Badal evened the score late in the first. He appeared to push Langevin’s pad to help the puck go in, but the goal counted, and it was a 1-1 game.
Early in the second, Helgeson cleaned up a rebound in front just after the 4-on-4 ended, scoring his ninth goal of the season to make it 2-1 Miami.
Later in the period, Thompson scored his first collegiate goal, sniping a shot through traffic to extend the lead to 3-1.
Itagaki scored in tight late in the third to make it a one-goal game, and the RedHawks were holding on to the lead for dear life down the stretch.
Deputy later iced the game on an empty net goal with under 30 seconds left in regulation.
Miami finished 1-for-5 on the power play and went a perfect 3-for-3 on the penalty kill. Faceoffs between the two teams were essentially split: RedHawks won 50.8% of the draws. Ilia Morozov performed well in the circle for the second game in a row, even better this time around, going 11-for-15 (73%).
It was far from a perfect win for the RedHawks, but they got the job done over Ferris State at a 4-2 final. Miami is off next weekend before heading on the road to Arizona State (Jan. 9-10) to resume conference play.
