The Massachusetts men’s club ice hockey team polished off a rough start to the weekend after a close loss to Central Connecticut State on Saturday with a crucial 6-5 win over Vermont on Sunday.

Central Connecticut controlled the pace of the game by taking an advantage over the Minutemen on the man-advantage. Two of the Blue Devils’ four goals came off their power-play unit from Tomas Carroll and Stanley Ryan.

With the goal, Ryan now has 22 goals on the season and a total of 40 points, which leads all other Central Connecticut players through 15 games. The goal was also Ryan’s fourth power-play goal on the year.

“Central was a great team and had a solid power-play,” UMass coach Mike Atkinson said. “We did not do a great job on our penalty-kill which is what needs to happen against a skilled power-play team”

Despite the loss, the Minutemen saw two different players step up offensively during the game. Matthew Tarpey registered his first goal on the season during the game on the power play while also recording two assists.

Forward Brian Dragunas also recorded his first two assists of the season and his third and fourth points on the year.

Joe Iadarola received his third-straight start in net on the season, allowing three goals, with the fourth Blue Devils’ goal coming on an empty net.

“At the end of the game, Central capitalized on their chances and we did not,” Atkinson said.

Heading to the Gutterson Field House to play the Wildcats on Sunday, the Minutemen saw a change in luck despite getting into an early hole.

“We came out and got behind quick, it was 2-0 right off the bat,” Atkinson said. “We battled hard and ended up putting together a great team effort and get a gutsy win on the road.” 

A balanced offense may have been the difference for the Minutemen, who saw each of their six goals in the 6-5 victory come from different players, including one from the power-play unit by Kevin Waller.

The driving force behind the Vermont offense was senior Chad Hutchins, who scored three times during the game and also added an assist to bring his season total to 22 points.

“Whenever a team can go on the road and get a win it is a good trip,” Atkinson said. “We ended up being short handed most of the second period but we held our ground and did not let up a goal on our penalty-kill during that stretch.” 

This weekend, UMass will be facing off on Friday night and Sunday afternoon at the Mullins Center against Keene State and Maine, respectively.

This will be the first time the Minutemen face off against the Owls this season and the second game against the Black Bears. In UMass’ previous meeting against the Black Bears, the Minutemen lost 4-3 at the Alfond Arena.

After this past weekend’s two close games, Atkinson was very positive going into this weekend.

“I was extremely proud of our effort and hopefully it follows through to this weekend,” Atkinson said. “We have a couple big games coming up before the Thanksgiving Break and we need to get a couple of wins.”

Robert Hanlon can be reached at [email protected].