A last-minute, game-winning goal in the third period by John Henrion lifted the New Hampshire hockey team to a 4-3 victory over Northeastern in Durham, N.H., on Friday.
With 53 seconds remaining in regulation, Henrion found the puck through a scrum in front of the net and squeezed it past Huskies goalkeeper Bryan Mountain to give the Wildcats (4-0-0, 2-0-0 Hockey East Association) the win.
The Huskies (2-2-1, 2-2-1 HEA) jumped out to an early 3-1 lead in the first period, but couldn’t find the back of the net for the remainder of the game.
UNH evened the score by scoring the only two goals in the second stanza. Senior forward Austin Block blasted a shot in the upper left corner of the net at the two minutes, 51 second-mark to bring the Wildcats within one goal at 3-2. Kevin Goumas then scored the equalizer 6:40 into the second frame after backhanding a shot between the legs of Mountain.
Wildcats goalkeeper Casey DeSmith registered eight of his 18 saves in the third period, including two in the final 38 seconds of regulation after the Huskies pulled their goalie to play with an empty net.
The Wildcats travel to Massachusetts on Friday to take on the Minutemen, while Northeastern hosts Merrimack for the first of a home-and-home series on Friday.
BC takes care of UMass Lowell at home
Boston College jumped out to an early three-goal advantage en route to taking down UMass Lowell, 6-3, in Chestnut Hill on Sunday.
Junior forward Kevin Hayes scored a pair of power play goals and dished out one assist to help the Eagles (4-1-0, 4-1-0 HEA) soar past the River Hawks (1-3-1, 0-2-1 HEA).
BC held a 3-0 lead into the second period before the River Hawks scored two consecutive goals to pull within one. UMass-Lowell freshman Michael Colantone scored the first of two at the 7:40 mark. Derek Arnold followed up with the latter goal just four minutes later, cutting the BC lead to 3-2.
The Eagles responded with two consecutive goals of their own by sophomores Johnny Gaudreau and Destry Straight, building a three-goal advantage heading into the final stanza.
BC goaltender Parker Milner registered 25 saves, while Doug Carr stopped 23 for the River Hawks.
The Eagles hit the ice next this Friday as they travel to Maine while UMass-Lowell has the next week off before hosting Maine on Nov. 9.
Vermont and Merrimack end even in OT
Vermont and Merrimack were both held scoreless in overtime, resulting in a 2-2 draw in North Andover on Saturday.
Warriors junior forward Mike Collins knotted the score at 2-2 with just over 13 minutes remaining in the third period, scoring his second of two goals on the night. Collins blasted the shot past Merrimack goalkeeper Brody Hoffman after receiving a pass from teammate Connor Toomey.
The Catamounts (0-1-2, 0-1-2 HEA) had multiple scoring opportunities in the third frame, outshooting the Warriors, 14-6, but failed to get one past Merrimack goalkeeper Rasmus Tirronen.
Collins scored the first of his two goals with 3:05 remaining in the first period, giving the Warriors (2-3-1, 1-1-1 HEA) a 1-0 lead.
Vermont jumped ahead with just more than five minutes to play in the second period after scoring two goals within 30 seconds of each other, taking a 2-1 lead into the final frame.
Tirronen stopped a career-high 31 shots in 65 minutes of action, while Hoffman saved an impressive 32.
The Catamounts are back in action Friday as they host the first of two consecutive home games against Providence. Merrimack hits the road to take on Northeastern on Friday.
Joey Saade can be reached at [email protected] and on Twitter @MDC_Saade.
