The Massachusetts club hockey team came back after its loss in game one of the UMass Showcase with a vengeance, scoring seven times against New Hampshire to win 7-3.
A second period that consisted of four goals was able to give UMass (10-5) a large lead that it hung onto throughout the rest of the game. Three different Minutemen lit the lamp in the second frame.
Three of the four goals came within one minute of each other. Forward Thomas Milne was able to net the first two of the period within 13 seconds of one another.
“I was able to find the back of the net with the help of my linemates, Scott Shorrock and Mitchell Rickert,” Milne said. “Good D on the points, but it all comes down to fundamentals around the net and crashing the net.”
His first goal came off some great stretch passing down the ice by the Minutemen. The Wildcats (4-5-1) were caught in the middle of a line change and Milne capitalized.
Then, shortly after the center dot faceoff, the Minutemen got the puck back in the offensive zone. Milne found himself in the right place to finish off a rebounded point shot and take a 3-2 lead at the time.
UMass was not done with its second period offensive explosion and added goals from forwards Shawn Leslie and Sean Prendergast. The four-goal period would end with the score 5-2 in favor of the Minutemen.
The third period consisted of two more goals out of UMass to put the game away. Prendergast flung a backhander top shelf for his second of the game.
Captain Scott Shorrock got in on the goal scoring frenzy, adding one in the first off a rebound out front of the net. He added another in the third with a deep wrister to beat the glove of the Wildcats goaltender.
After a back and forth first period that had the score tied 1-1, UMass showed the ability to adjust in the second. This was something that head coach Mike DeFazio was happy to see out of his team.
“We got it together halfway through the second,” coach Mike DeFazio said. “I think our speed and our depth took advantage of them and we were able to put some pucks in the net which we were having trouble doing in the first half.”
The Minutemen got a solid performance out of their goaltender Trey Peterson, turning in 35 saves. The only goals given up were on some tough breaks for the goaltender including a few miscommunications and a 5-on-3 penalty kill.
The special teams units for both teams were put on full display with both squads finishing the game with six penalties. Each powerplay was able to net one goal throughout the six chances.
The Minutemen were out shot in the third period 15-6 by the Wildcats, with nine of the shots against coming on the penalty kill. UMass spent 10 minutes of the third killing off various penalties.
The Minutemen will look to replicate this performance and round out the UMass Showcase with a positive record over the weekend. They will be back in action at home against Northeastern on Sunday, Nov. 13 at 12:30 p.m.
Mike Maynard can be reached at [email protected] and followed on Twitter
@mike_maynard_.
