The Massachusetts hockey team dominated Alaska Fairbanks, winning 7-3 on Saturday night. The win marks UMass’ (13-10-2, 4-7-2 Hockey East) first series sweep of the season.
Francesco Dell’Elce attempted a pass at Nanooks (7-11-5) goaltender Nicholas Grabko but couldn’t skate through three defenders and tapped the puck back. Mercuri raced to the puck and sent a one-timer into the back of the net, regaining the Minutemen’s multi-goal lead in the first period. The goal marked Mercuri’s first multi-goal game of his career with UMass.
“[Mercuri] plays a big man’s game and scores around the net,” head coach Greg Carvel said. “He leads off the ice, he’s vocal, does the right things and plays the right way. If all 20 guys played the game with the integrity that he does, we would be tough to beat.”
Chase Dafoe finished the game with two goals after his first came 19 seconds into the second period. Dafoe’s shot went wide to the left of the net, but bounced off of the boards, hitting goaltender Michael Hrabal’s skate and slid into the goal. Dafoe netted his second goal on a power play after Michael Cameron got a tripping penalty. The Nanooks pulled their goaltender for a 6-on-4, and Dafoe capitalized on the rebound from shots by Peyton Platter and Broten Sabo.
The Minutemen earned a two-goal lead in the first five minutes of the game from goals scored by Mercuri and Cole O’Hara. Mercuri won the faceoff at the left circle, and the puck slid past Grabko’s skate and into the net to put UMass on the board. O’Hara scored 50 seconds later, rebounding Jack Musa’s shot and lifting the puck over Grabko’s leg to find the back of the net.
Alaska responded quickly, scoring its first goal five minutes after the Minutemen took the lead. Kyle Gaffney drew UMass Hrabal to the left post before crossing to Matt Hubbarde by the right goal post. With Hrabal off center, Hubbarde easily tapped the puck into the net.
O’Hara and Musa led the Minutemen with three points each, with O’Hara tallying two goals and one assist and Musa picking up one goal and two assists. Linden Alger skated up the left wing, bouncing the puck off the boards before picking up his own pass and crossing to O’Hara, who crashed to the crease and slipped the puck past Grabko.
“We were very opportunistic tonight,” Carvel said. “I don’t think the score is indicative. I thought Alaska gave us a really good game and that we were very opportunistic in our scoring early on. It was pretty wide open. A little more wide open than I’d like it to be. I thought Hrabal played really well all weekend, and it’s three in a row, we’ll take it and move on and try to make it four.”
Skating around the back of the net, Alger took a shot from the right, but Grabko deflected the puck off his pads. Musa rebounded the puck right above the left corner of the crease, chipping it into the open side of the net.
Hrabal finished the game with 30 saves for UMass. Lassi Lehti replaced Grabko in between the pipes for the Nanooks, finishing with five and 16 saves respectively.
“He’s consistent. It’s a good thing about him as a goalie,” Carvel said. “He comes every day, same attitude, same demeanor. It’s a good asset for a good goalie.”
The Minutemen return to the Mullins Center to face Merrimack College on Friday, Jan. 31. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m.
“It feels good to win three in a row,” Mercuri said. “Especially in our home building, it means a lot that everybody comes to support us and we want to win in front of them, so it’s been good to get a couple of wins here at home. We’re just going to try and keep that stretch going.
Devin Lippman can be reached at [email protected] and followed on X @devinlippman.
