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HAMDEN, CT– In an inconsistent open to the season and ECAC play, both the Quinnipiac Bobcats and Yale Bulldogs took an oft-circled match as the opportunity to change the trajectory of their seasons. The fanfare was swept aside in the chase of two points, even if emotions still boiled over.
Quinnipiac (5-5-1, 2-4-0 ECAC) took the contest 3-0 Saturday night to return back to .500, propelled in the weekend by stellar goaltending and back-to-back shutouts by Andrew Shortridge.
Twenty-seven minutes of the game were special teams play, a decided non-factor with Yale (3-5-0, 3-5-0 ECAC) going 0-for-4 while Quinnipiac could not convert on seven chances. For a 1-0 affair that lasted until six minutes left in the contest, killing penalties and time were the only strong points.
Keith Allain’s Yale squad kept both games on the weekend close but ended at 3-5-0.
“I thought we played well last night, well enough to win,” Allain said. “We didn’t play well enough to win tonight, I thought it was a step backwards. The only things I liked about our game were (goaltender Sam) Tucker and our penalty kill.”
Yale had an opportunity to tie the game with a five-minute power play with 7:20 left in the game. The call, a slew foot, ended Tanner MacMaster’s night with a major and game misconduct. The contact started as MacMaster paired off with Mitchell Smith after Smith’s hit in the far side corner to peel the Bobcat forward off the puck.
The pair continued to spar up the boards to the front of the Yale bench. Twisted in a hit, MacMaster was jolted into the bench as he shoved Smith in the chest as MacMaster’s knee collapsed him. Smith lay on the ice, writhing as he grasped his helmet after the play.
“Most gutless play in hockey,” Allain said. “And the ref wanted to give us a penalty.”
Quinnipiac turned the shorthanded opportunity into a momentum boost to close out the game. Craig Martin scored as he captured a wobbling puck in the high slot for a high wrist shot that sailed unchallenged by Bulldog sticks. Captain Chase Priskie saw his team capitalize on the momentum.
“The penalty kill won that game in the third period,” Priskie said. “Coming off the five-on-three, killing a five-minute major, they were excellent tonight.”
Sealing the game was Thomas Aldworth’s goal with five minutes left in the game as he stole the puck in his own zone and rushed end-to-end, skying it against Sam Tucker for the tally.
The success for Quinnipiac on the weekend came as a sign that the team, fueled by Andrew Shortridge’s shutouts, had turned a corner after losing four straight conference games. Priskie agreed with head coach Rand Pecknold’s notion of buy-in and sticking to the team’s strategy.
“Keeping guys more accountable, that was the theme of the week,” Priskie said. “Keeping guys more accountable and honest to the game. We progressed and we came out this weekend and played great hockey.”
AROUND THE ECAC
St. Lawrence 1 at No. 19 Colgate 3
Jared Cockerell’s two-goal night pushed the Raiders past St. Lawrence for another pair of in-conference points. Colgate overwhelmed SLU with a three-goal second on a night that featured 43 shots on goal from the Raiders.
No. 8 Clarkson 4 at No. 6 Cornell 0
In a fight for the top of the ECAC, the two undefeated giants in the conference matched up to see who would come out ahead. Clarkson proved to be road warriors, backed on a shutout by Jake Kielly for his tenth victory of the season. Three minutes in, a goal by Jere Astren would give the Golden Knights a lead they would not relinquish.
Brown 3 at Princeton 0
Gavin Nieto recorded his first career shutout on a 47 save attempt at Hobey Baker. The sophomore stymied seven power play opportunities for Princeton en route to the victory. His goal support came two-and-a-half minutes into the middle frame off the stick of Tommy Marchin.
No. 4 Notre Dame 1 at Rensselaer 0
It took overtime for a decision between the Engineers and Fighting Irish in Upstate New York. Cam Morrison’s fourth of the year was the golden goal in a game that saw unsuccessful power plays and evenly matched shot totals, with Notre Dame posting 34 while the Engineers notched 25.
No. 13 Harvard 1 at No. 7 Minnesota 2
Minnesota’s come-from-behind victory was sealed by Tyler Sheehy 35 seconds into overtime to defeat another upper-echelon foe in Harvard. Merrick Madsen starred despite the loss, turning away 49 of the 50 shots on goal he faced on the night.
