On Friday night, No. 14 UConn traveled to Northeastern for the last ‘Battle of the Huskies’ of the regular season. Prior to this match, UConn had struggled against Northeastern as it got beaten at the Frozen Fenway and at its first game played at the Toscano Family Ice Forum.
Connecticut changed this pattern with a thrilling 4-3 overtime win but it was a competitive battle from the puck drop. Northeastern got off to a fiery start as it got on the board first after a UConn turnover which resulted in graduate student Liam Walsh to score. Midway through the period, the Northeastern Huskies extended their lead following a goal scored by junior Sam Colangelo. UConn had a slow start as it struggled in all three zones. Northeastern continued to pressure the Huskies’ defense but they went into the period break with no more damage done and down by two goals.
Early in the second period, senior Jake Flynn cut Northeastern’s lead in half after shooting the puck past goaltender Devon Levi. Flynn was assisted by graduate student Ty Amonte and freshman Samu Salminen. The Huskies got into trouble as they had three penalties called against them in the duration of the period. Despite that, UConn found the equalizer goal on a power play. Late in the period, Junior Hudson Schandor rebounded freshman Matthew Wood’s shot after it rang off the post, knocking it past Levi to tie the game at two.
UConn gained more control in the third period and dominated the ice. Just 26 seconds into the period, Wood was in the perfect position to fire a rebounded shot right into the net for the Huskies first lead of the night. Connecticut continued to rule possessions but could not hold off Northeastern for the remainder of the final frame. Northeastern tied the game with 3:55 left in the period as Justin Hryckowian was left in front of the net and scored the wide-open shot. Neither team was able to score in the final minutes which sent the game into a sudden death overtime.
In overtime, Northeastern and UConn created multiple opportunities to score but goal minders Logan Terness and Levi made key saves, keeping the game tied at three. The clock was winding down and it looked as if UConn would gain another frustrating tie but Schandor took charge, changing that motive. Flynn skated the puck down the zone on a two-on-three rush but was denied by Levi at the net. With 16 seconds remaining, Flynn’s rebound was directed right to Schandor, who tipped the puck past Levi for the game-winning goal. The Huskies celebrated on the ice as the clock expired and they sealed the victory in Boston 4-3.
Terness had one of his best performances of the season, stopping 36 of 39 shots by Northeastern. Additionally, Schandor led the way with his pair of goals, one including the game-winner. Terness and Schandor played significant roles to help the Huskies improve to a 17-8-3 overall record and a 11-6-2 record in Hockey East play.
Connecticut had the rest of the weekend off and will now look ahead to their next matchup. The Ice Bus will take a trip up north to Durham for a two-game series against the New Hampshire Wildcats Friday, Feb. 10, and Saturday, Feb. 11.
