Last March, the UConn men’s hockey team skated off the ice after a 5-2 defeat at the hands of the Maine Black Bears in the Hockey East Championship. This weekend, it was a different story.
UConn came out of the gates firing on Friday night, with multiple shots on goal in the first minute of play. A few minutes later, Jeremy Langlois was whistled for a hooking penalty and headed to the penalty box. Just 10 seconds later, Frank Djurasevic was called for a tripping penalty and it was an early 5-on-3 for Connecticut.
The best shot during the penalty was a Jake Richard shot that rattled off the post and back onto the ice. The Black Bears’ defense, along with great play from goalie Mathis Rousseau, halted any chance of a goal for the Ice Bus.
On the other side, a penalty was committed by Ethan Whitcomb, giving Maine their first power play of the game. The UConn defense was excellent and prevented any real opportunities.
Maine returned the favor with a power play kill of their own after a Miguel Marques boarding penalty.
The Black Bears seemed to have the momentum heading into the locker room before a face-off with one minute left in the period. A face-off win by Ryan Tattle saw the puck go up for grabs. Joey Muldowney came flying in and fired a shot past the freshman Rousseau.
All of a sudden, the Huskies had the momentum thanks to Muldowney’s 14th goal of the season.
Both teams found themselves in the penalty box twice during the second period, but no goals were scored either way. Muszelik and Rousseau were dueling through two periods.
The Huskies saw themselves in the penalty box two more times during the third period. The second time was due to an Ethan Gardula hooking penalty.
While on the penalty kill, Jake Percival found himself with a shorthanded opportunity on the breakaway. His shot was blocked by Rousseau, but the momentum had shifted to UConn. The penalty was over and Gardula flew out of the box. Tattle was in the right place at the right time, and found Gardula, who had a breakaway. The sophomore found a hole and scored the second goal of the game for the Ice Bus.
That goal deflated a Maine team trying to save their NCAA tournament hopes. They had some good opportunities in the last 10 minutes, but Muszelik is playing his best hockey of the season between the pipes. The UNH transfer racked up 32 in his second straight shutout.
The second game of the weekend started with the theme of the weekend: penalties. Less than two minutes into the tilt, Richard was whistled for an interference penalty.
Thankfully for the Huskies, the duo of Tattle and Muldowney were unstoppable all weekend. The UConn power play defense cleared the puck to Tattle who found Muldowney. The New York native sniped a shot past Saturday’s goalie Albin Boija, giving the Ice Bus an early lead on the shorthanded goal.
After some missed opportunities for both squads, Tristan Fraser was called for a UConn interference penalty.
This was the power play that Maine finally broke through for their first goal of the weekend. Thomas Freel fired a slapshot from center ice which was blocked by Muszelik. However, the rebound caromed to Marques who knocked in the game tying goal.
The goal changed the momentum in the game and the rink was rocking. The Black Bears had all the momentum heading into the locker room.
Towards the end of the period, Connecticut was on the offensive and the puck found the stick of Muldowney. He attempted a spinning shot that rebounded to Richard. Richard’s first attempt was saved by the skate of Boija but his second attempt snuck into the net for another UConn lead.
After 40 minutes of play, it was 2-1 Huskies.
The Black Bears were quick to answer once again. Muszelik stopped a Maine shot, but the rebound was collected by Will Gerrior and put in to even the score at 2. UConn head coach Mike Cavanaugh challenged the call, but it was unsuccessful and the Huskies lost their crucial timeout.
UConn was finally on the advantage after a two-minute holding penalty on Langlois. Off the face off, Kai Janviriya got the puck to Whitcomb who sent it towards Boija and the net. The puck was redirected by Tattle and in. Tattle had a great weekend scoring his first goal after assisting on three prior goals. It only took five seconds for the Ice Bus to strike on their first power play of the night.
Desperate to save their season, Jaden Lipinski went flying at Muszelik who blocked his first shot. Lipinski grabbed the rebound and sent it back to the net where Grayson Arnott was there to score his first goal of the season. The Black Bears clung to life, tying the game at 3.
Despite a few good attempts from both teams, it was time for overtime in Maine.
In the 4-on-4 overtime format, the offense was at a rapid pace. Josh Nadeau sent multiple shots Muszelik’s way and Gardula had a great shot for Connecticut but missed the puck entirely.
The most controversial moment of overtime was when Tattle looked to be on the verge of a breakaway, but the referee blew the whistle and called a double penalty. Richard was called for interference while Charlie Russell was tagged for diving.
Neither team could convert and we headed to a shootout.
Richard was the first shooter for Connecticut and he stuffed it around Boija for a 1-0 UConn lead. Marques tried to answer, but Muszelik made a skate save.
Tattle could not pad the shootout lead with a shot wide of the net. Sully Scholle, who had plenty of chances all weekend, shot it right at the pads of Muszelik and went scoreless in the two games.
The dagger was by Trey Scott, a UConn defender who flicked a shot past Boija and clinched two points for the Huskies.
An overall five of six points acquired on the weekend on a successful road trip for the Ice Bus.
Next up for the Huskies is a heavyweight battle with Boston College. The Ice Bus travels to Chestnut Hill on Friday night and then plays at PeoplesBank Arena in Hartford, Conn. on Saturday afternoon. UConn holds a two-point lead on BC for second place in Hockey East, and next weekend will determine who has the stranglehold on second.
Regardless of the big matchup looming next weekend, the Ice Bus will enjoy the four-hour ride home.