HANOVER, N.H. - UConn senior Alexander Payusov (Montreal, Quebec) scored the game-tying goal with 0.3 seconds left in regulation to lift the Huskies to a 2-2 tie with St. Lawrence in the opening game of the 31st Ledyard Classic at Dartmouth. The Huskies would go on to win a nine-round shoot-out with the Saints to earn a tournament victory and will have a shot at winning the Ledyard Classic trophy on Sunday night.
The Huskies were without their starting goaltender Tomas Vomacka (Trutnov, Czech Republic) due to illness so junior Bradley Stone (London, England) got his first collegiate start for UConn and came up with a tremendous performance. Stone turned in 21 saves and came up with seven stops during the nine-round shoot-out to lead the Huskies.
St. Lawrence got a first period power play goal from Alex Gilmour and then answered a UConn goal in the second period with one from Jordan Steinmetz to take a 2-1 lead into the third. The Saints looked headed for the win as the Huskies pulled the goaltender with 1:26 left for an extra attacker. The tying goal came with 0.3 seconds left in the game as Payusov just beat the final horn to send the game to overtime.
UConn senior Wyatt Newpower (Hugo, Minn.) scored the Huskies' first goal of the night, tying the game up in the second period. The Huskies held a 41-23 shot advantage on the night as SLU goaltender Emil Zetterquist turned away 39 in taking the loss.
In the shoot-out, St. Lawrence's Gilmour gave his team a 1-0 edge at the start of round three, but UConn's Benjamin Freeman (Falmouth, Maine) answered forcing the sudden death stage that would go six more rounds. UConn sophomore Carter Turnbull (Nanaimo, British Columbia) ended it in the ninth round, giving the Huskies a 2-1 win for tournament scoring purposes.
1st Period:
The Huskies out shot SLU in the first, 11-10, but the Saints won the special teams battle, scoring on their first of two power play chances. SLU's Gilmor notched his second goal on the season at the 6:04 mark of the first, burying a rebound at the right post off a Jordan Steinmetz shot from the point for a 1-0 lead.
2nd Period:
The Huskies tied the game up at 1-1 at 10:11 on Newpower's second on the season. The puck went deep into the UConn zone where St. Lawrence collected and tried to clear. Newpower broke up the attempt just inside the blue line and threw a shot on net that fooled Zetterquist to the far post, pulling the game even.
The Saints would answer right back at the 12:49 mark as Steinmetz scored his third of the year. Stone got a stop on a Zach Risteau shot but the Huskies couldn't collect the rebound and Steinmetz found it in the slot area and buried it on an open net to put his team up 2-1.
3rd Period:
The Huskies were all over St. Lawrence in the third, getting 15 shots on net to just two for the Saints. UConn couldn't crack Zetterquist and pulled Stone with 1:26 left to get the extra attacker on the ice.
UConn found the tying goal just before the horn as the puck cycled to the point where Carter Berger (N. Vancouver, British Columbia) fired one last shot. The puck was blocked and found Jonny Evans (North Delta, British Columbia) in the slot who rifled and the rebound was banged in by Payusov just beating the final horn to send the game to overtime.
Up Next:
The Huskies will take on the host Dartmouth Big Green on Sunday night at 7 pm to close out the 31st Ledyard Classic.
