ORONO, Me. - The University of Maine men's ice hockey team defeated the Union College Dutchmen, 4-3, on Saturday evening in the Alfond Arena.
First Goal (1-0 Union): The Dutchmen struck early in the first period with a dirty goal. Ryan Sidorski fired a shot from the blue line. Chaz Smedsrud managed to get his stick on the puck before it found its way to Victor Ostman. Unable to adjust to the deflection, Maine trailed 1-0 in the opening minutes.
Second Goal (1-1): Less than three minutes later, Keenan Suthers tied the non-conference contest at one goal apiece. Jakub Sirota started the rush with a pass ahead to Tristan Poissant. The sophomore forward tossed the puck over to Suthers who faked the Union netminder off his line and onto his back. The Saturday night contest was tied 1-1 6:43 into the first period.
Third Goal (2-1 Maine): The Black Bears took a first period lead with a power play goal from Ben Poisson. Lynden Breen found Donavan Villeneuve-Houle at the far post. The Montreal, Quebec native used a touch pass and found Poisson all by himself. At the end of 20:00, Maine held a 2-1 lead.
Fourth Goal (3-1 Maine): Nolan Renwick scored his first career goal 2:05 into the second period. Jakub Sirota set up the whole play with a few quick moves, causing the Union defender to lose his balance. The defenseman left the puck for Renwick, who did the rest. On the freshman's first career goal, the Black Bears grabbed a 3-1 lead.
Fifth Goal (3-2 Maine): Victor Ostman turned the puck over behind his net, and the Dutchmen took advantage. The sophomore goaltender passed the puck directly to Caden Villegas who pulled his team within a goal. With just over 18 minutes left in regulation, Maine led by a goal.
Sixth Goal (3-3): Caden Villegas had his original shot saved by Victor Ostman. The rebound deflected backwards and into the crease. Matt Allen corralled the puck and tied the non-conference Saturday night game, 3-3.
Seventh Goal (4-3 Maine): Having already scored a goal earlier in the contest, Nolan Renwick was behind the Union net with the puck. The freshman made a move and found Dawson Bruneski crashing the net. Bruneski played the puck on net, but it bounced off an Union skate, directly to Keenan Suthers. The forward scored his second of the net on a wide open net.
Maine held onto the 4-3 lead after killing off a five minute major over the final 5:23 of regulation.
Notes:
Victor Ostman stopped 27 shots for the Black Bears, while Connor Murphy tallied 38 saves for Union.
Maine went 1 for 2 on their power play opportunities, as the Dutchmen were 0-2 on its player advantages.
The Black Bears blocked four shots and won 37 face-offs as a team.
Next:
Maine returns to the ice on December 31 at Penn State. Puck drop for the Friday night non-conference contest is scheduled for 5:00 pm.
