CANTON, N.Y.-In a gritty, down-to-the-wire battle in North Country, the No. 15 UMass Lowell men's hockey team (11-3-3, 8-2-1 Hockey East) held off a comeback effort from St. Lawrence (4-8-4, 3-3-2 ECAC) to secure the 3-2 decision Wednesday night at Appleton Arena.
Special teams highlighted the night, with junior Carl Berglund (Hammaro, Sweden) and graduate student Nick Austin (St. Louis Park, Minn.) each scoring on the power play. Junior Marek Korencik (Zilina, Slovakia) extended his scoring streak to two games after tallying the game-tying goal just six minutes into the match.
Leading the scoresheet, Berglund finished the night with two points off his extra-man goal and an assist. Senior Reid Stefanson (Winnipeg, Manitoba) matched Berglund's point total with assists on both power play goals.
Between the pipes, senior Owen Savory (Cambridge, Ontario) registered 23 saves and led a penalty kill unit to a perfect outing.
"Tonight seemed to be a typical game after a long layoff. Energy and effort were good but the execution inconsistent," commented Head Coach Norm Bazin. "Some of the positives we will build on were the way we responded to their first goal with two of our own and the special teams. Now, we will start to prepare for our next opponent."
After the Saints took the early lead just minutes into the action, the River Hawks retaliated with unrelating pressure in the offensive zone. A scrum in front of St. Lawrence netminder Emil Zetterquist sent the puck loose, only to be wrangled by freshman Owen Cole (Dunnville, Ontario). Connecting with classmate Isac Jonsson (Angelholm, Sweden) on the wing, the freshman defender skated behind the net to linemate Korencik for a quick handoff. The junior then went straight for the goal, flicking a shot up and over Zetterquist's blocker to net the equalizer.
The River Hawks found the back of the net once again after a late hooking call sent the Saints to the box. Winning the faceoff, UMass Lowell quickly settled the puck. Crisp passing by the River Hawks' special teams drew the St. Lawrence penalty kill towards the boards, opening the lane for Berglund to strike. The Swedish forward found the cross from Stefanson and fired in the shot off a one-timer to send the River Hawks into the first intermission up 2-1.
UMass Lowell's special teams returned to action late in the second as the River Hawks earned their third power play opportunity of the night. With the seconds ticking down on the extra-man, Berglund a pass to Austin, who smacked the puck in from under the blueline to give the River Hawks the 3-1 lead.
The Saints retaliated late in the second as Reilly Moran caught Savory off guard in a one-on-one showdown to slice the River Hawks' advantage back down to one heading into the break.
A five-minute penalty against UMass Lowell tested the penalty kill group as St. Lawrence fought to even the score. Strong defending kept the Saints to just five shots on the extra-man as the River Hawks kept the home squad scoreless. St. Lawrence launched one last push for the clutch goal, but UMass Lowell held strong to secure the 3-2 road win to close out 2021.
The River Hawks open the back half of the 2021-22 campaign in the friendly confines of the Tsongas Center on Jan. 5, 2022, when they welcome Bentley for a non-conference clash. Puck drop for the midweek matchup is set for 7 p.m.
