STORRS, Conn. - The UConn men's hockey team finished off the year 2023 with a win as they took down Harvard College by a final of 4-2. Freshman Jake Richard, sophomore Jake Black and sophomore Jake Percival all scored making it a "Jake-Trick," while senior goaltender Ethan Haider made 18 saves in the victory.
The Huskies started the game strong, as freshman Jake Richard tipped a pass from sophomore Tom Messineo into the net only 40 seconds into the game. The Huskies did not find the back of the net again in the first period, but dominated the period, holding an 18-5 edge in shots on goal.
Harvard bounced back in the second period, as Joe Miller scored a power play goal two minutes into the period to tie the game at one. With the game tied, UConn went back on the attack, and following a faceoff win in the Huskies attacking zone, sophomore Tom Messineo once again put the puck on net, and sophomore Jake Black was in front for the tip in goal. Later in the second period, senior Andrew Lucas stole the puck in the Huskies attacking zone and found sophomore Jake Percival in front of the net for the tip in goal, to give UConn the 3-1 lead heading into the third period.
After a turnover at the point by UConn, Zakary Karpa of Harvard was left alone on the breakaway and fired the shot past senior goaltender Ethan Haider to cut UConn's lead down once again to one. With the one goal lead, UConn's defense tightened up and made key plays to prevent Harvard from tying the game. Senior captain Hudson Schandor and junior Chase Bradley, made their presence felt on the defensive end, combining for eight blocked shots. With time running down in the third period, Harvard pulled their netminder for an extra attacker. However, Chase Bradley was able to collect the puck and score the empty net goal to secure the win.
UConn will be back in action January 5, as they travel to Amherst, Massachusetts for a matchup against Massachusetts. Puck drop is scheduled for 7pm on NESN.
