LOWELL, Mass. - Despite two goals from freshman Chris Delaney (Hopkinton, Mass.), the UMass Lowell ice hockey team (0-1-0, 0-0-0 Hockey East) dropped a 4-2 decision against Minnesota Duluth (1-1-0, 0-0-0 NCHC) in Friday night's season opener at the Tsongas Center.
Both of Delaney's first two collegiate goals came from graduate student Ben Meehan (Walpole, Mass.), as they each concluded the game with two points. Junior TJ Schweighardt (Manahawkin, N.J.) also added an assist on Delaney's first goal.
Junior Beni Halasz (Budapest, Hungary) got the starting nod for the River Hawks between the pipes, making 25 saves. Junior Isac Jonsson (Ängelholm, Sweden), Meehan and freshman Libor Nemec (Bratislava, Slovakia) each collected a block, and the UMass Lowell penalty kill successfully killed off six Minnesota Duluth power plays.
"We started the game, and we scored first, that was a goal of ours," said Head Coach Norm Bazin. "I thought we fell into a lull in the second period, having to kill three penalties and draining some of our energy. The third period was a little more eventful. I thought we had a stint of 10 minutes there that was the game we want to play, but we'll have to try to push for that for 60 minutes tomorrow. I think the game was more of a fabrication of not helping ourselves. Unforced turnovers were the story of the game for me, and I thought we gave them a few of those goals and they can execute, as you saw."
The River Hawks got things going early, putting the pressure on the Minnesota Duluth defensive unit and goaltender, Adam Gajan, and finishing the first period with 11 shots on goal compared to the Bulldogs' eight. Delaney went on to open up the scoring at the 12:36 mark of the first. Schweighardt sent the puck around the back of the net to Meehan, who found Delaney in front of the net. He fired a backhand off the pad of Gajan and buried the second chance shot to make it a 1-0 game. Minnesota Duluth then answered with two goals at the 13:27 and 15:06 mark, sending each team to the locker room with the score at 2-1.
The second period was back-and-forth, as each team put nine shots on goal. A Minnesota Duluth goal at the 10:09 mark was the difference in the period, but there was no shortage of River Hawk scoring opportunities. From the 11:450 mark to the 12:11 mark, junior Connor Eddy (Victoria, B.C.), Nemec, Meehan and sophomore Jak Vaarwerk (Clarence, N.Y.) each threatened with chances, but they were just saved.
The River Hawks began to battle back in the third period following an early Minnesota Duluth goal, out-shooting the Bulldogs, 18-12, while limiting their chances. Senior Owen Cole (Dunnville, Ontario) had a near goal just over the six-minute mark off a Jonsson rebound that he was not able to get a good stick on. Not long after, at 6:43, graduate student Ian Carpentier (Worcester, Mass.) skated through the left faceoff circle and blasted a shot that was just saved.
Delaney notched his second goal of the evening with 8:42 remaining in the game, collecting a pass from Meehan near center ice, skating into the offensive zone, and sniping one past Gajan and into the top left corner. Now at a two-goal game, the River Hawks rode the momentum and fired off seven more shots on goal, but none could find the back of the net and the game concluded at 4-2.
The River Hawks return to Tsongas tomorrow, October 12, for game two against Minnesota Duluth. Puck drop is set for 6:05 p.m.
