LOWELL, Mass. - Junior goaltender Beni Halasz (Budapest, Hungary) posted his first shutout as a River Hawk, as the No. 15 UMass Lowell ice hockey team (9-3-0, 5-2 Hockey East) edged Connecticut, 1-0, Saturday night at the Tsongas Center in Lowell, Mass.
Freshman Libor Nemec (Bratislava, Slovakia) scored the game-winning goal for the River Hawks in the first period, with an assist from graduate student Nick Anderson (Orono, Minn.). Defensively, graduate student Ben Meehan (Walpole, Mass.) led the way with five blocked shots, while junior TJ Schweighardt (Manahawkin, N.J.) got in the way of three and graduate student Pierson Brandon (Irvington, N.Y.) picked up two. Six other skaters all earned one block apiece. Halasz got the nod in net, making 32 saves in the victory for his first win of the season and fifth shutout of his career.
"I thought we had a better level of urgency tonight," said Head Coach Norm Bazin. "I liked our zone exits better than yesterday, I thought we were a little better in the faceoff circle and obviously the power play contributes with one, and the goaltending stayed pretty strong. I thought both goalies were good at both ends."
The River Hawks started hot, peppering shots on goal to begin the game, and eventually cashing in on a power play at the 13:06 mark. On the man advantage, Anderson collected the puck and fired a hard wrist shot on goal that Nemec was able to get a stick on and tip into the back of the net for the lead. Halasz was productive on the other end for UMass Lowell, blanking the Huskies in the first period to help bring the game to intermission with a 1-0 score.
Both teams traded off scoring opportunities throughout much of the second period, with crucial saves from Halasz to keep UConn off the board once again. At the 10:59 mark, freshman Lee Parks (Ottawa, Ontario) had a near-goal, hitting the pipe. Towards the end of the second, the River Hawks had a power play opportunity that they were unable to capitalize on but picked up a second power play with 22.4 seconds to go. The squad threatened during that time but could not find the back of the net and the score remained the same at the end of period number two.
Time expired on the power play to start the third, but the River Hawks remained on the offensive, tallying their closest scoring chance of the night, when a Parks shot was deflected and popped in the air, slowly rolling toward the goal, but bounced off the pipe. Later, the River Hawks killed off a Huskies power play that included a Meehan near-goal on a shorthanded 2-on-1 and two Halasz saves. Immediately following the kill, the River Hawks went on the power play after a boarding call, and pressured UConn with scoring chances from senior Matt Crasa (South Setauket, N.Y.) and junior Scout Truman (Lethbridge, Alberta), but could extend the lead. Halasz and the defensive unit continued to make it difficult for the Huskies to get anything going for the remainder of the game, and the River Hawks skated away with the 1-0 win.
Next, the River Hawks will travel to Lake Placid, N.Y., to participate in the Adirondack Winter Invitational over the Thanksgiving break. They are set to take on St. Lawrence on day one of the tournament at 4:00 p.m., before facing off against No. 19 Clarkson on day two at 7:30 p.m. Both games will take place at the historic 1980 Herb Brooks Arena.
