TROY, N.Y. - Senior forward Liam Devlin (Needham, Mass.) recorded two goals and two assists, while junior forward Cy LeClerc (Brentwood, N.H.) posted one goal and three assists as the University of New Hampshire men's hockey team defeated the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 7-4, on Saturday afternoon at Houston Field House in non-conference action. The four points were each a career-high for Devlin and LeClerc.
Sophomore forward Nick Ring (Hingham, Mass.), senior forward Robert Cronin (Plymouth, Mass.), senior captain Alex Gagne (Bedford, N.H.) and senior alternate captain Nikolai Jenson (Cold Spring, Minn.) each scored for the Wildcats. Cronin also had an assist for two points and sophomore forward Ryan Conmy (Alexandria, Va.) tallied two assists.
Junior goalie Jared Whale (Calgary, Alberta) made 16 saves to earn the win.
The Wildcats, who are 4-0-1 over their last five games, improve to 8-4-3, while the Engineers fall to 6-9-2.
UP NEXT:
- The Wildcats return to action for a two-game series at Princeton on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 3-4 at Hobey Baker Rink. Friday's game is at 7 p.m. and the contest on Saturday will start at 4 p.m. Both games can be viewed on ESPN+.
- The next home game for UNH is versus UConn on Friday, Jan. 10 at 7 p.m. Hot dogs will be just $1 with a maximum of five per order.
- Tickets can be purchased at UNHWildcats.com/BuyTickets or by calling the ticket office at (603) 862-4000. Don't miss the most exciting family entertainment in New Hampshire.
Score: New Hampshire 7, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute 4
Records: UNH (8-4-3, 2-3-2 Hockey East); RPI (6-9-2, 1-5-0 ECAC)
Location: Troy, N.Y. (Houston Field House)
Date: Saturday, Dec. 28, 2024
Attendance: 2,138
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- The Wildcats took a 1-0 lead just 1:36 after the opening faceoff when Ring knocked in a rebound off a shot by LeClerc for the power play goal. Ring now has four goals this season. Devlin also recorded an assist on the goal.
- The 'Cats extended the advantage to 2-0 at 7:26 with a goal by Cronin as he sent the puck to the upper stick side of the net from the slot off a pass from sophomore forward Marty Lavins (Riga, Latvia) for his fourth goal of the year. Sophomore forward J.P. Turner (East Falmouth, Mass.) posted an assist.
- The Wildcats scored their third straight goal at 10:45 when Devlin tipped in a shot by senior defenseman Luke Reid (Warman, Saskatchewan) for his sixth goal of the season. LeClerc tallied an assist as he sent the faceoff to Reid.
- At 6:25 of the second period, Gagne scored glove side from the slot to increase the lead to 4-0. The goal was his third of the year. Junior forward Kristaps Skrastins (Grobina, Latvia) and senior assistant captain Connor Sweeney (North Andover, Mass.) each posted an assist.
- The Engineers then concluded the period with two consecutive goals to cut the lead to 4-2 as Jagger Tapper (8:04) and Gustavs Ozolins each found back of the net.
- The Wildcats moved out to a 5-2 lead at 3:50 of the third period as Jenson scored his first goal of the season, glove side from the right faceoff circle. Senior defenseman Luis Lindner (Spittal an der Drau, Austria) and Cronin each tallied an assist.
- Just 40 seconds later, LeClerc blasted a one-timer stick side for his fifth goal of the year for the 6-2 lead. Conmy and Devlin each had an assist.
- Devlin then scored glove side from right outside the crease for his second goal of the game and seventh of the season at 6:28 to make the score 7-2 while on the power play. Conmy and LeClerc each recorded an assist.
- William Gilson (17:12) and Tyler Hotson (18:29) each scored late for RPI for the 7-4 final.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- UNH outshot RPI, 44-20.
- The Wildcats went 2-3 on the power play and the Engineers went 0-3.
- Whale tallied 16 saves to improve to 8-4-3 on the season, while Noah Giesbrecht posted 30 saves and allowed six goals. Jack Watson allowed one goal and made seven saves for RPI.
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:
- The Wildcats are now 28-24-0 all-time versus the Engineers and have won four straight in the series.
- UNH is 6-1-2 over its last nine games.
- UNH has scored 26 goals over the last five games outscoring the opposition 26-12.
- The last time UNH scored seven goals was a 7-1 win versus Mercyhurst on Dec. 31, 2021 in Hanover, N.H.
- Conmy extended his point streak to nine games with four goals and eight assists for 12 points, while he has at least one point in 13 of the 14 games he has played in this season with eight goals and 10 assists for 18 points.
- Devlin is on a seven-game point streak with six goals and seven assists for 13 points.
- LeClerc moved his point streak to three games. He has one goal and six assists for seven points during the streak.
- The last time a Wildcat posted four points was senior defenseman Colton Huard (Foothill Ranch, Calif.) when he recorded one goal and three assists on Jan. 8, 2022, in the 5-1 win.
- Skrastins recorded his first point of the season.
- The game winner by Jenson was the first of his career.
