PRINCETON, N.J. - Sophomore forward Ryan Conmy (Alexandria, Va.) scored the game winner in the third period and junior goalie Jared Whale (Calgary, Alberta) recorded a shutout as the No. 20 University of New Hampshire men's hockey team defeated Princeton, 3-0, on Friday night at Hobey Baker Rink in non-conference action.
Senior forward Robert Cronin (Plymouth, Mass.) and sophomore forward Marty Lavins (Riga, Latvia) each scored for the Wildcats, while junior forward Morgan Winters (Osprey, Fla.) added two assists for two points.
Whale made 15 saves to earn the win and post his second shutout of the season.
The Wildcats, who are 5-0-1 over their last six games, improve to 9-4-3, while the Tigers had their five-game winning streak snapped and fall to 6-5-1.
UP NEXT:
- The Wildcats will conclude the two-game series at Princeton on Saturday, Jan. 4 at Hobey Baker Rink at 4 p.m. on ESPN+ and TSN+.
- Next up for the Wildcats will be a home-and-home series versus UConn on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 10-11 on ESPN+. The game on Friday is at the Whitt at 7 p.m. with a UNH men's hockey calendar giveaway for the first 500 fans and hot dogs will be just $1 with a maximum of five per order, while the contest on Saturday is at Toscano Family Ice Forum at 4 p.m.
- 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: #20 New Hampshire 3, Princeton 0 Records: UNH (9-4-3, 2-3-2 Hockey East); Princeton (6-5-1, 3-4-1 ECAC) Location: Princeton, N.J. (Hobey Baker Rink) Date: Friday, Jan. 3, 2025 Attendance: 2,020
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- The first period went scoreless as the Wildcats outshot the Tigers, 6-5.
- With 2:08 left in the second period, the Tigers went on a five-minute major power play but the Wildcats kept Princeton off the scoreboard.
- Then at 6:07 of the third period, junior forward Cy LeClerc (Brentwood, N.H.) sent a pass to Conmy in the slot who controlled the puck with his skate, and then blasted a shot glove side to give the Wildcats a 1-0 lead. The goal was his ninth of the season. Winters also posted an assist.
- UNH increased the lead to 2-0 at 15:14 when Cronin knocked in a rebound off a shot by sophomore forward J.P. Turner (East Falmouth, Mass.) for his fifth goal of the season. Senior defenseman Luke Reid (Warman, Saskatchewan) also recorded an assist.
- The Tigers pulled the goalie as Lavins clinched the win with an empty net goal at 17:58 for the 3-0 final. Winters and senior alternate captain Nikolai Jenson (Cold Spring, Minn.) each tallied an assist.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- UNH outshot Princeton, 19-15.
- The Tigers went 0-2 on the power play.
- Whale tallied 15 saves to improve to 9-4-3 and earned his second shutout of the season, while Arthur Smith posted 16 saves for the Tigers and is now 5-2-0.
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:
- The Wildcats are now 16-2-0 all-time versus the Tigers and have won nine straight in the series. Prior to tonight, the last time UNH played Princeton at Hobey Baker Rink was a 7-5 win on Jan. 5, 1983.
- UNH is 7-1-1 versus non-conference competition this season and 3-1-1 against the ECAC.
- UNH has scored 29 goals over the last six games outscoring the opposition 29-12.
- Conmy extended his point streak to 10 games with five goals and eight assists for 13 points, while he has at least one point in 14 of the 15 games he has played in this season with nine goals and 10 assists for 19 points.
- Conmy's goal gave him his 50th career point as he has 23 goals and 27 points for 50 points.
- Whale now has four career shutouts as he also posted two with Alaska Anchorage.
- LeClerc moved his point streak to four games. He has one goal and seven assists for eight points during the streak.
- Winters now has six career multi-point games.
- Reid is currently on a three-game point streak with three assists for three points.
- The game winner by Conmy was his first this season and the fourth of his career.
