BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings
HARTFORD, CT – Chase Stevenson scored twice and the game-winner as the only goal of the third as UNH won its fifth in a row as they knocked off UCONN 3-1 Friday night at the XL Center.
UNH scored in third as Chase Stevenson converted the shot initially by Ryan Verrier that went off Harrison Rees and came right to a wide-open Stevenson who put away his second of the season 20-feet out from Darion Hanson who was reacting to the first shot attempt that never came at 8:51 for what became the game-winner.
“I tip my hat to New Hampshire tonight they played a strong game tonight. It was a 1-1 game going into the third period. They made a few more plays in the third period than we did They deserve to win the game, they worked hard, “remarked UCONN head coach Mike Cavanaugh in his opening postgame remarks.
Darion Hanson kept it close stopping Jackson Pierson, New Hampshire’s leading scorer on a break-in with 6:34 left, and shortly afterward before UNH scored Marc Gatcomb hit the post for UCONN.
UCONN put on all sorts of pressure late as Roman Kinal hit iron with 3:44 (one three posts they hit in the final period, four in total) to go as the Wildcats came away with the precious three points with a regulation win.
Johnny Evans, had his offensive chances since the second semester of hockey started, but the puck wouldn’t drop for him because Mike Robinson (28 saves) was in the way, or New Hampshire blocked or deflected the puck away.
Cavanaugh addressed the lack of goal scoring that has hit the team straight on.
“Were in a funk offensively it’s three games in a row with (just) one goal. You’re not gonna win a lot of hockey games with one goal. We gotta get more bodies and pucks to the net.
Your scoring goals when you’re fighting for that ice, sometimes you have a tendency to drift away from the net. Thinking that’s how you’re gonna get a shot on net, that’s not how you’re gonna score. We’re not creating (enough) chances off the rush.
We’re holding on to the puck too long; we’re playing a little indecisive at times. So it’s a good word for our club right now…indecisive playing with enough conviction in putting our opponents on their heels,” said Cavanaugh with his head cocked to his left as he searched mentally to analyze and articulate the difficulties his team is presently experiencing.
All the goal scoring of the game came late in the second period, UCONN got on the scoreboard first as John Spetz on the left wing was rejected by UNH’s Mike Robinson (San Jose Shark draftee), the fifth-year Player, but the rebound popped to the newest UCONN Husky from South Windsor Jake Veilleux from South Windsor.
He came off the right point and his shot went over the net. However, the freshmen stayed with the play behind the UNH net found the bouncing puck, and backhanded a pass with a rolling puck to Carter Turnbull who made no mistake burying his fourth of the year with 2:44 remaining before the second intermission.
Penalties at critical times happened so again with a late call on Jacob Flynn and they paid for it.
UNH’s Jackson Pierson took a cross-ice pass from on the right-wing traversed East-West in the UCONN defensive zone. He then weaved his way in for a solid dead center shot in the high slot and Darion Hanson perfect all night for UCONN to this point made the save, but the rebound went right to Hockey East freshmen of the week, Colton Huard on a sharp angle 20 feet out, buried his goal with 41.9 seconds with left in the second period.
Huard now has four goals in five games and a personal five-game point streak and now has 13 points.
It wasn’t a massive quantity of shots given up, but it was the quality of the shots.
“We made a mistake in the neutral zone on that one, it was a bad read. Then we three on two’s that’d not a play you wanna pinch in on ! We gave up a few more Grade A’s than I would have liked tonight.”
In the second period Darion Hansin (32 saves) shone for the Huskies as he stopped Eric MacAdams early in the period, Jackson Pierson on a strong bid, Tyler Ward on a left-wing wraparound shot, Robert Cronin on a backhand, and West Haven’s Eric Esposito.
UCONN tried to answer back with six minutes go as they had a good chance off a drop pass by Ryan Tverberg. Vladislav Firstov, like Evans, had some solid chances for a change.
“He was excellent, but we have to give him more than one goal (to work with) a game,” said Cavanaugh.
Each team has a fair amount of quality scoring chance in the scoreless first period.
The first good one came off the stick of the visiting Wildcats of New Hampshire on a two-on-one, just 2:45 into the game as Nikolai Jenson on the right wing was stopped by Darion Hanson.
Carter Turnbull on one of the most effective series of shifts in the game saw Turnbull get stopped twice, first by fifth-year start Robinson on first, a high shot, and then at 12:10, he took away the low part of the cage making the second save.
A minute later Jake Flynn was stopped, then Tverberg tried a short-handed bid was sent away to the left-wing corner as Kalle Eriksson forced him off.
Then Liam Devlin for UNH at 15:13 was turned away by Hanson and then with 4:15 left UCONN had its best chance as arc Gatcomb was stopped at the UNH doorstep.
LINES
O’Neil-Kondelik-Tverberg
Gatcomb-Evans-Turnbull
Bowes Telguine-Jake Veilleux
Wheeler-Rees
Berger-Spetz
Kinal-Gourley
Flynn
Hanson
Terness
NOTES:
Chase Bradley will serve a one game Hockey East issued suspension tonight for an errant elbow last week against BU that was unpenalized, but suspendable despite scoring the game winning goal last Friday.
-South Windsor native Jake Veilleux, made his collegiate debut, He spent the last two years with the Victoria Grizzlies (BCHL) after four years at Selects Academy at South Kent Prep program.
-UNH has Eric Esposito (West Haven/Loomis Chaffe-Windsor) in their lineup.
-UNH is coming off a series where they beat BC the first time they had beaten the Eagles since 2009.
Huard, was the conference defensive Player of the Week two weeks ago is the son on of former very rough and ready, one time NHL-AHL forward Bill Huard who started out in the Devils system.
