As I walked to Messa rink last night, I did not understand the kind of battle this game was going to be. I spoke with Phil Cohn (the student manager) just prior to the game, who told me about Colgate's 6-4 220 behemoth captain, Corbin McPherson and how they have the nation's leading goal scorer, Austin Smith (26g, 27gp). On top of that, Phil alerted me that our own Troy Grosenick, the nation's leading goaltender, would be sitting tonight in favor of our back-up, albiet strong back-up, Colin Stevens. This game was going to be no walk in the park.
First Period
Right after puck drop, you could see that Union did not get a good jump out of the gates. The defense did not play all that well in the opening minutes. Colgate, on the other hand, came out swinging. I suppose they smelled fresh meat when they saw that Troy was not in goal. The Union defense allowed Colgate offensive zone freedom, and worse, let the forwards get past them. It only took 2 shots on goal before Colgate's Mark Nasca scored on a stuff-in. Stevens seemed to have a tough time getting into a rhythm, putting himself in dangerous positions, but once he had about 9 shots on him, he closed the door. Despite only getting a few shots off at this point, a duo you get used to hearing over the PA in Messa rink evened it up. Welsh (19) from Carr at 11:52 with Coburn picking up the secondary assist. By the end of the period, Union looked like they finally had their feet under them.
Second Period
The second period started with both teams working hard. This first noteworthy event was a familiar sight: a Hatch breakaway. Unfortunately, he hit post. 17:30 left in the second, and we're still tied, and tied we shall stay. The aforementioned behemoth, McPherson took a boarding call not long after the breakaway. Two things became apparent after this call: Union's physical play stepped up to a point in which the Colgate forwards seemed more concerned about not getting hit, than keeping the puck and the confidence of Colin Stevens, who controlled rebounds and began to catch pucks out infront of him was at a high. This strong play was needed as Colgate would go on the PP from a Coburn holding call. Colgate spent virtually the entire PP in their offensive zone but Colin Stevens came up big several times to keep it even. Union was able to make the SOG more even this period after being outshot greatly in the first.
Third Period
In a game as important as this one, I was not comfortable going into the third tied. While Union controlled play in the second, it only takes one bad defensive lapse and Colgate could have the lead. Luckily, there was no such lapse.
Only a minute and a half in and Union went on the powerplay (slashing). Jooris beat the goalie but could not beat the post. Not long after this heart-breaker, Wayne Simpson (14) scored on the power play. In such a tight game, this goal meant everything. In hard working form, Union did not turtle after this goal. A 2-1 game with 10 minutes left is a game you can still lose. Although Union was put on the power play nearly 11 minutes in, Austin Smith, the nation's leader in short handed goals, was absolutely robbed of a shorty at point blank when Colin Stevens flashed the leather, keeping the Dutch on top. In the end, after the first goal let in, Stevens made 20 straight saves and was one of the stars on the ice. In the final 5 minutes, play was back and forth, with Austin Smith cherry picking at the blue line and our own fair share of opportunities. With each team taking time outs with between a minute and 30 seconds left, Colgate's goalie was pulled in favor of an extra skater. In a game where Union completely dominated faceoffs, a big defensive zone win lead to Simpson's (15) second of the night, and empty net goal to seal the deal.
FINAL SCORE UNION OVER COLGATE 3-1
Notes
-Mat Bodie: I couldn't count the amount of times he came up big in the defensive zone. On a team that prides itself on hard work and consistency, Mat Bodie was the epitome of just that.
-Kelly Zajac and Shayne Gostisbehere: Zajac Almost had a Datsyukian, highlight reel assist late in the third and Gostisbehere had what is being referred to as "the silkiest dangle ever seen at a Union game." Maybe I'll throw some video up!
-Jeremy Welsh, Nolan Julseth-White, & Shawn Stuart: A lot of BIG clean hits. They had Colgate scared. Stuart with the hit of the night, utterly annihilating Austin Smith.
-Austin Smith (leading the league in just about everything if I haven't already made that clear) was about as irrelevant in this game as he was trying to play goalie in the empty net right before Wayne-o scored. What an sieve.
-Union beat Colgate on faceoffs something like 45-15. That's how you win games.
-People seemed to think that there were a lot of missed calls in the first. The refs let the kids play.
-The more shots Stevens got under his belt, the better he became. Grosenick is a game time decision tonight against Cornell and if Stevens is in net, I would not feel nearly as nervous as I did going into last night's game.
-Speaking of Cornell, guess who TIED RPI last night after blowing a 2-0 lead? If you guessed Cornell, well, it was pretty obvious given the lead in.
-Guess who got a shout out from Pierre McGuire on NBC sports last night? If you guessed Union, once again, it was kind of obvious.
Big night tonight against Cornell. A win tonight will keep us in the top spot in the conference and give us a bit more breathing room.
INAUGURAL POST
This is my first post on the UHB and surely won't be my last. Evan, Justin, and (Wolfman) Zach are all graduating next year so I was brought on board to learn the ropes before shouldering the weight of the world famous UHB. I'll be doing interviews, the occasional game recap (if Zach misses a game), and whatever else falls my way. Let me know if you have any questions, comments, or suggestions in the comment area. I'm very excited to keep this blog running strong.
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