Saturday in Union Hockey

by Ryan Fay

Some thoughts on a sour Saturday in Union hockey....

CLARKSON 3, DUTCHWOMEN 2

The Dutchwomen's 3-2 loss to Clarkson ranks as one of the most heart-breaking hockey losses I've ever experienced first hand.                

Clarkson entered the game ranked sixth in the country but the Dutchwomen had a 2-1 lead with under 10 minutes left in regulation. The win would have been Union's first league win of the year and undoubtedly the biggest win in the program's Division I history.

There was a sense in the rink that something special was about to happen. When Kelly McGrath gave Union a 2-1 at 14:57 of the second period, just 25 seconds after Clarkson's Erin Ambrose tied the game, there was a sense that maybe this was Union's day. As minutes began to vanish off the clock in the third period, that sense grew stronger.

But Danielle Skirrow tied the game at 11:15 of the third period and Vanessa Gagnon delivered a dagger through the hearts of Union fans with the game winning goal with 13 seconds left in the third period. It was one of the most deflating goals I have seen in a long time. A game that seemed destined to be one to remember ended up being one to forget.

"That goal at the end was unfortunate. I think it tipped up, but accidentally," said Union head coach Claudia Asano Barcomb. "Our kids had a great night. It was a great game from the beginning to the end. In the last two periods they were even in shots and chances."

Jessica Kaminsky began the scoring with a power play goal at 6:45 of the second period.

The Dutchwomen, who were outshot 34-24, hit the road next weekend and take on Brown and Yale. The Dutchwomen tied Yale, 1-1, on December 7th. The next day, Union dropped a 1-0 decision to Brown.

"They're both playing well," Barcomb said of Brown and Yale. "I've seen some scores with Brown and the games will be battles. But we're looking forward to it."

ST. LAWRENCE 4, DUTCHMEN 2

With first period goals from Greg Carey, Tommy Thompson, and Gunnar Hughes, St. Lawrence stormed out to a 3-0 lead and 18th-ranked Union never recovered.

Union, which outshot St. Lawrence, 41-28, didn't hit paydirt until 15:34 of the second period when Mat Bodie scored on the power play. Freshman David Roy picked up an assist on the goal for his first collegiate point.

Bodie collected his second point of the night on Daniel Carr's power play goal at 2:25 of the third period. The point was the 79th of his Union career, tying him with Lane Caffaro for the most career points by a Union defenseman.

When Carr's power play goal made it a 3-2 game, it seemed as if Union might have a comeback in them. But Jeremy Wick's power play goal increased the lead to 4-2 at 9:46 of the third period and that's how it ended.

Union's penalty kill continued to be leaky. The Dutchmen allowed three power play goals for the first time since Feb. 25th 2012 against Colgate. Over the past three games, the Union penalty kill has allowed six goals on 14 chances, a rate that won't win anyone many games.

Union played without Shawn Stuart, who suffered a lower-body injury in Friday's loss at Clarkson. He missed five games in January with an upper-body injury.

The revolving door in goal continued as both Troy Grosenick and Colin Stevens saw action for the second straight night. The former stopped 23 of 26 shots and the latter stopped 1 of 2 shots.

The Dutchmen, who have slipped to seventh place in the league standings, return home to face Yale and Brown next weekend. When Union traveled to Brown and Yale on Dec. 7-8, the Dutchmen skated to back to back ties. A 3-3 tie at Brown preceded a 4-4 tie at Yale.