UMass Lowell Meets UConn in a Home and Home Weekend

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Coming off a disappointing performance on Tuesday night at Boston College, the #13 ranked UMass Lowell River Hawks (8-4-0, 5-2-0) were back at Tsongas Center to host the #7 ranked UConn Huskies (9-2-3, 6-2-2). This would be a home-and-home series that could be seen as a measuring stick for the River Hawks. The Huskies come into this weekend as the top team in Hockey East while the River Hawks begin the weekend in the middle of the pack in the league.

It would take the River hawks less than a minute to show they meant business. Jake Stella came down the left wing side, beat the Huskies defender cut in front of Huskies goaltender Logan Terness and backhanded a shot past him for the game’s first goal. It was Stella’s third of the season and assists went to Jon McDonald and Marrek Koren`cik. The time of the goal was:58 seconds to make it 1-0 Lowell. The goal may have woken up the visitors as they started taking the play to Lowell. For the next couple of minutes River Hawks netminder, Gustavs Davis Grigals was busy. Lowell’s best chance after the score was a one-timer from the left slot by Stefan Owens off a cross-ice half-wall feed from Owen Cole. Shots through the first ten minutes were even at 6-6 Grigals came up with two big saves, first on Jake Flynn on a backhander, then on Chase Bradley on the rebound. The first powerplay went to the Huskies at 11:49 as Korencik went off for holding. They would get two shots on goal during the power play. They also gave Lowell a great shorthand chance that was stopped by Terness. It came off the stick of defenseman Isac Jonsson. After killing the penalty, Lowell’s right winger Matt Crasa came down the right side and he too was stopped by Terness. The River Hawks’ first powerplay came at 16:07 as UConn left winger Justin Pearson went off for hooking. UMass Lowell would get one shot on it. The River Hawks almost made it 2-0 before the period ended but Carl Berglund shot from the right side was denied by Terness. The period ended 1-0 UMass Lowell and shots were 13-12 Connecticut.

The second twenty minutes began with the River Hawks holding the lead. Physical play picked up in the early stages of it with Lowell getting the better of it. The Huskies tied the game on a goal from Bradley, his sixth of the season and it was assisted at 3:59 of the period. Soon after the goal, the River Hawks went back on the PP. They had an early chance on it off a 2-on-1. Filip Svensson was stopped by Terness. Soon after the penalty expired, Lowell regained the lead at 7:06 as Carl Berglund scored his fifth of the season; the helpers went to Svensson and Brian Chambers. The goal was scored from the left side. Lowell went back on the power play as Ryan Tverberg went off for interference at 9:01. UConn had a great chance to tie the game shorthanded on a 2-on-1 however, a goal mouth pass from Bradley off the right wing across the crease did not connect with a teammate. At 11:06 the team played 4-on-4 hockey as both teams had people in the penalty box. With seven minutes left both teams got back to playing 5-on-5 hockey, the River Hawks went back on the PP as Tverberg was sent off for slashing at 13:44. The Huskies killed it off and tied the game off of an offensive end zone faceoff. Nick Capone picked up the loose puck and swooped in from the left side and beat Grigals on the backhand to the short side. The time of the goal which was Capone’s fifth was 17:11 and was assisted by Tristan Fraser who won the draw. The second period ended with the score tied at 2-2 and the shots through two also were even at 24-24.

Coach Norm Bazin has talked in the past about wanting to see his team attack in the third. Through the first nine minutes, it looked like neither team wanted to make that mistake that would put their team behind. UMass Lowell went on the power play at 9:35 when Frader was called for boarding. Connecticut would kill it off, Lowell was now 0-for 6 on the man advantage. The game was coming down to a four-minute affair if a win in regulation was to take place. It was an uneventful rest of the third, so the teams headed to overtime at Tsgonsas.

In the five minutes of 3-on-3 hockey. Connecticut would get the first two chances. As Bradley and Ty Amonte put shots on goal only to be stopped by Grigals. Connecticut had a chance off the stick of Capone that was stopped by the sprawling pad of Grigals. Lowell came right back and won the game on the second goal of the night from Berglund his 6th of the year off an assist from Zach Kaiser goal came at 3:52 of OT.

Both coaches were pleased with the effort of their teams. Connecticut head coach Mike Cavanaugh thought his team took “too many penalties” but also said, “both teams went toe to toe.” Lowell head coach Norm Bazin thought the game “was physical” and liked “that all four lines contributed to the win.” The game-winning goal from Berglund was a great play from a player that has been a bit snake-bitten as of late. The two teams are back at it on Saturday afternoon in Hartford, CT.