Wilkes Men's Ice Hockey Earns First Conference Win 4-2 over Stevenson
WILKES-BARRE – In front of a packed crowd at the Toyota SportsPlex for the programs inaugural home game on Friday evening, the Wilkes University men's ice hockey team earned both the programs first Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) and United Collegiate Hockey Conference (UCHC) victory with a 4-2 defeat of defending MAC champion Stevenson University.
The Colonels improved to 1-1 in UCHC play and 2-2 overall.
Wilkes broke the scoreless tie just over six minutes into the game when Tyler Barrow (Massapequa, NY/) beat Stevenson goaltender Riley McVeigh through the five-hole with an assist from Wade Novak (Oak Ridge, NJ/).
The Colonels took the first penalty of the game on a tripping minor with 12:51 remaining in the first, but Wilkes was able to kill off the infraction. The Colonels earned their first man-up opportunity at 13:33 when the Mustangs committed a trip, but Wilkes' powerplay unit was unable to convert.
Shortly after the Colonels powerplay ended, Stevenson broke through with a shot off the crossbar and over goalkeeper Brandon Gordon's (Sault Ste. Marie, MI/) right shoulder near side to tie the game at one with 4:20 showing on the clock.
Wilkes jumped back in front at 19:17 as Donald Flynn (Randolph, NJ/) found the net with assists from Nick Fea (Oak Ridge, NJ/) and Michael Gurska (Revere, MA/). That goal was followed 23 seconds later by another tally, this time from Jivan Sidhu (Burnaby, BC/) with a helper from Scott Mueller (Mount Juliet, TN/), putting the Colonels up 3-1 as the first period horn sounded.
The Mustang's started the second on a powerplay after Gurska was called for an elbowing minor with one second left in the first, but Wilkes' penalty kill came through yet again keeping Stevenson off the board. The Colonels found themselves a man down again at 3:13 following a boarding penalty, but Gordon made two big saves to keep the lead.
Wilkes found itself clinging to its two goal lead in the middle of the period, as the Colonels were called for a five-minute contact to the head major and game misconduct. Gordon made three saves during the man-down period before Stevenson was called for a two-minute roughing penalty to end the penalty kill. The Colonels found themselves on the powerplay during the five-minute penalty when the Mustangs were called for cross-checking, giving Wilkes a 35 second powerplay while the major was served. The table turned when Devon Schell (Scarsdale, NY/) was caught hooking an opponent, handing Stevenson a 5-on-3 opportunity, but the penalty kill unit held strong keeping the Mustangs out of the net.
The Colonels were awarded a powerplay opportunity with just 24 seconds elapsed in the third period on a roughing call. Wilkes got off six shots during the two minutes but only two got through to McVeigh, who stopped both.
The Colonels were awarded another man-up chance at 2:42 when a Stevenson player collided with Gordon, heading to the box for goaltender interference.
Wilkes found itself on the penalty kill once again with 7:56 remaining in the game on a delay of game call. The resulting powerplay for the Mustangs was cancelled out when Stevenson was called for charging, resulting in six seconds of 4-on-4 play before the Colonels began a powerplay.
The Mustangs pulled their goalie with 1:12 on the clock, breaking through with a goal with ten seconds left to cut the lead to 3-2. The cage remained empty for Tyson Araujo (Oak Bluffs, MA/), who iced the game at 19:54 with an assist from Flynn as the horn sounded sending the home crowd into a frenzy with a 4-2 win.
Flynn led the scoring for Wilkes with two points and a plus-two rating. Jay Gallagher (Reading, MA/) and Mueller both finished plus-three for the game.
Gordon stopped 29 of 31 shots in the crease for the Colonels.
Wilkes returns to the ice on Saturday when it will host Chatham University for a 7:15 p.m. UCHC game at the Toyota SportsPlex.
