BOSTON, Mass. – Powered by a last second goal in the middle period, the UMass Boston men's hockey team defeated UMass Dartmouth, 5-2 in game one of the 59th Annual Codfish Bowl Tournament, hosted at Edward T. Barry Rink. The Beacons improve to 5-7 on the season, while the Corsairs slip to 4-5 overall.
The Beacons opened the game's scoring less than three minutes into the frame as junior forward Jazz Krivtsov scored his seventh of the season. Senior forward Evan Googins earned the primary assist as he dug the puck out of the boards to the right behind the goal. Backhanding the puck to the low slot, Krivtsov was there for the wrister at 2:48. Senior forward Kolye Bankauskas earned the secondary assist.
It was Krivtsov again at 5:55 as he collected the puck and navigated through the top of the right circle. His shot sailed past traffic in front and into the upper right corner of the net past the Corsairs goalie for the 2-0 advantage. Rookie forward Alex Keller and sophomore forward Jack Mortson were credited with the assists.
The Corsairs pulled it to within one on an outstanding individual effort by junior left winger
Tyler Stewart. With the Beacons skating into the neutral zone, Stewart intercepted the puck and navigated back into the UMass Boston zone. Skating at the top of the left circle, the third year forward roofed a shot the went over the shoulder of senior goalie Tyler Bost at 6:44.
UMass Boston had a number of chances throughout the remainder of the frame as the Beacons owned an 18-6 advantage in shots on goal, but the Corsairs saw junior netminder
Graham Burke record 16 saves to send it into the first intermission with a 2-1 lead for the homestanding Beacons.
In the second period, the Corsairs nabbed the equalizer at 4:32, once again off the stick of Stewart. Collecting the puck at the far boards, sophomore center
Nolan Wutzke skated through the left circle, finding Stewart with a cross-slot pass as the junior banked it into the open right side of the net.
The Corsairs continued to battle, killing off a 5-on-3 power play in favor of the Beacons midway through the frame to keep things knotted at 2-all. Despite the momentum, UMass Dartmouth was unable to hold off UMass Boston.
With 1.6 seconds remaining in the second stanza, sophomore forward Jakob Teply raced up the boards. Settling the puck at the goal line on the right side, Teply found an open Mortson in the left circle as he buried the puck through a screen for the go-ahead tally. Sophomore forward Chris Repmann earned the secondary assist on the goal.
Third period action saw the homestanding Beacons add another tally on the board as Krivtsov netted a hat trick at 3:39. Bankauskas through the right circle, sending a pass through the slot as Krivtsov fired it in for the two-goal advantage (4-2). Googins earned the secondary assist on the goal.
UMass Dartmouth had a solid chance with 12:09 remaining on the clock as rookie right wing
Blake Kashark sprinted into the Beacons zone but was tripped up on his way toward goal. The first year was awarded a penalty shot, but UMB's Bost made a solid save to keep the score locked at 4-2.
Late in the game and with the Corsairs looking for a goal, UMD pulled Burke in favor of the empty net. The Corsairs looked to pull back to within one, but an empty net goal from senior forward Ty Matthews in the final 30 seconds sealed the victory for the Beacons.
UMass Dartmouth was paced by a two-goal effort from Stewart, who added six shots, including three on goal. Wutzke had the lone assist on the day, going 13-of-31 in the faceoff circle with three blocked shots. Between the pipes, Burke boasted an incredible effort with a career-high 56 saves on the afternoon, including 22 in the third period of action.
The Corsairs will now play in the consolation game of the 59th Annual Codfish Bowl Tournament at 1pm. UMass Dartmouth will face the loser of Friday's second game between Wisconsin Superior and Fitchburg State – which gets underway around 4pm.
