Oh, I think I said earlier this year that surprise results aren’t really upsets anymore and this weekend really showcased that as many of the ranked team dropped at least one contest over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. Skidmore’s Tate Brandon said on Twitter “I don’t think they are really upsets” as he and the Thoroughbreds knocked off Oswego to win their own Invitational tournament. I am open to suggestion on what to call the new phenomenon in D-III hockey and will open with a ROK (Ranked Opponent Knock-off). Lot’s of ROKs to get to in tournament action and non-conference play. Here is this weekend’s wrap-up:
Skidmore Invitational
After knocking off Rivier, 5-3 on Saturday, Skidmore awaited the outcome of the Wilkes v. Oswego game to determine their championship opponent. The Lakers won 5-1 setting up the final everyone wanted and expected to see.
In the championship game the Lakers couldn’t stop Thomas Finck who scored a natural hat trick or solve goaltender Tate Brandon who finished with 32 saves on 33 shots in the Thoroughbreds 4-1 win over Oswego. The tournament win was the third consecutive title for the host school that saw Finck named tournament MVP and Brandon and Kaeden Patrick voted on the All-tournament Team along with Alex DiCarlo and Ryan Dickinson from Oswego; Matt Carlson from Wilkes and Kurt Watson from Rivier.
First Light Great Northern Shootout at Norwich
Plattsburgh used two early power play goals from Ryan Bonfield to set the tone in a 5-0 win over Middlebury in the first round and awaited the outcome between Aurora and Norwich for their championship opponent. The Cadets did not have an easy time with the Spartans who scored early in the third period to threaten Norwich before Callum Jones sealed the 4-2 win with a goal in the final seconds.
In the title game, the Cardinals took advantage of two goals from Jack Ring and 30 saves from goaltender Eli Shiller to take the tournament title for the seventh time in program history by a 3-1 score. Shiller was named the tournament MVP surrendering just one goal on 54 shots in the tournament for Plattsburgh. The Cardinals moved to 7-1-2 on the season with the ROK over No. 11 Norwich.
Terry Moran Invitational
The host school, Castleton, knocked off Franklin Pierce, 5-1 with Andrew Stefura scoring twice for the Spartans. That setup a championship match up with St. Anselm who defeated Buffalo State 5-2 with two goals from their own Andrew Andary.
In the championship game, the Hawks opened the scoring with Andary breaking the ice in the second period. They extended the lead to 2-0 with Matt Hayes scoring on the power play with an assist from Andary. Max Burum with an assist from Jack Murphy extended the lead to 3-0 before Castleton scored two goals early in the third period to trim the deficit to one goal. Chase Reynolds scored the ultimate game winner on the power play with Hayes and Andary assisting and Nick Howard made the 4-3 score stand up with several great saves in the final minutes of regulation. St. Anselm won the tournament and Andary earned Tournament MVP honors with three goals and two assists in the two game tournament.
Stovepipe Tournament
The opening round saw a couple of thrilling games. In the opener, Southern New Hampshire raced out to a 3-0 lead over Tufts only to see the Jumbos rally to tie the score at 3-3 with Tyler Sedlak scoring twice. The Penmen answered back quickly on a goal from freshman Ryan Pomposelli and held Tufts scoreless in the third period to advance with a 4-3 win. New England College and Massachusetts-Dartmouth also played a tight game with the Corsairs taking one-goal leads twice only to see the Pilgrims answer for a 2-2 tie through regulation. In overtime Anthony Cinato scored an unassisted goal to give the Pilgrims a 3-2 win.
In the championship game, the Penmen took an early 1-0 lead only to see NEC rally with three goals in the second period for a 3-1 lead. Ryan Coady cut the gap to a goal with his tally in the first minute of the third period before Cinato added an insurance goal in the 4-2 win. New England College took the Stovepipe title and Cinato earned Tournament MVP honors with his big goals helping the Pilgrims capture the title.
Bowdoin/Colby Face-off
Both Maine schools are off to 4-0-0 starts courtesy of a pair of wins over Johnson & Wales and Massachusetts-Boston in the annual face-off event. On Saturday, the Mules used goals from Jack Sullivan, Max O’Brien and Michael McEachern and a 28-save shutout from Andy Beran to give head coach Blaise MacDonald his 100th win at Colby with a 3-0 victory over the Beacons. On Sunday Colby needed a three- goal rally to remain unbeaten with a 3-2 come-from-behind win over the Wildcats.
Bowdoin continued its hot start under new coach Ben Guite with five different players scoring in a 5-2 win over J&W before blanking UMB on Sunday, 6-0. The balanced scoring continued with 12 different players recording a point and Bobby Pearl, Jesse Lycan and Ethan Kimball each picking up two points. Alex Kozic made 17 saves to earn the shutout for the Polar Bears.
Delta by Marriott Utica Thanksgiving Showcase
The three team round robin featured Plymouth State, Trine and the host team. On Friday, the Pioneers received two goals each from Mic Curran and Khristian Acosta in 5-3 win over Plymouth State. On Saturday, Trine played the Pioneers close. After a scoreless first period, Tim Organ gave the visitors a 1-0 lead before Luca Herrmann and Jakob Breault answered for Utica. The 2-1 lead did not stand Garrett Hallford scored shorthanded to tie the score at 2-2. No scoring in overtime meant a three-round shootout where Dante Zapata scored the only goal for the shootout win – the NCAA records the game as a 2-2 overtime tie.
On Sunday, Plymouth State Brendahn Brawley made 38 saves and Payton Schaly scored his first career goal to give the Panthers a 1-0 win over Trine. The win was coach Craig Russell’s 200th career win and helped PSU finish at 1-1-0 in the tournament.
North Country Tournament
The tournament hosted by Potsdam featured Canton, Stonehill and Hamilton. In first round action Hamilton downed Canton, 3-2 while Potsdam lost an early 2-0 advantage in a 4-3 loss to Stonehill.
On Sunday, Stonehill took a 7-5 decision over Canton while Hamilton knocked off Potsdam by a 4-1 score. The Continentals spotted the Bears an early lead before scoring four unanswered goals led by Cade Groton’s pair that ensured a 2-0-0 weekend in the north country.
Non-Conference
Albertus Magnus once again knocked off in-state rival and nationally ranked Trinity with a stunning 5-4 overtime win on Saturday. Sam Anderson scored the tying goal in the third period before netting the game winner in the overtime session. While Trinity rallied for a weekend split with a 3-1 win over Post on Sunday, Wesleyan enjoyed a sweep of Connecticut schools with a 7-1 win over Post and an 8-2 win over Albertus Magnus to remain unbeaten on the season. Forward Go Uemura scored twice in each of the wins for the Cardinals.
In the round robin of games between Williams and Amherst facing Geneseo and Babson, the great hockey and surprise results continued. On Saturday, a 48-save effort from Evan Ruschil and an overtime goal from Connor Tobin helped Williams knock-off Babson, 2-1. Up at Geneseo, the Knights built a 3-0 first period lead only to see the Mammoths score three times including two from Ben Kuzma in a 3-3 overtime tie. On Sunday, Babson took a 3-1 win over Amherst while Geneseo needed overtime to get by Williams, 4-3. After Jonah Gold tied the score at 3-3 for the Ephs, Stefan Miklakos netted the game winner for Geneseo who finished 1-0-1 against NESCAC on the weekend.
Stevenson traveled to Maine to face a ranked University of New England team and skated away with a 6-2 win over the Nor’easters. Garrett Devine scored a pair of power play goals sandwiched around Aidan McDowell’s power play goal for the Mustangs and a 2-1 lead after the first period. From there it was all Mustang hockey as they recorded five unanswered goals over the next forty minutes with McDowell adding his second goal for the game. Ryan Kenny made 19 saves in the win that brings Stevenson to 4-5-0 on the season.
Three Biscuits
Thomas Finck – Skidmore – scored a natural hat trick in the Thoroughbreds 4-1 win over Oswego in the championship game of their own tournament.
Evan Ruschil – Williams – stopped 48 of 49 shots including 19 in the third period as Williams took a 2-1 overtime win over Babson.
Eli Shiller – Plattsburgh – earned a shutout win over Middlebury before making 30 saves and surrendering just one goal in the Cardinals 3-1 win over Norwich giving them the FirstLight championship.
It is already December so the action will ramp up for another couple of weeks before the semester break. Some teams don’t want the break to come just yet while others are looking to finish out strong and reset for the second half.
