Wayne State and Alabama-Huntsville entered the new year needing wins to gain ground in the College Hockey America standings. The visiting Chargers grabbed the first of those wins with a convincing 5-0 shutout of the Warriors on Friday at the Great Lakes Sports City.
Tyler Butler and Jessi Otis each recorded a goal and an assist for Alabama-Huntsville (9-8-0 overall, 4-3-0 CHA) while Mark Byrne stopped all 15 shots in the UAH nets. Karlis Zirnis, Steve Charlebois and Ron Baker also scored for the visitors. Butler’s goal was the backbreaker as he made it 5-0 on a shorthanded breakaway at 14:22 of the third period.
David Guerrera made 27 saves for WSU (10-9-1 overall, 2-4-1 CHA), but came away with the loss.
“We got educated tonight,” said Wayne State head coach Bill Wilkinson. “I give Alabama credit. They came out gunning and put us off our game. We have no excuses — they just played better than we did. It’s as simple as that.”
Wayne State will look to split the series Saturday night, but knows it will not be an easy task.
“I hope we play with more intensity,” Wilkinson said. “We have to keep our penalties to a minimum and show more fortitude out there. There are no easy teams in this conference. We have to be ready for everyone.”
