In a back-and-forth battle between third-ranked Middlebury and tenth-ranked Bowdoin, both undefeated in NESCAC league play, the Panthers and Polar Bears fought to a 1-1 tie at Kenyon Arena.
Early on the game was marked by strong defense and thwarted scoring chances. Just over a minute into the game, Middlebury’s Christian Carlsson stoned a Bowdoin breakaway after a Middlebury turnover. Later in the first period, Middlebury saw a goal disallowed after a Matt Dunn shot that made it past Bowdoin goalie Mike Healey was taken back since the net was off its moorings before the puck crossed the line. With four minutes left, Carlsson again stood tall in net after a failed Middlebury clear gave the Bears an open shot in the slot.
Early in the second period, Middlebury jumped on the board first, on a Kevin Cooper goal. However, after two great saves by Carlsson both on odd-man rushes, Bowdoin came back to tie the game with five minutes left in the second period. After the initial save by Carlsson, Sean Starke poked home the rebound between the Middlebury goalie’s legs.
The third period saw great back-and-forth action but no scoring, as the game stayed 1-1. Early in the third, Carlsson made several sharp saves in a scrum in front of the net, before covering up the rebound. Then, late in the period, Bowdoin’s Healey stoned a close-in Middlebury shot to keep his team in the game. The overtime period saw only one shot on goal, by the Bears, taken in the midst of a power play after a boarding call on Middlebury’s Cooper.
In net Carlsson stopped 20 of 21 shots for Middlebury, while Healey stopped 28 of 29 shots for Bowdoin. The tie moved Middlebury’s record to 7-0-1 in the NESCAC and 10-1-1 overall, while Bowdoin now stands at 6-0-3 in league play and 9-0-3 overall.
