LOWELL, Mass. — Massachusetts-Lowell dominated Notre Dame from the first minute and never let up, seizing a 5-0 lead early in the second period and coasting from there to the victory.
In the consummate team win, five different players scored goals, five contributed assists, and Kevin Boyle stopped all 21 Notre Dame shots for the shutout.
For the game, Lowell outshot the Irish, 29-21, but the gap in play between the two teams was decidedly more lopsided than that. The River Hawks allowed almost no quality opportunities and totally controlled territorial play.
“They were ready to play and we were on our heels right from the get go,” Notre Dame coach Jeff Jackson said. “If I had the answer to [why], it wouldn’t have happened.”
The victory gives Lowell first blood in the best-of-three series with Game 2 to be played on Saturday and Game 3, if necessary, on Sunday. Considering the decisive win and the fact that Notre Dame is now 0-5-1 all time in the series, the River Hawks will enter game two as a significant favorite to close out the series.
“Some days it flows your way,” Lowell coach Norm Bazin said. “This series will be a matter of navigating the momentum shifts. Tonight, we had a little offense early and that carried us through.”
They’d rested with the first-round bye afforded a number four seed while fifth-seeded Notre Dame played a grueling three-game match with Massachusetts, including a record-setting five-overtime opener.
“We had 13 days off,” Basin said. “With that long of a layoff, you’re always concerned that you’re going to be rusty. We probably had more energy than rust.”
The River Hawks answered the “rested or rusty” question early and with authority and exclamation marks.
Barely more than a minute into the contest, top-scoring freshman C.J. Smith grabbed a lead they would never surrender. Collecting a loose puck in front, he put a shot on net that trickled through netminder Cal Petersen’s pads and into the net.
Seven minutes later, Petersen, who had fueled a strong second half for the Irish with his exceptional play in net, allowed a juicy rebound in front that Terrence Wallin put into the top of the net for a 2-0 lead.
Notre Dame coach Jeff Jackson called a timeout, but there was no stopping the bleeding. The River Hawks continued to make the Irish look like they’d just stepped off the bus from South Bend instead of having flown in the day before.
At 17:48, Evan Campbell redirected a shot from the left point by Zack Kamrass and the River Hawks were taking a 3-0 lead into the locker room.
Three minutes into the second period, it was all over. At 1:41, Joe Gambardella tapped an easy rebound at the right post into a wide-open net. And at 2:46, A.J. White applied the final nail to the coffin, shielding a defender from the puck as he carried it into the slot and then beat Petersen low.
After such a weak performance and a winless record all-time against Lowell, the Irish could face believability issues.
“I’d hate to believe that,” Jackson said. “We played them tough in our building earlier in the year.
“That can’t be our excuse or our reason. We have to be prepared for any opponent. We just got through playing [Boston College, Boston University] and Providence pretty tough. [Lowell] shouldn’t be any different.”
