PROVIDENCE, R.I. — No. 8 Massachusetts-Lowell may sit atop the Hockey East standings, but the perch is looking more precarious.
No. 3 Providence took the opening leg of a home-and-home series, upending the River Hawks 4-2 on Friday night at Schneider Arena.
Three goals capped a high-flying first period for the Friars, while Nick Ellis had a stout night, making 33 saves, including 21 in the second period alone.
The win was highlighted by a clampdown on the penalty kill, with Lowell shut out in seven power play tries.
“We spent a lot of time on the penalty kill this week,” said Providence coach Nate Leaman, “It was poor against Boston College, it was poor the second night against Vermont, and I didn’t love our penalty kill tonight, but it got the job done. A lot of credit goes to Nick Ellis.”
“It was a poor start on our part, and we lost the special teams battle,” Lowell coach Norm Bazin lamented afterwards. “That’s the game in a nutshell.”
With just over a month remaining in the regular season, it marks an important scalp for the Friars over the River Hawks.
A year ago, this same series turned out to be a turning point in Providence’s path to a national title – a sweep elevated the Friars from sixth to fourth in the Hockey East standings. Entering Friday night, Providence sat in fourth, six points back of the first-place River Hawks, but having played four fewer games.
“Unfortunately, we’re in a unique spot this year where we’ve played less games than everyone, so we’re looking up at everyone,” Leaman noted. “It’s put us in a little bit of a tough position because Notre Dame, BC and Lowell have been playing so well.”
The outcome tonight helped chip back into that deficit.
Fresh off a convincing sweep of Vermont when the Friars scored early and often, they picked up right where they left off.
Less than four minutes in, a wraparound by Garrett Gamez created a rebound for Kevin Rooney to bang home. Then successive scores in the final five minutes of the period – Mark Jankowski sprung free on a breakaway to finish a shorthanded goal, and Brandon Tanev slipping an acute-angle shot under Kevin Boyle’s blocker.
The River Hawks had trouble winning one-on-one battles, were often foiled attempting to clear the puck, and it resulted in all three PC goals coming from below the faceoff dots in the zone.
After 20 minutes, it was an 11-shot advantage for PC, a 3-0 margin, and Boyle (14 saves) was yanked from the game in favor of freshman Christoffer Hernberg.
“We were getting beat all over the ice, not just in the defensive zone,” Bazin said. “[But] once you engage a little bit, good things happen.”
That ‘engaged’ phase of the game came in the second period, as Lowell began to get higher quality looks, beating Providence to loose pucks and drawing a couple of penalties, leaving the door ajar.
But Ellis continued to hold his ground, even after A.J. White to claimed two goals to make the deficit manageable, but to no avail as the River Hawks’ three-game winning streak came to a close.
Including Friday night, Providence has now outscored opponents 35-9 in the first period, with seven of those goals coming in the last three games. It might not be that easy when the teams meet again in 24 hours at Tsongas Arena.
“I’m pretty sure it’s going to be an intense first period tomorrow night,” Leaman chuckled.
