LOWELL, Mass. — Northeastern rallied from a poor first period and used a Mike McMurtry goal midway through the third to tie eighth-ranked Massachusetts-Lowell 2-2.
The River Hawks dominated the opening period, but emerged with only a 2-1 lead. As the game progressed, Northeastern came on stronger and stronger, outshooting Lowell 19-6 in the third.
“In the first period, we were just manhandled,” NU coach Jim Madigan said. “Lowell took it to us; it was boys against men. We challenged our guys between the first and the second and I thought we really responded well.
“I liked our demeanor, our mentality and our mindset in the second and third period, especially the third.”
UML goaltender Kevin Boyle earned first star honors with 30 saves, all but three of them in the second and third periods. NU freshman Ryan Ruck also played well, totaling 24 saves.
With the point, Northeastern, a team that was winless in Hockey East play a scant three weeks ago, now moves into a tie for sixth place.
“[Lowell is] one of the top teams in the country,” Madigan said. “This was only a point, but points in Hockey East this time of year are critical.
“You get good points and bad points. We’ll take this as a good point on the road against a very good hockey club.”
With Lowell locked in a battle with four other teams for a first-round playoff bye — one of the five to be the odd man out — settling for the single point could have been a source of frustration. After all, the other four top contenders (Boston College, Boston University, Notre Dame and Providence) all came away with wins on the evening.
UML coach Norm Bazin, however, didn’t see things that way.
“You won’t catch me looking at other teams,” he said. “Points are tough to come by in Hockey East. We face all those teams head to head. Destiny is in our own hands. I’m very comfortable with where we need to get to in order to be a threat when it counts in the playoffs.”
Which is not to say he was happy with his team’s start-to-finish play.
“We have to find a way to play 60-to-65 minutes because today wasn’t an all-out effort for 60-to-65,” he said.
Bazin had to have been pleased, though, with how the River Hawks dominated the first period. They outshot the Huskies, 12-4, and arguably enjoyed an even wider territorial advantage.
They got on the board at 6:53 off a brutal Northeastern turnover in just about the worst possible place, the slot in front of its own goal. Lowell captain A.J. White slid the puck to Evan Campbell, who put it into an open side of the net.
The Huskies bounced back, however, scoring just a minute and a half later on defenseman Trevor Owens’ first goal.
The River Hawks resumed their domination of the period, generating strong chances until a takedown in front put them on the power play. On that man advantage, C.J. Smith skated the puck down from the right point, faked around one defender and put a shot on net. Everyone charged the net and Joe Gambardella knocked it home.
The 2-1 lead held up until McMurtry’s strike in the third, when Dylan Sikura shot from the left wing and Boyle kicked the rebound back out to the slot where the senior capitalized.
In overtime, neither side played for the tie. Both teams had excellent chances, albeit with no officially credited shots.
