Saturday, Nov. 9, the University of New Hampshire’s men’s hockey team took on Long Island University Sharks after a weeklong break coming off their loss against Providence College.
UNH started the period with a few close shots, including one shot by Ryan Conmy that rolled around the top of the net to the other side where there was no one to rebound the puck. The Wildcats gained a power play from hooking, which gave them another shot for an early goal, but with the puck just inches from the net they couldn’t connect. LIU scored first with 10 seconds left of their powerplay. Forward Isaac Lambert rushed from the left of the net and tripped, flinging the puck into the net. UNH did not let the Sharks have a lead long, as they responded with a goal of their own off the faceoff. Marty Lavins shot the puck left from the center, tricking LIU’s goalie, Noah Rupprecht, thinking he was going to pass the puck to the right to Jason Siedem for the goal.
The Wildcats took the lead in the second period when Conmy’s shot was blocked by the Sharks’ Sixten Jennersjö, and the puck bounced right to Cy LeClerc allowing him to get the puck to the back of the net through Rupprecht’s legs.
“He (Conmy) had missed a chance right before it and he was frustrated. I told him, ‘Don’t you’ll get another one.’ And he did and Cy made a great play on the wall,” said Head Coach, Mike Sousa.
Two minutes later, UNH scored again with Morgan Winters stealing the puck and tipping it to J.P. Turner, who shot the puck to the right of the net and it bounced off the pole into the back of the net. LIU challenged the goal on the grounds of a potential penalty before the goal, but after deliberation, the referees called the goal good. The fans erupted in cheers for the call, after being disappointed by the referees last week.
“I just thought Turner’s goal was UNH hockey to a tee,” said Sousa.
The Wildcats brought their lead up one more goal with 13:39 into the second period. Luke Reid gained the puck and passed it to the front of the net for Conmy to pick up and shoot it backward to the left side of the net.
“Just have to have the mentality of getting pucks in the net and trying not to get discouraged,” Conmy commented.
Five minutes into the third period UNH continued their goal streak, bringing it up to five in a row with 14:55 left in the period. The goal was made by Cronin from the left faceoff ring, where he shot the puck to the right side of the net. With 4:06 left in the period, Rupprecht went to LIU’s bench to give the Sharks a six-on-four advantage. He wasn’t on the bench long, as he came back to the net with two minutes left. The ‘Cats gained a power play that went to the end of the game and scored on it. Cronin lifted the puck into the top left corner of the net from a pass behind the net from Colton Huard.
The Wildcats will be at the Whittemore Center at Key Auto Complex for a Matchup against UMaine on Nov. 22. This game along with many others can also be watched on ESPN+.
