ORONO- Sometimes the game of hockey can be cruel to you and unforgiving. Maine played what was probably their best game of the season on Saturday night, outshooting #11 UConn 53-23 but had to settle for a 3-3 men’s Hockey East tie at Alfond Arena. The Huskies would take a shootout 2-0 to earn the extra league point, taking five out of a possible six points on the weekend.
In what really is a must win the rest of the way for the Black Bears to get the best playoff position they can, things didn’t start well. With Maine on the powerplay in the first period, Ryan Tattle would pick up a loose puck near the blue line of his defensive zone and created a 2 on 1 with Joey Muldowney. Tattle and Muldowney were a problem all weekend, and would finish in this situation when Tattle backhanded a pass to Muldowney in the low slot and he roofed a shot past Albin Boija shorthanded at 2:44. The hosts would tie it up on the powerplay at 14:05. Miguel Marques got the puck to Thomas Freel in the slot, and Freel had his shot stopped by Tyler Muszelik. But Muszelik couldn’t control the rebound, and Marques cleaned it up to slide it into the net for the teams first powerplay goal since a Brandon Holt marker in the second period at Providence on January 9th.
Jake Richard put UConn back on top in the second period, backhanding a rebound past Boija at 15:47. Will Gerrior made it 2-2 at 1:29 of the third. After a Holt shot from the left point bounced around in the slot, Gerrior poked home the rebound at the side of the net as he was falling to the ice. The Huskies took a lead for a third time on the powerplay at 6:40 as Tattle was at it again. Off a clean faceoff win in the offensive zone and five seconds into the extra man opportunity, Tattle re-directed an Ethan Whitcomb point shot past Boija to make it 3-2. The Black Bears equalized however for a third time that eventually sent the game to overtime. Grayson Arnott, playing for an injured Brandon Chabrier and only in the lineup for just the sixth time this season, picked a great time to score his first goal of the year for Maine. The play was started by Jaden Lipinski who had a partial break-in opportunity but was stopped by Muszelik but was able to get it back. Lipinski from the left corner shoveled the puck back towards the front of the net, and Arnott crashed in and was able to jam it home at 13:26. The Black Bears had the better opportunities in the extra session and most of the possession time, but Muszelik as he did all weekend stood tall forcing the tie and a shootout. UConn got goals from Jake Richard and Trey Scott in the three player shootout, while Marques and Sully Scholle were both stopped as the Huskies gained the extra conference point.
Tattle and Muldowney each had a goal and an assist for UConn, while Scott had two assists and the decisive shootout goal. Muszelik made 50 saves (82 in the two game series), and the Huskies went 1-2 on the powerplay in moving to 17-7-4 and 11-5-2 in Hockey East. Muldowney (two goals, one assist) and Tattle (one goal, three assists) combined for seven points on the weekend. Holt, Freel, Lipinski, Thomas Pichette, and Max Scott all had one assist a piece for Maine. Boija would make 20 stops. The Black Bears went 1-5 on the powerplay, and overall outshot the Huskies 85-43 in the two games but only picked one point in the standings. Maine is now 14-12-3 and 8-10-1 in the conference and will host Merrimack on Senior Weekend next Friday and Saturday night at 7 p.m.
