EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (Blugolds.com) – The 12th ranked University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire men's hockey completed their regular season nonconference schedule on Saturday as they hosted the 6
th ranked College of St. Scholastica Saints at Hobbs Ice Arena. As the Blugolds celebrated the 40
th Anniversary of the 1984 National Championship team, a top- matchup held the intensity and excitement for the fans as UW-Eau Claire held a frenzy of goals in the final two periods to upset the Saints, 5-2.
The first period held an even tilt in momentum for both squads before the visitors found the first tally of the evening. A fortunate bounce for the Saints led to a breakaway goal at 8:06 to put UWEC down, 1-0. The Blugolds were successful in killing the two Scholastica powerplay opportunities as they hit the first intermission with a one goal deficit.
It didn't take long for UW-Eau Claire to find their advantage in the second period as
Aaron Swanson (Sr. – Sun Prairie, Wis./Sun Prairie East) rocketed a one timer from the right circle and past the Saints' netminder to tie the game at 1-1. Trenton Heyde (So. – Atlanta, Ga./Grayson) and
Cade Lemmer (So. – Tomahawk, Wis./Wausau West) received assists on Swanson's fifth goal of the year. Later in the period, Eau Claire found their first lead of the night at the 13:25 mark of the second period as
Kyle Oleksiuk (Jr. – Winnipeg, Manitoba) found himself open on the backdoor and rifled home his third goal of the season.
Tyler Herzberg (Fr. – Germantown, Wis./University School of Milwaukee) and
Ryan Green (Sr. – Muskego, Wis.) earned assists on Oleksiuk's first goal of the evening as Eau Claire held the 2-1 lead into the second intermission.
In the third period, St. Scholastica came out with speed and tied the game at 2-2 with a powerplay goal at 3:52. The two teams battled throughout the final frame as each squad looked to find an advantage.
Kyle Oleksiuk held the hot hand on the night as he netted his second goal of the evening on a full-length rush, giving UWEC a 3-2 lead.
Sammy Martel (Sr. – Bolinbrook, Ill./Nequa Valley) and
Ian Carpenter (So. – Mt. Prospect, Ill./Jo) recorded assists on Oleksiuk's eventual game winning tally. Three minutes later,
Kyler Grundy (Jr. – Pleasant Prairie, Wis./Indian Trail Academy) lit the lamp for the sixth time this season with a wrist shot to the top left corner to increase the Blugold lead to 4-2.
Leo Bacallao (So. – Madison, Wis./Vel Phillips Memorial) and
Connor Szmul (Sr. – Castle Rock, Colo./Castle View) earned assists on Grundy's goal to help place the momentum in the hands of Eau Claire.
In the final three minutes of play,
Tyler Herzberg found the final goal of the evening on a tip out in front to seal the 5-2 win for UWEC.
Charlie Erickson (Fr. – Duluth, Minn./Duluth East) and
Ryan Green (Sr. – Muskego, Wis.) recorded assists on Herzberg's fifth goal of the season. In total, 12 Blugolds found themselves on the scoresheet as
Kyle Oleksiuk,
Ryan Green, and
Tyler Herzberg all recorded multi-point games.
Max Gutjahr (So. – Appleton, Wis./Kimberly) stopped 22 saves on 24 shots to earn his ninth win of the season. Gutjahr is now 9-6-1 on the year.
The Blugolds (9-6-1, WIAC 4-3) will jump into Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) play on Friday, January 19
th for a two-day road doubleheader with UW-Superior. Puck drop from Siinto S. Wessman Arena is scheduled for 7 p.m.
