EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (Blugolds.com) – The 13th ranked University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire men's hockey was back on home ice Friday evening as they continued Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) play against Northland College at Hobbs Ice Arena. A physical affair between the Blugolds and Lumberjacks kept the fans on the edge of their seats all night as UWEC shutout NC, 3-0.
The Blugolds found the opening tally of the game just over the halfway mark of the first period as
Sammy Martel (Sr. – Bolingbrook, Ill./Nequa Valley) scooped up a loose puck out front and fired it under the Northland netminder's glove to give UWEC an early 1-0 lead.
Kyle Oleksiuk (Jr. – Winnipeg, Manitoba) and
Connor Szmul (Sr. – Castle Rock, Colo./Castle View) earned assists on Martel's fifth goal of the season. UW-Eau Claire kept their defense tight as they allowed no shots on goal in the first frame and out shot the Lumberjacks 12-0 before the first intermission.
The second period found the physical play increase as the two teams combined for 18 of the game's 35 penalty minutes in the middle frame. UW-Eau Claire successfully killed all four powerplay's Northland was awarded during the night as their defense and goaltending stood strong. With less than five minutes left in the second,
Trenten Heyde (So. – Atlanta, Ga./Grayson) sent a rink wide pass out of the UWEC zone to spring
Quinn Green (Sr. – West Chicago, Ill./St. Charles East) on a breakaway. While he had speed, Green crossed the dots and ripped a shot past the Jacks' goalie to increase the Eau Claire lead to 2-0. The two-goal lead held into the second intermission as UWEC took full control of the game.
The final period of the night saw the Blugolds ring two shots off the post as they outshot Northland 6-5. As both teams looked for opportunities to swing the game, UWEC kept their shutdown defense in check to keep Northland off the scoresheet.
Tyler Love (Gr. – Pittsburgh, Pa./Moon Area) found himself with the puck in the final minute and ripped a shot the length of the ice into an empty net to seal the 3-0 Blugold win.
Max Gutjahr (So. – Appleton, Wis./Kimberly) stopped all 13 shots he faced on the night to earn his fifth shutout of the year and 12
th win. Gutjahr is now 12-6-1 on the year.
The Blugolds (13-6-1, WIAC 7-3) will be back at Hobbs Ice Arena on Saturday, January 27
th to conclude the weekend series with Northland College. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m.
