MANCHESTER, N.H. - The Saint Anselm men's
hockey team hosted the No. 6 Middlebury College Panthers this
evening for an inter-conference game on alumni weekend. The
Hawks' offense was dominant, as Saint Anselm skated to a 4-0
shutout over the nationally-ranked Panthers for the first time in
16 years. The win lifts the Hawks to 7-6-1 (5-5-1 ECAC East),
while the Panthers fall to 7-3-4 (4-2-4 NESCAC).
At 14:24 in the first period, senior tri-captain Seth
Goodrich (Salisbury, Vt.) won the puck at the blue line
and started a breakaway drive down the ice. His shot was
saved, so Michael DeVita (Annandale, N.J.) took a
chance on the rebound. Max Kennedy (Cazenovia,
N.Y.) saved the second shot as well, but Paul
Snell (Groton, Mass.) was ready with the next rebound, as
he pushed the puck past Kennedy for the first goal of the
game.
Just over three minutes later, tri-captain Coleman
Noonan (Norfolk, Mass.) took a slap shot from out to the
right during a power play. Kennedy made the save, and Snell
was ready for the rebound. Kennedy once again stopped the
second shot, but he could not hold onto the puck, as DeVita took
control and tapped it softly past him for the second goal of the
game.
The Hawks dominated in the second period, outshooting the
Panthers 13-4, but the Panthers' defense held strong, as the Hawks'
headed into the final period with a two-goal lead. However,
at 3:56 in the third, Timothy King (Weymouth,
Mass.) took a shot from close in on the left side.
Kennedy blocked it, but Goodrich was in position on the right, as
he shoved the puck past Kennedy's outstretched leg to score his
first goal of the season, and just the fourth career goal for the
senior defender.
The Panthers took control throughout most of the third period,
outshooting the Hawks 16-8, but junior goaltender Alex Wyse
(Amherst, N.Y.) seemed to have built a wall in front of
the goal, keeping out whatever came his way. At 19:26, with
just 34 seconds remaining in the game, John Hennessey
(Westwood, Mass.) got an open shot from the left
side. His shot was deflected by a defender, but John
Penny (Andover, Mass.) was waiting for the opportunity, as
he flipped in his first goal of the season to give the Hawks a 4-0
victory.
The Hawks defeated the Panthers for just the 14th time in 56
meetings since the beginning of the Saint Anselm hockey program in
1969. The Hawks had not beaten the Panthers since February
11, 1994, when they took home a 9-3 victory. Today's game
also marked the first time the Hawks have defeated a top-10,
nationally ranked team since January 27, 2007, when the Hawks
defeated the Norwich University Cadets 2-1. Surprisingly
enough, that victory also came on alumni weekend at Sullivan Arena.
Goaltender Max Kennedy made 27 saves in today's game to take his
second loss of the season. Alex Wyse made 29 saves in the
game, picking up his third win of the season and earning his first
career shutout. The Hawks' last shutout win came on February
28, 2008, when the Hawks defeated Stonehill 4-0.
The Hawks hit the road next weekend when they travel to
Hartford, Conn., to take on the Trinity College Bantams in an
inter-conference game beginning at 7:00 pm on Friday, January 29th.
