The Hobart College hockey team scored two goals in the first two minutes of the game and went on to defeat Nichols College 4-1 in a non-league contest tonight in the Bisons’ Levy Rink.

The Statesmen improve to 5-4-4 overall, picking up their third straight victory. Sophomore Ben Gamache (Longlac, Ontario) led the Hobart effort with a goal and an assist. Sophomore Lino Chimienti (Montreal, Quebec) finished with 23 saves in goal. Nichols falls to 8-3-2 overall.

Just 58 seconds into the game, senior Tommy Fiorentino (New Hartford, N.Y.) fired home a rebound to put the Statesmen up 1-0. It was Fiorentino’s third goal this year. Junior Tommaso Traversa (Torino, Italy) and first-year Jon Neal (Encinitas, Calif.) earned the assists. Just 49 seconds later, first-year Carl Belizario (Dorval, Quebec) made it 2-0 with his third goal this season. Junior Brad McBride (Lone Tree, Colo.) and sophomore Bo Webster (Aurora, Ontario) were credited with the assists.

Joe Sposit put the Bison on the board with 4:50 left in the opening period with a power-play goal. His backhanded shot came after passes from Mike Weaver and Josh DeLoach.

Hobart continued to pour it on in the second period. Just 1:12 in, Gamache capitalized on a feed from sophomore Mac Olson (Grosse Pointe, Mich.). Gamache’s third goal this season stretched the Statesmen lead to 3-1. At 12:36 in the middle period, first-year Bobby Sokol (Belle Vernon, Pa.) sent home a rebound from a shot by Gamache on a power play to give Hobart a 4-1 advantage. Junior Bronson Kovacs (Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario) also notched an assist on the play. It was Sokol’s second tally this year.

The Statesmen finished with a 44-24 advantage in shots. Hobart went 1-for-9 on the power play, and the Bison finished 1-for-8. Alex Larson finished with 40 saves in all 60 minutes in goal for Nichols.

The landscape for the Potsdam men’s hockey team had begun to change in recent weeks.

Winners in five of its past six games, the Bears had strung together much more consistent efforts behind some timely goals, more hustle, and sound goaltending by senior Shane Talarico(Greensburg, Pa. / Elmira College).

Talarico was coming off an impressive week in which he stopped 60 shots, and was named as the SUNYAC’s Goalie of the week, in picking up a pair of wins against Saint Anselm’s.

But, on Friday night, an energetic Castleton State team applied pressure from the onset and skated to a three-goal lead after the first intermission before winning 6-2 over Potsdam in a nonconference affair at Maxcy Arena.

Will Laking was able to score from the slot, Ryan Frost went high to beat Talarico and Kyle Pichler added a short-handed goal on a breakaway to take the 3-0 lead after one period of play.

The Bears (5-8) responded on a short-handed goal by sophomore forward Todd Thomas (Davidsville, Pa. / Hartford Wolfpack) about midway through the second period. Thomas took a pass from sophomore Matt Thompson (Anchorage, Alaska / Kenai River Brown Bears) to take advantage of the odd man rush.

That’s as close as Potsdam would get, however, as the Spartans (8-6) racked up three more goals in the period on scores by Derek Gingera, Colin Murray and Nick Kovalchik.
Murray’s goal forced Talarico out of the game after 34:22 of action. He made 14 saves.

Sophomore Austin Keiser (Dunwoody, Ga. / Boston Bulldogs) replaced him and saved 10 of 11 shots to finish out the game.

Senior captain Mike Arnold scored his 10^th goal of the season on an assist from senior defenseman Kevin Carpenter (Denver, Colo. / Notre Dame Hounds) for the game’s only goal in the third period.

Backed behind a three-point evening from Isaac Kohls and Hugo Turcotte, the Niagara hockey team shutout the AIC Yellow Jackets 5-0 on Saturday evening at Dwyer Arena.

After dropping a tough decision to the Yellow Jackets last night, Niagara outworked its Atlantic Hockey foe to split the season series to improve to 5-5-3 in Atlantic Hockey play and 5-12-3 overall.  The Yellow Jackets see their league mark fall to 5-8-0 and 5-14-0 overall.

“AIC is a very good team.  They are tough in the neutral zone, have some weapons and a good power play so it was a great team effort from start to finish that resulted in a huge bounce back win for us,” said head coach Dave Burkholder.   “I’m very proud of the team.  This was a big test for us and the win puts us right back in the hunt in Atlantic Hockey.”

Kohls scored a career-high two goals and added an assist, while Turcotte contributed a score and a pair of helpers.  The three-point effort from Kohls pushes his point streak to three games (4-3-7).  Niagara also received goals from Ryan Rashid and TJ Sarcona en route to the victory.  Niagara netminder Jackson Teichroeb snuffed 12 AIC shots to earn his second shutout of the season.

“Isaac Kohls is one of our top players and he produced tonight,” added Burkholder.  “He’s been very proactive this season, going for the puck when he doesn’t have it.  He’s outworking everyone consistently and is being rewarded with points.   Hugo played an important role tonight, as well as Rashid.  I don’t think we had a weak link at all.  There were no passengers in regards to our forwards.”

The teams headed into the second frame with the shot count knotted at seven apiece and Niagara holding a 1-0 lead as the Purple Eagles got on the board at 6:52 of the first.  Kevin Ryan slid a pass across the slot to Vince Muto who let fly a one-time shot towards the trafficked net that was deflected underneath starting goaltender Hunter Leisner by Rashid for his team-leading seventh goal of the season.

The Purple Eagles seized territorial control in the second, outshooting AIC, 14-3 in the second period, and 11-2 in the third.

Kohls spearheaded the effort with a pair of tallies and an assist in a three-goal second period that gave Niagara the 4-0 advantage.  His first tally came at 2:07 of the second as the junior picked up a feed from Turcotte and raced through the neutral zone before ripping a shot from just inside the blue line that beat Leisner low, glove side.

Kohls brought the fans to their feet once against at 15:34 while on the power play as Leisner gave up a big rebound off Kohls’ initial shot from the slot that was picked up by the junior and wristed home.  Kohls began the play for Niagara’s fourth goal of the contest and Turcotte finished it to secure his seventh tally of the season.  Kohls picked up the puck at the blue line, skating across the slot before lifting the puck towards goal from a bad angle that was tucked in by Turcotte.

Sarcona capped off the evening’s scoring with 9:11 remaining in regulation to garner his fourth goal of the year.  The freshman parked himself in the blue paint and pounced on the rebound off a Kevin Ryan shot to make it 5-0.
The game wrapped up with the shot count in favor of Niagara, 32-12.  The Purple Eagles killed off all four Yellow Jacket power play opportunities, while going 1-for-4 on the man advantage.

Niagara continues its four-game home stand next weekend when the Purple Eagles host Holy Cross in a weekend series starting on Friday, Jan. 17 and wrapping up the following day.  Both contests are scheduled for 7:05 p.m.

HAMILTON – The Colgate men’s hockey team kept the wheels turning against ranked opponents as the Raiders downed Vermont, 3-2, on Saturday night.

Colgate (9-9-3) extending its unbeaten streak to three games and all three have come against ranked opponents. The Raiders scored two power play goals for the second-straight game with scores by Darcy Murphy and Tyson Spink. Tylor Spink was the other goal scorer for Colgate.

Tylor Spink and Murphy ended the night with two points as each posted assists.

Charlie Finn was solid in net for the third-consecutive game, making 24 saves and has improved his record to 6-4-2. He made 13 stops in the third period alone to earn the win.

The Catamounts (11-7-3) had their five-game unbeaten streak snapped by the Raiders. Mario Puskarich and Colin Markison were the goal scorers for the visitors. Mike Santaguida pushed aside 21 shots in the loss.

The Raiders took the early 1-0 lead thanks to Murphy’s third goal in as many games. The sophomore scored his 11th of the season on a great play at the far post. Ryan Johnston got the puck at the point after a cross-ice pass from Brett Corkey. Johnston fired the puck through traffic and Murphy was there to pick up the garbage at the far post for the power play goal. The score came 2:47 into the game.

Vermont tied it up just over five minutes later as Brendan Bradley dropped a pass to Puskarich and he skated around a defender to the high slot and beat Finn off the crossbar and into the net.

Tylor Spink got the lead back for the Raiders with 5:05 remaining in the first period. Murphy took a big hit put got rid of the puck to the center of the offensive zone. The Catamounts tried to get a quick clear, but Emilio Audi stepped into the path of the puck and got it to Tylor Spink. The sophomore got his eighth of the year with a low shot that beat Santaguida.

After a scoreless second period, Vermont opened the third with a tying goal just 57 seconds into the final frame. Markison received a pass on a rush up ice from Chris McCarthy and right before he ran into Finn, he put it into the back of the net to tie the game at 2-2.

Colgate regained the lead for good with its second power play of the night with Tyson Spink scoring his third of the season. Tylor Spink made a nice play behind the net and slipped a pass out to his brother and he buried it for the gamewinner with 13:37 left in the game.

The Raiders needed a smart play from Spiro Goulakos after a crazy bounce off the boards. Vermont put the puck into the offensive zone and Finn went to play the puck behind the net. The puck took a bad bounce off the glass and ended up in front of the net. Goulakos made a diving play to chip the puck away from the Catamount player charging the net.

Colgate went 2-for-5 on the power play against one of the best penalty-killing team in the nation. Vermont scored once on two chances as the Raiders were disciplined and only allowed two power plays.

The Raiders jump back into conference play this coming weekend with visits to Dartmouth and Harvard.

The Hobart College hockey team earned its fourth straight victory with a 5-2 win over Salve Regina in a non-league game played tonight at the Seahawks’ Portsmouth Abbey. First-year Carl Belizario (Dorval, Quebec) led the Statesmen with three assists.

Hobart improves to 6-4-4 overall. Junior Bronson Kovacs (Sault Ste Marie, Ontario) added two goals and sophomore Ben Gamache (Longlac, Ontario) chipped in a goal and an assist. Sophomore Lino Chimienti (Montreal, Quebec) played all 60 minutes in goal and stopped 21 shots. Salve Regina is now 6-8 overall.

The Statesmen jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first period on two power-play goals. Twelve minutes in, Gamache found the back of the net after a pass from Belizario. It was his fourth goal this season. Just over four minutes later, sophomore Bo Webster (Aurora, Ontario) notched his fourth goal this year. Belizario and junior Ryan Michel (Camilus, N.Y.) earned the assists.

Trace Redmond scored the lone goal of the second period 6:09 in to put the Seahawks on the board. Michael Naso and Chad Hollenshade were credited with the assists.

Just 1:18 into the third period, Peter Gintoli logged an unassisted tally to tie the game up at 2-2 for Salve Regina. However, Hobart rallied to take back control of the game, notching three more goals in the final period. At 2:35, Kovacs produced his first goal of the night on a power play after passes from junior Ian Coleman (Northport, N.Y.) and Gamache. At 12:54, Kovacs struck again on a power play. This time Belizario set up the goal. Kovacs has produced three goals this year.

The Statesmen defense held strong in the final minutes not allowing a rally by the Seahawks despite the fact that they pulled their goalie for an extra skater. Instead, sophomore Mac Olson (Grosse Pointe, Mich.) capped the victory with an empty net goal with three seconds remaining. Olson has tallied a team-high six goals this year.

The Statesmen finished with a 38-23 advantage in shots. Hobart finished 4-for-9 on the power play and killed off all four of the Seahawks power play opportunities. Jake Williams played 57:11 in goal for Salve Regina and finished with 33 saves.

The Statesmen will be back in action on Friday, January 18, when they travel to face off with Cortland at 7 p.m.

The Canisius College hockey team couldn’t maintain its momentum from two early goals in the first three minutes and Sacred Heart fought back for a 3-2 victory on Sunday, handing the Griffs their first home loss of the season. Canisius drops to 8-11-1 and 7-5-1 against league foes, while the Pioneers improve to 6-16-0 and 5-10-1 in Atlantic Hockey play.

“We had a tough time completely seizing the momentum today and there were a couple of key moments where Sacred Heart was able to do it,” said Canisius head coach Dave Smith. “It was a pretty even game where Sacred Heart was able to find a way to win, similar to what we were able to do yesterday. We had better effort and energy today but we just need to have better focus, stay out of the penalty box and find ways to grab momentum throughout the game.”

Senior Ryan Bohrer (West St. Paul, Minn.) and sophomore Ralph Cuddemi (Concord, Ontario) both scored for the Griffs, while junior Keegan Asmundson (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.) took the loss in net with 33 saves.

Canisius wasted no time grabbing the lead, scoring on its first two shots of the game in just 2:50. Cuddemi gave the Griffs the lead just 70 seconds into the contest, connecting on the power play. Senior Kyle Gibbons (Westlake, Ohio) found the sophomore open in the slot and Cuddemi finished for his seventh tally of the season. Senior defender Ben Danford (Stillwater, Minn.)also registered an assist on the early score.

Bohrer then stretched the Canisius lead to two with his first goal of the season just 1:40 later. On a rush, junior Braeden Rigney (Singhampton, Ontario) had his shot blocked. However, Bohrer gathered the loose puck in the slot, turned and finished for the 2-0 lead just 2:50 into the game.

Sacred Heart made its way back into the game, chipping into the Canisius lead with its first goal of the contest with 1:12 remaining in the first. Jeff Carroll knocked in a rebound off a rush to bring the Pioneers within one after one period of play, 2-1.

The Pioneers were then able to take advantage of a 1:40 of 5-on-3 action, scoring with just two seconds remaining in the two-man advantage. A shot from the point deflected off Will Rayner’s skate and into the net to knot the contest at two just 1:18 into the second.

The game remained knotted at two until the closing minutes of regulation. Josh Phillips wrapped the puck around the boards and a Canisius defender pinched up attempting to keep it in the zone. However, the puck bounced over his stick and resulted in a breakaway for Drew George, who sent a slap shot into the net for the game-winning goal with 3:01 remaining.

Sacred Heart finished the contest with a 36-30 advantage in shots with both teams converting once on the power play (four attempts for Canisius and seven attempts for Sacred Heart).

Andrew Bodnarchuk stopped the final 28 shots he saw for the victory in net.