@ UMass, home RPI
BC, home and home
@ Maine, two games
@ Army
Merrimack, home and home
Governor's Cup
Northeastern, home and home
Boston University, home and home
Silverado Shootout
St. Lawrence & Clarkson, home, @ Union
@ Yale, Providence
UNH, home and home
BU and @ Merrimack
Providence, home and home
UMass Amherst
BC & UMass Amherst
Maine & @ UNH
@ Northeastern
@ BC, Hockey East Playoffs
The young UML Riverhawks headed out to Amherst to begin the season and came back with a hard earned win. The Hawks won their first Hockey East game of the year, after falling behind 1-0. Anthony Cappelletti scored the first goal of the year at 13:11 of the second. Early in the third, Craig Brown put the Riverhawks up 2-1, and then things fell apart. UMass scored two goals to take a 3-2 lead, and looked ready to put the game away when they were given a power play with 3:16 to go. Craig Brown found himself with the puck on a shorthanded two on one and made a perfect pass to Jeremy Kyte who tied the game with his first career goal at 1:53. Lowell controlled OT, and then on a power play, Kevin Bertram's blast (assist to Chris Bell) found the back of the net to give Lowell the win in front of 1,466 fans at the Mullins Center. Scott Fankhouser picked up the win, with 18 saves.
RPI, coming off a huge win against BU, came into the Tsongas Arena for the home opener for Lowell. They left realizing that Hockey East is very deep once again this year. Lowell fell behind for the second straight game, before they woke up. The sparse crowd of 1,798 saw two power play goals give their team a 2-1 edge after one. Jeff Boulanger and Chris Bell picked up their first goals of the year. After RPI tied up the game early in the second, again on a power play, Lowell took over the game. The first even strength goal was scored just 22 seconds later as Craig Brown scored his second of the year. John Campbell scored just two minutes later, and then added another later in the period on a power play. Kyle Kidney scored less than two minutes later to make it 6-2. After RPI made it a 3 goal game, Doug Nolan scored a minute later, to end the second period scoring at 7-3. Anthony Cappelletti's power play goal with 14 seconds to go ended the scoring and the game at 8-4. Scott Fankhouser won again, this time making 33 saves, to keep Lowell perfect at 2-0.
The Riverhawks went to the Conte Forum and were thrashed by the number 1 team in the nation. BC took a 6-0 lead early in the second (4 in the first) before Lowell tightened up, and played BC evenly for the next 35 minutes. Scott Fankhouser had a terrible game, stopping 3 out of 8 shots. Freshman Jimi St. John looked good replacing Fank, coming up with 29 saves, allowing just 2 goals. Anthony Cappelletti scored again on a power play, and freshman Yorrick Treille and senior Doug Nolan made it a 6-3 game after 2. BC added another in the third to easily win this one 7-3.
In the rematch at the Tsongas Arena in front of 2,093, Lowell came out slow again, and fell behind 2-0 after one period. St. John was the starting goalie in this one, and made some great saves to keep this one closer. For the second straight game, Lowell began to play in the second period, scoring on power play goals from Cappelletti and Kevin Bertram. Lowell went into the third tied at 2, but two men shorthanded, and paid for it quickly. BC scored twice in the first 1:15 to take a 4-2 lead, but Lowell didn't fold. A shorthanded breakaway on by Doug Nolan made the game 4-3, until BC added two late in the game to put it away, 6-3. St. John finished with 26 saves, and even though he allowed 6 goals, he looked very good on the ice.
The River Hawks played another top 10 team right after being swept by the number 1 team in the country. This time it was Maine, and the results weren't better. UML played well Friday night in front of 4,836 at Alfond Arena. After falling behind for the fifth time this year at 12:14 of the second, Jeff Boulanger tied the game over three minutes later, from a feed by Brad Rooney and Kyle Kidney. Even though Maine controlled play with a 27-14 shot advantage, UML wouldn't let this one slip away. After giving up a goal at 11:13 of the third, Lowell looked to be in trouble, but came up a with the tying goal with just 87 seconds left, as Kevin Bertram put one in from Boulanger. Lowell almost won the game with just a second to go, but a great save resulted in OT, where Maine blew past the Hawks, with the game winning goal just 31 seconds in. Fankhouser played a great game in this one, making 31 saves.
The Jeckyl and Hyde Riverhawks continued their routine, scoring first for the first time this year, and then falling apart. Fankhouser had another week game, making 23 saves on 28 shots, as Lowell lost 5-2. Chris Bell put Lowell ahead at 5:18 of the first, and Maine then went on to score 5 straight goals, before Craig Brown scored a meaningless goal at 19:02 of the third. Lowell is now at 2-4, but more importantly with four straight losses in Hockey East, they are at 1-4 in the league.
The UML Riverhawks barely snuck one out at Army, winning due to a short handed goal, by their leading goal scorer, Anthony Cappelletti. Cappelletti's short handed tally, his fifth goal of the season, with just 53 seconds left gave Lowell a 4-3 win. Lowell fell behind 2-0 in this one, Jeremy Kyte made it a game at 11:04 with his second of the year. Mike Mulligan and Jef Boulanger scored in a three minute span in the second to give Lowell the lead. Lowell held the lead for a while, until they gave up a short handed goal to the Cadets midway through the third. But Cappelletti's goal on a 3-1, of a great feed by Mulligan, put Lowell in the win column. Jimi St. John won his first collegiate game, making 33 saves, to put Lowell at 3-4.
The Riverhawks returned to Hockey East play after a week away, and played just like they did against Army. Surviving sluggish play, stupid penalties, and a surprising lack of power plays, Lowell came away with a much needed home Hockey East win in overtime, 4-3. The Hawks (who only had one power play during the game) started the scoring with a goal by Chris Bell, and then watched Scott Fankhouser play his best game of the year (36 saves). Merrimack tied the game in the second on a power play, and the game stayed 1-1 till 3:02 of the third, when Mike Mulligan scored his second of the year. Merrimack tied it 10 minutes later, but freshman Tom Rouleau gave Lowell what looked to be the game winner just 59 seconds later, his second of the year. Unfortunately, with Merrimack having pulled the goalie, Fankhouser attempted a terrible clearance, and Merrimack was able to stun the 3,726 in attendance with the tying goal. Into OT the game went, and on a perfect feed from Kevin Bertram on a 2-1, Jeff Boulanger deked out Tom Welby and won the game for Lowell, 4-3.
In the rematch Saturday night at Merrimack, a crowd of 2,009 saw Merrimack score three unanswered goals in the third to split the series. Two Hawks scored their first goals of the year, sophomores Brad Rooney and Mark Fontas (a shorthanded goal), while Anthony Cappelletti continued his scoring, with his sixth of the year. Freshman Jimi St. John fell to 1-3 on the year, making just 14 saves, including only three in the decisive third period.
After watching a highly entertaining and hard fought game between the Maine Black Bears and UNH Wildcats (which Maine won 4-3), Lowell fans were hoping to see the same level of play from their Riverhawks. And they got it ... kind of. Attempting to win only their second ever Governor's Cup game, the Riverhawks got off to a good start in their game against Vermont. Jeff Boulanger scored on a power play to give the Hawks the lead, which they would relinquish just less than two minutes later. This proved to be the story of the game, Lowell taking the lead, UVM coming right back and tying it. Midway through the second the best crowd of the young season, 4,430 saw Lowell capitalize on a two on one break, with Chris Bell scored on a nice pass from John Campbell to make it 2-1. Of course, towards the end of the period, Lowell let in the tying goal on a UVM powerplay. The third period was played conservatively until Lowell scored at 9:44 to take the lead again. This time Craig Brown got what might have been the goal of the weekend, charging from the Hawks blueline, blowing by at least three Catamounts, and then slapping in a tough backhander. Of course, Lowell blew that lead as well, and then despite having a power play to end the third and begin OT, the Hawks couldn't do anything, and watched a 5' 5" Catamount end their hopes of hosting the championship game. Scott Fankhouser wasn't tested much in this one, only making 13 saves, but a couple of those were great.
Ugly doesn't begin to describe Lowell's performance during the Governor's Cup Consolation game. UNH came to play in this one, and UML didn't. They also got the dubious distinction of breaking a record they didn't want any part of. Lowell took zero, as in none, zilch, shots during the first period. They looked pathetic. Surprisingly they found themselves down only 2-0, thanks to Jimi St. John who made 16 saves in the period. The only thing Coach Whitehead did during intermission was hand the players copies of the scoresheet, showing the 0 shots. This didn't really seem to affect the players either as they found themselves down 4-0, just over 7 minutes into the second. The first Lowell shot of the game received a sarcastic cheer from the 3,740 in attendance. St. John was then taken out (having made 18 saves for the game) and replaced by Fankhouser, who only gave up one goal for the rest of the game, making 14 saves. Lowell got it's only tally with just over four minutes left in the second on a power play goal by Chris Bell. This one ended at 5-1, and Lowell proved that it can't compete with the better teams without putting in a solid effort night in and night out. Lowell drops to 4-7, and now heads back to HE play with a home/home against Northeastern.
Lowell went into Matthews Arena desperately needing at least a split and preferably a sweep of the weekend series against the Northeastern Huskies. The Hawks and Huskies played to a quick and scoreless first period, with each team only getting 6 shots. The second period picked up the pace, and Lowell finally put a dent in the scoreboard as Kevin Bertram scored on a power play goal late in the period, with assists going to Chris Bell and John Campbell. The Huskies battled back to tie the game at 7:31 of the third to the joy of the 1,672 in attendance. The rest of the third period went back and forth, looking like the game was heading for OT, until Jeff Boulanger came up with another big goal, finding himself with the puck and a wide open net, and scored the game winner. Anthony Cappelletti and Brad Rooney got the assists at 18:47. Scott Fankhouser made 27 saves to get the win. The one goal was the fewest Lowell has allowed all year.
In the rematch at Tsongas Arena Saturday night, Lowell got a much needed sweep with a 4-1 win. Lowell started early on this one, before most of the 2,534 fans had even found their way to their seats, with John Campbell scoring just 38 seconds in. Campbell just picked up the puck off the rear boards, skated around and put it through the five hole. Scott Fankhouser made that lead last for over 30 minutes until 12:09 of the second, when Chris Bell scored his sixth goal of the season, with an assist going to Campbell and Mulligan (who also assisted on the first goal). This two goal lead was the first time since the RPI game on Oct. 24 that the Hawks had a two goal lead in a game. Campbell added another early in the third, from Chris Bell and Kevin Bertram, and Brad Rooney ended Lowell's scoring, getting a nice feed in front from Jeff Boulanger at 14:05. Fankhouser lost his shutout bid with just 2:01 to go, but ended up making 21 saves and getting another win. This was the first time since the start of the year that Lowell has won back-to-back games. Now the Hawks play BU in a home and home starting Friday night as the Tsongas Arena.
The Riverhawks this weekend found out how important it is to have a good goaltender to win games in Hockey East. Unfortunately the lesson was given bu Michel Larocque, the BU goalie. On Friday night at the Tsongas Arena, another disappointing crowd of 2,501 so Lowell end the 98 home schedule with a 5-3 loss. The Riverhawks started off on the wrong end early, trailing at 6:19 of the first on a rebound score. The Hawks tied it up quickly later, as Kyle Kidney and Tom Rouleau did a great job of keeping the BU defenseman behind the net and then finding Jeremy Kyte, who stood in front of Larocque for what seemed like a minute before tying the game with his third tally of the year. Later on in the period, the Hawks found Brad Rooney on a shorthanded breakaway, and while the linesman had a clear view of the play and ruled it onsides, the referee Fitzgerald (skating at the Riverhawks blue line) called it offsides, taking a great opportunity away from Lowell. The Hawks defense then fell asleep, giving up a two on none goal, and in the second a rebound goal, and BU went into the third up 3-1. The hosts finally woke up in the third, as Chris Bell scored a beauty of a goal, his seventh, at just 38 seconds, and a little over four minutes later, John Campbell tied it, with the assist going to Campbell. BU bounced back on a terrible goal at 7:03, as the puck was thrown towards the net off the boards, and Scott Fankhouser let it slip into the net. That goal ended the game, as BU added the final goal three minutes later. Fankhouser made just 23 saves, giving up five goals.
Saturday night at BU, a crowd of 2,968 watched BU sweep the weekend series from Lowell. Once again the officials played a part in this loss. The Riverhawks seemed to jump to a quick 1-0 lead, as a shot from the point drew an extremely quick whistle (while the puck was still loose), and even though the rebound was put into the net, Gravellesse took the goal away. This gave momentum to the Terriers, who quickly took a 1-0 lead just minutes after this. Jeff Boulanger tied the game on a power play later in the period, getting a great feed from Brad Rooney, for Boulanger's 7th of the year. Just two minutes later, BU took the lead back. There was no more scoring till late in the second, as John Campbell (who had just been robbed on a breakaway) tied the game, with the only assist going to Jeremy Kyte. Lowell then had another defensive lapse, giving up a goal 84 seconds later, with only 1:09 left in the period. BU added to the 3-2 score at 13:16 of the third, and even though Anthony Cappelletti's shorthanded goal at 16:17 made it 4-3, the game was over. The three goal scorers for Lowell lead the team with 7 goals each. The goaltending in this game was the difference, as Lowell had 42 shots on net, but Larocque had 39 saves, while Fankhouser only made 15 saves on 19 shots. Lowell (6-9, 4-7) is off now till the Silverado Shootout in Minnesota, on Jan 2.
After a three week layoff, the RiverHawks went out west hoping to get on a little roll to start off 1999. The young Hawks played a pesky Army team to start off the Silverado Shootout (hosted by Minnesota Duluth), which had lost earlier to Lowell on a last minute goal 4-3. With most of the 1,000 fans rooting for the Cadets, the Hawks looked to be in trouble early, showing some rust and falling behind 1-0, just 89 seconds in. The Cadets managed to hold on to that slim lead for the remainder of that period. Lowell came out firing to start off the second though, as Wil Tormey got his first of the year, just 46 seconds in to tie the game. Jeff Boulanger's 8th of the year at 5:08, also proved to be his third game winner of the year, as the Hawks took a 2-1 lead on the power play. Kyle Kidney made it 3-1 with just over two minutes left in the second. The Hawks then went on to dominate the third period, allowing just 2 shots on net by the Cadets, and scoring three more goals. John Campbell got his seventh just 25 seconds in, and Dan Fontas added two just 52 seconds apart (with one assist going to his older brother Mark) late in the third provided the final score of 6-1. Scott Fankhouser made a small statement about holding on to the starting goaltender position with 17 saves on the night, while Lowell peppered the Army goal with 48 shots. The host Bulldogs beat Air Force crushed Air Force 7-2 in the other matchup.
In the inaugural Silverado Shootout Final, Scott Fankhouser made a much louder statement to keep his position, posting his first collegiate shutout, as the Hawks beat the host Bulldogs 3-0, to win their first Championship Trophy of any kind since the Great Alaska Shootout of 1994. Fankhouser, the tournament's MVP, stopped all 30 shots that the Bulldogs threw at him in front a a respectable and very partisan crowd of 4,514. The Hawks (8-9) took a 1-0 lead on a power play goal by Mike Mulligan at 6:50 of the first. Freshman Kevin Kotyluk added an insurance goal at 5:45 of the second, for his first collegiate goal, and Chris Bell tied the team lead with his 8th of the year at 7:23 to finish of the scoring. Lowell was outshot for the first time in a while in this game, only taking 20 shots on net. The key to the game was holding the Bulldogs to a 0-10 on the power play. The Hawks now head back home to start off the second semester, against ECAC foes St. Lawrence and Clarkson. The Hawks hope to have Cam McCormack eligible for this weekend, but he might have to wait till classes start to be able to play.
Treacherous conditions greeted a sparse crowd of around 500 (actual ticket sales were 2,005) at the Tsongas Arena Friday night as the 13rd ranked St. Lawrence Saints (10-6-1) came into Lowell. The icy roads and snowy weather kept many away from a game that Lowell surprisingly dominated. Lowell outshoot SLU 13-8 in the first, but came out on the wrong end of a 2-1 score, falling behind just 48 seconds in, just to have Nick Carso come up with a loose puck right in front of the Saints net and then tie up the game with his first of the year. SLU took the lead back later in the first, and with standout senior goaltender Eric Heffler in the nets for the Saints, things looked bleak. But someone woke up the Hawks in the second, and they came out storming. Mike Mulligan found another loose puck on the power play just 1:32 in, and tied up the game again. SLU didn't get a shot on net in the period till the 6:08 mark and were outshot for the period 14-6. Jeremy Kyte found Anthony Cappelletti in the slot, who then put in the game winner at 8:29. Chris Bell provided the insurance goals, as he added his ninth and tenth goals of the year, one on a nice feed from John Campbell at 17:46 of the second, and an empty netter to end the game. Scott Fankhouser faced a little more pressure in the third, as Lowell played very defensively, and Fankhouser wound up with 25 saves. Lowell stopped all 6 SLU power plays, and the streak is now at 32 straight penalty kills.
The Clarkson Golden Knights came to Lowell trying to split a weekend series against the Hockey East, having lost to UNH the previous night. A good crowd of 2,563 saw end to end action in the first with 23 shots put up on the board, 13 by Clarkson. Yorrick Treille, who returned from the World Junior Championships during the week, scored at 14:31 of the first to give the Hawks a 1-0 lead. The Frenchmen made a great move deaking around the defender leaving Clarkson's goalie no chance on the play. Just less than three minutes later, Cappelletti got what proved to be his second game winner of the weekend, blasting a shot from just inside the blue line, his ninth of the year. Junior Chris Bell got his third goal of the weekend at 6:49 of the second, picking up a loose puck during a scramble in front of the net on a Lowell power play. A rare mistake by the Lowell defensemen at 14:46 of the second cost the Hawks a goal, as they just gave up the puck right in slot, and Fankhouser (who made 29 saves on the night) had no chance. Lowell then put the game away at 3:19 of the third, as Bell notched his fourth of the weekend coming in on a 2 on 1 with John Campbell, and taking the shot from just 10 feet away. John Campbell had four assists of the weekend, including three on goals by Chris Bell. Lowell played what could easily be the best weekend of hockey they have played this year, and for a change had a good result to show for it. They will now play Union on Tuesday night, trying for their fifth straight win, and also trying to go 2 games above .500 for the first time since they were 2-0 to start off the year.
Putting it mildly, Lowell cruised by Union in a rare mid week game at the Lawrence H. Achilles Rink in Schenectady, NY, 7-1. Lowell came into the game with a four game winning streak (perfect in 1999), and with 38 straight penalty kills. They added onto both streaks, killing seven Union penalties to make it 45 straight, and also scoring a shorthanded goal. The Hawks took a quick 1-0 lead to start the game, with sophomore Jeff Boulanger getting his 9th of the year at 3:47, picking up a rebound of a Brad Rooney shot.
Then Lowell took it easy, knowing Union was 2-13-2, and expecting the Dutchmen to lie down. Union did not, outshooting Lowell in the first, and missing out on a couple of golden opportunities, including hitting a post late in the first, but still trailed just 1-0 after one. "Our guys thought it was going to be an easy night," Coach Tim Whitehead said. Midway through the second, Lowell found itself tied at 1-1, off a giveaway by Scott Fankhouser, who otherwise had a great night with 27 more saves. Finally the RiverHawks woke up. Boulanger got his second of the night on a backhander over Union goalie Brandon Snee's shoulder at 11:26, for a power play goal that proved to be the game winner. John Campbell had an assist on the play, for his team leading 16th of the year. Less than three minutes later, Boulanger finished off his first career hat trick on another power play, picking up the rebound from Anthony Cappellettis shot.
Union had a chance to get right back into the game going on the power play just 24 seconds after Lowell's goal, but Rooney stole the puck and found a streaking Yorrick Treille for a shorthanded breakaway goal to make it 4-1, Lowell. It was Treille's third of the year. Lowell was outhsoot again in this period by the same 10-7 margin of the first, and were outshot for the game 31-25. The RiverHawks padded their stats in the third, with Campbell getting his eighth goal of the year at 3:20 from Chris Bell and Cappelletti. Brad Rooney made it 6-1 at 9:31 for his third of the year, as freshmen Kevin Kotyluk and Treille assisted, and freshman Tom Rouleau also notched his third of the year, on the power play at 17:29 from Rooney and Chris Gustafson to cap the scoring. While Boulanger will get the deserved credit for this game, Rooney had one of his best nights of the year with a goal and three assists, which gave him 15 on the year. Even newcomer Brendan Hynes got on the box score, with the recent roster add-on playing goal for the last 4:29, and making 3 saves in that time span. Lowell improves to 11-9, and plays Yale and Providence (10-9) this weekend.
The RiverHawks winning streak continued at the Ingalls Rink in New Haven, CT, as Lowell defeated Yale 2-1 in front of 3,486. It was Lowell's sixth straight win, and improved the Hawks to a season best three games above .500 at 12-9. Scott Fankhouser had another strong game, making 22 saves, and only allowing one goal. That goal came on a Yale power play that ended Lowell's penalty killing streak at 51 straight. Lowell started off very slow, managing only two shots in the first period, but the period still ended scoreless, as Yale only got six shots of their own. Jeremy Kyte put Lowell ahead at 3:50 in the second, on an unassisted power play goal. Lowell then killed off a 5-3, but the penalty kill streak finally ended late in the second period, as Yale tied the game at 1-1, with just 31 seconds left. The Hawks came out to play in the third, attacking the Yale goal, and took the lead for good with the games third power play goal, this one by Mike Mulligan at 12:36. Josh Allison and Anthony Cappelletti assisted on the game winning goal, as Mulligan was left open in front of the net. Lowell held the Bulldogs to 1-10 on the power play. The Hawks hope to continue the streak at home against Providence.
The Providence Friars came to the Tsongas Arena on Sunday afternoon having won 4 of their last 5, and having defeated Lowell's sister school, UMass Amherst 8-1 on Friday night. The sparse crowd of 2,027 saw the Hawks go down in flames for the eighth time this year in a conference game, 5-2. The Friars just wanted the game more, and even though Lowell outshot PC, this game was not in doubt after the Friars took the lead at 7:17 of the first on a defensive lapse by the Hawks. Lowell played a much more spirited second period, but even while having back-to-back 5-3 situations, Lowell could do nothing. PC actually took a 2-0 lead after one of the 5-3 situations had ended and Lowell was one man up. The Hawks got one back also shorthanded playing 4-3 hockey, as Chris Bell's great individual effort made it a 2-1 game. It was Bell's team leading 13th goal of the year. PC killed any momentum that goal might have given the Hawks though, as they scored just 21 seconds later, to effectively end this game. Providence would make it 3-1 at 5:15 of the third, and even though John Campbell's beautiful goal (his 9th of the year) cut the lead to 4-2 at 8:06, this game was over. An empty net goal for PC ended the scoring at 5-2. Scott Fankhouser didn't have a great game with just 12 saves, but Lowell's defense had to share some of the blame, falling asleep on a couple of those goals. The Hawks now face a possible season killing back/back series against the #3 team in the country UNH next weekend.
Give 'em an A for effort, and an F for results. Once again the UML RiverHawks came up short in their effort to win their first Hockey East game since Dec 5 against Northeastern, a streak that has now hit four games. Lowell (12-11, 4-9 in Hockey East) dropped a tough game to UNH (18-4-1, 9-2-1) on Friday night at the Tsongas Arena in front of 3,409 fans. UNH dominated the first period, but Scott Fankhouser saved all 13 shots to keep the score knotted at 0. The offense would thank him for his efforts in the second, as Anthony Cappelletti scored his career year with his 10th goal (he only had four goals coming into his senior year). Brad Rooney fed Cappelletti for his fifth power play goal of the year, to give the Hawks a 1-0 lead. Fankhouser continued his great play, stopping another 12 shots in the second period, and Lowell escaped to the third period clinging to a 1-0 lead, hoping to pull off a huge upset over the third ranked Wildcats. UNH had outshot the Hawks by a 25-10 margin going into the third period. Fankhouser finally was beaten at the 2:26 mark of the third, and the game was tied. Unfortunately Lowell continued its habit of taking bad penalties, as UNH finally capitalized at 13:28 for its only power play goal of the game in 9 tries, to take a 2-1 lead. The game was finally put away at 16:25 as UNH built a 3-1 cushion which was more than enough for UNH goalie Ty Conklin who is now 11-0 on the year. Fankhouser played a great game, making 35 saves in the losing effort. The Hawks head to UNH tomorrow night trying to get back on track.
The RiverHawks went up to UNH to play at the Whittemore Center in front of the biggest crowd they had faced all year. A sellout crowd of 6,110 saw Scott Fankhouser have his second great game off the weekend, but still lose. Lowell fell to .500 on the year (12-12, 4-10 Hockey East) as they came out on the wrong end of a 4-1 score. After giving up 9 power play opportunities Friday night to UNH, Lowell gave up 5 more in this one, as the special teams proved to be a killer to the Hawks. After a scoreless first period, the Hawks began the second on a power play, but a shorthanded goal by Jason Krog (his 201st career point as a Wildcat) just 18 seconds in gave UNH a 1-0 lead. Then with UNH on the power play, the Wildcats got the game winner at the 3:38 mark on a 4-3 situation. The Wildcats then went for the kill, but Fankhouser was up to the task, stopping a few great chances, including a breakaway by freshman Darren Haydar. UNH took 15 shots on net during the period, and Fankhouser deserves credit for letting just 2 by. Lowell made a game of it in the third, with Dan Fontas notching his third of the year, with assists going to his brother Mark as well as Josh Allison. Lowell kept attacking the net, trying to get the equalizer, but when Haydar scored with just 2:29 remaining, the game was effectively over. Haydar would add an empty netter at 19:26 to provide the final 4-1 margin. The Hawks played a tough gritty weekend, but while UNH capitalized on their chances, the Hawks did not. Fankhouser had one of his best weekends at Lowell, making 68 saves on the weekend as UNH peppered the Lowell goalie. The Hawks now must face a battered and bruised BU squad at home Friday night, and then play at Merrimack on Super Bowl Sunday.
The RiverHawks went into their home against the Terriers with a lot of things going against them. They had a record of 6-42-4 all time against BU. They had lost 5 straight Hockey East games, and were tied for last place in the league. They hadn't won a home conference game since Dec 5, a span of almost two months. So as sometimes happens in those situations, the Hawks dominated the Terriers on their way to a 4-1 win in front of a good crowd of 3,571 at the Tsongas Arena. Lowell (13-12-0, 5-10-0 Hockey East) came out very aggressive in this one, which isn't always a good thing. The Hawks were shorthanded three times in the first 10 minutes. However, the continued their excellent short handed play, not allowing even one shot on all three power plays for BU (8-14-2, 5-9-2). In fact, on BU's first 7 power plays, they only had one shot in total. This prompted Jack Parker, coach of the Terriers, to state, "We do not have a power play. We have a man-advantage, but we do not have a power play." The Hawks got a power play of their own in between and cashed it in, as Anthony Cappelletti scored his 11th of the year on the power play, with an assist going to Jeremy Kyte at 6:07 (and the Terrier whose stick the puck actually bounced off). This fired the Hawks up a little more, as they kept buzzing the Terrier net, only to be sent away repeatedly by goalie Michel Larocque. The lead did build up though at 15:26 as Kyle Kidney picked up a loose puck in front of the net for a power play goal, from Yorick Treille and Kevin Bertram, to make it 2-0. Less than 2 minutes later, Kevin Kotyluk took a great feed from Chris Bell and deposited his second goal of the year into the net.
Lowell left the period with a 19-4 shot advantage, having completely outhustled, outplayed and outbanged the Terriers. That shot advantage would climb to 24-4 before the Terriers finally got a shot off midway through the second. Even though the Terriers did cut the lead to 3-1 with just 36 seconds to go in the period, the Hawks shot advantage had risen to 31-10 for the game. The third period was played pretty conservatively by both teams, the only goal being an empty netter by John Campbell for his team leading 13th of the year, with assists going to Bell and Jeff Boulanger. Scott Fankhouser had a quiet night, but made the saves when he needed to, coming up with 16 saves to get the win. The Hawks climbed up to 7th in Hockey East with the win, and could climb higher with a win at Merrimack on Sunday.
Super Bowl Sunday provided a much better college hockey game than a football game. While the Super Bowl was lackluster at best, the game between Merrimack river rivals Lowell and Merrimack was a barnburner. Of course, it wouldn't have hurt to have a fire going inside the very cold Volpe Complex, where it seemed the air conditioner was on for more of the game, and it was better to go outside in 20 degree temperature to warm up. Anyway, back to the game. The Hawks got a much needed 4-3 road win in front of a sparse crowd of 988 in North Andover. The game started off physical, and almost turned ugly as it went along. Lowell (14-12-0, 6-10 Hockey East) continued its hot play on the penalty kill, scoring their 10th shorthanded goal of the year at 7:21. The goal came off a great 2-2 break between John Campbell and Doug Nolan, ho notched his fourth goal of the year, 3 of them shorthanded. Anthony Cappelletti got the other assist. Scott Fankhouser stopped all six shots in the period, and the Hawks started off the second with a 1-0 lead.
Midway through the period, a terrible clearing pass by Warrior defenseman Vincent Clevenger was intercepted by freshman Dan Fontas who had an easy shot right in front of the net for a 2-0 lead. It was Fontas' fourth of the year, and it was unassisted. The Hawks looked to be in total control, as Fankhouser had stood up to any pressure, including an easy breakaway by Hobey Baker candidate Rejean Stringer. Then things went south in a hurry. Within 2:34 seconds, it was 3-2 Merrimack (9-15-1, 5-9-1). A delayed penalty for a slah, a terrible call by a rookie ref, and a stupid penalty by Chris Bell all resulted in goals for the Warriors, and the Hawks looked to be in trouble.
The second period ended with the same score. The two power play goals were the first time the Hawks had allowed more than one in 15 games. Strangely the Warriors came out flat in the third period, being outshot 13-6, but the Hawks couldn't quite put the puck in the net. The Hawks finally got a bounce at 16:18 on the power play, as Jeff Boulanger notched his 12th of the year to make it a 3-3 game. The few fans in attendance, especially the River Hawk fans were treated to a further delight as Merrimack goalie Tom Welby then had a temper tantrum jumping around in the crease after that goal. The Hawks then got another lucky bounce with just under two minutes to go, with freshman Tom Rouleasu getting the biggest goal of his career, the puck going in off Welby's skates. The two weekend wins put the Hawks in a fifth place tie with BU in Hockey East. The Hawks now face two more huge games against Providence in a home and home series starting Friday night at the Tsongas Arena. The Friars are four points ahead of the Hawks going into this upcoming weekend.
The River Hawks hosted the Providence Friars Friday night at the Tsongas Arena, trying to pull closer in the race for the last home playoff spot in Hockey East. They finished the game virtually guaranteeing themselves a road series. The Hawks (14-13, 6-11 Hockey East) found themselves attempting to catch up all game, as they didn't really seem to be ready for the Friars (14-12, 9-8). As usual, the Hawks took a lot of penalties, and it cost them midway through the first as the Friars grabbed a 1-0 lead at the 10:46 mark. That momentum got stronger for the Friars, as they quickly scored a second goal on a nice centering pass just 26 seconds later. Lowell finally got on the board on a power play of their own, as a weak shot by Chris Gustafson jumped over Friar's goalie Boyd Ballard's stick and seemed slowly headed to the right post, before Jeff Boulanger poked it home. It was Boulanger's 13th goal of the year, 8th on the power play. The period ended with the same score, and the Hawks found themselves lucky to still be in the game.
The second period was dominated by the Hawks, but to no avail. They had four consecutive power plays, but couldn't score even once, and gave up a shorthanded goal on a two-on-one that wound up being the game winner. The Hawks drew close again, just before the end of the second, as freshman Kevin Koryluk scored his third of the year on a point blank shot, with assists going to Doug Nolan and Josh Allison. The Hawks outshot the Friars 14-6 in the period, but still came away behind 3-2. The Friars then put the game away quickly in the third, as junior Jerry Keefe, from Lowell's neighbouring town of Billerica, got a nice feed and blasted home a shot that Scott Fankhouser (who had 14 saves on the night) got a piece off, but still trickled into the Lowell net. The Friars would add the exclamation point just 1:40 later, and the game was pretty much over. The Hawks had a couple of opportunities to make it a closer game, but Ballard was up to the task, making 24 saves. The Friars are now six points ahead of the Hawks for fourth place in Hockey East, and will host the Hawks at Schneider Arena Saturday night.
The UMass Lowell River Hawks quieted their detractors for at least one more night, winning a must-win game at Schneider Arena against the host Providence Friars. The Hawks (15-13, 7-11) came out firing in this one, peppering the Friar (14-13, 9-9) goal with 17 shots in the first. Only one of those 17 actually hit the back of the net though, as freshman Tom Rouleau picked up a rebound and notched his fifth of the year, with assists going to Doug Nolan and Jeremy Kyte at the 16:33 mark. Other than that goal, neither team could get past the great play of both goalies. The Friar's Boyd Ballard continued his very impressive play at the start of the second, as Lowell added 12 more shots during this period. The Friars fed off Ballard's play, and tied up the game at the 6:12 mark, needing a great move to finally get past Fankhouser, who had also made some great saves to that point.
The Hawks refused to lose this game though, as they took the lead on a four-on-four situation just over six minutes later. The Hawks might have gotten away with a trip behind the PC net, and as Friar defenseman Jason Ialongo went down, Doug Nolan picked up the puck right in front of Ballard and deposited the easy goal for his fifth of the year, with an assist going to Rouleau. Less than five minutes later, the Hawks found themselves with a five on three advantage, and scored the only power play goal of the game, coming off the stick of Anthony Cappelletti. It was the senior defenseman's 12th of the year, and his 7th on a power play, as he picked up a rebound off a shot by John Campbell, with the other assist going to Boulanger. This wound up being Cappelletti's fourth game winner of the year. The Hawks wound up going into the third period leading 3-1, and having outshot the Friars 29-11. One more period would give the Hawks a huge boost in their fight for home ice.
The third period began with the Friars getting a huge goal at the 1:15 mark as the Omicioli brothers combined for a goal in which the puck bartel went over the goal line. The Hawks then looked to be in trouble again as the Friars looked for the tying goal and went on the power play midway through the period. But the Hawks special teams (which killed all 9 PC power plays) scored their 11th shorthanded goal of the year, with Dan Fontas scoring on a breakaway to give the Hawks the final margin in their 4-2 victory. The Hawks win kept their slight hopes alive for a home playoff series, as they climbed back to four points behind the Friars with each team having six games remaining. The Hawks stayed tied with the BU Terriers as well, but the Terriers do have a game in hand.
Another small crowd greeted the UMass Lowell RiverHawks on Friday night as they battled their sister school UMass Amherst for the Alumni Cup at the Tsongas Arena. The Alumni Cup is decided each year between these two schools, with UMass having won the first two, and Lowell now having won it the last two. The River Hawks (16-13-0, 8-11-0) came out flying in this one, knowing their shot at being a home playoff team are slipping away. A crowd of 2,113 saw the Hawks jump on the Minutemen (7-18-2, 4-13-2) from the get-go.
The Hawks were held at bay by UMass freshman goaltended Mike Johnson, until the 7:44 mark when Lowell finally got on the board. A nice pass from Doug Nolan sent sophomore Jeremy Kyte on his way, and a nice little move just inside the blue line left a UMass defensemen in his tracks and Kyte put one through the five hole for his fifth goal of the year. Senior Kevin Bertram got the other assist on the goal. The Hawks kept attacking the net and made it 2-0 at 15:36, when Dan Fontas found Yorrick Treille breaking in for a two on one. Treille used linemate Mark Fontas (Dan's older brother) as a fake and slapped home a low shot to the stick side of Johnson. It was Treille's fourth goal of the year, with both Fontas brothers picking up assists. Unfortunately having UMass on the edge and waiting for the kill wasn't enough, as the Hawks continued their trend to play to the level of their opposition. The Minutemen had a couple of great chances in the period, and finally got on the board with junior Jeff Blanchard making it 2-1 at the 11:06 mark, on a shot Scott Fankhouser didn't seem to see. The Hawks began to play defensive hockey at that point and continued doing so for the remainder of the game, only managing a few spurts of attacking hockey for the next 28 minutes. The Hawks managed to escape with the 2-1 lead going into the third, but UMass then took over. The Minutemen outshot the Hawks 16-6 in the period, being kept out of the net by Fankhouser, including a couple of great glove saves. Fankhouser finished the night with 32 saves. UMass had a lot of bad luck on their side during this game hitting the post three times.
The Hawks desperately needed this win, and by holding on stayed four points behind Providence in their fight for fourth place. With Providence beating the BU Terriers Saturday night (combined with BU's tie with UNH Friday night) the Hawks are now alone in fifth, one point ahead of BU, both having played 19 Hockey East games). Lowell now faces the BC Eagles at the Tsongas Arena in the Fox Sports New England Game of the Week, followed Saturday night by a rematch with UMass Amherst.
The UML RiverHawks went into their weekend schedule with the chance to be 1 game below .500 in Hockey East for the first time since October 31. On Friday night against the sixth ranked BC Eagles (19-10-2, 13-6-0 Hockey East), the Hawks drew the biggest home crowd of the season at the Tsongas Arena. Unfortunately the majority of the 3,857 left disappointed after yet another close defeat to a high ranked opponent, as the Hawks (16-14-0, 8-12-0) lost 3-2. Both teams came out firing in the first period, with 22 shots being peppered on the goalies. Only Jeff Farkas (who has been a Hawk killer over his career) managed to put the puck behind Lowell's Scott Fankhouser, as Farkas took the puck behind the net, was hit by Lowell defender Chris Gustafson, who then switched off him, but no one else picked him up and Farkas deposited it around the other side of the net, for a 1-0 Eagle lead. BC's Scott Clemmensen made some great saves to keep the Eagles ahead after one. The Hawks then came out on fire in the second period, scoring twice in the first 3 minutes. Senior Doug Nolan, who has been heating up recently, got the Hawks on the board just 16 seconds in, winning the faceoff, dropping it to Anthony Cappelletti, who passed it to John Campbell, who fed Nolan for a backhander that tied up the game at 1. It was Nolan's sixth of the year. Nolan took a penalty a few seconds later, but continued the momentum swing when he got out. Nolan's seventh of the year came on a 2-on-1 at the 2:51 mark, as Campbell found him again, and sent him and freshman Josh Allison in. Nolan used Allison as a decoy and buried a nice shot from the right circle. The rest of the period was back and forth, but neither team managed to get one past the other's goalies, both making some spectacular saves.
The teams went into the third with the Hawks clinging to a 2-1 lead and hoping for the upset. They quickly found out the Eagles were not going to go quietly. The Hawks actually outshot the Eagles in the third by a 13-10 margin, but Clemmensen held Lowell at bay. The Eagles finally tied the game with just less than 8 minutes to go on a highly disputed call. Jeff Giuliano took a shot from the point which appeared to be stopped by Fankhouser, but Mike Lephard slid into Fankhouser and the puck, Fankhouser and Lephart all went past the goal line at the 12:10 mark. Referee Tim Benedetto immediately said it was a goal, and the arguement put up by Cappelletti, Fankhouser, and the rest of the Lowell team went to no avail. The Hawks fans were also very vocal in their disagreement with the decision. It would only get worse five minutes later at 17:07 as the Eagles Nick Pierandri broke in on a 1-on-1, and used Allison as a screen and put one through the five hole on Fankhouser for what proved to be the game winner. Fankhouser had a very good game, making 28 saves on the night, but was upstaged by Clemmensen who made 30. The Hawks stayed in fifth place in Hockey East though, as BU lost to Maine in Maine. The Hawks continue their must win schedule at the Tsongas Arena tomorrow night against UMass.
The UMass Amherst Minutemen (10-18-2, 6-13-2) left the Tsongas Arena without the Alumni Cup, but with a huge win defeating the host RiverHawks 3-2. It was the second 3-2 defeat in a row for the Hawks (16-15-0, 8-13-0), who fell to sixth place in the league. The Minutemen carried play in the first with the Hawks showing the effects of a tough loss to 6th ranked BC the previous night. UMass got on the board at 5:50 on a nice redirection on a shot from the point. With Lowell slowly starting to wake up as the game moved along, Minutemen goalie Markus Helanen made a couple of great saves to keep his team ahead. UMass added to its lead just before the end of the first, as a bad clearing pass was intercepted and then put away for a 2-0 lead. The Hawks played a great second period, taking an amazing 22 shots, but only one got past Helanen.
As the Hawks attempted to get back in the game, things began to get nasty. Helanen came way out of his crease to clear the puck, and Jeff Boulanger ran into him. As was expected the Minutemen didn't appreciate it, and RJ Gates nailed Boulanger with his stick. Surprisingly Gates only got a five minute major and was allowed to stay in the game, while Boulanger didn't return from the injury. Even with the major, the Hawks couldn't do anything, not managing a shot in the first 3 and a half minutes. At 10:10 things finally got better. Freshman Yorick Treille was hanging in front of the net, and as the puck was sent through the crease by Dan Fontas, Treille banged it in for his fifth goal of the year.
The third period began with that 2-1 score, and the Hawks continued looking for the tying goal. Freshman Dan Fontas finally got it, picking up his sixth of the year at 9:31, getting a feed from Treille and finding himself 15 feet away with just the goalie to beat. A shot that just trickled past Helanen sent the 2,936 in attendance crazy. Lowell continued attacking Helanen, but he was amazing, ending the night with 35 saves. Finally with just over 3 minutes to go, the Hawks gave up the game winner on a breakaway by Jeff Blanchard. The defenseman on the play fell down at center ice, and was unable to catch up to Blanchard who beat Fankhouser five hole. UMass climbed to seventh in Hockey East with the win, only two points behind the Hawks. While the Hawks won the Alumni Cup (winning the first two games of the series between the two state schools), the Minutemen might have really hurt the Hawks playoff chances. Lowell is in sixth place, and dropping more will cause them to either have to play UNH or Maine, or in the worst case dropping out of the playoffs. The Hawks need one loss by Northeastern (currently in last place) to guarantee a playoff spot. It gets much more difficult this weekend, with games against two of the top five teams in the country, Maine at home on Friday night and at the Whittemore Center to play UNH Sunday night.
Another loss to a ranked team. This is getting repititious. Lowell (16-16, 8-14) hosted the #4 Maine Black Bears (24-3-4, 16-3-2) at the Tsongas Arena in the last home game for the River Hawk seniors. The seniors departed with a loss that dropped the Hawks to 7-7-0 at home on the year. The Hawks came out to their largest home crowd of the year (4,119), and found themselves in trouble to start the game. With Jeff Boulanger out for the year due to his injury in the UMass game and Doug Nolan hurting his knee during practice, two of the very few offensive weapons were not dressed. The Hawks then took a quick penalty in the second minute of the game, but turned it into a positive. Lowell scored its twelfth shorthanded goal of the year as Chris Bell deflected a pass from the point and went in for a breakaway on Maine's Alfie Michaud. A quick fake and a shot through the five hole, gave Bell his career high 14th of the year, and woke up the fans at the 2:09 mark, but it didn't have any effect on the team. The Hawks gave up the tying goal less than six minutes later on a power play goal by David Cullen at 7:51. The Hawks managed to keep it tied for the remainder of the period, only testing Michaud sporadically, as the puck seemed to be in the Lowell end for most of the 20 minutes.
Maine outshot Lowell 15-9 in the first, and continued their play in the second outshooting Lowell 15-7. It took just 1:03 for Maine to get their first lead of the game, as Marcus Gustafsson used an incredible fake that lulled the defensman to sleep on a one-on-one and then blasted it home past Scott Fankhouser. Fankhouser was pulled just over three minutes later, as he had been hit a couple of times by Maine players, and appeared dizzy. Freshman Jimi St. John saw his first action since November 28 against UNH. That ended Fankhouser's streak of 653.59 minutes of consecutive play. Lowell didn't manage much pressure in the second, but got the tying goal anyway. John Campbell was forechecking behind the net, won the puck, centered it, and saw the puck get kicked in by a Maine defenseman who was standing in the crease. Campbell's 11th of the year tied the game at 2. Maine's pressure paid off again at 16:52 on another power play goal. St. John made a couple of incredible saves, but the rest of the defense was just skating around during a mad scramble in front of the net, and Maine banged home what proved to be the game winner. Lowell played a much better third period, managing a few flurries towards Michaud, but couldn't get the puck by him, and when Maine added the insurance goal at 10:14, the game was pretty much over. An empty netter with 18 seconds left provided the final margin of 5-2. Fankhouser made 15 saves and St. John (who picked up the loss) made 24, many of the spectacular variety. With the sweep by Maine, and having already been swept by BC, Lowell will try to avoid losing all 9 games against the top 3 teams in the league Sunday night at UNH.
The River Hawks traveled to the Whittemore Center to play #3 UNH on Sunday night, hoping not to lose to UNH for the fourth time this year. The Hawks went into the game knowing UMass had tied them for sixth place in the league and a chance to play BC in the Hockey East playoffs. Unfortunately that didn't prove enough inspiration. For the fifth time in as many games, and sixth in the last seven, the Hawks (16-17, 8-17) managed just two goals in a 4-2 loss to UNH. UNH (24-5-3, 16-3-3) came out aggressive to start the game, scoring the fastest goal in the short history of the Whittemore Center, as Mike Souza put one in just 15 seconds into the game. Freshman Jimi St. John, starting for the first time in three months, had no shot to stop the goal. Dan Fontas had a chance to respond just a minute later on a breakaway but was denied by Sean Matile. The Hawks played well for the remainder of the period, but weren't able to tie it up, and when Jason Krog put in a rebound at the 15:19 mark, the Hawks looked to be in trouble.
Amazingly, Lowell then took over the game. Yorick Treille scored a power play goal, his sixth, with 1:10 left in the period, as he deflected in an Anthony Cappelletti shot from the point, with Dan Fontas getting the other assist. The period ended with that 2-1 score, and Lowell having been outshot 13-11. The Hawks continued their good play in the second, outplaying UNH, and putting 11 shots on net, while allowing just 6. They tied it up on Cappelletti's 13th of the year at 7:03, picking up a rebound when John Campbell hit the post. Cappelletti's goal tied him with Dave Barrozzino as the most ever goals scored by a Lowell defenseman in D1 play. The Hawks were not able to get anything else past Matile, and the third period began with Lowell and UNH tied at 2. The Hawks then proceeded to do what they had done against UNH twice this year. Fall asleep for two minutes. A lack of communication to start the period sent Krog in alone on St. John, and that proved to be the game winner at 0:35. Matt Swain's rebound goal at 1:50 gave the Wildcats a 4-2 margin that they would not relinquish. The Hawks lost Jeremy Kyte to an injury in this game, and wound up playing all five defenseman at a couple of points during the game. St. John made 23 saves, while Matile made 27 for the victorious Wildcats. Lowell is now tied for sixth place in Hockey East with UMass. Each has one game left and if they remain tied, Lowell does have the tiebreaker. More importantly, Merrimack is just one point behind both, but has two games left. Lowell owns the tiebreaker over the Warriors as well.
The River Hawks of UMass Lowell headed to Matthews Arena looking to do their part in their fight for sixth place in Hockey East. Finishing lower than sixth meant playing either Maine or UNH, while finishing sixth means a series at BC. Not exactly easier, but a shorter road trip for Lowell fans. The Hawks (17-17, 9-15 Hockey East) came out very aggressive in the first period, as did Northeastern (11-19-3, 5-16-2). Both teams had a lot on the line, as a Northeastern win kept alive their hopes for the last Hockey East playoff spot, while a loss would end their season.
With both teams putting players consistenly in the penalty boxes (33 penalties were called during the game), the first goal was scored when no one was in the box. Chris Bell scored his team high 15th goal of the year from the blueline at the 9:14 mark, with Josh Allison getting the lone assist. Both teams had a couple of other chances but neither could produce, and the period ended with the same 1-0 score. With the Hawks on a power play at the 5:49 mark, sophomore Jeff Boulanger (who missed the last five Lowell games due to an injury) notched his 14th of the year, ninth with a man advantage. The sophomore tipped in a shot from the point by Kevin Kotyluk, with Bell getting the other assist. The Hawks had the chance to put the game away, but Northeastern suddenly woke up. They began to outhit and outhustle the Hawks, to the delight of the sparse crowd of 1,201.
The Huskies got within one at the 10:01 mark, as Huskies forward Chris Lynch picked up a rebound, skated around Fankhouser, and deposited it in the empty net. The Huskies kept looking for the tie, but Lowell goalie Scott Fankhouser held them at bay. The Huskies then found themselves on a power play, but couldn't do anything till a costly turnover at the 15:23 when Ryan Zoller backhanded a rebound that tied the game. The Huskies outshot Lowell 14-5 in the period, and the announcements that UMass was leading eighth place Merrimack seemed to just get Northeastern more energized. The Hawks managed to escape the period with the tie, and it came down to 20 minutes of hockey that would decide the fate of these two teams. The Hawks looked like they scored the go ahead goal at 11:29, when the Hawks banged home a puck that was dancing in the crease. Unfortunately, referee Tom Fitzgerald had lost sight of the puck, and disallowed the goal. As the Hawks argued the point, sophomore Kyle Kidney picked up a stupid game misconduct penalty, which luckily only got him out of the game, and didn't put the Hawks shorthanded.
The Hawks kept attacking the net, and with Fankhouser and Jason Braun making great saves, it looked like the game was heading for OT. Later in the period, a questionable (make up?) cross checking call put the Hawks on the power play. Over a minute later, the Hawks had the lead back, as senior Mike Mulligan found the loose puck in the midst of a set of bodies in front of the crease. The goal, Mulligan's 6th of the year, was also his third game winner of the year, and was assisted by Brad Rooney and Kotyluk. The Huskies pressured the Hawks for the remainder of the game, and a couple of Fankhouser saves (he had 26 on the night) gave Lowell the sixth spot in Hockey East. This proved to be Lowell's fourth straight win over ex-coach Bruce Crowder The Hawks will now play BC on Thursday, Friday and if necessary Saturday nights, at the Conte Forum.
I guess it could have been worse, but I'm not sure how. The River Hawks were humbled by a BC team that has been inconsistent at times this year. The Eagles, preseason #1 in the nation, have played sporadic hockey. There is no doubt that talent wise they are one of the best in the country, but there are times when the play individually, which just winds up hurting them. Last night was not one of those nights. The River Hawks (17-18, 9-16 Hockey East) were outplayed, outhit, outhustled, and out (insert your verb here) in last nights 5-0 loss to BC (22-11-4, 16-7-2). The Hawks came out fighting in this one, getting a set of quality opportunities, but as has been the case many times this year, the shots didn't find the back of the net. With Lowell outshooting BC 7-1 midway through the first, things looked good for the Hawks, until a breakaway goal by Jeff Farkas, his 28th of the year (and 7th against Lowell) made it 1-0. It was only BC's second shot of the game. On BC's fourth shot of the game, it was 2-0. Brian Gionta scored a power play goal, picking up a rebound right in front of the crease and backhanding it through the five hole. Scott Fankhouser had no chance on either of those goals, as there's no way Gionta should have been allowed alone in front of the crease.
The first period ended with the 2-0 score, and the momentum completely on the Eagles side, and it stayed that way through the second. Midway through the second with Lowell on the power play, junior Kevin Bertram fell down and lost the puck to Brian Gionta who broke in with Bertram hanging on to him, and a great deke and a backhander past an out of position Fankhouser made it 3-0. Fankhouser was pulled after that having made 10 saves on the night, and having no defense played in front of him. Freshman Jimi St. John came in hoping to give the Hawks a breath of fresh air, and made a couple of superb shots right of the bat. Unfortunately, the Hawks then picked a bad moment to play stupid hockey, and found themselves playing two men short due to penalties. When Blake Bellefeuille found himself with an open net at the 17:39 mark and had enough time to take a second shot after whiffing the first time, it was 4-0, and Lowell was out for the count. BC would outshoot Lowell 13-8 in the period, and even though Lowell would edge them in the shots category in the third 9-8, BC got the only goal at the 11:41 mark, providing the final score of 5-0. The game wasn't even that close. Lowell's offense was shutout for the first time since Nov 29, 1997 against Vermont (a 4-0 loss), a span of 59 games. Scott Clemmenson picked up his first shutout of the year, with 26 saves, most of the casual variety. He was aided by the goal posts on two Lowell shots though. BC will look to extend their seven game winning streak over Lowell, and end the Hawks year tonight at the Conte Forum.
The River Hawks headed to BC Friday night hoping to keep their season going, and push the first round series to its third game. The Hawks played much better this time around, but unfortunately it was to no avail, and the Hawks six game streak of making the Hockey East semifinals is now over. Lowell came out in the first minutes of the game and did something they couldn't in the entire game Thursday night, they scored a goal. Sophomore Brad Rooney scored at the 1:07 mark, picking up a rebound from a Kevin Kotyluk shot. It was Rooney's first goal since January 12 against Union, and his first goal in a league game since December 5 against Northeastern (a span of 16 Hockey East games without a goal). The goal sparked the Hawks as they played tenacious hockey, but couldn't come away with a second goal.
At the 7:48 mark, BC tied the game on a three on two break. Lowell wasn't going to lay down and die though, coming back at the 10:53 mark with Kevin Bertram notching his fifth of the year. Kyle Kidney won the faceoff at the left point back to Bertram, who blasted it home for a 2-1 lead. Things looked good after one as the Hawks hoped to continue their season trend of being 11-1 when leading after one, and the Hawks best period of the season had been the second. Not this time. BC seemed to sense their momentum slipping, and came out firing in the second. The Eagles outshot the Hawks 16-4 in the period, scored twice and took a 3-2 lead. Blake Bellefeuille scored at the 5:44 mark, as he came out of the penalty box and worked a 2-on-1 perfectly with Brian Gionta. It was the second night in a row that Lowell was caught by an Eagle player coming out of the penalty box. BC kept attacking the net, but freshman Jimi St. John kept the puck out of the net with some marvelous saves. With Lowell's bad luck continuing as Campbell hit the post and the puck bounced out, the Hawks hoped to leave the period tied.
It didn't work out that way, as BC was put on a 4-3 power play on a questionable slashing call on Gionta. Gionta went down as if he had been shot, and seemed to be in major pain. As soon as the referee blew the whistle to indicate a penalty, Gionta (who had actually grabbed Kyle Kidney's stick into his stomach area) got up and skated around like nothing had happened. The Oscar winner then scored the go ahead goal, picking up a rebound with just 32 seconds left in the period. With a 3-2 lead, BC tried to put the Hawks away early in the third. St. John kept the Hawks in the game, until Bobby Allen (6:00) and Jeff Farkas (6:34) scored 34 seconds apart to make it 5-2. Allen's goal was set up beautifully, but St. John should have stopped Farkas' shot from just inside the blue line. The Eagles and their fans then put the game in the win column, but Lowell wasn't quite done. Chris Bell went in on a breakaway, and even though he was denied by Scott Clemmenson (who finished with 14 saves), this seemed to get Lowell going. Bertram's second goal of the night just seconds after Bell's attempt, assisted by Bell and Campbell (who set a nice screen) made it 5-3 at the 7:27 mark. This was Lowell's first power play goal of the series, as Brooks Orpik was in the box. Almost six minutes later, the trick worked again, as Orpik once again was in the box, and Bertram's shot was put in by Doug Nolan. The Conte Forum was dead quiet except for a few Lowell fans. The Hawks attempt at a comeback was thwarted though, as Clemmenson made some nice saves to help end the River Hawks season. Lowell ends the year with a 17-19 mark, and a 9-16 mark in Hockey East games. BC improved to 23-11-4 (16-17-2), and will play Maine in the Hockey East semifinals. Lowell says goodbye to its five seniors (Fankhouser, Nolan, Mike Mulligan, Anthony Cappelletti and Wil Tormey) and will be bringing in at least five freshmen next year. The River Hawks season begins (as far as I know) October 15/16 at Michigan.