GENEVA, Ill. – In a battle of two of the top-five teams in the country the #4 Trine University men's hockey team fell to their hosts from Aurora University, ranked third in the same USCHO.com poll, by the score of 6-3. The game is the first of a two-game series between the teams who sit atop the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association (NCHA) standings.
The first period was quiet for both teams with teams going scoreless while combining for just 16 shots on goal. In what became a trend for the night the Spartans won the battle for shots on goal in the period, 10-6. They made that advantage count in the early minutes of the second period, taking a 1-0 lead in the third minute.
The Thunder responded quickly, scoring just 30 seconds later. After earning a faceoff at the offensive end of the ice, Alexander Babich won the draw toward the far boards with Jack Cooper appearing to redirect the puck to the point. Sean Henry threaded his long distance shot through the defense and into the back of the net.
It was a short-lived tie with Aurora scoring their second goal in the fifth minute of the period. They looked primed to take an even bigger lead when they gained a man advantage after Ethan Janda was called for roughing in the seventh minute of the period.
The home goalie attempted to send the puck long to set up an offensive run, but Sam Antenucci was able to intercept the pass just inside the defensive blue line. The forward skated back before passing to the far circle for Sean Henry who threw the puck out of the zone. Bobby Price was waiting in the neutral zone to bump the puck back toward the center of the ice where Antenucci had trailed the play perfectly to gain a breakaway chance that he cashed in.
The Thunder scored the next goal as well, taking their first lead of the game. Josh Wright halted the advance by a streaking Spartan skater, banking the puck off the near boards to the feat of Tyler Blanchard who skated forward through a congested neutral zone. A quick stick tap by Antenucci settled the puck for Blanchard to continue his run through the near faceoff circle and across the face of the goal. His shot went into the top left corner of the net and made the score 3-2.
It was Aurora that scored the sixth and final goal of the wild second period, knotting the game at three with 5:25 remaining. Despite the even tally in goals, the home team dominated in shots, recording 27 to the Thunder's eight. Only through the strong play of Kyle Kozma in net was the game tied, he finished the period with 24 saves and the game with 37.
The Spartans changed their strategy from quantity to quality where shots were concerned in the third. They scored three more goals on just six total shots on goal in the final stanza, building a commanding 6-3 by the midway point. They held on for the win by the same score.
The Thunder fall to 16-3-1 overall and 10-2-1 in NCHA play. For now, Aurora takes the top spot in the conference standings with 33 points, while Trine owns 32. Both teams have secured a spot in the NCHA Harris Cup Playoffs and home ice for the first round. The Thunder will look to retake their lead in game two of the series, scheduled for 4 p.m. CT / 5 p.m. ET tomorrow, Saturday, February 1.
