HENNIKER, N.H. - The New England College men's ice hockey team battled to the final horn but fell to Little East Conference (LEC) opponent Norwich University, 6-4, on Friday night at Lee Clement Arena.
The Cadets struck early, as Hayden Heinrich opened the scoring just 3:39 into the contest. The Pilgrims answered with early pressure, including quality chances from freshman Matteo Viglino (Davos, Switzerland), but Norwich's goaltender Bryce Walcarius stood firm. Norwich doubled its lead midway through the period on a goal by Colin Elliott before NEC responded. Freshman Wyatt Gibson (Pelham, Ont.) buried his second goal of the season off a feed from senior Graham Padgitt (St. Charles, Ill.) to cut the deficit to 2-1. The Cadets answered quickly with goals from Ben van Waterschoot and Ocean Fancy in a two-minute span to push the lead to 4-1. The 'Grims closed the period with momentum, with junior Dylan Duckson (Mahtomedi, Minn.) capitalizing on a late power play with less than a second remaining to send the teams into the first intermission with Norwich ahead, 4-2.
Norwich regained control early in the second, scoring just over three minutes in on a goal from Nick Foster. NEC continued to generate chances behind shots from freshmen Jack Brennan (Hingham, Mass.) and Emil Elias (Ekerö, Sweden), but the Cadet defense denied their shots. Zach Ophoven extended Norwich's lead midway through before NEC answered again late. Sophomore Egor Osipik (Minsk, Belarus) netted his fifth goal of the season to cut the lead, as they headed into the second intermission trailing 6-3.
The Pilgrims pressed in the final frame, firing a flurry of shots that were turned aside by Walcarius. At the other end, sophomore goaltender Anthony Beaulieu (Lawrence, Mass.) kept NEC in the game with several key stops. Sophomore Vesse-Wincent Lampen (Espoo, Finland) set up senior Graham Hassan (Pinckney, Mich.) for a goal that cut the lead to 6-4. With the net empty late, the 'Grims pressed for a goal, but Norwich's defense held firm to close out the win.
Four different Pilgrims found the scoresheet, while junior Christophe Petit (Chelsea, Quebec) led NEC with two assists. Sophomore Bryce Sturm (Lake in the Hills, Ill.) tallied a team-high four blocked shots, and Beaulieu recorded 23 saves in net.
The Pilgrims return to action tomorrow, hosting LEC opponent Vermont State – Castleton at Lee Clement Arena. Puck drop is scheduled for 4:00 PM.
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