Hobart dominated play against Neumann for the first two periods of the ECAC West contest, scoring seven goals. The Statesmen then coasted in the third period on the way to a 7-1 victory.
The first period was spent almost entirely in the Neumann end of the rink. There was some play at center ice, and Neumann scraped together two shots in the closing minutes of the period while on the power play, but everything else was inside the Knights’ zone as the Hobart offense flexed its muscle.
Hobart converted the first Neumann penalty that was whistled just 45 seconds in to the game. Less than a minute later, R.C. Schmidt one-timed a pass from the corner past Neumann goaltender Matt Saur for Hobart’s first goal.
A spearing major called on Neumann forward John Longo midway through the period set up Hobart’s second goal. The Statesmen power play unit setup the same play that worked before, this time from the opposite corner, and Craig Levey finished off the goal at the 13:57 mark.
Neumann did a better job of clearing its zone in the second, but the ice was still tilted heavily in Hobart’s favor throughout the period.
“We came in here and got a little unraveled in the first,” said Neumann coach Nick Russo, “and then we cleaned up a few things in the third period. The nucleus is here for some thing special in the future.”
Hobart notched five straight goals spread out during the second period. Levey tallied one goal in the period, his second of the game. Dan Bush and Andy Boschetto each chipped in two goals.
Neumann showed a lot of character in the third period. Many teams, after giving up over thirty goals in two games on a road trip, would have let their frustrations show in chippy play or other unsportsmanlike behavior. However, the Knights stayed together as a team, showed some class, and played hard hockey. The players on the bench remained supportive of each other, and the teamwork paid off in the closing minutes.
Neumann took advantage of a major penalty on Hobart forward Max Levine to get on the board. Michael Pacitti chipped in a rebound at the 17:10 mark to end the game on a bright spot for the Knights.
