Colin McDonald banged a shot off the post from the deep left-wing corner near the game’s midway point for the decisive goal in a 3-2 Providence defeat of Bowling Green that gave the Friars (6-10-2) the consolation game of the Ledyard National Bank Tournament at Dartmouth’s Thompson Arena.
McDonald, who finished with a goal and an assist on the afternooon, joined teammate Eric Lundberg on the all-tournament team for their two-day efforts. David Cacciola earned the win for Providence, making 35 saves.
McDonald’s strike at 9:45 of the second period gave the Friars a 3-1 lead at the time. James Unger brought the Falcons (8-7-3) to within a goal five minutes later, but Cacciola turned aside 10 BGSU shots in the final stanza to secure the win.
Bowling Green got the scoring started early, with Ryan Minnabarriet wrapping the rebound of a Mike Falk power play blast around Cacciola at 5:49 of the first period. The Friars had a double response: back-to-back counterattack wristers from the left dot from Jon Rheault at 6:48 and Jamie Carroll at 12:31 past Bowling Green goaltender Jon Horrell (32 saves).
Horrell improved as the game went along, making 27 stops over the final two periods to keep the Falcons in the contest. The junior transfer from the University of Findlay got the starting nod over senior Jordan Sigalet, who made 50 saves over 65 minutes and earned a tie Wednesday before being outdueled by Dartmouth’s Sean Samuel in a penalty shot tiebreaker, 2-1.
Wednesday marked Sigalet’s first game action since his Dec. 11 admission of an ongoing bout with multiple sclerosis. Sigalet – who also made the all-tournament team – said he was strong enough to go again last night if needed, but intended to use the rest to get ready for the Falcons’ resumption of CCHA action against Alaska-Fairbanks next week.
Providence, meanwhile, gets a home-and-home Hockey East brace with New Hampshire for its next date, beginning Jan. 7 at Schneider Arena. Dartmouth earned the tournament title by besting Vermont, 6-3.
Greg Fennell covers Dartmouth hockey for the Valley News of West Lebanon, N.H.
