It may only be one point in October, but it could be a decisive one in February.
A late goal by Nikki Petrich gave Northeastern (1-3-1, 1-0-1 Hockey East) a 1-1 tie against Maine (3-2-1, 1-2-1) on Sunday at Alfond Arena.
“We are beginning to play a lot better when we have the puck and the girls made the right decisions in front of the net,” said Northeastern coach Laura Schuler. “I thought we were playing a pretty sound third period and I continued to tell them to stay consistent because they were following the plan we had created.”
With less than three minutes left in the third, Maine held a 1-0 lead until the Huskies were deep in the Black Bear zone. Northeastern flooded their forwards in front of the net attempting to create screens in front of goalie Lundy Day. The plan worked as Petrich received a pass from Amy Goodney to level the game at 1-1.
“Everyone was going hard and I remember Amy passing the puck to me and it was a really sweet pass,” Petrich said. “She was behind the net and went one way and brought the puck back another way.”
Then just a few seconds later, things got even more interesting as a Sonia Corriveau penalty with 1:59 left forced the Black Bears to play shorthanded for the rest of regulation. However, the disadvantage only lasted for a few seconds as a Northeastern penalty leveled the game to 4-on-4.
In overtime, the Black Bears almost found their second consecutive overtime win in as many days. A pass from Julie Poulin found Amy Quiron, whose shot was stopped by Hourihan from point-blank range.
“We figured moving the puck and getting established would help us,” said Maine coach Guy Perron. “I thought we played very well in the second period. Overall, we got three points out of the weekend. Is that great? No, but it’s better than getting none.”
After a scoreless first period, the Black Bears took the 1-0 lead in the second. With a little more than 13 minutes left in the frame on the power play, Kim Meagher set up Kate Sundstrom, who blazed down the wing to beat Northeastern netminder Marissa Hourihan.
“There was a lot of room on the ice and the girl did not step to me, and I took a shot,” Sundstrom said. “The main difference between [yesterday and today] was not getting as many quality shots and that can make all the difference in the world.”
Despite a week long conference layoff, the tie sees Northeastern improve to 1-0-1 in conference while the Black Bears are in a deadlock for third place. However, the Black Bears will not return to conference action until November as they will finish the month by facing Sacred Heart.
The Huskies will look to improve their place in Hockey East when they will face Boston University and Providence next week.
“It’s crucial to get points now, and considering we traveled far to play them, to walk out with a point is good,” said Hourihan, who made 22 saves. “The defense played so well, that sometimes it is hard to keep concentration when I only face four shots in a period.”
