At Starr Rink Saturday night, the Colgate Raiders scored two short-handed goals en route to a 6-2 win over the Brown Bears. Both goals came in the first 1:37 of the third period, completely changing the dynamics of what was a two-goal game at the second intermission.
Colgate opened up the scoring early in the game when Adam Corrin passed the puck to Sean Carty behind the goal line in the Brown zone. Carty carried the puck around the net out to the front and took a shot that was saved by Anthony Borelli. The rebound was picked up and a Nick Prockow wrist shot put the Raiders up 1-0 at 2:53.
Just under six minutes later, Brown’s Chris Zaires took a breakout pass from Devin Timberlake in the neutral zone and raced down the right side into the Colgate zone. Zaires dished the puck across to Sean McMonagle, who was trailing the rush, and McMonagle slid it under Alex Evin’s glove.
Colgate reclaimed the lead before the first period was over when Brian Day made a great play at center ice to force a Brown turnover. He lifted the stick of a Brown defenseman and chipped the puck over to Kurtis Bartliff, who skated into the zone and passed the puck over to Jason Williams, who blasted a one-timer above the glove of Borelli.
Williams was a key player in defending this lead to the end of the period. With just ten seconds left in the frame, a Brown slap shot squeaked through Evin’s five-hole and was rolling toward the net. Williams reached out and whacked the puck away just before it crossed the goal line, saving what would have been the tying goal.
There was only one goal in the second period and it came off the stick of Colgate’s Sean Carty.
Nick Prockow battled for the puck on the boards in the corner of his offensive zone. Prockow won the puck out to Brian Day, who was behind the goal line. Day came around the right side of the Brown goal and backhanded a pass out to Carty in the high slot. Carty had plenty of time and wristed a shot past the glove of Borelli, doubling the Raiders’ lead to 3-1 at 3:16.
Colgate’s Corbin McPherson took a hooking penalty with three seconds remaining in the second and Brown went into the final period with a carry-over power play.
It was Colgate, however, who capitalized — twice.
Brown set up its power play effort in the Colgate zone. Colgate’s Jeremy Price intercepted a dump-in pass from the Brown defense and sped through the neutral zone on a three-on-one break. He skated toward the goal and at the last second, passed it across to Day, who tipped the puck over the left pad of Borelli.
“It was a horrible way to start the third period,” said Brown coach Brendan Whittet. “At that point, the game was over.”
Just 45 seconds later, still short-handed, Jason Williams took the puck away from Brown and passed it over to Ethan Cox. The two went down on a two-on-one rush and Cox sent a behind-the-back pass to Williams, who shot it in high glove side, chasing Borelli from the game. Michael Clemente took his place in net.
“(The short-handed goals) were the result of hard work and two forced turnovers by our penalty killers,” commented Colgate coach Don Vaughan. “We battled. That’s what creates the bounces; we worked really hard.”
Brown got one goal back midway through the third period on a power play and pulled their goalie to get a six-on-four advantage. Aaron Volpatti took a shot that Harry Zolnierczyk deflected through the five-hole of Evin.
Colgate answered minutes later with a power-play goal of its own. Wade Poplawski passed the puck to co-captain David McIntyre, who skated towards the goal and put a shot on net that Clemente saved. Robbie Bourdon was waiting for the rebound out in front. He forced it through at 13:13, putting Colgate up 6-2.
Tuesday night, February 16th, Colgate (12-12-5, 9-7-1) will host rival Cornell at 7 p.m. The Raiders travel to Dartmouth and Harvard next weekend. Brown (7-15-3, 5-10-3) will look to regroup with home games against Clarkson and St. Lawrence.
