UAA Athletics

Officially, UAA hockey team earns tie -- but gets the elation of an extra point

There was exhilaration early, agony late, elation even later, and in the end, the euphoria of the group hockey hug.

The Seawolves covered the emotional gamut Friday night in Houghton, Michigan, where officially they earned a 3-3 tie with No. 20-ranked Michigan Tech and seized the extra point in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association standings on captain Matt Anholt's strike in 3-on-3 overtime.

They did so behind 45 saves from fifth-year senior goaltender Rasmus Reijola, who got his first start since Nov. 4 – he was strafed that night and got the hook. That furnished No. 1 masked man Olivier Mantha a rest after 15 consecutive starts.

UAA for the first time this season has earned at least a point in three straight games. The Seawolves were coming off a tie and victory at home last week against Ferris State.

The success kept them three points out of eighth place in the 10-team league with 18 points in 17 games. UAF and Lake Superior State, which are tied for seventh, each have 21 points in 17 games. Both of those clubs, like UAA, won Friday in 3-on-3 OT to secure two points – the Nanooks prevailed at Ferris State and Lake Superior got the extra point at last-place Northern Michigan.

UAA is 5-14-4 overall and 3-9-4 in the WCHA, and it has gone 4-0-2 in its last six Friday games. Second-place Michigan Tech is 14-9-4 overall and 11-3-4 in the WCHA entering Saturday night's series finale against the Seawolves.

The Seawolves rode a rollercoaster to the finish at MacInnes Student Ice Arena – a 2-0 lead, a 3-2 deficit with 74 ticks left in regulation, a 3-3 tie with 24.9 seconds remaining in regulation, a couple dicey moments in five minutes of 5-on-5 OT and, finally, Anholt's roofed wrister midway through 3-on-3.

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"The guys played a gritty game on the road,'' UAA coach Matt Thomas said by text. "They never got rattled and kept playing hard. Rasmus was great.

"The guys did a good job letting him settle in and feel pucks from a long ways out early. He played very composed and did a great job.''

UAA never trailed until Huskies defenseman Matt Roy scored on a one-timer from the right point shortly after the Huskies' power play expired. That gave Michigan Tech a 3-2 lead.

A Michigan Tech penalty with 56 seconds left in regulation, coupled with Reijola's exit in favor of an extra attacker, gave the Seawolves a 6-on-4 advantage in the final minute. Junior winger Austin Azurdia, whose only other goal this season came into an empty net, banged home a rebound of Jarrett Brown's shot to forge a 3-3 tie and push the game to extra time.

The Huskies outshot the Seawolves 6-0 in five minutes of 5-on-5, but Reijola rebuffed Reid Sturos' wraparound bid and his rebound to help guarantee UAA at least one point.

In the WCHA, a winning team in 5-on-5 OT earns three points and a victory and the losing team gets nothing but sorrow. When a game reaches a second five-minute OT, played 3-on-3, the winner gets two points, the loser gets one and they both get a tie.

Anholt secured the extra point when Tad Kozun nudged the puck up the middle of the ice and Anholt won a race against Roy, who tried to lift Anholt's stick. Huskies goalie Angus Redmond (26 saves) arguably could have raced out of his net to play the puck before Anholt's arrival. But Redmond remained in his net and Anholt flicked a wrister over his blocker.

Reijola had not played since he surrendered three goals on eight shots against Alabama-Huntsville and was pulled in UAA's eventual 5-2 loss more than two months ago.

His teammates gave him a cushion on Mason Mitchell's breakaway backhander through Redmond's pads late in the first period and defenseman Tanner Johnson's one-timer from the right point 13 seconds into the second period. Johnson's goal came after a miscommunication behind the net between Redmond and a teammate.

The Huskies, who entered with three straight WCHA wins, generated a 2-2 tie with a pair of second-period goals, neither of which Reijola could do much about.

Jake Lucchini's goal came after Joel L'Esperance's shot hit the skate of Seawolves defenseman David Trinkberger and ricocheted to Lucchini in the right circle. Michael Neville's roofed backhander – he was in alone on Reijola — came after a UAA turnover in its own zone.

With the game tied in the waning seconds of the second period and Michigan Tech on the power play, Reijola ranged right-to-left to stone Jake Jackson on the back door. With just 1.8 seconds left before intermission, he stacked his pads to snuff L'Esperance's point-blank bid.

Midway through the third period, Reijola delivered a huge stop on Neville's deflection.

Seawolves notes

Mitchell's goal was his team-leading sixth, and his fourth in the last five games. His two-point game was his first multiple-point game this season and the fourth of the sophomore winger's career.

Kozun's two assists marked his fourth multiple-point game this season and the ninth of the junior winger's career.

Azurdia's power-play goal gives the Seawolves a power-play goal in three straight games for the first time this season.

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UAA is 4-0-2 when it scores first.

UAA      1  1  1  0   —  3

MTU      0  2  1  0  —  3

First Period – 1, UAA, Mitchell 6 (Kozun, Nicholas), 18:08. Penalties – Roy, MTU (roughing), 4:49; J. Renouf, UAA (tripping), 6:08.

Second Period – 2, UAA, Johnson 2 (Mitchell), :13; 3, MTU, Lucchini 8 (L'Esperance, Gould), 7:08; 4, MTU, Neville (Sturos), 16:01. Penalties – Birks, MTU (hooking), 1:37; Duwe, UAA (tripping), 11:30; L'Esperance, MTU (slashing), 13:22; Azurdia, UAA (tripping), 18:58; L'Esperance, MTU, major-game misconduct, served by Anderson (grabbing the facemask), 19:58; Lucchini, MTU (roughing), 19:58; Roberts, UAA (roughing), 19:58; Kozun, UAA (roughing), 19:58.

Third Period – 5, MTU, Roy 3 (Neville, Leibinger), 18:46; 6, UAA, Azurdia 2 (Brown, Kozun), 19:35 (pp-ea). Penalties – Rygaard, UAA (cross-checking), 9:09; Leiberger, MTU (interference), 19:04.

Overtime – None. Penalties – None.

(UAA earns extra point on Matt Anholt goal in 3-on-3 OT)

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Shots on goal – UAA 7-12-11-0—30. MTU 8-15-19-6—48.

Power-play Opportunities – UAA 1 of 5. MTU 0 of 5.

Goalies – UAA, Reijola, 0-2-1 (48 shots-45 saves). MTU, Redmond, 13-4-2 (30 shots-27 saves).

A – 2,736 (4,466). T – 2:30.

Referees – Tommy Albindia, Ross Gibbs. Assistant referees – Dan Juopperi, Ryan Gordon.

 

Doyle Woody

Doyle Woody covered hockey and other sports for the Anchorage Daily News for 34 years.

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